Artist and Crafter Policies for the 2024 Vandergrift Artfest
Applications for Artists and Crafters will open on January 10, 2024. The first round of acceptance emails will be sent out on February 12th. The acceptance email will contain a link to make payment for the booth space and request an arrival time. Your booth space is not guaranteed until we receive your payment. We will continue to accept applications, and send out acceptance messages, until our spaces are filled. As you will see in the application below, we will limit the number of spaces available in various categories of art and crafts. Therefore your acceptance will be based upon when we receive your application, and the type of product that you create. Because this is an art festival, those reselling products made by someone else, or MLM vendors will not be accepted.
This year’s Neverland themed Artfest will take place on Sunday, July 28 from noon to 9 pm. Artists and vendors must be present for the duration of Artfest. In the case of severe weather, the Artfest Director may make the decision to close the festival. In the case of a personal emergency, please see a festival representative in the information booth if you need to vacate your space early.
We have approximately 70 spaces available on Grant and Farragut Avenues (the main street), and an additional 30 spaces on Columbia Avenue (adjacent to the stage and food trucks.) Early registrants will be given priority for Grant and Farragut Avenues. Because of the popularity of the festival, this year’s event will only provide single spaces so that we can welcome as many artists as possible. The Vandergrift Market Building will not be available for spaces this year, thus all artist/vendor spaces are outdoors. Your space will accommodate a 10X10 pop up tent. You must provide your own cover, table, chairs and other needed equipment. Access to electricity will not be available. Vendors will be assigned based on arrival time preference and date of reservation completion. We will also try to make sure that vendors with the same product types are spread out.
We will be changing our arrival procedures a little this year. Each accepted vendor will be assigned an arrival time based on their assigned BLOCK. Specific booth numbers will not be provided, rather, you will be assigned to a block of approximately 20 vendors. At the designated arrival time, we will fill in the individual spaces within the block in the order in which vehicles are arriving to unload. We’ve had issues with empty booth spaces in the middle of the layout due to late arrivals, and so this new plan will eliminate that issue. If you want to be next to another vendor, it will be up to you to arrive to the unloading zone TOGETHER (as in one vehicle behind the other) and we will then make sure that you are in adjacent booth spaces. Unloading times for the blocks will be 8 am to 8:30 am, 8:45 to 9:15 am, and 9:30 am to 10 am. Vendors must do a quick unload and then move their vehicles to the nearby vendor parking area. You will be provided with a parking pass for ONE space in that parking lot. At the end of the day artists and vendors will be dismissed by sections by Artfest staff. Generally, load out is completed within one hour of festival close.
All fire codes, laws, ordinances, and regulations will be strictly observed. Nothing shall be affixed to public property. Vendors must provide a method to securely anchor their tent/display in case of inclement weather and wind. Weights of at least 40 pounds are suggested. Our Artfest Safety Coordinator will conduct a safety check at start of day.
Vendors are to sell only those items listed on their application and approved by the Artfest. Non-compliance will result in removal from the festival. Please remember that this is an Artfest that celebrates makers, and products must be created by the vendor. Food and beverage for immediate consumption may only be sold by authorized food vendors.
Sales of raffle tickets or games of chance are only permitted if pre-approved by Artfest. Those requesting to do a raffle must provide proof of small games license and proceeds must benefit a non-profit organization.
Artfest Committee will select and limit the vendors selling like products of arts, crafts, merchandise, food, or beverage. Please list all that you plan to sell on this application.
Those working in vendor booths are to conduct themselves in a professional manner at all times. No tolerance will be given to those who interfere with the operation of another vendor's space.
Material of a mature subject matter may be asked to be removed from public display at the discretion of the Artfest Committee. Vandergrift Artfest is not responsible to damage of person or property of vendors participating in Artfest.
Registrants cancelling their reservation prior to June 30, 2024 will be provided with a full refund minus a $5 cancellation fee.
Insurance Requirements for Artists and Non-Food Vendors
For the first time last year, we made the difficult decision to comply with the advice given to us by legal and insurance experts in requiring that proof of liability insurance be provided by all of our participants. We know that this was distressing for some of you who do very few festivals. For those who do not have year-round liability insurance for their art business, we are still working to find the most affordable option possible to provide you with a one-day policy to make sure that we are in compliance with Vandergrift Borough Guidelines.
If you are an artist or vendor who does more than 3 – 4 shows per year, we strongly encourage you to consider an annual liability policy. This takes the worry out of being sued because your tent has blown in the wind or injured someone, or because your chair gets knocked over and breaks products in your neighboring artisan’s booth. If you opt to go with an annual policy, you will also have some coverage for loss of your personal products/art in the case of a storm or the like. The State Farm Insurance Office in Vandergrift has put together an annual policy to offer local artists that can be paid for monthly, at a cost of around $25 per month. Such a plan is the best option to protect yourself and others. Call them at (724) 567-1555 to learn more or to register. Similar plans may be available through other agents. Simply tell your agent that you are looking for an annual policy for artists attending festivals that will provide liability coverage and some coverage for loss or damage to your inventory. There are many paths to securing the needed insurance coverage. If you have homeowners or renter’s insurance, you may contact your insurance agent to discuss adding coverage for your festival work to your plan. Depending on what you make and sell, this might be the most affordable option.
If you prefer to purchase coverage for just one day, we will assist you in that process as part of your registration. As stated earlier, we are still in conversation with insurance agents to determine what level of coverage is required and what the exact cost will be for each vendor in need of insurance. Even though these requirements feel challenging, we are committed to providing a safe and responsible Artfest for all involved.
How much is registration going to be this year?
Because this insurance issue remains up in the air (again), final pricing will be provided when you receive your registration link after your application has been accepted.
1. We can guarantee that a booth space for an artist/vendor able to provide proof of their own liability insurance will again be $50
2. We are doing everything that we can to once again be able to make a booth space AND a one-day liability policy available to those who do not have insurance for $75, but there is a possibility that number will need to increase to $80. Again, we are doing everything that we can to minimize that number for you. We will have that final number available when we send out your acceptance email and registration/payment link.
3. Regardless of whether an applicant is insured or uninsured, an additional $25 fee will be added to registration fees for applications and registrations received after June 1. So make sure that you apply early AND submit that payment with the registration form before this rate increase.
For questions, please visit our Facebook page for the Vandergrift Artfest and message us. We look forward to welcoming you to Neverland!