Summerfair Cincinnati earned a top spot on a recent list of the most profitable art and craft festivals in the country.
The longstanding festival finished No. 4 in the “Fine Art & Design” category on this year’s “200 Best” list by “Sunshine Artist” magazine. There’s also a “Classic & Contemporary Craft” category for events that focus on traditional or modern craft and production work.
To determine the rankings, the publication asked artists to cast votes from February through April, nominating their highest money-making shows from the previous year. Artists list the 10 most profitable art and/or craft shows where they exhibited, indicate their level of gross sales at each event and note whether they considered themselves fine artists or craftspeople for each event.
The publication based the rankings on artists’ reported sales in 2023.
“Sunshine Artist” focuses solely on artists’ show revenue because that is the most objective indicator of a show’s future success. Subjective attributes, such as artist treatment, amenities, attendance levels, management, and overall quality, can impact sales but are harder to gauge and have no direct bearing on the rankings.
The magazine tabulates results using a weighted scale based on four sales levels to ensure all events competed against each other fairly.
Information about all the winners is available in the August/September issue of “Sunshine Artist” and online.
Founded in 1968, Summerfair Cincinnati has grown into the region’s largest fine art and craft shows. The three-day event has taken place at Coney Island since 1985.
The event returned to the site of Coney Island once again in late May and early June for its annual fine art and craft festival. Moving forward, it’s not yet clear where the event will take place moving forward following the closure of the park.
The 2025 event will take place May 30 through June 1. Additional details will be available early next week.
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