The Book Biz

Baltimore Book Fair (Belatedly [Very])

Brian Cassidy

Finally got around to uploading a small group of photos from last September's Baltimore Book Fair, where I exhibited and which takes place in conjunction with the Summer Antiques Fair. You can see the photos on Flickr with my annotations. It's a great fair. Set-up (as you can see in the photos) was a snap. Load-out was a bit of a cluster-f$&%, with long lines to both get into the Convention Center and (once there) to unload. Ian and I agreed that next year we'll just pack up and go straight to dinner, waiting to load-out once the back-log has cleared. Much more civilized. The fair draws about 60 dealers, with a good mix of established dealers (Ken Lopez, Between the Covers, Royal Books) and smaller, more regional dealers. And because so much of the fair is dedicated to antiques and fine art, the crowds were strong despite the economy. That said, sales at least for me - and most dealers I spoke to - were soft. Since I don't have to travel far, this is a relatively cheap fair for me to do, so I did okay. I also bought some great material at the fair, and had at least two good collections come my way via a couple of civilians who sauntered into the booth asking if I might be interested in their books. So on the whole, a good fair. I've already put down my deposit for next year.

Finally got around to uploading a small group of photos from last September’s Baltimore Book Fair, where I exhibited and which takes place in conjunction with the Summer Antiques Fair. You can see the photos on Flickr with my annotations.

It’s a great fair. Set-up (as you can see in the photos) was a snap. Load-out was a bit of a cluster-f$&%, with long lines to both get into the Convention Center and (once there) to unload. Ian and I agreed that next year we’ll just pack up and go straight to dinner, waiting to load-out once the back-log has cleared. Much more civilized.

The fair draws about 60 dealers, with a good mix of established dealers (Ken Lopez, Between the Covers, Royal Books) and smaller, more regional dealers. And because so much of the fair is dedicated to antiques and fine art, the crowds were strong despite the economy. That said, sales at least for me – and most dealers I spoke to – were soft. Since I don’t have to travel far, this is a relatively cheap fair for me to do, so I did okay. I also bought some great material at the fair, and had at least two good collections come my way via a couple of civilians who sauntered into the booth asking if I might be interested in their books. So on the whole, a good fair. I’ve already put down my deposit for next year.