Grinds my gears - Lack of respect for your Table

[marikotoeii]

I was recently a Guest Artist at a local anime con and ran into this situation about 10 times throughout the weekend:

Have you ever been sitting at your table and have it clearly covered in your things and your display only to have passers by dump their trash on your table, use your table as their own personal writing space, carelessly horse around and run into and break or upset your display?

Well a little bit of ALL of these things happened to me at a local anime con this weekend.

It was REALLY frustrating! I had people roughhousing with my artwork (Grabbing comics, bending them and "fanning themselves" with my work.

There was a serious lack of respect for the fact that :"
#1: This is my artwork
#2: This is my personal space
#3: This is not FREE stuff!

I have ONLY had this happen to me at anime cons. I have been to comic book shows and other events and have never had people be so rude/clueless/obnoxious.

Is there anyone who has been through similar stuff?

How do you deal with it? Do you confront the offenders head on?

It was shameful that more than twice I had to say "Excuse me, but I am a guest artist and right now youre infringing on my display"

I just think that people get way TOO excited and they forget basic manners.

its unfortunate because I have found this leads to damages up to and including theft, which also happened to me this weekend.

Anyone else have any advice on this?

[MerchMaven]

While working at a major chain bookstore, I saw:

-People standing on stacks of books.
-People sitting on stacks of books.
-People piling up expensive hardcovers to hold their drippy Dunkin' Doughnuts coffee cup
-People folding books over so that they can hold them in one hand (destroying the spine)
-A person mopping up a spilled container of juice with a stuffed animal, and then handing that to me with a breezy, "Oh, we don't want to buy this."
-People who let their kids fill the sticker books/color in the coloring books before putting them back on the shelf.

I don't think being a 'guest artist' should factor into it. Everyone deserves respect, no matter if they're invited guests or paying AA members. I've always gone with a polite, but firm, "I am hoping to sell that, and I can't if it's damaged. Let me tell you more about (item in person's hand)."

Most people aren't deliberately destructive, they just sometimes get so comfortable in their favorite place (bookstore, con, video game store) that they fall into the same patterns of behavior that they would at home. So the line between 'your stuff' and 'my stuff' gets blurry for the average attendee.

[Blitzava]

I do anime cons and I do furry cons *dodges tomatos*. Furry cons, never have a problem with table respect. It's an art based community, artists are treated as gods and with the greatest respect 99.9% of the time. Occassionally have the creeper or crazy fan who won't leave me alone but the security group that does a lot of the popular furry cons is REALLY good about correcting that...

Anime cons however....I ONLY do animeboston now and ONLY because it's local.

I've had people pick up one of my pairs of clay earrings, put them on the table and slam their fist down on them then laugh about how they were "quality testing" (note: my stuff is hand sculpted and ONE OF A KIND, that and my earrings are not designed to be punched, they're supposed to hang from ears). I've also had people do that to my keychains (which are also OOAK and handsculpted, but designed to not break and so far I haven't had an issue with one actually breaking...but who does that anyway?)

I had a person sit on my table and flip it forward launching my entire table and display on the floor, they then proceeded to walk away and stepped on ALL of my clay sculptures (thank god I mostly had keychains on the table)

I had a person I let borrow some super glue to repair a part of a costume glue set the uncapped tube on the table and destroyed my table cloth

At AB I've had all sorts of things (the "quality testing" has happened there A LOT -_-). I had a person try to walk away with a handful of keychains, I had a person set an icecream cone with icecream on it's side in my open binder of original drawings, I had a person rip a page out of one of my personal sketchbooks to write down another random person's phone number on (the page had a sketch on it). I've had people throw things, people get VERY hostile when I don't have any fanart from their favorite series (I don't really do much fanart), had a cosplayer take out my display and continue on like nothing happened....I've had people who literally park in front of my table and block it from view....

There's a reason I only do ONE anime convention....furries may have a bad reputation but they don't deserve it compared to anime fans....I'm NEVER surprised what they do at this point....never had a theft at a furry con, never had an intentional breakage at a furry con (and the time it did happen the person offered to pay for the damage). I've been to more furry cons as a seller than I can count. I've been to around 5 anime cons...

[Kogarashi]

Wow. And the worst I've ever gotten at anime cons has only been the people inconsiderately blocking the table, either because they stopped to have a family reunion right in front of me (had that happen at AAC this weekend, actually, but it broke up before I had to ask them to please move), or because they were waiting to look at the insanely popular stuff at the space next to me (AB2010). No thefts, vandalism, breakage, etc. Thank goodness.

Hmm...maybe we should put together an Alley Etiquette guide for attendees, either as a panel or an insert for the con bag? That might help a little, at least.

[Tuberat]

Blitzava - YEGADS!!!!!!

Kogarashi - we DID put one in there. one of which was " Do not bring food or drink in the Alley. if you have it, keep it stashe away. Artists are within their rights to demand payment for any damaged products caused by your carelessness" Or something along the lines of that.

i'm seriously thinking that artists should start snapping pictures of the offenders in question IN the offense. sure, you're first instinct is to just get them to stop and leave - but they can always come back and do it again or move on to the next person. we want ot STOP them. and we can't if we can't identify the perseon or have proof that they're doing something awful.

i have to say that i'm wth kogarashi - i've very rarely had any other issues then crowding. most people actually "ASK" me if they can put something down on my table just for a minute.

I've never seen such a lack of respect as michelle and jamien are describing and this is horrifying to me! There're always bad eggs in a crowd, but this is ridiculous!

[marikotoeii]

I think the over all thing is that now people are treating the artist alley as a "hang out" and not a place for looking at and buying art etc.

here are some things we could do to maybe help this:

1.) Have 3 or 4 posters on the way to Artist Alley Illustrating the Dos and donts:

--No Horseplay
--No Food
---No Photos without consent

2.) If we could get some more security people walking through AA, "ejecting" or moving along people who are just loitering in the walkways or horsing around.

I think if we coukd get a greater staff presence in the AA halls, then people might think twice about being idiots.

I do agree that no one's table should be mucked with this way, but it just kinda was like a big WTF moment for me when as a guest the attendees didnt respect my display or know hwo I was.

I guess its like someone running up and glomping greg ayres. its awkward no matter who gets the glomp, but him being a guest makes it a bit more improper.

something along those lines.

and i am considering furry cons.. (lots of transgender people are furries too) I am also only doing anime cons that are close to me for the simple fact that anime fans in general do not spend as much on original art and have become very obnoxious as of late.

I dont think they mean to be so rude they are just out of control.

[Eilonnwy]

[quote=Tuberat]

i'm seriously thinking that artists should start snapping pictures of the offenders in question IN the offense. sure, you're first instinct is to just get them to stop and leave - but they can always come back and do it again or move on to the next person. we want ot STOP them. and we can't if we can't identify the perseon or have proof that they're doing something awful.
[/quote]

That or flag down security or staff right away. We can't help with problems if we don't know about them, and we unfortunately can't be everywhere at once to make sure attendees are always acting appropriately. The more you report to us at the time of the incident, the better chance we can actually do something about it.

Blitzava - The quality control tests are something you should demand payment for, and if they refuse, get security/staff and if they don't pay they can likely be ejected from the con.

[FluffC]

[quote=SciFiGrl47]
-A person mopping up a spilled container of juice with a stuffed animal, and then handing that to me with a breezy, "Oh, we don't want to buy this."
[/quote]

...That makes me sad

Also, Blitzava's "quality testing"... seriously. Just... why. What would make someone think that's ok? Really...

[MerchMaven]

[quote=FluffC][quote=SciFiGrl47]
-A person mopping up a spilled container of juice with a stuffed animal, and then handing that to me with a breezy, "Oh, we don't want to buy this."
[/quote]

...That makes me sad

Also, Blitzava's "quality testing"... seriously. Just... why. What would make someone think that's ok? Really...[/quote]

My examples were trying to point out that it isn't just con attendees, it's the general population. And my examples were a very small percentage of the population over a long time working retail. Most people might not have been particularly careful, but they were not particularly destructive, either.

In Artist Alley, I've had more people reluctant to touch my stuff than I have had people try to destroy it. The boxes I decorate sometimes stick, and rather than try to force them open, people will put them aside or decide that they don't open at all. I did have one person almost take out our display with a huge prop, and she walked off as if nothing had happened. I think this is kind of like people who hit another car in a parking lot and keep driving. It's not right, they know it's not right, but it's human nature to try to get away without being embarrassed or financially penalized for a dumb mistake.

Ain't saying it's right, I'm just saying that they are the small minority of the population, and in any professional capacity, you should get used to jerks not taking your hard work seriously. 8)

[marikotoeii]

I definately can agree to that.. but the thing is it seems like anime con attendees treat artist alleys like they are their own personal bouncy castles sometimes!

i just wish there was more people coming into the alley to actually look at our stuff instead of loiter and horse around.

[SailorAstera]

Sounds like some of you have had much more harrowing experiences than I. The worst I've had is a few stolen key chains and the occasional (usually once a con) person complaining my prices are too high. ^_^;

[Kogarashi]

[quote=Eilonnwy][quote=Tuberat]

i'm seriously thinking that artists should start snapping pictures of the offenders in question IN the offense. sure, you're first instinct is to just get them to stop and leave - but they can always come back and do it again or move on to the next person. we want ot STOP them. and we can't if we can't identify the perseon or have proof that they're doing something awful.
[/quote]

That or flag down security or staff right away. We can't help with problems if we don't know about them, and we unfortunately can't be everywhere at once to make sure attendees are always acting appropriately. The more you report to us at the time of the incident, the better chance we can actually do something about it. [/quote]

I'll second both. Snap a picture, then immediately try to flag down security. Sometimes you can't find security fast enough and the culprit gets away, hence taking the picture first. And with cameras on 99.9% of cellphones these days, it shouldn't be hard to get a quick picture of offenders.

Extra security patrols could help, if there's the manpower to do so. Of course, this assumes that the aisles would be clear enough for security to go through frequently. I remember from last year that there were times traffic was at a standstill because of crowds at the tables, so security would be busy in those instances encouraging everyone to move.

I honestly think the best way to solve this would be the artists helping with the policing a bit more. Asking people not to block tables, asking people to watch where they're swinging their props, snapping photos of destructive con-goers and flagging down security about it, reporting unacceptable behavior as soon as it happens instead of after the weekend.... I'm willing to help keep an eye out if everyone else is. Sort of our own version of Neighborhood Watch, no?

[Tuberat]

[quote=Eilonnwy][quote=Tuberat]

i'm seriously thinking that artists should start snapping pictures of the offenders in question IN the offense. sure, you're first instinct is to just get them to stop and leave - but they can always come back and do it again or move on to the next person. we want ot STOP them. and we can't if we can't identify the perseon or have proof that they're doing something awful.
[/quote]

That or flag down security or staff right away. We can't help with problems if we don't know about them, and we unfortunately can't be everywhere at once to make sure attendees are always acting appropriately. The more you report to us at the time of the incident, the better chance we can actually do something about it.

[/quote]

Well, the reason i suggested photographing is that there may NOT be a staff member or security person on hand at the moment of the event. then how do you report it? how does that person get 'caught'?

what good does it do to report it (other than flood the place for the next hour looking for the jerk, making it impossible for said jerk to repeat his/her idiocy/carelessness/what-have-you) if the person who committed the 'crime' has already booked it?

I'm willing to take suggestions though, i'm just wondering what i'm missing here. i can agree with an overall bigger staff presence - i had no idea the level of idiocy going on in there.

we'll have to see about new signage as well. i'll have to talk to the sign people and see what can be done with our current setup/budget/allotment.

[Tuberat]

this, this is sorta what i had in mind - we've already attempted to work out some of the traffic issues, though that cannot be solved entirely (people just randomly stopping for reunions or what have you) and exactly - if people don't tell me whats going on, i can't do anything about it (like the signs and bigger staff presence), but also like i said - the picture and then security, so we've got a better chance of catching that person....

kathy and i have already started discussing the banning of big props as well...

[marikotoeii]

i think if every so often (like ever hour maybe?) We had someone walking through I guess "flushing" out the alley for people loitering / blocking traffic?

OR the con as a whole could establish certain areas as "HANG OUTs"?

I am not going to be shy anymore about speaking out to offenders.

[Tina]

[quote=SciFiGrl47]I don't think being a 'guest artist' should factor into it. Everyone deserves respect, no matter if they're invited guests or paying AA members.[/quote]

THIS TIMES LIKE 1 BILLION.

Guest or not, everyone should be treated with respect in the Alley and as an attendee at the con. Marikotoeii , not "knowing who you are" isn't really disrespect. They really just don't know who you were, which shouldn't be that hard to understand.

I would hope someone dive bombing attacking me with an unwanted hug would be just as wrong as someone doing that to a Guest at the convention. I would hope we would all get the same amount of respect from fellow con-goers.

Also, if anyone is messing with my items or display, I am just really forward and tell them to stop. They're not going to realize that they're acting inappropriately unless you tell them they are and to stop. I think people get caught up in the moment at cons and forget their good manners.

[marikotoeii]

you can have your opinion, but to me, if I have worked really hard to get to the point of being acknoledged as a guest artist, it just adds insult to injury when people disrespect my table and my stuff.

im not saying that it is LESS WRONG when people do it to other artists.

it makes me just as mad when it happens at places where I am not a guest, but the fact that it happened when I was just made me extra pissed.

And its not that I am pissed because they dont know who I am. I am pissed that they stole my stuff, dumped garbage on my table, and completely had total disregard for my space.

its like there was no regard for the fact that "oh someone was showing their work here"

i just think its really obnoxious that these kids act this way with no regaurd for the hard work that ANYONE does on their stuff.


and often tiems at smaller cons you still have to *pay* your way for the record

[FluffC]

Oh... I was saying that made me sad because I love stuffed animals (._.) I wouldn't want to see one being treated like that D: ... OFFFFF TOPIC but anyway~

[Tina]

[quote=marikotoeii]you can have your opinion, but to me, if I have worked really hard to get to the point of being acknoledged as a guest artist, it just adds insult to injury when people disrespect my table and my stuff.[/quote]

However, it doesn't mean you can pretend to be better than everyone else and deserve more respect. Just sayin'.

If someone puts an ice cream cone on my print display, I would hope it would be the same offense and putting an ice cream cone on YOUR SUPER GUEST PRINT DISPLAY.

It sounds like you need to speak up when someone is at your table acting like a weirdo. Someone puts an ice cream cone on my artwork, they're going to be wearing that ice cream cone. I mean, I will tell them to dispose of their frozen dairy treat and clean up the mess.

[marikotoeii]

i think youre blowing things way out of context here.

i am saying that I (Me not your feelings but my own) was offended when I was a guest artist at a local con and bad stuff happened at my table.

i have already clarified that I am not saying when ti happens to anyone else it is any less bad.

in fact i brought this whole subject to light here so that we can try to find ways to help this to NOT happen to ANYBODY.

I have been doing this for a long time and I dont appreciate your insinuations one bit.

This is what happened to me and yes, it made me more mad becasue at this particular con I was a guest. It wouldve made me mad if I wasnt either.

And there are plenty of people who had it happen to them who are not guests.

I am not, as you claim, trying to say i am "special"

I am merely pointing out that to ME, (again I am speaking of myself my own feelings which i am entitled to) having that happen when I was a Guest Artist, after putting out the hard work and networking and all the other stuff you need to do to get to that point at these conventions, felt more upset about the lack of respect for my table.

I dont think anyone would have felt positive about that experience.


And if you'll check your posts it wasnt I who had ice cream on my table.

[Tina]

LOL, yer funny.

[quote=marikotoeii]i have already clarified that I am not saying when ti happens to anyone else it is any less bad.[/quote]

Yeah, I saw after that you edited your reply to me to make it clear you "don't think you're better than anyone else" even though you are guest and had to work hard to be a guest and should get respect based on that.

I didn't feel like pretending and fixing my post. I wrote what I wrote and that was it. Sorry, you didn't get the ice cream cone treatment. It was merely an example. I will be more careful in the future with my ice cream cone references to steer clear of any confusion.

You just kept bringing up the "I'm a guest, so blah blah" in like every post. I just didn't think it should make a difference, you just keep falling back on it.

[quote=marikotoeii]I am merely pointing out that to ME, (again I am speaking of myself my own feelings which i am entitled to) having that happen when I was a Guest Artist, after putting out the hard work and networking and all the other stuff you need to do to get to that point at these conventions, felt more upset about the lack of respect for my table.
[/quote]

See?

And I was at AAC this weekend. No one disrespected my table like you were saying happened to yours. Maybe it was because you had a corner table and traffic got caught up there, but you definitely need to be outspoken when people are messing with your artwork or books. It's more productive than whining about it later. You have to be straight forward to the offenders and stop it then and there. It is most effective and doesn't require the con to staff the room more and make cleaning traffic sweeps. In general, most con-goers are awesome people and will stop behavior if you ask nicely. I've never had a problem.

[marikotoeii]

Attacking me and my feelings, which are my own and I have a right to, isnt the point of the issue.

Yes I was on a corner and yes I did have a lot of stuff happen to my things.

I edit my posts to make sure I am able to concisely get my points across.

The point is that I dont like the way people treated my table, and from what other people said this is a common issue.

So instead of using your time to attack me, why dont you spend it thinking of ways to stop these issues?

[marikotoeii]

I dont understand why you are so bitter about it. Yes I worked hard - put a lot into my artwork and networking.. and when you work hard and pursue something you get acknowledgement for your work.

I am not going to apologize for working hard and getting up to snuff to be asked to be a guest artist. I dont think anyone who has should. And there is something to be said when you work really hard, get acknowledged for it, and then your work gets disrespected.

[Tina]

I do stop these issues. I tell the people horsing around my table to stop.

And guess what?

They stop.



And sorry I attacked your feelings. I didn't mean to attack your feelings of that you're a Guest at a small anime con, you should get more respect than everyone else. You sure are entitled to your own opinion and feelings.

[quote=marikotoeii]
I am not going to apologize for working hard and getting up to snuff to be asked to be a guest artist. I dont think anyone who has should. And there is something to be said when you work really hard, get acknowledged for it, and then your work gets disrespected.
[/quote]

There is no one in any Artist Alley that did not work hard to be there. Everyone pours their heart into the artwork they display. Everyone's artwork should be treated with respect.

[Faceman]

Let's all play nice. It's super happy fun time!!!

Right?


RIGHT? }:|

[marikotoeii]

Apparently you are intent on making this about me and not about the issue at hand.

I am talking about my self and you are intent on passing judgement that I am saying none of you work hard.

I think I have clarified where I stand on these points enough and I am hoping that the Anime Boston Staff will look into ways to lessen the occurance of these things.

[Tina]

RIGHT!

[MerchMaven]

Please keep things out of flaming territory, it's against AB policy, and Nikki runs a tight ship, so let's respect her hard work by not letting things get out of hand.

I was at AAC too, and while it is a young crowd, I saw more good than bad in the way myself and my tablemates were treated, let alone our work. So let's focus on the positive.

How can we assist our fellow artists in keeping the alley safe for ourselves and our buyers? Security patrols, higher staff presence, clearly posted rules, use of cameras and cell phones to discourage problem people are all good ideas.

Can anyone else think of more? I wonder if it would be possible to get a cheap "Pay as you go" cell phone for the AA staff to use, that way none of the staffers have to give out personal info, but help could be requested no matter where you are in the alley.

[marikotoeii]

Making sure that there is ample room at the corners could decrease a lot of traffic bumping into displays.

[SailorAstera]

I never thought to keep my cell handy for photographing offenders but it's a pretty good idea! I know some of the trouble I've had in the past can be remedied by simply changing how my table is set up. This year at AAC I had a very small space so I found that people were often writing on top of my art work (T__T) so I moved the originals off to the side and put the informational stuff (didn't care if they wrote on it) in the middle. About half way through I noticed it looked like a few keychains might have walked away, so I moved them to the back of the table where it would be harder for someone to slip them off without me noticing.

It's all about being alert, paying attention, and seeing trouble before it happens. If someone is carrying a big cup of slurpy and they are about to place it down on your art, you gotta be there to stop them. That's certainly why it's handy to be at a table next to a friend or have an assistant. More eyes are always more effective.

Still sorry to hear that so many people have had so much trouble though. I know that AB has done a lot for artists the last few years to make sure we are secure and that the alley runs smoothly. I know I was super impressed last year which is why I'm stoked about going back!

Hopefully we can all work together in the alley to point out things that might cause trouble and make sure we all have a successful and clean weekend. :thumbup:

[Kogarashi]

Preempting trouble is a very good start. I know I tend to keep my tiny things clipped to my display or somewhere it's obvious when someone's touching (for instance, my charms were on hooks on a sheet of cardboard right in front of me).

[quote=SciFiGrl47]I was at AAC too, and while it is a young crowd, I saw more good than bad in the way myself and my tablemates were treated, let alone our work.[/quote]

Ditto

[quote]Can anyone else think of more? I wonder if it would be possible to get a cheap "Pay as you go" cell phone for the AA staff to use, that way none of the staffers have to give out personal info, but help could be requested no matter where you are in the alley.
[/quote]

One way to get staff to the table quickly in an incident is to send assistants to fetch security while the artist stays to watch their stuff. That's one reason to have assistants, right?

Of course, we could always just have flags on sticks to wave above our tables if we need help.

[Tina]

[quote=SciFiGrl47]I was at AAC too, and while it is a young crowd, I saw more good than bad in the way myself and my tablemates were treated, let alone our work.
[/quote]

Was I at a different convention all weekend? Or was everyone's tables in the same death corner? I guess I'm talking about the end over between three dealers and the PopCult Anime booth? That area was super congested. I could barely walk over there.

I think AB did a great job last year making the aisles super wide. I just think AAC was dealing with some space issues.

Guess I got a super awesome space this year and lucked out!

[Tina]

[quote=SailorAstera]This year at AAC I had a very small space so I found that people were often writing on top of my art work (T__T) so I moved the originals off to the side and put the informational stuff (didn't care if they wrote on it) in the middle. [/quote]

I was one of the people who entered your raffle. Your table WAS tiny. There was no where to fill out the little tickets. Maybe you can solve the "writing on your stuff" problem by bringing a clipboard for the people entering your raffle to use to write on. 'Cause I totally wrote the tickets on top of your artwork.

[SailorAstera]

Haha it's okay at some point I just stopped caring because it was too hard to manage. I should never be on a space that small again, haha, hopefully. It was my own fault for not checking the table sizes before offering to share! ^_^;

That corner was pretty congested and the Artists had a TON of space in the middle that really wasn't used. I should suggest to Don that next year they give the artists a little less space and let the isles be larger Of course, now that I think about it, that would mean less tables if it was the same room T__T I can see why people have so much of a challenge with space management!

[MerchMaven]

[quote=Tina][quote=SciFiGrl47]I was at AAC too, and while it is a young crowd, I saw more good than bad in the way myself and my tablemates were treated, let alone our work.
[/quote]

Was I at a different convention all weekend? Or was everyone's tables in the same death corner? I guess I'm talking about the end over between three dealers and the PopCult Anime booth? That area was super congested. I could barely walk over there.
[/quote]

No, no, I think I was misunderstood. I had NO problems at AAC. The girl a bit further down from me did, but our table only had problems with one of my table assistants continuiously knocking things over. And in that case, it was mostly the attendees who helped us recover things from the floor.

The clipboard's a great idea, and it also allows the person filling out the raffle/commission slip to step to the side and let others look at your art. If they don't have anything to write on, they're kind of trapped directly in front of your things.

[Tina]

[quote=SciFiGrl47]No, no, I think I was misunderstood.[/quote]

Oh, I did. u.u;

[ghostfire]

I was at AAC this weekend. It was my first time attending that con, and yeah, like most of the smaller ones I've been to, the attendees are on the younger and more spastic side. I had a few people leave soda & water bottles, but only a little bit more than usual. Anime Boston tends to have an older and more respectful crowd. The worst have always been people popping their ramune bottles on my table, soaking everything. -_- One of the few ways I've found to stop this is to literally cover your whole available table space with stuff. Nothing will stop everyone, though, and I'm glad I don't work with clay or cloth.

No matter how sturdy your display is, having a corner of it hooked by someone's six foot long scythe is a disaster waiting to happen. I almost wish the artist alley had a "forking huge props" check. Not having those would also reduce the number of impromptu photo shoots in the AA, letting the attendees see more and the artists sell more.

[marikotoeii]

yes i must say i have had far less issues at ab. I actually get a great response to my work there.

i was just so frazzled over the last weekend because i just cant understand WHY they do those things in the first place.

it might be part of me becoming an old lady though... (27 next month)

But I think that we have some good ideas on how to make things better.

[egyptianruin]

I would love the big prop ban. Last year at AB someone with a 5 foot wing span almost took down my entire display. They were still wearing it walking around tight corners. Since I sell jewelry it would have been devastating and I would have had a ton of my jewelry lost of broken because of other con goers passing by.

I have had people leave trash at my table, but by accident. People would be carrying it put it down to look at something and forget. I would just throw it in my own trash bag if they did. Often times it would be other stuff besides trash they left, like items purchased or cell phones.

I have also had things stolen from me at the convention. Like retail though if you talk to the person at your table and acknowledge that you are watching them they are less likely to steal

[look]

I had people block the table constantly. Though I don't mind it too much, unless they are blocking buyers. I also don't mind if someone had put their stuff on the table briefly, as long as it won't damage the prints. Though most time ppl put down food and drinks.

I had one person spill things by accident once, ruined two prints and fled without apologizing. Other times had ppl accidentally fold the prints when they set their stuffs on table. Fortunately this don't happen often.

This year I'll put a sign on my table to tell ppl please don't put food and drink on the table, and please be careful when flipping thru prints. Hopefully this will help.

[kiarrens]

[quote=Eilonnwy]Blitzava - The quality control tests are something you should demand payment for, and if they refuse, get security/staff and if they don't pay they can likely be ejected from the con. [/quote]

"You break it, you bought it." Put a nice little sign on your table in the future, maybe (just maybe) it will discourage people from carelessly handling your merchandise?

[nightwalker]

I've gone through the same thing, except most people used my table as a loitering space. There is very little space in the walkways and standing around for nothing is not making it easier.

[Kidraa]

That's horrible to hear about what happens at Anime Cons. I've only done Craft Fairs and this will be my first time doing a Anime Con. I had to deal with even rude Adults. Same thing with putting drinks on my table, or having a family reunion in front of my table. I had to tell them "Can you please not stand in front of my table and maybe move to the side?" This are adults mind you. "Oh I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt your business" They said. As they stood there longer and moved after awhile.

I've even get rude comments saying "That's not very creative" or "My child does the same thing" and walks away.

I think Anime Cons will be better for me, but hopefully this damaging to property will stop.

[TheAngryParamedic]

I just read everything on this thread and MY GOD. In both the cons I've been to, I've never heard of such blatant disrespect happening to guests in the AA... it's just really shocking to me.

(What got me the most was that quality-testing incident...that made me a bit ill.)

I guess this is what happens when you're in the big city. I mean, we have a saying for those kinds of folk in NH but I'm not going to say it. But yeah, I can't believe people would do this... I always treat guests with much respect. I wish there was a way I could help prevent incidents like the ones mentioned in the thread but I have to leave that to the staff...

[marikotoeii]

The strange part is that a lot of the time they arent actually trying to be "mean."

It happens in varying degrees. I think it has a lot to do with over excitement and people forgetting their surroundings.

I was thinking if Museum ettiquette would apply a bit to the artist alley? Maybe the program guide could use a blurb on respectful art viewing? Like a "how to get the most out of your visit" kinda thing.

I would definately volunteer to draft up some AA do's and Donts one panel comics.

What do you guys think of this?

[Tuberat]

as noted - we have attendee rules in the program book - including things about food and drink and cameras and i believe also blocking.....they are obviously not reading it.

[egyptianruin]

[quote=marikotoeii]The strange part is that a lot of the time they arent actually trying to be "mean."

It happens in varying degrees. I think it has a lot to do with over excitement and people forgetting their surroundings.

I was thinking if Museum ettiquette would apply a bit to the artist alley? Maybe the program guide could use a blurb on respectful art viewing? Like a "how to get the most out of your visit" kinda thing.

I would definately volunteer to draft up some AA do's and Donts one panel comics.

What do you guys think of this?[/quote]
LOL my husband often tells me it's because some people lack social skills and/or etiquette - which is true. I walk through Artist Alley paying close attention to how I act around other artists and respecting their property - asking before touching, etc. Some just don't think about that and just grab things. They are in the ME mentality. Excited and in the moment.

I have also had my share of children approach my table - and by children I mean under 10 - and I sometimes get stiff thinking of what they are going to do. Some are very courteous and shy and some are ADD and want to touch everything and pull on stuff, lol. What bothers me even more is when they are with a guardian and they don't tell them stop or be careful.

I still think interaction and letting the person know that it's not appropriate to do something is the best policy. After all it's our tables and our stuff - only if they buy it does it become theirs. If it gets out of hand report it to the appropriate staff but I have never seen it get that bad.

[okapirose]

I think what the Alley needs is a large sign that says simply "No big props, food, drink, horseplay, or aisle photography in the Artist Alley"

Big bold bright letters and a couple people from security to catch people before they even enter the alley to watch for these things.

Simple and big is best, a laundry list of dos and do-nots in the convention program book I don't think cuts it in the slightest in terms of controlling the issues.

Snapping a photo on a phone and telling security of a destructive con-goer seems good, maybe exchanging phone numbers to send the picture right away should one not be able to get away from the table quickly to inform them is also a possibility.

To artists, putting up a sign that basically says "you break it you buy it" as well as providing hand-sanitizer so that con-plague is less imminent as well as minimizing the destruction of work by gross fingers.

[marikotoeii]

working in an office I have become OBSESSED with purrell and other aspects of hand sanitizer.

wouldnt it be great if we could get a mini bottle of purell in the swag bags? (im sure thats prolly wishfull thinking)

But I think I will get a bottle for my table.

Great Idea

[TheAngryParamedic]

Yeah that stuff is the BEST. Can't imagine going to a con without it