Credit: Hisham Muhidin (www.flickimage.com)

RAW Artists is an emerging international entity that operates with the intention of showcasing art in all forms in major cities via bimonthly events. In Columbus, they have proven to be a polarizing organization. I decided to show up and see what all the hubbub was about.

Skully’s Music Diner, an IATU haunt (where we hosted the OceanSpeak EP release show and will be co-hosting a hip hop event with Heath McNease and Steven Cooper at the end of March), hosted PIXELS, the first such RAW event in Columbus, OH. I walked in and was immediately greeted by a semi-formal doorman, who checked me in on a laptop in the electronically organized RAW guest list. Walking into the auditorium, I was greeted by a flurry of artistry. Body painting to my right. Eccentric craftsmanship on the balcony above me. Woodworking to my left. Temporary wrought iron fence functioned as barriers separating each vendor. The room was brightly lit and visually stimulating.

The Upstart – Credit: Hisham Muhidin (www.flickimage.com)

People trickled in slowly. The end result was not the predicted 400 (by my rough, not-precise observation) but attendance was still far from sparse. Columbus personality Tim Fulton kept the night moving along with his witty yet brief transitionary monologues, while DJ Moxy provided the backdrop of music for the majority of the evening. The live musical acts were acoustic act Ryan Smith and indie/alt act The Upstart, both of which played for around 30 minutes. Smith played a soulful set of heart-baring tunes that unfortunately I don’t think many people were paying attention to. With so much immediate stimulation in the form of art, social interaction, and alcohol, it’s a wonder anybody really tried to take in Smith’s set. He is best suited for a more intimate, focused gathering but he certainly had the level of talent worthy of an arts showcase like RAW. The Upstart played indie rock tunes, fronted by the elegantly dressed Sam Pierce. At one point she quipped “I’m up here dressed like an old lady while there are half naked people down there (the body painted girls).” The sharply dressed rest of the band played on point for the most part – it was hard for me to judge the band since I had no prior performance to compare this one to. The music was on point, but the stage presence could be improved. One thing is for sure though – The Upstart is definitely a class act.

Credit: Hisham Muhidin (www.flickimage.com)

The fashion show element of the evening was probably the most interesting for me – a guy who pays little attention to that element of the Columbus arts scene. The majority of the fashion show had a vaguely surreal element to it – with the accessories of Kokoshae (surreal ear pieces and necklaces) being the main thing I could see spilling over into the marketplace as popular items on shelves. A humorous moment occurred when an inebriated Fulton was interviewing body painter Deborah Brommer – incredulously repeating “Let me get this straight, you painted for the first time at the World Body Art Championships?” This is paraphrasing, obviously.

Following the conclusion of the evening, I was left to ponder the practicality of the model that RAW presents. They have been faced with intense criticism about being a “pay to play” event for everyone involved. There’s no question that RAW goes the extra mile to present themselves as a classy, high-brow (but not pretentious) establishment. So, there’s nothing screaming deception to the artist when you walk in. And, Columbus rep Dayna Melton was kind to me and is obviously a hard worker with a great love for the arts. I was told by one artisan that they didn’t view the ticket expectation as something negative – it is not that different from being expected to pay a vendor’s fee at any other exhibition. For those that are unaware – participants in RAW events are expected to sell a ticket quota  (20) or pay the equivalent of the unsold tickets, at $15 apiece in order to participate in the event. Meeting the quota results in the chance to showcase in a different RAW city for free. It is unclear whether travel expenses are covered in the “free chance” but I’m guessing they are not.

Bands are at an obvious disadvantage. Most locals in the city of Columbus play around town often and given the tight schedule, they are left to convince 20 friends to essentially pay $15 for the chance to watch them play for 20 minutes. In a city like Columbus – this is a really hard thing to market. This is especially true given the rise of free, co-op like arts spaces and events on the rise in Franklinton (the 400 West Rich space) and Clintonville (Worst Kept Secret Fest). Bands that don’t play as often are usually young and low on funds – or have a very specific strategy in mind that probably doesn’t involve shelling out the big bucks.

Conclusion: RAW is great at exposing those that paid a $15 ticket to support their friends to spheres of art culture they might not go out of their way to check out on their own – but the tight schedule and sheer number of acts they cram into each showcase makes it hard for individual exhibitors to financially benefit in the short term. Paradoxically, the high number of artisans/musicians is needed to sell the number of tickets needed to make the event packed at all. At the end of the day, each artist is left to decide whether RAW’s model is worth the spread of their brand awareness. I didn’t see many purchases, but the event certainly got people talking about the Columbus arts scene. If RAW hopes to succeed in Columbus – they will need to find a way to stand out from their less expensive, more universally welcomed competitors (even though said competitors are limited to Columbus and don’t offer regional exposure).