Originally Posted by
Empty_of_Clouds
That's a very interesting post, but it does not totally jibe with what I've heard about pen shows. Bear in mind that for obvious reasons I have never been to a show and likely never will. In reading many show reports it is notable that there are plenty of 'stations' where pens can be inked and tried out, where different inks and papers can be sampled, where there are vintage pens and modern pens shoulder to shoulder, where there are both new users and calligraphers.
To suggest that a pen show is simply full of "old guard" collectors does not sound all that accurate. yes, the online community is large and the number of people (of all persuasions) who go to shows is comparatively small, but that only means that your estimated percentages are skewed. Looking at the average crowd attending on the 'public' day of a show, what proportion are collectors, users, both or neither?
The online community is vocal online. Less so elsewhere. And vice versa. At a show is there really a drawing of lines?
Right off the bat, that is one of the issues: what you hear online. Admittedly having never been to a show, and getting info only online, you are at the mercy (so to speak) of the people who *will* take the time to post online. This - unsurprisingly - tends to be mostly newer (younger) users, and they skew the way they skew. Same, for the most part, with bloggers. On the two main forums I frequent, the "show threads" have mostly been about a few shows, certainly not representative of them all, and focus a lot on the shows that are either the largest or the most involved in embracing change.
The business about inks and testing and whatnot is a quite new phenomenon, has not spread to every show (AFAIK) and is a response to changes in attendees and their interests. But even if this goes back only a couple of years, some of the vintage pen dealers have been attending shows, selling, buying and trading for 20-25 years. They are very much seeing a change in the demographics of pen show attendence. And while I would never say it is "full of old guard people", I would have you stroll the aisle of the LA Pen Show as I did for the last 4 or so days and do your own assessment. Yes, by all means, there are a number of vendors of new pens and paraphanalia mixed in there, but I really wouldn't be surprised if percentage of table space bought was, at least 60-70% old pens. It still skews that way, and may for a while, if only because vendors selling new goods are *still* at the mercy of people looking at a pen and then doing an online search and buying it cheaper.
Anyway, there is more to meets the eye than the reports that come online. If there wasn't, there wouldn't be a need for this discussion.
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