The late, lamented radio commentator and Buddhist meditation teacher Wes “Scoop” Nisker used to say: “If you don’t like the news, go out and make some of your own.”

Artist Ray Beldner applied this idea to the Start Up Art Fair, which will be held at Hotel del Sol in San Francisco’s Marina District, April 18-20.

Beldner didn’t really like the fairs he went to without gallery representation. They were poorly run, and their failure to vet artists led to uneven quality. So, in 2015, he created the fair he wanted to see.

An artist installation at a previous Start Up Art Fair(Courtesy of Start Up Art Fair)

To ensure it was professional with high standards, he made it juried, with two museum curators, two art dealers, and two artists choosing the work. “That way, when the artists get into the fair, they know they've passed a certain bar, and the quality is high,” says Beldner. Past jurors have included Hung Liu, Hank Willis Thomas, and SFMOMA curator Janet Bishop (who put together the fabulous new Ruth Asawa retrospective).

Most importantly, Beldner says, he gives the artists the personal attention they deserve, going room to room during the fair and making sure to visit each at least twice—the opposite of what’s happened at other art fairs he’s participated in.

“I swore that I would make my art fair a fair for artists by artists,” he says. “I wanted to treat the artists who were the paying exhibitors like galleries treat collectors. They're the important people in the equation.”

Start Up Art Fair in San Francisco(Courtesy of Start Up Art Fair)

Beldner had seen hotel fairs in New York, Miami, and at L.A.’s Chateau Marmont and liked the model. There about 60 rooms at the Hotel del Sol. Each will host an artist, as well as a handful of nonprofits like Helpers Community, The Bay Area Photographers Collective, Root Division, Black &White Projects, and Art Span.

Art Span has a program that focuses on showing artists’ work in unusual spaces, so being involved in the Start Up Art Fair is exciting, says exhibitions and outreach coordinator, Shrey Purohit. Showing at a hotel is unusual, but at the same time familiar.

“Since we have more than 1,200 artist members, being able to show their work at any venue—especially an art fair—is very honoring,” he said. “I always enjoy shining the spotlight on artists.”

Clare Scmehl, a collage and mixed media artist, is one of those Art Span members. A stay-at-home mom for about 20 years who recently began focusing more seriously on her art, she joined the organization on the recommendation of a ceramicist friend.

Always Chasing Rainbows by Clare Scmehl(Courtesy of Clare Scmehl)

It’s a “great, accessible jumping off [point] for beginning artists,” she says. “Art Span gives me information about art events and shows I can apply for.”

In her work, Schmehl uses images from maybe a thousand old magazines—including old editions of Playboy and Barbie Magazine—as well as vintage sheet music. She also rips posters and billboards off walls, which she compares to peeling bark off a tree. The Hotel Del Sol has a retro vibe with bright orange and green rooms, and she imagines people sitting by the pool with martinis. She wants her art for the fair to evoke that aesthetic, too.

“I'm trying to come up with work that's got a retro motif—which most of it does anyway— but I'm really drilling into the…what's the word? Mid-century modern,” she said. “I have a disco ball, and I have three pieces of art that have a disco ball. That's 70s, not 50s, but I can still picture it at the Hotel del Sol.”