ArtPrize 10 is now in the books.

And when it came to the public vote, one thing was clear this year: interest was lower - much lower.

A total of 32,613 people registered to cast votes, down 24 percent from last year and the lowest in the event's 10-year run.

Jori Bennett, ArtPrize's executive director, said she wasn't disappointed by the drop, and emphasized that voting is just one way people can take part in the event.

"That's not our main currency as far as when we report back on the success of the event," she said, adding that a string of rainy days and a reduction in venues with voter registration booths may have played a role. "It's a part of it, but it's not the primary."

When gauging the success of the event, ArtPrize also examines online engagement through social medial platforms like Facebook and Twitter, attendance at events and activities sponsored by ArtPrize, and use of ArtPrize's online app, Bennett said.

"Overall, we're really thrilled with the success metrics we were driving at," she said.

Attendance estimates for this year's event are expected to be released early next year. Last year, more than 520,000 people attended the event, ArtPrize estimates.

In addition to fewer voters, the number of votes fell to 253,161, a 34 percent decline from the previous year. Organizers attribute that to a drop in the number of entries - from 1,346 in 2017 to upwards of 1,260 this year. The public vote is used to determine which artist takes home the $200,000 grand prize.

The reduction comes as the "radically open" competition, which draws artists from throughout the world and features scores of entries scattered throughout downtown Grand Rapids, prepares to shake things up.

In June, event organizers announced that ArtPrize will no longer be an annual event. It will now take place every other year, with a smaller-scaled event, known as Project 1, taking place during the years when ArtPrize is not being held.

That change - and this year's low voter count - should not be viewed as an example of dwindling interest in ArtPrize, Bennett said.

"We were seeing big crowds and a lot of engagement when it came to people participating in the events that we were hosting," she said. "We've heard positive feedback from the venues and our artists."

Officials from several ArtPrize venues said they weren't sure what caused the decline in voters.

Roughly 230,000 people - about the same as last year - visited DeVos Place Convention Center during the 19-day event, said Eddie Tadlock, the venue's assistant general manager.

His venue took a different approach than previous years, lowering its total number of entries from about 126 to 24.

The idea was to create a more spacious environment, Tadlock said, spotlighting larger entries that required more space, such as THE STRING PROJECT, which won the $200,000 public vote grand prize, and 108 Death Masks, which took home the three-dimensional juried prize award.

Tadlock said people who visited DeVos Place took note of the smaller number of entries, and the fact that this was ArtPrize's last year as an annual event. He also said her heard people say, "You know, I don't think I'm going to come to Project One. I don't think I'm going to drag my kids out of school to see one or two things."

But he still sensed enthusiasm among visitors.

"There's still excitement about ArtPrize," said Tadlock, who is the curator for DeVos Place's exhibit.

The number of visitors at Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum totaled about 140,000, down from 156,000 last year, said Don Holloway, the venue's curator.

He said he wasn't sure what caused the drop, but rainy weather over the past two weekends may have played a role.

"The people I talk to with regularity about ArtPrize, it is for them, sort of their Super Bowl," Holloway said. "They come down every year. They want to see as many of the venues and meet as many of the artists as they can."

Because the Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts changed its format this year - it commissioned a series of murals located throughout Grand Rapids instead of hosting a traditional in-house exhibit - executive director Miranda Krajniak didn't have a way to compare attendance from this year to last year.

But among those ArtPrize attendees she did interact with, Krajniak said she was pleased with level of enthusiasm she saw.

"There's ebb and flow every year," she said, referencing voting numbers. "To expect that every organization can grow every year is unrealistic."

Dana Friis-Hansen, executive director of the Grand Rapids Art Museum, said he wasn't sure why attendance at his venue was down slightly this year during ArtPrize -- 109,305 compared with 122,269 last year.

"Overall, I think it was healthy," he said. "The way people were responding, both the jurors and the public, is one of the ways we look at success."