It’s been almost a year since I last attended a comic con as a vendor. In that time, I’ve been to 14 states, spreading Do Art at workshops and assemblies at libraries from Nebraska to Connecticut. It’s been an amazing ride, and I can’t wait to add Arkansas to the list this week!
But in all that time I’ve been telling people that I’m a comic book artist. This all started when Jerry and I, after 3 years making comics in our respective basements, decided to start promoting ourselves as artists. This included visiting libraries, park districts, and schools. But it also meant visiting comic cons to sell our merch and promote our workshops in person.
Last week I finally went back to the comic con circuit at the Cedar Falls Quadcon. Getting back into the swing of anything means nerves and uncertainty. Compounded by all this was the knowledge that I’d be doing this one by myself. Jerry and Karen would be in Elk Grove IL for another comic con at a library, so I’d be all on my own for 6 hours setting up, talking to people, trying to keep up the energy as the day wore on.
What would the day bring? I arrived at the mall an hour and a half before start time. It took me three trips to find my spot and drop everything off. I’d gotten used to setting up for a workshop, but for the comic con I just had a big space in the middle of the mall, next to some toy vendors, and I had to figure out just how to make it work. I split up the space more or less into a table to sell comics and bead art creations, with a table to draw and a whiteboard at the other end. Throw in the banana banner behind me and I was ready to go.
As nervous people will often do, I lied to myself. I said that I’d be alone but of course this was foolishness. Not long after the mall opened one girl arrived and started to draw. She added “chaotic” pictures of an evil Kermit the Frog along with her interpretation of characters from a Roblox game called “Danny’s World.” A group of kids dressed as Danny’s World characters arrived, and I watched these middle school-aged kids make friends and bond over videogames right in front me, as they drew wacky pictures of me, or original creations inspired by the videogames and TV shows they liked. One boy dressed as Lucifer from Haz Bin Hotel gave me a rubber ducky (what the significance of this is, I’m not sure) and I incorporated it into my juggling routine.
As time went by the whiteboard behind me filled up with drawings from kids, teens, and grownups. One drawing seemed to capture the spirit of the event really well–so well that I scanned it into Photoshop and colored it to show you all! One girl said she was a paraeducator, and would draw pictures of little ghosts to help soothe the 4 year-old she was assigned to. She started talking about Epic: The Musical with some other cosplayers. One of my friends recently put me on to this modern interpretation of the Odyssey, and before long I was playing it on my speaker, juggling in time to the age-old struggle of Odysseus to make his way home after 20 years of warfare, gods, and monsters. One little girl, maybe 2 years old, walked down the hall just in front of her grandfather. She made her way behind the tables and I danced with her until her grandfather settled her down, drawing a picture of Snoopy while she scribbled on the paper with colored pencil.
The day flew by in a flurry of drawings and brightly colored costumes. Before I knew it I was starting to break down and go home for the weekend. I remembered how much I enjoyed the energy that a comic con audience brings–a motley group of people, of different ages and backgrounds, united by a love of comics and pop culture, and the exact kind of WACKY energy we bring to events large and small across the country.
So keep creating, Do Art Nation, and come see us at a comic con soon! We’ll be in Joliet this weekend with more comics and wacky energy, and we can’t wait to see what you create. If you’ve been to a comic con, let us know what you enjoyed, and what you want to see more of. And remember to keep an eye on our events. We may just be coming to a city near you!
