Last weekend was the inaugural Long Beach Comic Con and Ryan and I shared a table there in Artist Alley. It was a lot of fun and a really good show! Sadly, we didn't make it to a single panel discussion or even get an autograph from Corin Nemec (for reals!), but the reason was good: the table was popular!
Firstly, I have to give credit where credit is due: LBCC made this an 'artist centric' convention, so the bulk (and literal center) of the expo hall was the artist area. Lots of big-name and well-loved creators came out, so the fans were in an extremely good mood (imagine getting to see your favorite artist, up close and personal, AND the show was less busy than, say, SDCC, so you actually got to chat and get sketches and stuff) PLUS the attendees walked every aisle, making sure they didn't miss anyone. Which meant, of course, that they strolled past our table too. So, thanks to the LBCC planners for a great job on focusing traffic.
My side of the table, as usual, had the benefit of bright colors. In a sea of comic book portfolios and sketches (mostly black and white), my giddy crafts stand out. So they caught a lot of eyeballs. This show, I had 2 offers: my dot paintings and my peg people. Both were very well received, I am grateful to announce! By Sunday afternoon, I was packing up nearly empty houses and had sold almost everything that I brought (sorry to everyone who asked, the houses aren't for sale).It was amazing -- THANK YOU to all the good people who came by and took some of this stuff home for me!!
Friday had a much higher attendance than we'd anticipated (seeing as how it was a 'work and school' day for most people, I figured if 50 people came, we'd be in good shape) and I sold several things right out the gate, which was surprising to say the least! Literally, as soon as I set some things on the table, they found new homes. I was blown away. By early Saturday, I was running low on several things and had to start painting Saturday night to replenish!
One of my display techniques was to use this cupcake, to demonstrate what-in-the-world-would-I-do-with-a-peg-person (hint: a cake topper!). This was a store-bought cupcake that had gone stale and then I coated it with acrylic gloss, so it was shiny and solid. Unfortunately, it was lost/stolen after the show closed on Friday night. My table neighbors were more upset than I was -- I just hope no one tried to eat it! But no matter, I have a more permanent version coming soon. This was just a quick-and-dirty way to show how the peg people could be used. And it served its purpose, so... bon voyage little cupcake!
One of the fan-favorite items was the tiny mailbox with tiny business cards. I have to admit, I'm pretty fond of it too. :)
I also sold some of the blank peg people (seen in the above pictures in a bowl and on the table) so that convention-goers could try their own hand at creating a masterpiece. I figured that the kids would think it was a great idea, but I was surprised at how many adults were buying them -- inspired by what they saw and chock-full of ideas of their own! The kids mostly wanted what was already painted, although there were a few kids who were determined that they could (and would!) do better than what I had. Every one of them said they'd email me a picture - and I hope they do!
I accepted only one commission during the show, which was from 2 fun gals who had recently learned of the meme to find out your stripper name (name of your first pet + first street you lived on) and they were collecting sketches and caricatures of themselves as strippers, so they asked me to paint them that way too. Strippers have relatively little to paint, so I said yes. I always love it when someone has a good, solid, silly idea!
I also was honored to be asked to contribute to someone's sketch book (full of awesome art from all the Cool People there) and I felt terrible that I CANNOT DRAW so I scribbled a peg-person form of me and Ryan (dorky) and the girl asked if maybe I could add something with dots. Well, markers don't really give the same effect, so I painted an artist trading card (ATC) made of canvas with Spider-Man for her to stick in her book instead.
Along the way, my table was photographed several times, including by the OC Weekly, the LA Weekly, a handful of blogs, and I did a video interview with the Daily 49er (Cal State Long Beach's news). So that was all really cool!
Plus, I'm waiting for the photos to roll in. I'm having a contest
over yonder on ye olde craft blog, asking folks to submit pictures of their giddy girlie art to win $20! I've gotten a few so far, but there is still time to submit!
Oh! And we also saw a skateboarding shrimp!
And then were driving behind this... a sentinel from X Men. You're welcome.
