This past weekend I set up shop in the Crypticon Artist's Alley to do Zombiefied Caricatures! The results were mostly positive and a little negative. But I'll get to that in a sec. The event itself is always a lot of fun and it was held in the same Hilton convention center venue that host a few other cons I go to (specifically RainFurrest), so I felt right at home. I knew several of the other venders, such as my friend Quentin Shaw (QEW Publishing), whom I coincidentally ended up sitting right behind...well, back to back--because of the way the tables were set up. Also my friend Nick Gucker (or Nick the Hat, as he is popularly known), a fellow illustrator who does the promotional artwork for Crypticon was nearby. And there were several other artist friends as well as attendee friends I don't get to see very often! So it was great in that respect.
And speaking of "old friends", here's a pic of me hugging the life-size, remote controlled Dalek that the Anglicon folks had at their booth!
Anyway--so the point of the whole thing for me was to do zombiefied caricatures! These were more in the style of studio pieces. I took pics of the clients and we talked about their particular interests. This gave me ideas about elements to incorporate into the artwork. These drawings were bigger and more elaborate than caricatures I've tried before at a venue. I charged more, of course--tho probably not as much as I should have for the amount of work I ultimately did, but my pricing is a work in progress too.
I didn't get as many commissions as I had hoped, but I did OK. Possibly enough to justify trying it again next year. But I have GOT to refine the process. Still have problems with materials and still taking too long--about twice as long as I should...and sometimes more. :P
Anyway--here are some of the pieces that I did along with pics of the happy customers! (That was another good aspect--everybody seemed really pleased with the final results! That's always a good feeling.)
Anyway--there they are, the best of the creepiest! Just wait until next year, Crypticon!!
