Vermont for the second year unleashed its nerdy side as geeks of all walks gathered this past weekend in Burlington for the second annual Vermont Comic Con! It was a huge success from the sounds of the interview that aired today with the show organizers on Vermont Public Radio’s “Vermont Edition” and I was very glad to be a part of it! VTCC was my second convention in the state, but this was my first year attending this show as it conflicted with a different show last year. Let’s get to the usual wrap-up!
I did pretty well at this show considering my placement was right at the entry way to the main level. Tables by the door are typically not the best place to be, as you are the first thing people see, but also the first forgotten as the crowds move down the line and spend their money elsewhere. I didn’t break perfeclty even, but made enough to justify the trip. Seeing/meeting friends new and old was also super fun, I’ll highlight as many of them as I can in a later section.
My table-mates this go-round were writer and all-around cool guy Mike Luouma, who you MAY have heard frequently on the radio on Burlington’s The Point 104.7 FM! and recent, fellow Center for Cartoon Studies ink-slinger Aaron Shrewsbury! If you read the local arts paper 7 Days you’ve seen Aaron’s design work as he’s on staff with them! He does amazing art-object comics with some of the most unique packaging and presentations I’ve seen yet! Mike delves into classic sci-fi adventures with a variety of amazing artists.
I attended Vermont Comic Con in part because of the hard work of Gregory Giordano. He has organized a collective on Facebook called the Vermont Comic Creators and worked with the convention to provide exclusive tables to the group at a discounted rate. Greg is an old pro and a bit of a local comics legend, his work is intense, dark and so energetic! I’m glad he helped put it all together for us! Thanks Greg!
Other creators involved in the group that were there: Blair Shedd of Dr. Who fame (The Dr. Who Panel reached capacity this year, amazing!) Ben Cohen, Michael Waggoner, Brandon Borrows, Matt Forsyth and many others! The group plans on doing many other public events together in the future so keep an eye out for us!
Kids Con made an appearance at VT Comic Con, run by Emily Drouin of Eplis Comics, as you can see in the banner above, it’s a super cool effort to promote arts education to children through comics and other sequential art! Apparently the Sketch Showdown panel she was participating in was also a huge success!
I hadn’t seen Amanda Dufrense in quite some time but she was busy as ever at VTCC! Her amazing, hyper-detailed ball-point pen style is very popular at every show she goes to and in the brief moment we had to catch up, she was busily working on a commission. If you want some unique FRAMED original comic art to go on your wall, find her at the myriad of shows she does every year!
I was happy to be able to attend a Comic Convention in my own state for once. Yes I still had to travel a bit and get a hostel bed overnight, but as convention costs go, this one was easy to budget for. So many talented people came out for this one and the crowds showed up to match. I’m excited for next year’s show, this feels like something that can sustain very easily over the long haul, and I’m glad to be a part of it!
-RD
