Festival of Fear

Plague Doctor, Ghoulish Gary and Fido

Ghoul Friday — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 14:38:15 -0700

If you were following my blog last year during Festival of Fear, you may recall my post where I talked about wanting a certain print from Toronto artist Ghoulish Gary Pullin. Sadly, he didn't have any in 2009. I still walked away with a beautiful Frankenstein print (that looks fantastic framed, by the way), but when you have your heart set on one particular thing, it's hard to let it go.

It was the Fido image I was coveting. Not only is it easily one of my top zombie movies of all time (plus it's Canadian, and it has Billy Connolly as a zombie), but the artwork is stunning. So it should be no surprise that the very first thing I did when my table was set up on Friday was head over to Gary and lay claim to a copy of the print (pictured right).

The surprise (at least to me) came on Saturday. My table was buzzing with people (at the convention it went in waves: it was like you either had no one around or 5 people at once wanting to buy something), and in the middle of packing up an item I look up and see Gary.

No, that's not the surprise.

Festival of Fear 2010 - End of Day 1

Ghoul Friday — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 19:39:43 -0700

End of day one. Not sure if I'll have time to type up a post in the morning, so I thought I would get this one out of the way tonight (Friday).

Going back to the convention for a second year presented some lovely moments. Saw so many familiar faces from last year - and I don't just mean vendors. Dozens of people who visited my table in 2009 came by once more. And the best part was the reception they gave me, and the stories they had to tell.

There were two people who found me today, thrilled to see the eyeball plants again because they'd decided to wait to buy one and then were disappointed to discover I'd sold out by the Saturday. My favourite quote: "I'll wait to buy everyone else's items, but I am getting this plant RIGHT NOW."

Lots of "I bought one of your plants last year and now I keep it (insert entertaining details here)." One person uses it to torment coworkers. I heartily approve.

Meghan, who follows and comments on this blog, came by the table and snatched up the last remaining Underbiter, Oogie. They are now officially all gone, and I'm pleased this last creature went to Miss Meghan.

Also talked with some twitter folk (*waves to Trischa*) and loads of others I've met at shows other than FanExpo.

The first item sold from the table (before I'd even finished setting up) was this little minion (pictured above and below). He went so fast I haven't even had time to name him, and will leave it up to his new owners. I really liked him because he's probably the toughest looking minion I've made.

Festival of Fear Starts Today!

Ghoul Friday — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 05:44:36 -0700

In about two hours, I am off to Rue Morgue's Festival of Fear, Canada's largest Horror event and part of Hobby Star's FanExpo. I will be at table A24, close to Rue Morgue and the HMV booth.

Hopefully you got your advance tickets and don't have to face the ludicrous lines (it takes a long time to get 50,000 people in and out of an event). If you didn't get advanced tickets or passes, I suggest you attend on Sunday or today (Saturday's line-up last year apparently hit a 5 hour wait, and circled city blocks).

If you follow the blog, be sure to say hello and tell me who you are (and if you post comments using a handle instead of your actual name, be sure to mention it!). Meeting people who know my work is one of the coolest things. As an artist, I live under the assumption that no one has a clue who I am in the real world, and I'm always genuinely shocked when someone does.

Here's a glimpse of one of three new Plague Doctors that's making its debut at the show. I had a little fun with this guy and gave him a telescopic eye, then highlighted it with a metallic copper paint.

FanExpo 2010 Guests Announced

Ghoul Friday — Wed, 12 May 2010 07:10:44 -0700

FanExpo Canada has started to announce their lineups for 2010. While I am usually stuck at my table, unable to join the masses for a 2-hour queue in order to acquire a (sometimes insanely overpriced) autograph or attend a Q & A session, I still like seeing the celebrities.

The featured guests for the Festival of Fear portion is promising: David Cronenberg, Lance Henriksen, and Heather Langenkamp being the three names that jump out at me immediately.

The Sci-Fi guest list is a heck of a lot of fun as well: William Shatner, Adam West, Burt Ward and Julie Newmar are just a few of many stars announced (question: do people recognize Peter Mayhew - Chewbacca - by his towering height, or do they make him wear the mask at the table?).

The Comic Book guests will be announced tomorrow, but they've already said that Stan Lee will be in attendance. I've taken this as a good omen. Let me explain.

Festival of Fear '09: Fort Fright

Ghoul Friday — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 05:26:49 -0700

I couldn't believe my eyes when I turned the corner of an aisle and saw haunt props. Could it be my kind of people are here?

A welcome addition to the FanExpo this year was Fort Fright, a haunted attraction designed within the lower fort of Fort Henry in Kingston, Ontario.

Usually, the only haunt promotions I see at the Expo are for Canada's Wonderland, which is fine but there are so many other great haunts in Ontario - professional and home haunts - that it's a shame more people don't know about them.

Plus, Fort Fright also offers a 40 minute ghost walk for people who enjoy history mixed in with their ghoulish experience.

I'm hoping this is a sign of things to come where the Expo is concerned. For a horror event that takes place at the end of summer, I'd expect to see more promotions of Halloween related items.

Festival of Fear '09: My Experience

Ghoul Friday — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 20:44:15 -0700

Going to take a break from the art posts to talk about my side of it all. So what can I tell you? I think I'll start with tidbits that might help other people who are new to selling/showing like I am.

Plotting out my table display before I got to the venue helped cut down on assembly time (and stress).
Never underestimate product placement. On Friday I might have sold 1 book. On Saturday morning, I decided to put a second sign with 3 books on the opposite end of the table. Like magic, they started to sell.
People like little extras. The black Chinese food takeout boxes were a hit. And people thought the skull design on the front were custom made. For the peek-a-boo plants, I stamped paper bags, hole-punched the folded top and tied it shut with ribbon. Simple, but effective.
I realized too late that some people thought I used stencils to decorate the Halloween boxes I'd painted, when really they were all painted free-style by hand (which impressed them). I should have had that information on the price sign.
Having the stories for the Underbiters on the table was a nice reference piece if people asked questions about them. Some people were really excited about the idea of adopting (and actually, their excitement gave me a little thrill too, and I felt better about saying goodbye to the little fellas).

Now let's get to the bigger news.

Festival of Fear '09: Bobby Chiu

Ghoul Friday — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 01:40:31 -0700

You might be familiar with Imaginism Studios for their beautiful work on Tim Burton's new Alice in Wonderland movie. I've known them for a while because I am a big fan of Bobby Chiu who lives in my fair city of Toronto.

You know a guy is going places when his first gig at the age of 17 was designing Disney, Warner Bros., and Star Wars toys at Thinkway Toys.

I loved this print of the creature disguised as a pug dog the first time I saw it on the Imaginism Studios blog where Bobby is constantly posting sketches to feed my creative hunger. So when I saw it at their table, it was an easy decision to hand over some cash for what I consider to be a crown jewel in my collection of art prints.

It's called "Death of Teddy".

Festival of Fear '09: Ghoulish Gary Pullin

Ghoul Friday — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 13:46:42 -0700

My favourite part of the weekend is having access to art that appeals to me. The bonus is meeting the artists in person. I came away with 4 prints this weekend. The first is from local artist Ghoulish Gary Pullin.

I wrote a short piece on him last year and then again when I bought his Wolfman t-shirt.

Wondering why the artwork looks familiar? Gary does illustrations for Rue Morgue.

What I really wanted was a copy of his Fido print. Alas, there were none available. Instead, I picked up a rockin' rendition of Frankenstein's monster. Normally me and Mr. Big-Bad-and-Green don't have an instant connection (I blame overexposure to his image), but how can you say no to that face when he's so wonderfully captured on paper?

Festival of Fear '09: Saturday Celebrities

Ghoul Friday — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 12:18:33 -0700

Saturday was a different beast entirely. Lineups for buying tickets for the event zigzagged across the lobby, out the back door of the building, around the corner and up the block. I've been one of the poor souls who waited 2 hours to get in, but I can only imagine what the wait time was this year.

Luckily, with a flash of my exhibitor pass, I could slip in and out of the event with little hassle; that is, if I dared face the packed crowds in the aisles.

And then there was more lining up inside. Lineups to hear celebrities speak (people started to lineup at 3 for a talk by Bruce Campbell at 5). Lineups to buy tickets to have an autograph. And then lining up to GET the autograph.

Friday: First Day at Festival of Fear

Ghoul Friday — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 19:49:27 -0700

I'm back from Rue Morgue's Festival of Fear (part of Hobby Star's Fan Expo). I'm dead on my feet, but I had a great first day. Let me tell you about it.