I am a loyal Palm Con convention-goer. I’ve gone every year and it’s always been a huge success. This year was no different. This year I went on Sunday instead of Saturday and got there fairly early in the morning, making my visit nice and breezy. Palm Con 2016 featured renowned guests such as voice and screen actor Michael Bell and Star Wars actor Jesse Jensen. Comic book guests included Joe Fauvel from Night Shift Studios and my dear friend Vinnie Tartamella. You can check out some of Vinnie’s work here on his DeviantArt including his famous viral DC Girls Poker Night print . Cosplay for Jedi also made a reappearance with some of their new Ewok hats.
Moving on to some of my new and favorite meets this year, I’m starting with George Joseph, aka Geekincognito. George sells various Star Wars and Lucas Film fan art. Here’s the interesting thing about him: he is officially licensed by Lucas Film to sell his art. Now I’m very well aware of the controversies and protest surrounding the selling of fan art and cosplay prints, but George is a fine example of an industry-promoted fan artist. Personally, I’ve never seen a big company protest or bring suit to a fan artist or cosplayer. In fact, companies like Bioware and Image Comics hold various fan art and cosplay contests and even promote and feature some of these artists. Is it technically illegal? Yes. But do these big companies actually care? No, because it’s flattery in its finest form and, hey, free advertising. There is a reason comic book companies sell blank covers and I mean, Etsy exists and it’s doing just fine! Anyway, I bought a mini Ahsoka Tano print from George and added it to my awesome convention art collection.
Next, I met the man behind UFO Pottery. This vendor probably has to be one of my favorite vendors at any con. UFO Pottery creates stunning pieces of pottery modeled after robots and flying saucers. I’m a huge UFO conspiracy nerd, so this guy basically makes centerpieces from my dreams. If it weren’t for my lack of home space, I would have purchased one of those beautiful rocket ship cookie jars in a heartbeat. Of course, I took his card because once I get my apartment, I’ll be adding a piece to my living room table. Here are some pictures of my favorite pieces: 1, 2, 3, 4.
Lastly, I met Andrea Lorenzo Molinari, the co-writer of the Caliber Comics graphic novel The Shepherd. I met Andrea when I saw him in full costume as the main character Lawrence complete with a detailed (and functional!) replica of Lawrence’s staff from the book. Curious, I asked him to tell his story. Andrea co-wrote his book with his son, Roberto. He actually holds a PhD in the religious studies field, and this translates excellently into his writing. The book is about a father who kills himself to help his son’s soul cross over when it get stuck between Earth and the afterlife. In fact, it is based on a nightmare Andrea had and is based on him and his real-life family. When he told his wife and son about the nightmare, Roberto encouraged him to turn it into a graphic novel. My friend Marcus and I like to purchase a new indie book from every convention we go to (see: The Agency). I love supporting indie books. To be honest, I pretty much only read indie now. As I asked Andrea more and more questions about his journey, we were won over. We purchased a physical copy of the book and have been completely satisfied with the purchase. I encourage you all to check out The Shepherd here right away.
All in all, Palm Con 21016 was a success. I hope you enjoyed reading about my experience this year and wish you would visit the con next year.
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*All pictures shown are from various patrons at PalmCon 2016
PalmCon 2016 I am a loyal Palm Con convention-goer. I've gone every year and it's always been a huge success.
