Artists: Cuddles and Rage

One of the many cool artists we met at this year's AwesomeCon was this gentleman, Jimmy Reed, one half of Cuddles and Rage, a collection of comics, webcomics and doodles he and his wife, Liz Reed have been creating since 2010.
 Most of us have that strange silly voice in our heads.  The one that creates the most wonderfully god-awful puns, obscure references and clever images.  The ones that make us giggle to ourselves - Yes, I said giggle!  I certainly have those moments.  But they never come frequently enough for me to think to myself, "Man, I should make a webcomic about this!" Well, wherever that voice comes from, Cuddles and Rage have seemingly tapped right into the main source of it.
Using both drawn comics and effing adorable sculpted dioramas (I mean, look at how deceptively simple they seem), the married couple bring their animal and food-based residents of Cuddle City to life.  The charm is in how they switch from silly to clever to poignant and disturbing.

Interacting with their audience on their website is also a high priority for them, and offers a great deal of insight, both into their thought process and into how genuinely cool they seem to be.

"Making Babies"
Awww yeah!

"Skinny Dipping"

"Baby Tooth"
Both horrible and hilarious.

For a million more giggles (- yes, giggles!) check out their website.
And for equally funny tote bags, magnets, and prints, also visit their Etsy.
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AwesomeCon Artist: Victor Dandridge

Jason and I met Victor Dandridge at AwesomeCon DC.  That massive backdrop of characters behind him is part of his 8-bit challenge.  A virtuoso in creating 8-bit images of geek and pop-culture characters, which he often does in sets, (all the better for collecting!) Victor offers a challenge to see if you can guess 10 of them; if successful, you win a prize.  The evil of the challenge is that while we were talking, I was pretty sure I had 30 of them figured out easy.  Once the challenge began, I was lucky to get 10.  But I did, and I got an Old Man Wolverine 8-bit image in exchange for my scrambled brain.  Fair trade. 

This, like much of his art, leaves me longing for a Nintendo game that was never made ...

Victor is more than just a creator of clever 8-bit images.   The Columbus, Ohio artist writes, vlogs and provides support and recognition for fellow creators in the geek community.  He is the face behind Vantage:Inhouse Productions, where he creates properties for readers of all ages and tastes and is an innovate voice within the self-publishing market writing for titles such as Origins Unknown and The Samaritan - and most recently is working on the already amazing-looking Jim Henson-inspired Kinder Guardians.

Head here to take a look at some of his 8-bit style T-shirts.  Also, check out his Etsy page here.

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AwesomeCon: Artist Tracie Ching

   At Awesome-Con we ran into one of our favorite artists, whom we had previously met at Baltimore ComicCon 2013.  Tracie Ching is a self-taught graphic designer in Washington, D.C.  She is the Lead Designer and Creative Director for the premier ultimate Frisbee apparel company, VC Ultimate.  Additionally, she has produced licensed posters for some small-time, no-name properties such as Star Trek, AMC’s The Walking Dead, Doctor Who, and my personal favorite, Community.  Her limited edition silk screen prints of alternative movie posters are also massive fan-favorites.
     Jason and I must have spent a half hour, excitedly pointing out what movies she had posters of at her booth,  you know in case she forgot!
   Looking at her portfolio, it's no wonder some of the most massive franchises in geek culture seek her out.  There's a brilliant quality to her vector work, where she combines the precision necessary to make photo-real images with a clear style and vision to make the pieces all her own.
Plus, her art epitomizes one of the things I tell people about geek and pop-culture conventions like Awesome-Con, even if you're not a comics, sci-fi or fantasy person, there is something for you.  Tracie's vision is not restricted to the self-imposed walls of geek culture.  She's got something for sports fans, classic book fans and if you're a fan of Scorsese films, you reeeeaaally want to check out her website. 
   Also she is incredibly nice.  Which, when combined with talent is dangerous to my wallet.


Reasons I love my wife, #238:
She bought me a pile of Tracie Ching's stickers
Not quite this big, but still.

From Tracie's "Scorsese's Saints" series

A sneak peek at this year's Christmas present to my brother.

Visit her website (and buy everything!)  And like her on the Facebooks.

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Awesome Con is Awesome!

Design by Octopus Tree House
http://petegoestocomiccon.blogspot.com/2012/12/artists-have-you-been-to-octopus.html

Right on the heels of our return from Emerald City Comic-Con, Awesome-Con DC popped up.  Shamefully, we missed their inaugural year in 2013, but we weren't about to miss this year.  In a short time, Awesome-Con has already made a huge name for itself as a pop-culture convention that spills over with an energy and excitement on the floor - gathering love from all corners of the geek community: artists and crafters, cosplayers, vendors and especially activists.  At least half a dozen booths were dedicated to some of the most important issues in the geek community and the people we spoke to were friendly, passionate and informative.  In other words, Awesome. 
I wonder if I'll have to change the name of the blog now ...

 

Ani-Mia, didn't we just see you in Seattle?
http://animia.storenvy.com/

Everyone getting along!  Very un-Joss.

Rod Hannah and Leanne Hanna, the massively friendly creative team behind the
webcomic Blue Milk Special.  How we we love them so!
http://www.bluemilkspecial.com/

Huntress and Black Lantern Wonder Woman.
Somehow those smiles make them scarier, like
they know something you don't.

Everybody loves a happy ending.  Kaylee and Simon from Serenity.

A (very) Red Sonja

Arkham City Robin.  Check the guns!

Picture-perfect Rogue.

This dude looks ... shredded. Heehee.

OK, I need to research my Ninja Turtles characters ...

This explains the rain on my drive home.



Jason and I met some of the minds behind Femmes in the Fridge.
http://femmesinthefridge.com/
Check the link and get involved with this inclusive and
intelligent pack of geeks.

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