{"id":286,"date":"2023-09-28T21:24:38","date_gmt":"2023-09-29T02:24:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/doartproductions.org\/?p=286"},"modified":"2023-12-22T15:51:48","modified_gmt":"2023-12-22T21:51:48","slug":"elementor-286","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/elementor-286\/","title":{"rendered":"Do Art Comes to Indy Popcon"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"286\" class=\"elementor elementor-286\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-e356375 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"e356375\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-40cce4a\" data-id=\"40cce4a\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-74fa2bd elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"74fa2bd\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p><b><u>By Chet Roush<\/u><\/b><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-c8d9789 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"c8d9789\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-32402ee\" data-id=\"32402ee\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-f3f31ef elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"f3f31ef\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">Hard to believe that it\u2019s been less than a year since our first comic con in Eau Claire Wisconsin.\u00a0 We drove there in the middle of a blizzard, going down a country road with no more than a few feet of visibility, the car loaded up with comics and merchandise by two guys who didn\u2019t know what they needed or how it would go.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span id=\"docs-internal-guid-97f89d4f-7fff-8611-a0a8-a00b0f91d39b\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">It\u2019s been an amazing 8 months since then.\u00a0 We launched our Free Comic Book Day giveaway, gave out prizes to the winners of our Art and Comics Contest, and got thrilling responses to our art and creativity from Louisville, Kentucky to Omaha, Nebraska.\u00a0 Throughout, our goal has been about more than merely promoting our art, or offering a few more trinkets to buy in a world filled with them.\u00a0 We seek to bring out the creativity in others, to make people aware of their profound and unique capacities for self-expression.<\/span><\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">And so, when we were invited to Indy Popcon, we leapt at the chance.\u00a0 The creativity on display by the many fandoms that are drawn to \u201ccomic book conventions\u201d (as they were known when a few scrappy <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Comic_book_convention\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">critics, fans, and entrepreneurs<\/a> first got the idea of bringing creators and audiences together around a celebration of art and fandom) has been a constant source of fascination and inspiration for us.\u00a0 We have been awestruck by the artwork, and endlessly intrigued by the original concoctions of independent writers and artists.\u00a0 Indy Popcon promised to be our biggest convention yet, and a chance to show friends and family what Do Art is really about.<\/span><\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">In addition, we celebrated Jerry\u2019s 33rd birthday!\u00a0 Jerry wanted to celebrate his \u201cJesus age\u201d in a style befitting our mission, and so his whole family (and my girlfriend) joined us in Indianapolis over the weekend.\u00a0 We brought a full complement of artwork, as well as equipment for our comic book workshop.\u00a0 I was even more excited to find out that our latest comics Zine Heist and Gerald Bear had <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">finally<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"> arrived from the printer.\u00a0 After years spent in production and editing, the tales of Gerald the Bear and our collaboration with independent artists from around the world would finally see the light of day.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-af33ffe\" data-id=\"af33ffe\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-96b04f5 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"96b04f5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Group-photo-with-kid-8-27-23-scaled.jpg?fit=1024%2C768&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-316\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Group-photo-with-kid-8-27-23-scaled.jpg?w=2560&amp;ssl=1 2560w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Group-photo-with-kid-8-27-23-scaled.jpg?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Group-photo-with-kid-8-27-23-scaled.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Group-photo-with-kid-8-27-23-scaled.jpg?resize=768%2C576&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Group-photo-with-kid-8-27-23-scaled.jpg?resize=1536%2C1152&amp;ssl=1 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Group-photo-with-kid-8-27-23-scaled.jpg?resize=2048%2C1536&amp;ssl=1 2048w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Group-photo-with-kid-8-27-23-scaled.jpg?w=2400 2400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-a9ad086 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"a9ad086\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-32c08a7\" data-id=\"32c08a7\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-f27ce8e elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"f27ce8e\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Jerry-axolotl-waddle-9-26-23.jpg?fit=1024%2C768&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-317\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Jerry-axolotl-waddle-9-26-23.jpg?w=2016&amp;ssl=1 2016w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Jerry-axolotl-waddle-9-26-23.jpg?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Jerry-axolotl-waddle-9-26-23.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Jerry-axolotl-waddle-9-26-23.jpg?resize=768%2C576&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Jerry-axolotl-waddle-9-26-23.jpg?resize=1536%2C1152&amp;ssl=1 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-f12fb16\" data-id=\"f12fb16\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0e8d113 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"0e8d113\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">The Set-Up: Artist and Comic Con<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3a06d5f elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"3a06d5f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">In stark contrast to our first comic con, the weather on the ride to Indianapolis was incredibly hot.\u00a0 We kept the windows down in the car to avoid running the AC too much.\u00a0 We arrived at the house Jerry\u2019s mom had rented around sunset, a farmhouse less than 20 minutes from the convention center but strangely rural, removed.\u00a0 Jerry\u2019s family arrived in his stepdad\u2019s truck a few hours later: his mom, stepdad, and two aunts piled out and we unloaded a weekend\u2019s worth of food and supplies.\u00a0 What had been apprehension in February had become a kind of elation.\u00a0 Every comic con is different, and questions like how we would unload, and what the set up would look like, could only be answered in the moment.<\/span><\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">The story of the comic book convention is about more than simply the rise of a single variety of print media, and the spandex-clad mythologies it created.\u00a0 It is also the story about how, in the middle of the twentieth century, creators and their audiences found one another and created the thing we today call \u201cfandom.\u201d\u00a0 You could see fandom as an endlessly chattering cacophony, manipulated by massive content houses like Warner Brothers or Disney, but ultimately a beast of taste and expectation beyond the power of any one entity to control.\u00a0 You could see it as an outgrowth of art in the age of its mechanical reproduction, when narrative can be transmitted to audiences far beyond the small groups of aristocrats or monks that had patronized or preserved most art before the invention of the printing press.\u00a0 You could see it as a kind of capacity of the human psyche, the power to empathize and identify so strongly with a piece of fiction that the boundaries between ego and character break down\u2013you cry because Iron Man is dying, you are scandalized when Batman is not <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">your<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"> Batman\u2013and the bridge between flesh-and-blood experience and wildest fantasy becomes shorter than the distance of your nose from the page.<\/span><\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\">\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-a6ec6fe elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"a6ec6fe\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-f0d9aa0\" data-id=\"f0d9aa0\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-3186905 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"3186905\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"background-color: #ffffff; line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">You could also see it as a business opportunity.\u00a0 We arrived at the convention center to find the loading dock filled with cars, trucks, and vans, people hauling their goods up a ramp into the building.\u00a0 Jerry and I found somewhere to park the car and headed inside.\u00a0 It took a few minutes to find our spot in the corner of the room, next to a giant sculpture of Appa, the flying bison in Avatar: The Last Airbender, next to a prop cabbage stand.\u00a0 Appa\u2019s face was masked to protect his nose.\u00a0 Con-goers could climb on his back and take pictures for a few dollars.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p style=\"background-color: #ffffff;\">\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"background-color: #ffffff; line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">Comic cons are host to all manner of enterprises like this.\u00a0 You get celebrity autographs, comics or collectibles stands, artists selling fan art in their individual style, indie comic artists and publishers hustling next to authors of fantasy, sci-fi, and humor novels, cosplayers taking photographs, video game stands, and things like Appa the Flying Bison: an experience dreamed up by a group of people with the skill and grit to bring it to life.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p style=\"background-color: #ffffff;\">\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"background-color: #ffffff; line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">The sheer variety of it all can be overwhelming, but at root is a mixture of love and craft, a desire not only to make a few bucks off the attendees but to receive validation that <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">your<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"> art matters, that people think it\u2019s cool, in the simplest manner that capitalism has devised.\u00a0 The encouragement of friends means a lot, everything even, and kind words from strangers are appreciated, but there\u2019s something about someone handing you money as you give them something you made, a perfect stranger willing to part with cash she could have spent on ice cream or a plastic sword because she was intrigued by what you placed before her.\u00a0 It\u2019s a rush beyond mere avarice\u2013it puts a spring in your step, a rush of adrenaline that makes you forget how much your feet hurt and how long the drive home is.<\/span><\/p><p style=\"background-color: #ffffff;\">\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"background-color: #ffffff; line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">We set up.\u00a0 Jerry walked from end to end, considering where the crowd would come from, while his mom and I set up tables and banner stands.\u00a0 The goal, more even than to sell comics, was to give the audience at the con a taste of our <a href=\"https:\/\/doartproductions.org\/services\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">comic book workshops<\/a>.\u00a0 We had tables set up for participants to draw.\u00a0 The idea was to ask them to draw us in a \u201cwacky\u201d way.\u00a0 The word<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-0bbb935\" data-id=\"0bbb935\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;gradient&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-52aa340 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"52aa340\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Chet-with-cool-ppl-8-27-23.jpg?fit=1024%2C768&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-image-315\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Chet-with-cool-ppl-8-27-23.jpg?w=2016&amp;ssl=1 2016w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Chet-with-cool-ppl-8-27-23.jpg?resize=300%2C225&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Chet-with-cool-ppl-8-27-23.jpg?resize=1024%2C768&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Chet-with-cool-ppl-8-27-23.jpg?resize=768%2C576&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Chet-with-cool-ppl-8-27-23.jpg?resize=1536%2C1152&amp;ssl=1 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-582ae72 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"582ae72\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;gradient&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-dc80d7e\" data-id=\"dc80d7e\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;gradient&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-inner-section elementor-element elementor-element-94118f7 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"94118f7\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-1536aea\" data-id=\"1536aea\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-1a63a1a\" data-id=\"1a63a1a\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-01ac08f elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"01ac08f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">Is&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<h6 style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 18pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; text-decoration-line: underline; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"><b>WACKY!<\/b><\/span><\/h6>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-33 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-f00f23f\" data-id=\"f00f23f\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-2d37bd8 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"2d37bd8\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-d2e6702\" data-id=\"d2e6702\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-bdbac03 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"bdbac03\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-ba35ba9\" data-id=\"ba35ba9\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-40857fd elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"40857fd\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Chet-and-Sue-8-27-23.jpg?w=1200&#038;ssl=1\" title=\"Chet and Sue 8-27-23\" alt=\"Chet and Sue 8-27-23\" loading=\"lazy\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-c597c4d\" data-id=\"c597c4d\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4d2e30a elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"4d2e30a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">And then, more or less, to put a pencil and paper in their hands and let the magic happen.\u00a0 Kids, adults, all kinds of people will scribble something on the page, in exchange for a small prize.\u00a0 We\u2019ve seen little kids delight as they move the pencil on the page, me crying out excitedly at the abstract spaghetti monster and saying YOU CAUGHT MY ESSENCE while the parents laugh.\u00a0 We\u2019ve seen a dad coax his kids over, only for him to draw a professional-level masterpiece while they gawk in awe.\u00a0 Once, a woman sat her grandkids down at the table, saying \u201c<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">They\u2019re<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"> the artists.\u201d\u00a0 She drew Jerry as a bearded merman, tail folded in front of him with pond weeds in the background.<\/span><\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">We arranged the immense space we\u2019d gotten in two sections: one for the workshop and one for our artwork.\u00a0 The workshop section was situated around a large white board, three tables in a half-square facing it.\u00a0 The other side had our art, me arranging the canvases, prints, and comics in an aesthetically-pleasing way, around the constraints of time and available space.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-bd6cb3d elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"bd6cb3d\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;gradient&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-13ad884\" data-id=\"13ad884\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-d76a740 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"d76a740\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Birthday Party: Friends, Family, and the Wu-Tang Clan\n\n<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-d6c77ed elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"d6c77ed\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-d06ed79\" data-id=\"d06ed79\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-a9d817a elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"a9d817a\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p dir=\"ltr\">\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\">Con-goers began to file in.\u00a0 The first day was an electric experience\u2013people enticed by the premise of Zine Heist and the power of artistic collaboration, kids and adults alike drawing Jerry while he juggled or rode around on a unicycle.\u00a0 After lunch, Jerry\u2019s mom left and my girlfriend and good friend Matt showed up.\u00a0 The crowd tapered off, and soon enough Day One was over.\u00a0 We walked from the convention center, my feet hurting after a day of very little sitting down, to the parking lot where I\u2019d stashed my car.\u00a0 From there we headed to a bar across the street, admiring the lovely, friendly atmosphere of downtown Indianapolis.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p><p><b>\u00a0<\/b><\/p><p dir=\"ltr\">Back at the house, we ate hamburgers and I gave Jerry my present: THE TAO OF WU, by the producer\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/RZA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Bobby Diggs<\/a>, better known as the RZA.\u00a0 2023 may be the year of the comic con, or the comic book workshop, but it will also be known among Jerry and I anyway as the year of Wu Tang.\u00a0 After day one of our first comic con we unwinded at the end of the day by watching the premier of the 3rd season of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt9113406\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WU TANG: AN AMERICAN SAGA<\/a>.\u00a0 We\u2019ve followed the show, a fascinating exploration of the rise of one of hiphop\u2019s most legendary rap groups, since virtually its debut.\u00a0 We\u2019ve been listening to the group obsessively ever since, most prominently this year, when we delved into their discography after Enter the 36 Chambers, which we play at the beginning of every comic con.\u00a0 Wu Tang, and our fascination with it, deserve its own post, but the show (and the real-life experiences of RZA and the other members of the Clan) demonstrate the power of art, craft, and community to give a sense of identity to those willing to seek it out.\u00a0 Even before the colossal success of the group (witnessed in Season Three, when they tour the world and sign the biggest hiphop record deal of the decade), each member of the Clan sought their way out of a cycle of poverty, violence, and desperation, often with little more than a notebook, a pen, and the support of their loved ones.\u00a0 In telling their stories, and crafting their music, they found not only themselves, but something that could inspire audiences of all backgrounds, and continues to do so today.<\/p><p><b>\u00a0<\/b><\/p><p dir=\"ltr\">Whether Frida Kahlo or Raekwon the Chef, the ability of art to empower has been frequently tested, and proven.\u00a0 But anyhow, the first day was over.\u00a0 I went to bed, exhausted but excited for day 2.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-a6d0abd elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"a6d0abd\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;gradient&quot;}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-3ed4210\" data-id=\"3ed4210\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-b8d62d6 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"b8d62d6\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Day 2: What am I Doing Here?\n\n<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-b865c95 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"b865c95\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-75e52bd\" data-id=\"75e52bd\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5912aa5 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"5912aa5\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">On Day 2 Jerry\u2019s aunts Tammi and Sue joined us.\u00a0 We had been particularly excited to get Sue to come along.\u00a0 A recently-formed artist, Sue had started painting at the age of 50.\u00a0 We had taken many trips to the Art Institute in Chicago, the treasures of centuries revealing their curious secrets among brush strokes or the chiseled edges of stone.\u00a0 We had seen her blossom from a beginner struggling to draw pictures of cats into an artist with her own unique style, and an amazing eye that could transform the world around her.\u00a0 We knew that she would love the friendly atmosphere of the con, as well as the chance to talk to fellow artists and share her love of creativity with others.<\/span><\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">I joined the group after parking my car a few blocks from the convention.\u00a0 Jerry had rearranged the booth, so that the drawing tables and the merch switched places.\u00a0 Now I was nearer Appa the Flying Bison, standing on a corner looking out toward the convention\u2019s many stalls and entertainments.\u00a0 Like the day before I would call out in friendly fashion to the con-goers, smiling and telling them all about our original art and comics, and the drawing station we had set up.\u00a0 But on that Saturday I found myself struggling to maintain a facade of cheer over a deeper attitude of discontent.\u00a0 Watching Jerry, Tammi, and Sue playing with the kids over in the drawing section, while I looked people in the eye and tried to get them to buy a comic, made my own work seem less successful, and more drab.\u00a0 Every time someone walked past without buying something, or even responding to me, I got this nasty sense of futility.\u00a0 What <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">was<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"> I even doing here?<\/span><\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">I recognized this aggravated whining of the ego from my days doing sales.\u00a0 My foray into door-to-door sales hadn\u2019t lasted long, but towards the end this feeling became constant, to the point that I had a miniature nervous breakdown driving to Chicago one evening after a long day of knocking on doors, and selling nothing.\u00a0 Some of it is that, no matter what you\u2019re \u201cselling,\u201d your actions are ultimately a projection of yourself, a version of you more confident and assured than you usually are.\u00a0 To have this projection rejected, again and again, or just plain ignored, becomes physically draining.\u00a0 You start to think that something is wrong with your process, or that today \u201cjust isn\u2019t your day.\u201d\u00a0 You fantasize about hanging it all up, crying yourself to sleep and maybe trying again tomorrow.\u00a0 Worse, you look around for what everyone <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">else<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"> is doing wrong, your own insecurities bloating to monstrous proportions, taking revenge on innocent people for your own exposed vulnerability.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">A few people bought comics.\u00a0 One woman bought a blanket of J. Cole.\u00a0 By the end of the day I was feeling better.\u00a0 Three things are helpful to remember in any bout of insecurity.\u00a0 Firstly, that it\u2019s <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">your<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"> insecurity.\u00a0 Emotions usually become smaller when we make space for them, and face them head on for what they are.\u00a0 Secondly, remember that the only person who \u201cknows\u201d that you can\u2019t do this is you.\u00a0 Nobody knows you\u2019re having a \u201cbad day\u201d except you, and these perfect strangers don\u2019t know that your persona is an act, or that you <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">aren\u2019t<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"> the person you wish to be.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">Thirdly, remember <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">why<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"> you\u2019re doing this.\u00a0 Common advice for salespeople, but every sales job I\u2019d had before this had floundered on the <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">why<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">.\u00a0 I\u2019ll talk more about my experiences in a separate post, but the bottom line was that when I looked at my <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">why<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"> I saw no real reason to continue except that I\u2019d have to say I failed if I quit.\u00a0 Success was simply not enticing enough, if success meant knocking on more doors, making a few dollars commission off a product that I didn\u2019t really believe in or understand.\u00a0 But <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">this<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"> time I knew what I was selling: not just some pieces of glossy paper bound by two staples, but proof positive that I am an artist, and that people can follow the same path I did and become artists themselves.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">Sue was elated with the \u201cwacky\u201d drawings people made, especially of her.\u00a0 She proudly noted that, while <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">she<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"> was there, the drawing tables were filled with artists.\u00a0 One fellow vendor even stopped by and drew her wide brimmed hat and coat in a Wild West style.\u00a0 She reveled in the new nickname: Cowboy Sue.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">Like Sue, I was not some kind of artistic prodigy.\u00a0 I loved reading and writing from an early age, but art always frustrated me.\u00a0 I would scribble in the margins of notebooks, fumbling around in art class, jealous of kids with seemingly effortless linework who could make drawings that <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">looked<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"> like they belonged in galleries or museums.\u00a0 I dabbled in painting in college, more or less because Jerry and Matt goaded me into it.\u00a0 I started drawing seriously at the age of 26, struggling with the fine details of portraits, or making an abstract landscape somewhat recognizable as the place I was painting from photographs.\u00a0 I only started coloring comics because, as Jerry and I wrote them, it seemed natural that he (with more flair for line art) would draw the comics and I would add color in order to contribute and get the project finished faster.\u00a0 So I began coloring Jerry\u2019s pencil drawings in Microsoft 3D paint, cursing the program every step of the way as I ran through page after page, becoming more daring with background patterns and more confident with contrast and shading.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p>\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">4 years and one pandemic later, people at Indianapolis\u2019 biggest comic con were praising the vivid color of <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">Bubba Samurai<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">.\u00a0 The progress was less evident to <\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">me<\/span><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;\"> because I\u2019d been there for all of it, feeling every bump in the road.\u00a0 After day 2 wound down Jerry led us outside.\u00a0 We wandered around downtown Indianapolis for a few hours, enjoying the Monument Circle and the Art Garden before we ended up playing ping pong in a bar just up the street from the convention.\u00a0 I\u2019m no more a prodigy at ping pong than I am at art, but I managed a few good volleys and told myself that, with practice, I\u2019d be smoking Matt and Jerry in no time.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-85c638a elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"85c638a\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-ee67b82\" data-id=\"ee67b82\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-9145c04 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"9145c04\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Day 3: the Wrap-Up\n\n<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-48b94db elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"48b94db\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-8440aa3\" data-id=\"8440aa3\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-87e3746 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"87e3746\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\">\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"color: var( --e-global-color-text ); font-family: var( --e-global-typography-text-font-family ), Sans-serif; font-size: 1rem;\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;\">The last day of a comic con is usually a slower affair.\u00a0 The crowds thin out a bit earlier on Sunday, and the vendors are often tired after 3 days of nonstop action and stimulation.\u00a0 Indy Popcon was much the same, except that this time we wanted to use our creative energy to show appreciation to its lead organizer, Randy.\u00a0 Randy had been immensely helpful to us, negotiating the comic con space as relative newcomers, and had by all accounts thrown an absolutely amazing con.\u00a0 We wanted to transmit not only our thanks but love and appreciation from the attendees.\u00a0 So Jerry took a simple piece of white paper, folded it in half, drew a big Thanks Randy on the front, and had people sign and add artwork to it throughout the last day.\u00a0 My girlfriend and I added color to the front cover to make it more exciting, and little doodles as well as notes of thanks and signatures soon filled the inside of the paper.<\/span><\/p><p><b style=\"font-weight: normal;\">\u00a0<\/b><\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\"><span style=\"font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; color: #000000; background-color: transparent; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;\">My girlfriend and I took a short trip downtown on our lunch break, enjoying the city\u2019s downtown one final time before we had to leave.\u00a0 When we came back, Matt and Jerry\u2019s whole family were helping out at our booth\u2013Tammi standing behind our merch, Sue and Greg encouraging kids to draw while Jerry\u2019s mom Karen practiced juggling next to our sign.\u00a0 One con-goer had drawn Greg with cat paws, whiskers, and ears coming out of his hat\u2013his own likeness given a dash of anime cuteness, the colored pencils lending the drawing a pastel feel.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><b style=\"font-weight: normal;\">\u00a0<\/b><\/p><p dir=\"ltr\" style=\"line-height: 1.38; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt;\">\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-036846e elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"036846e\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-a393152\" data-id=\"a393152\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-57fca8c elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"57fca8c\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p dir=\"ltr\">By the end of the day, the card was filled with drawings and names.\u00a0 I added some art of my own, a quick sketch from memory of a pot of sunflowers, sitting on a table.\u00a0 I could have spent an hour at least finessing the lines and color, but we were out of time.\u00a0 As ungainly as we began we packed up our stuff and loaded into the cars in the loading dock.\u00a0 The hot day, and the fact that I had to park even further than usual from the door, made moving out a more strenuous experience than loading in, but soon enough everything was packed in my car and we went to help Karen and Greg with their truck.\u00a0 Karen deftly managed everything, loading our things alongside the supplies we\u2019d brought for the weekend.\u00a0<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\">\u00a0<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-50 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-ac3e619\" data-id=\"ac3e619\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-5732a4b elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"5732a4b\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"261\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Dubuque-blog-image-9-21-23.jpg?fit=300%2C261&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium wp-image-300\" alt=\"photo mashup of Chet, a cartoon Jerry playing guitar, and the Dubuque Town Clock. Purple hue, with Chet&#039;s bucket hat prominent\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Dubuque-blog-image-9-21-23.jpg?w=1089&amp;ssl=1 1089w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Dubuque-blog-image-9-21-23.jpg?resize=300%2C261&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Dubuque-blog-image-9-21-23.jpg?resize=1024%2C892&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/doartproductions.org\/staging\/2101\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/Dubuque-blog-image-9-21-23.jpg?resize=768%2C669&amp;ssl=1 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-455ef89 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"455ef89\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-73a2eef\" data-id=\"73a2eef\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-0bc95ab elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"0bc95ab\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p dir=\"ltr\">Jerry said Randy was brought almost to tears when he saw the card we\u2019d made for him.\u00a0 I can only imagine that organizing an event like this is often thankless work, managing the little fires that need to get put out with little time to enjoy the fruits of your labor.\u00a0 Knowing that an event like this touches people\u2013and it really does, all the beautifully strange misfits that come to these cons looking for a community based on art and passion\u2013I drove back to Jerry\u2019s house thinking that it was one of his better ideas.\u00a0 And it managed to showcase one of our favorite aspects of art\u2013the artist collage, each artist adding some touches of their own, creating a finished product bigger than the vision of any one of them.\u00a0 The key, which Jerry does amazingly well, is thinking of a frame, an excuse for collaboration to get people working on the same project\u2013which the thank-you card, though simple, accomplished perfectly.\u00a0 I instantly regretted not getting a picture of it, to show you all.\u00a0 But then, some art is made to be shared with the world, to inspire myriad visions of what the world could be like.\u00a0 Some art is made to touch one person, as much with the dedication it took to make it as for what it portrays: to say YOU WERE WORTH THE TIME.<\/p><p dir=\"ltr\">Matt drove home by himself.\u00a0 Jerry and I dropped by girlfriend off in Chicago and then drove to Rochelle, Illinois.\u00a0 We got home late but still managed to get there ahead of Jerry\u2019s family.\u00a0 After all was said and done, all the supplies and convention equipment put away, we sat in the basement watching some TV with Jerry\u2019s mom.\u00a0 Greg came down to join us, rather unusually for him.\u00a0 Typically a man of few words, he had something to say to the three of us. \u201cThat was really cool.\u00a0 I really enjoyed that.\u201d<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-e0dffc7 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"e0dffc7\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-98b10a4\" data-id=\"98b10a4\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tales from our trip to Indy Popcon, and Jerry&#8217;s 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