Comic Con 2011, held this past weekend at the San Diego Convention Center, has come and gone. This was actually the first time I had exhibited at Con since 2005, so it was nice to actually get back 'in the game' of selling at the big show.
I was only there on Friday, Saturday and half of Sunday, but there was no shortage of things to do and talk about. I arrived in San Diego late Thursday evening, staying over at a friend's home for the weekend. By Friday morning, as I made my way toward the Small Press area of the convention, the first table I stopped at was the one occupied by my good friends Jim Lujan (Ghettomation) and Jose Cabrera (Crying Macho Man):
This was Jim's (on the left) first time exhibiting at Comic Con, bringing with him 4 DVD collections of his animated shorts, dubbed 'Ghettomation' for their quick and sparse style of animation. Jim has already stated that he'd back again for next year's Con, most likely with another couple of collections.
Neil Segura and Ray Mendivil made their first Comic Con appearance as creators of FOREVER FRESHMEN, their comic book title loosely based on their High School years. It's always great to see new talents taking the big steps to set up at the Con.
Neil (left) and Ray making a stand for indy comics at the big show!
I was fortunate enough to be a guest at the Possum Press/Ultraist Studios table. Blair Kitchen (THE POSSUM) was manning the table on behalf of him and his brother Mike, creator of SPY GUY. When Blair offered me a spot at their table, I knew it was an offer I didn't want to refuse. I have know Blair for about 3 or 4 years, having read his first issue of the Possum and becoming a fan from that first day.
Among the numerous friends/fellow creators I ran into were Jason Martin, creator/publisher of SUPER REAL and Dan Mendoza (ZOMBIE TRAMP).
A native of Portland, OR., Jason (left) and I had met several years ago at Comic Con, when we sat as neighbors in the Small Press area (ironically, it was in about the same spot Blair and I were sharing a table!). Jason's become a really good friend over the years, and he and I have actually exhibited together at various other shows. Dan's book is published by Jason, with ZOMBIE TRAMP proving to be a pretty strong seller for an indie comic.
Audra Furuichi, artist of the webcomic NEMU * NEMU, peeking out from her display:
Audra and her husband Scott (who was away from the table when I stopped by) hail from Hawaii. They work really hard at building their audiences and getting out to various conventions. It's people like them, and many others, that continue to inspire me to continually work at this whole self-publishing thing. Lots of hard work, and you have to keep finding what works best for your audience, but the rewards to that are unique to self-publishing. Anything goes, and you take pride in your efforts that succeed.
Jamie Baker (left) and Rhode Montijo have been sharing their booth at the same location for some years now. They seem like such a fixture of Comic Con! With their various comics and art prints and t-shirts, etc., they're like a corner store in the middle of the hundreds of vendor booths.
For me, and the people I mentioned above, we attend Comic Con to exhibit our work, make sales, and connect with old and new fans. We create because we have a desire to tell stories, we produce our work to sell and make a living. But also, like most shows, Comic Con offers a lot more than just artistic fulfillment and a commercial venue.
This costumed gal passed by my booth and I just had to have a photo of her:
She dressed up as SQUIRREL GIRL! Never heard of Squirrel Girl? Well, she was created by artist Steve Ditko with writer Will Murray for MARVEL SUPER-HEROES SPECIAL #8 (1991).
For Friday night's dinner outing, a group of us went to the nearby Seashore Village. Afterwards, we split up and Blair and myself found ourselves at one of the new hotels that's been built in the last few years to deal with the tremendous upsurge in attendance. We found a pool table on one of the floors and decided to play a high-stakes game of pool. America vs Canada...with the fate of the world hanging in the balance! In short order, Blair slowly began to outmaneuver me, scoring on his shots while I missed mine by miles.
Blair's Grammy-Award air-guitar rendition of "O CANADA". And yeah, he put in those red eye contacts to add to the effect!
At one point I had missed a shot and sent the cue ball straight into a pocket. "I saw that!" came the voice from the escalator just overhead. We looked up and see Sergio Aragones smiling at my mishap! Yep, Sergio Aragones of MAD Magazine fame. The world's fastest cartoonist. And faster wit!
Saturday at the Con was interesting. Traditionally, in my experience, it's always the busiest day of the whole weekend. More people streaming into San Diego and the convention center than on any other day.
My friend Michael Aushenker, whom I've exhibited with at so many other previous conventions, was found holding court at his CARTOON FLOPHOUSE table in Small Press.
If Sergio's the world's fastest wit, Mikey has gotta be a close second. Times are always better with Michael around, whether we're doing time at a comic convention or bouncing around the Greater Los Angeles area. Michael's upcoming projects include the first trade-paperback collection of his classic EL GATO, CRIME MANGLER series. I'm super excited about that because not only am I a fan of that gonzo character, I wrote the intro to the furshlugginer collection!
Meanwhile, back at the Possum Press/Ultraist Studios table, I gave Blair an early Christmas gift:
Yep folks, it's a super special linmited edition El Muerto Mini Sketch Doll: Possum Muerto!! ( The Possum © and ™ Blair Kitchen, El Muerto © & ™ Javier Hernandez)
On one of my walkabouts, I ran into Michael once again and a lady named Mayra.
Like the gallant knight I am, I introduced myself to yon damsel. Then I walked her over to my table where she was nice enough to buy my movie and a comic! If flattering such ladies to buy my stuff needs this approach, then I guess I better stock up on lip balm for next year!
A word about 'next year': I'm very grateful to have been invited by Blair to have shared a small spot at the table. While I've missed exhibiting at Comic Con for several years, I was eager to get back behind the table and do the 'Big Show' once again. I noticed a couple of things.
One: Not having my banner with me behind the table makes a huge difference. As a last minute invite, I certainly didn't want to clutter the table with my accessories, so I left it back home. But it does show me that people really do look at the large image and decide right there and then if they're at least curious to check out the table.
Two: I had several people over the two and a half days I was set up comment on the fact that they had seen the EL MUERTO movie. One person didn't like it (no problem, at this point I'm totally fine hearing all reviews of the film). One didn't finish seeing it and wanted to rent it via Netflix. Another liked it enough where he dressed up as El Muerto for Halloween. I asked him to please send me a photo if he could find one. Another guy walked by, saw the DVD, asked what it was about, bought it and whisked off! That was the quickest sale I ever made, outside of a button.
Three: This last opinion of mine if just my own personal point of view. Saturday was by far my least productive day in terms of sales, a far cry from the traditional sales patterns for this show. I heard from other self-publishers that they also experienced slower sales. A retailer friend of mine, whose been selling back issue comics for well over a decade, told me his sales were not keeping up with his expense of doing the show.
So, if there were record number of people in the convention, where were our sales? I'm guessing that many of the new people attending Con are there for the various movie and TV-sponsored panels and presentations. Also, with the ever increasing presence of video game and toy companies, perhaps the 'traditional' comic buying fans are getting 'squeezed' out by the new crowds? I can't sell stuff to people who aren't interested/looking for/there for the type of things I make.
Let me share a link here, for those of you who are interested, in a newsletter by retailer Chuck Rozanski, President of Mile High Comics. He's one of the world's largest retailers of comic books, and has been attending Comic Con for 38 years. I think he's more than qualified to speak on the status of Comic Con and it's trends and future plans. Some sobering information in his report, that's for sure.
I will say that I am not harboring any anti-Comic Con sentiments. They also put on the Alternative Press Expo in San Francisco and later this year I will be exhibiting there for my 14th year in a row.
But Comic Con is an expensive show to exhibit at (I'm including travelling/lodging expenses as well) and we each have to make our own decision as to whether we can afford to do the show every year. And of course one has to be creative in making one's presence known at Comic Con.
I'll say this, my experiences at Comic Con, first as a fan then later as an exhibiting artist, are always full of great, great memories. I've made some good friends here, have gotten many new fans, met some legendary creators from yesteryear. We held our panel for the EL MUERTO movie here, and in 2007 screened the film here as well. This is the biggest comic book convention in the country, bare none.
I'll have to think about my plans for Comic Con 2012. And soon, as exhibitor space sells out way quicker than it did a few years ago.
But I had a great time this year. And I expect I'll have other great Comic Cons in the future.
A volunteer for the convention stopped by the table and asked Blair and I to sign his volunteer t-shirt.
See the Possum and Muerto drawings? I've always been a fan of the SPY VS SPY strip, from the pages of MAD Magazine. To be able to sign it, to add my character to that SPY VS SPY Anniversary commemorative souvenir, that's such a blast. As a comic book creator myself, it's just another of those little memorable, magical moments that make up yet another Comic Con for me.
And I'll be travelling with some little friends of mine.... EL Muerto Mini Sketch Dolls!
It's been several years, but I will indeed be at the San Diego Comic Con this week. I'll actually be there on Friday and Saturday. Look for me in the Small Press area, at table K-05 (The Possum Press/Ultraist Studios table). I'll be hanging out with my friend and fellow self-publishing cartoonist Blair Kitchen, creator of THE POSSUM!
I've blogged about Blair here in the past, talking about his Possum comic, easily one of my favorite comic books being produced this century! In 2010, I finally met Blair and his cartoonist brother Mike Kitchen at WonderCon in San Francisco. These guys each produce top-level work, and often keep up a pretty rigorous traveling schedule as part of their self-publishing efforts.
Mike won't be making it out to San Diego, but Blair will have all the Ultraist Studios product at the table. I actually did an interview with Mike last year on my old podcast, JAVILAND. Here's the link to my podcast's blog with links to the interview. And there's also a link to an older interview I did with Blair Kitchen on PLANET COMIC BOOK RADIO, an earlier podcast I used to host.
As for them mini sketch dolls I mentioned at the beginning.. .Yes, I have made some new ones just for Comic Con. El Muerto, as well as some variants, like Diabolico El Muerto, El Muerto/Diego de La Muerte, even a super special mash-up Possum Muerto! So new, so secret, even Blair doesn't know about it!! These 5" sketch dolls are all hand-drawn/colored by yours truly. It's like buying a 3 Dimensional sketch from me!
Looking forward to hanging out with Mr. Kitchen, as well as meeting up several friends of mine, some of who are making their debut Comic Con appearance as exhibitors. Hope to see some of you there!
Folks, in what is the stupidest mistake I've ever made on this blog, I deleted my Pt. 1 report of my trip to San Francisco for the opening of my art show. Yes, I'm exceedingly pissed off about it. But, here's my attempt to recreate the post. So very sorry about that.... PT. 2 continues afterwards.
The opening for my solo art show, "COMIC POP: Art by Javier Hernandez" was on Saturday, April 3. Of course, as luck would have it, there was plenty happening that weekend that turned this not only in a cross-platform promotional event, but an amazingly exciting vacation as well.
Not only was my art show opening that weekend, but Wondercon was also happening at the same time. Plus the fact that it was Easter only added to all the hoopla.
This show came about rather fortuitously. My friend Ricardo Padilla, who I first met when I was exhibiting at APE (Alternative Press Expo) about 6 years ago, came to my table at APE back in the Fall of '09. He told he needed to curate a show as part of his final for his Master's degree, so I boldly told him to pick me as his subject! He was going to ask me anyway, but this should demonstrate to all artists that one should never hesitate to nudge fate whenever needed.
Ricardo picked the location, the Encantada Gallery of Fine Arts, and thus started the months of prep for the show. By a great coincidence, my friend and fellow cartoonist Michael Aushenker was also planning to visit San Francisco that same weekend, so we decided to carpool and save on gas and double up on the fun factor. Michael and I have been traveling together to conventions for about 10 years, and each time has been a memorable experience. You can read about Mikey's work, and his blog post about this trip, over at his blog, CARTOON FLOPHOUSE.
Michael Aushenker, me and a load of bull about an hour outside of San Francisco.
Upon arriving in San Francisco, I checked into my hotel, while Michael went across the Golden Gate Bridge to stay at his friend's home for the duration. The hotel, provided courtesy of my wonderful curator Ricardo Padilla, was a quaint little place, complete with a shared kitchen serving continental breakfast.
My cozy little room...
The following day, Thursday, brought a full day of work. Ricardo picked me up that morning and drove me over to the Encantada Gallery to meet the owner, Mia Gonzalez, and drop off all my artwork. While Mia hung the show, Ricardo took me for some sightseeing and artist/curator talk. He also took me to several of the comic shops, bookstores and cafes where he had left our show postcards. One of the place that he talked to about promoting our show was the Cartoon Art Museum, the West Coast's premiere institution for the preservation and exhibitions of the comic and cartoon arts.
Me, proud as a poppa, with my COMIC POP artwork hanging in the lobby of the Cartoon Art Museum.
One of the great things about Ricardo networking with the CAM was bringing my work to their attention. They liked what they saw and invited me to join them at their booth at Wondercon on Friday if I was available. I hadn't actually been to Wondercon in about 10 years, so I was more than happy to return, and especially at the beckoning of the Museum!
Friday came quickly, and after being dropped off at the Moscone Center, I made my way to the Cartoon Art Museum booth. For a two hour period, I drew sketches on behalf of the Museum for people who donated money, and also sold my comics, including my brand new sketchbook, THE COMIC POP SKETCHBOOK.
A long-time fan of mine, Alejandro, posing with a drawing I made of Rom, SpaceKnight!
Me, in my natural state, selling comics! (And, I might add, DVDs and sketchbooks!)
While at the booth, I got to meet the acting director of the Cartoon Art Museum, Summerlea Kashar, a most gracious host.
Among the people I ran into at the Con was Jason Martin, my great friend from Portland.
Jason is the creator and publisher of SUPER REAL and PULP GIRLS, and he's a pretty well-traveled conventioneer. We met years ago while we were both exhibiting at San Diego Comic Con and he and his wife are kind enough to host me when I travel up to the lovely town of Portland. As a way of showing thanks, I sent them a painting last Christmas I made of their cute little chihuahua Choco. Jason actually suggested I put the painting in my art show so he brought it down with him and gave it to me at the show.
Now ain't that Choco a cute little pup? The painting ain't too shabby either!
Another highlight for me was meeting Blair Kitchen of THE POSSUM. Blair's the writer and artist of the book, and we have known each other for a few years now. I even interviewed once on a podcast I used to host, but this was the first time we met. Blair's brother Mike also makes his own comics, SPY GUY. After the show, I had dinner with the Bros. Kitchen at a nearby Whole Foods. I didn't know they had a deli in there, and boy, they make some great sandwiches there!
Blair (L), me and Mike. FYI: The Kitchen Bros. have a teeny, tiny cameo in the spoof SUPERHERO MOVIE!
As much fun as I had at Wondercon, the real dance was yet to come on Saturday! Showtime at the Encantada Gallery. All the details in PT. 2!
As mentioned in a previous post, I'll be in San Francisco this coming weekend for the opening of my solo art show at the Encantada Gallery of Fine Arts. Also, I'll be at Wondercon, courtesy of the Cartoon Art Museum.
Friday, April 2: I'll be at the Cartoon Art Museum's booth, # 721, on Friday at Wondercon. Not sure of my exact hours, but they asked me to get there in the morning so they could assign me a schedule for the day. I'll be doing free sketches on behalf of the museum, and will also be selling my comics, DVD and buttons.
Saturday, April 3: The Opening Reception for my art show, COMIC POP, will be from 5pm-8pm at the Encantada Gallery of Fine Arts, in the Mission District. I'll be exhibiting new work, as well as a few pieces I made last year. I'll also have some orginal comic book pages available for purchase, as well. Debuting at the show will be my first sketchbook, THE COMIC POP SKETCHBOOK (I received an email from the printer that they have indeed shipped it!). Here's a peak at the cover and some pages:
Exclusive to the exhibit will be this snazzy little 2.25" button, featuring the art from the show postcard:
(When I get back from San Francisco the following weeek, I'll post info here on how to order the button and sketchbook.)
Sunday, April 4: I'll be conducting a Cartoonist Workshop at the Gallery from 2-3:30pm. Kids of all ages are welcome.
In addition to these events, I'm planning on visiting an event Thursday evening at the Contemporary Jewish Museum of San Francisco. My good friend Michael Aushenker will be speaking on the panel " A discussion on Jews in Comics". Legendary comic creator Joe Kubert is also scheduled to appear on the panel!
While at WonderCon, which I haven't been to in over 10 years, I'll try to catch up with as many of my out-of-town cartoonist friends as possible. Including Portlander Jason Martin of SUPER REAL fame, and, hailing all the way from Canada, Blair Kitchen of THE POSSUM.
That's in addition to catching the "ED HANNIGAN: COVERED" exhibit at the Cartoon Art Museum and lots of other things. This is one seriously jam-packed weekend for me. Hope to see some of you JAVZILLA readers out there!
The podcast featuring last Tuesday's guest,Blair Kitchen, creator of THE POSSUM, is now available on the PLANET COMIC BOOK RADIO site. Blair was really fun to talk to, and I am so glad to see that he gave out so much great insight into the role of the self-publisher. Several of my previous guests are self-published artists, and they all have great insights into creating a comic under one's own steam. But I think the conversation with Blair gives listeners, and maybe future publishers, a good portrait of one person's creative drive and determination to make his own creation work.
Also, since I've never actually met Blair (save for the past year of emails and one pre-interview phone call), we didn't have the shared, personal history I've had with my other guests. This may have allowed me to perhaps focus on discussion of the issues at hand, as opposed to the freewheeling rapport I've had with my other guests (i.e. friends). I'm not being critical of the interview, just sharing my own perspective as the guy in the interviewer chair. Either way, it was another fun and interesting podcast. I'm glad to have had Blair as a guest. And now, I think it's fair to say, as a friend.
This tuesday's show features Richard Dominguez, the creator of the comic book EL GATO NEGRO. Richard was an early influence on me, as I was trying to find my way into self-publishing. Back in the mid-90s, I had seen an article on him in HISPANIC MAGAZINE. They talked about how Richard, a Mexican-American artist, created his own comic book character with roots in Mexican culture. Richard, along with Carlos Saldaña, really pointed me in the direction to publish my own comic book creation, based on elements from both Mexican folklore and American pop culture.
I remember meeting Richard at San Diego Comic Con, before I published EL MUERTO, and really enjoying my first meeting with him. Later, when I debuted my own comic book at San Diego, it was a real thrill to be able to give him a copy (or did I sell him one?!). Well, Tuesday will be a chance to have him on my radio show and not only thank
him again for all he's done, but to let him share with all of us the work he's done for the past 15 years.
(Click image to enlarge)
I've mentioned Blair and his most excellent comic book on a previous post here. But just to reiterate, this talented and driven cartoonist crafts one fantastic book. Talking to him about his career and art is something I'm very much looking forward to.
So, as Blair is a Canadian artist, living in Toronto, I guess this puts the PLANET in PLANET COMIC BOOK RADIO! My first exposure to Canadian superheroes was probably Wolverine! But I remember in the early 80s buying an issue or two of CAPTAIN CANUCK, a genuine Canadian comic book by Canadian creators.
It'll be interesting talking to Blair about Canadian comics, and how his character fits into that particular field.
And by the way, the Rafael Navarro podcast is now up on the PLANET COMIC BOOK RADIO website. That was a fun show to record (twice even!). Me and Raf have a long, mutual history in self-publishing, with our paths crossing many times. Give it a listen to!
Here's a cool comic I discovered only a few months ago (my girlfriend lent me her copy and I fell in love with the book instantly!). I wrote the creator, Blair Kitchen, and ordered my own copy of issue #1 and his more recent #2. And here's what I think about THE POSSUM...
This is a great book! The hero, a teenage comic book geek/comic book creator by the name of Stuart Spankly (hmmm...who says they don't make comics I can't relate to anymore...Um...except the teenage part!!) gains zombie powers through a foolish mishap and becomes The Possum! Actually, 'the Possum' is the name of Stuart's comic book character, and in fact dresses up as his own character at comic cons as he tries selling his book! Hats off to Blair for coming up with such a great idea.
Stuart is a good-hearted kid, just not the most athletic hero around! Blair's artwork and writing are perfectly in tune with the story he wants to tell. His animation background definitely comes into play with the manic action and expressiveness he evokes in his drawings. A humor book that actually delivers on the humor. Tons of great visual gags abound in both issues. The first book, at a whopping 72 pages, covers the origin of the Possum, while the second book features a battle royal with a team of masked, midget Mexican wrestlers, Los 7 Deadly Dwarfs! Issue #2 even has a car chase that lasts for about 18 pages...out of a 23 pg. book! Not since a late 1960s Gene Colan drawn issue of DAREDEVIL have I seen a car chase that exciting!
If you read his blog, you'll discover that Blair is a very hardworking publisher as well. He's got quite a lot of comic book conventions under his utility belt (in fact he travelled from Toronto, Canada to the APE in San Francisco this past year...and I missed him!!). He's generous about creating for the fans free Possum sketches. That's a great guy, and a nice way to build a rapport with the fans. As a publisher myself, I always appreciate seeing how others conduct themselves with the public. Sometimes I even steal some of their tricks!
I hope Blair continues to create more Possum comics, as his love for his comic is very evident. THE POSSUM is a professionally crafted book, with a refreshing good-natured sense of fun. In a perfect world, independent artists who love creating their comics would never have to worry about making ends meet. But, an imperfect world filled with creative, energetic cartoonist doing what they do for the shear love of their art ain't a bad world to live in. Do all of us a favor and order your own copies!
Oh yeah, and along with my comics, I recieved this little gem from Blair. Very cool, no?!
Thanks Blair!
