Ring*Con 2015

Back from two absolutely smashing days in Bonn! As usual, I saw little besides my booth, but what was going on at my booth was enough to supply with happiness for the rest of the month.

I had come prepared with a new T-shirt to forestall the usual “Did you draw this?” question. The T-shirt was fun but totally didn’t work. People still asked.

 

And yes, I have actually been asked whether I used stencils. It’s amazing what ideas people will develop just because they just can’t imagine that anyone can draw figures/horses/flowers/spiders without cheating.

But yes, I had a wonderful time! I’d brought the kids on Saturday, supervised by my wonderful friend Petra, and I was glad to see that eleven years of nerdy education had made them fully capable of enjoying themselves at a Fantasy convention for an entire day. Parenting achievement unlocked! They spent all their pocket money (and some bribe Euros supplied by me) on Saurons, Bilbos, Radagasts (“Look, mum, he doesn’t look quite as deranged as in the movie!”) pirate pistols, and cuddly wolves.

Three years ago, my first Ring*Con experience had suffered from the fresh Loughborough experience, and the fact that I’d been mostly an unknown entity in the German Con world. Now, after several Tolkien-Tage and other fan events, I was at home here. It was a lovely feeling.

I met a lot of old friends and a lot of new ones – so many great conversations with people who love the same things as I. I love a world where people sit in wheelchairs in full Rohirrim armour and with a hobby horse attached to the wheelchair, where the ubiquitous hair in the women’s bathroom sink isn’t brown but blue, and where everyone smiles at people, whether they sport Orc teeth, princess dresses, battle scars, vulture-topped hats, or haemangiomas. I think we all need more Ring*Con in our lives. Going back to school the next Monday always feels like a parallel, and slightly grey, universe.

I got a whole lot of drawing done over those two days – sketches and small portraits on the first, and commission linearts on the second (coming up in another post).  These three are for three of my wonderful Patrons over at Patreon: Faramir, Odin, and Haleth (whom I’ve never drawn before!)

I also did a small portrait of Finrod that I sold straight off the easel and didn’t take a photo of – sorry!

Ring*Con was a huge success for me and I’m looking forward to seeing some of the old – and new – friends again at HobbitCon in April!

• art show
• convention
• ringcon