Illuxcon 2019 Recap

There are back again! Another Illuxcon is in the books, and I am simultaneously missing it and looking forward to next year. What can I say? Illuxcon is one of our favorite events of the year. This year was particularly wonderful, I was back in the Main Show, I debuted my work from the Grand Bazaar, and I held my first workshop at IX. It was great to see so many familiar faces and to meet so many new ones. There is never enough time, but that leaves everyone wanting to see each other again as soon as possible.

This year we drove for the first time to IX. Since 2009 we have flown, which has limited our ability to bring a lot of art. That was not the case this year as Dear Wife set about ensuring my set up brought the feel of the Grand Bazaar to IX. Driving did greatly increase our travel time, but it also allowed us to enjoy the drive up and take in the sights. It was nice to have the flexibility and space to bring as much as we wanted to in regards to art and booth dressing. Since 2010, IX has been a staging and practice event for all my ideas for booth and convention set up.

I have been praising IX and all that Patrick and Jeannie Wilshire do with Illuxcon and for the greater illustration community as a whole since 2009. If you have not gotten the hint that this is a truly special event that you need to attend, then I don't know what else I can say. There is not another event like it that I have attended, and I can not say enough good things about it. Even if you are not in the Main Show or Showcase, there are workshops, demos, lectures, and rooms full of amazing art to take it. Here are some of the images I took this year of our time going to and attending IX 2019.

 Everything piled into the trailer and ready for IX. Well, not everything, we managed to get some more in there before leaving.

Visited the Natural Bridge State Park outside Roanoke, VA. I was completely unaware of its existence and was awestruck by it.

I could have spent a few hours taking in the rock formations.

There were not bad angles.

If you frame it correctly, you can make it a cave.

There was a historical recreation of part of a Monacan village at the park as well that was very insightful and offered a lot of reference opportunities. 

We finally made it to Reading, and it was time for IX to start!

 Thanks to the help of Dear Wife and Jason and Tina Rak, my booth came together in record time. If not for the assistance and expertise of all involved, my booth would not be what it was this year. 

I could not be happier with how it turned out, and it definitely raised that bar for me and what I will not expect from my setup at future events. 

We arrived well before most, but eventually, others began to arrive.

I have the pleasure of spending IX next to David Wenzel and his amazing art. We first met at IX last year, where I was able to purchase one of his illustrations. I have been a fan of Davis's work since the 1990s. It is wonderful how large and yet small the art community is and how you can meet people you have admired for decades and become friends.

 A few images of IX taking shape.

My monster workshop was a lot of fun, and I hope that everyone that attended got something out of it. Here are a few of the people that attended the workshop as I rambled and ranted about monsters.

In the end, I sketched a jellyfish monkey monster thing. It was a suggestion from the crowd. Not my best monster, but I was able to use it as an example and talk about my process.

 Some images of the galleries.

IX would not be complete without some Magic artist proof sketches.

 Some more images of the galleries.

I acquired one of Owen Weber's AWESOME Inktober sketches in the Showcase.

Signed my first egg tokens.

Another look at the galleries.

Dear Wife got me one of Nate Flamm's Stranger Things pieces after security was called on me when someone(s) mistook my Hopper costume and performance too seriously.

Apparently, there was a large drunk man wondering around the Showcase making threats?

 Even MORE images of the galleries.

Alas, all things must end, even IX.

 My last glimpse of the Reading Pagoda from the roof of the hotel parking garage as we prepare to head home.

Long story short, I hope to see you at IX 2020 in Reading, PA on October 21-25!

That is all for another exciting week on the blog, see you back here on Monday! Until then...

For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com