Denver Comic Con 2017 - Scotty's Art Treasures

Written by Scott Edwards

I am always looking for treasures to bring home from Denver Comic Con and this year was no different. Being able to talk to some great artists about their work is always a highlight for me and seeing how some fans lives were changed after meeting their favorite artists, I see that I am not the only one. This year was a little different for me, as I usually splurge on a ton of prints, I went more of the comic book route this time, and now have plenty of books to keep me busy, along with a few prints to admire in between readings, so, without further ado, here are some of the amazing creations that I brought home with me this year.

Ben Templesmith – Even though he did not bring any of his copies of 30 Days of Night this trip, I was able to pick up a couple copies of his latest book, Blackholers which looks pretty darn intriguing. From the first time I saw his artwork hanging outside of his booth, I knew that I would be a forever fan and the magic inside of the pages has confirmed this yet once again.

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Zac Skellington – Knowing Zac for a couple of years and having my own one of a kind Gnome eyeing me every night, I know he can do much more. Picking up his copy of A SKELLOSKETCHBOOK was a great choice as it highlights great works from over the years.  I must admit that I am a sucker when it comes to people drawing Jokers, and he has got a couple of my favorites highlighted in there as well.

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J. James McFarland – Stopping by J. James’s booth, he had one of his books that made its first appearance a couple months back, Gen-Exxed. With his own version of X-Men going on between the pages, I cannot wait to jump in and see what stories they have to tell.

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Nathanial Hamel – Seeing that Nate was going to be back at Denver Comic Con this year made me smile a little bit bigger. I had to pick up his new book Barbarians, not only to show my love, but to keep him coming back.  I must admit that I have only thumbed through the book thus far, but I do love the artwork in it, especially for the character Gosta who has an epic mustache. 

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Felipe Echevarria – I see Felipe at every show I go to and his artwork is always breath taking. I decided to pick up his book Ankh, which features painted Sandman Death sketches from 1993-2009. In fact this book holds over thirty paintings of Death, and I will admit that the way it is laid out, it tells a story of its own. This was a must have for my collection.

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Russell Nohelty – Being a writer and founder of Wannabe Press, Russell fit right in with the artists. One of his books, Katrina Hates Dead S%it, was next to impossible to ignore. Being able to get his own book off of the ground by asking people what they wanted and getting artists who are as passionate about it as he was, I will admit that this might be one of my favorite surprise pick-ups of the show. And when you get done with the book and see the back cover, you will agree, the apocalypse sucks.

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Jason Meents – I talk about his work every year and it is hard not to fall in love with his artwork, I mean you can never go wrong with Tykes. I do need to grow my collection of Jason’s work, so to do so, I made sure to pick up this Batman piece. This will go great with my ever growing collection and actually make me not feel bad about having a teddy bear in my room.

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Lewis Brown – I always keep an eye out for Lewis’ work and any new updates on his book, Brown Hornet Omniverse.  I will admit that after getting a quick peek of the book last year, I was chomping at the bit to get a copy when he showed up. Flipping through the pages and seeing just a small sample of what challenges the Brown Hornet will have to face, I am excited to jump in, because the creatures are extremely eye catching. 

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Chad Harden – If you don’t know that I am a huge Joker fan, now you know, I am a huge Joker fan. Chad has perfected the counterpart to my favorite character in Harley Quinn and it is time to expand my collection a little bit further. I picked up a couple of the metal trading cards, not only because they are small, but it helps to get my collection going with a quick shot. I think everyone needs a little bit of Harley in their lives, not only because she sticks with the Joker, but because sometimes we all need to embrace our crazy.

Todd Jones – I love talking with Todd at these events, mainly because it turns into gut splitting laughter and this year was no different. Needing to update my Wicked Awesome Tales collection by picking up book #6, featuring The Undead Avenger: Brother Bones, my heart skipped a beat when I saw another new book, Classic Monsters as Sharks. Not having any idea that he was going to turn his drawing obsession into a book, Todd has pulled together all of his favorite Classic Monster Sharks from the past year and even gave them an intertwined backstory in the Shark Universe. With sharks ranging from Sharkula to Sharkzilla, this book is a dream come true. Oh yeah, I also got an outlier that did not make the Shark book in Mantas-Shark, because he was too scary.

Frankie Serna – One of the hidden gems on the con floor is always Frankie, for one reason, he is always smiling and happy to see you. I had fallen in love with Frankie’s art a couple years ago with his awesome Venom that has so much texture, it is hard to believe it’s not real. This year, I got a special one of a kind Joker sketch from him, which will have to become one of my pride and joys of this year. With all of the detail work that went into it, it is more than I ever could have imagined and I cannot give enough thanks to him.

There you have it, my Denver Comic Con take home for this year. I wish it could have been more like in years past, but overall, I am very happy with my purchases. One of the things that I love about this event is not only being able to view some of the great artwork that litters the aisles, but to talk with the artists who are able to put it down on paper. Listening to their stories is truly priceless when all is said and done and while you might be buying something to put on your walls, know that you are helping to keep the artists doing what they love. I cannot say enough about how much artistic talent was at Denver Comic Con this year. It was a pleasure chatting with them inside and outside of the con and I only hope to keep my collections growing with their work and others that I find along the way.

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