A "relaxacon" is fannish slang for a small convention which is mainly for social rather than commercial purposes. It's an excuse to party and drink and sing and sit around talking. There may or may not be an art show but there's usually a writer guest of honor, along with crafts workshops. There used to be a relaxacon outside of Philadelphia in the summer, named "Phrolicon," which I attended. Phrolicon had an emphasis on comedy and satire, and it was always good for laughs.
This fuzzy gentleman in his fantasy vest is the late Mark Kennedy, a master of origami, the famous Japanese paper folding craft. He spent his days going to origami conventions (yes, they have them, all over the world and not just Japan.) He also went to science fiction conventions and gave demonstrations and workshops. He could fold any paper as long as it was bendable. I sketched Mark during one of his informal workshops. I have to confess that I have never succeeded in doing even the simplest origami so I just watched Mark.
Black tech pen on sketchbook page, 5" x 8". August 1, 1997.
No comments:
Post a Comment