I was excited to get an email back from MeTv telling me the photos were selected to be featured on the Svengoolie website! 😱
I am honored to have my work in the spotlight on his page, so please take a moment to go check it out amongst the other Svengoolian fan photos and if you are new here, you can find this spotlight amongst the other unique places my artwork has been featured by visiting and bookmarking the Creature Features page of my portfolio website.
If you are interested in showcasing my work on your website, in your next publication, exhibition, social media spotlights or creative ventures let’s connect and make some magic together!
A week ago today, Frank and I packed up our truck with our luggage, a cooler full of snacks/drinks, my artwork, 2 wagon utility carts, multiple large bins of donated prizes and a rubber chicken and headed off for another killer artventure with our horror community fam at Flashback Weekend Chicago!
When we arrived I already got a sign that it was going to be a memorable weekend because 23 was on the parking spot we parked in without even realizing it until we got out. It’s my Mom and my Uncle Randy’s birthdate number (both have passed away) and it often manifests (as what I refer to as) a “glimmer” telling me I am exactly where the universe intends for me to be. ✨
Once we got the truck unloaded and got moved into our “home away from home for the week” we cooled down, relaxed a bit and then got a bite to eat at their Red Bar. When my shrimp tempura arrived I couldn’t help but feel like I needed to cash in a coupon for a “free demon possession with every exorcism” because immediately when the waitress set it on the table I started singing “DAY-O!” and honestly it couldn’t have been a funnier way to kick off a memorable weekend.
The big national sports collector event was taking place at the convention center next door again, but this time the hotel listened to everyone’s feedback from last year and put up signs and had extra security that prevented the lobby areas from being hoarded with collectors trading and collecting cards in every orifice of the hotel and making rude remarks to the “freaks” (as some said they were called) trying to have a good time. There were actual places to sit in the bar and lounge areas again this year and it felt more like the fun hotel vibes we love about the Hyatt Regency. Although we have had many amazing memories at the Crowne Plaza (where Flashback Weekend used to be held at), we have really grown to love the open layout of the Hyatt. So it really made us happy to see the hotel staff listened to why so many guests were not happy with the chaos we endured during our stay last year. Seeing these signs through out the hotel was a win for us horror fans.
The first thing we did at the convention was venture off to get our badges at the registration booth, where we were greeted by Mia (our horror con fam’s Momma and queen of the con) and the amazing convention staff volunteers. I was quite smitten to see there was a little shout out for me inside the Ultimate Ticket Holder goodie bags! 😊
For those of you that may not be aware, Frank and I have been attending Flashback Weekend for 22 years now and I have become the convention’s Prize Coordinator. This means I am in charge of organizing and collaborating with various businesses, artists and vendors to collect and deliver merchandise for prize donations that we raffle off for the convention’s Ultimate VIP Cocktail Reception Party (held exclusively for Ultimate Ticket Holders and the celebrity guests) every year. This also means setting up the prize table at the event and marketing the sponsors leading up to it by maintaining the landing page, and designing/sharing social media posts and promotional flyers/signs. I would like to mention that Frank should get an award just for his patience with me over the months leading up to the con while I am collaborating, tracking and getting packages on our doorstep for months, keeping them safe and stored in our home, and then of corpse all the loading and set up during the con itself. I truly could not do this without him and he’s a real trooper about all of it.
Mia, the sweetheart that she is, pulled out a layout map so Frank and I could easily find the vendors that I needed to pick up raffle prizes from. After picking them up and packing them safely with the others we ventured back into the ballroom to visit with our very talented friend Chad Savage (Sinister Visions). We got carried away getting caught up that we forgot to take our annual reunion pic but I made sure to remember to get one with him on Sunday when we made our last rounds and goodbyes.
After scoping out the amazing vendors and getting an idea on where everything was located, we went and got a bite to eat at the hotel’s O’H American Grill where we were standing in line with actor Joseph Whipp and his lovely wife. She was such a hoot and laughed with us over mai tai drinks and ended up sitting next to us. When the staff handed us our table number as 23, I couldn’t help but acknowledge it as another manifested glimmer. ✨
After making more rounds around the con we went and got ready for the return of Svengoolie Live! It’s a fun on stage late night talk show hosted by our favorite local horror host legend. Flashback Weekend introduced this new event to the con for the first time last year and we absolutely loved it. This year he interviewed actors David Naughton and David Arquette and just like last year, we were not disappointed. Each guest was full of stories and kept us laughing through out the entire show. Of corpse Sven never disappoints when it comes to comedy relief so it was once again worth attending. After the show we stopped in at the con’s little after party for a bit, roamed around the hotel and then headed back to chill on the balcony of our room. Unfortunately the full moon was rising on the other side of the hotel but we still felt its presence.
We woke up Saturday to a text from our friends Ben and Jon from Dead Regime Media telling us that they had arrived and that Ben had Wisconsin dill cheese curds in his cooler with our names on them. So we got our butts in gear and met up and hung out at the con with them all day. One of the many reasons we love reuniting with Ben is because we always reminisce about our memories and friendship with Sid Haig. Our friendship blossomed many moons ago after Ben worked with Sid on High On The Hog and then later interviewed us for a possible future documentary in tribute to Sid’s life. When we are all together it always feels like Sid is there with us in spirit and it helps to not focus on the fact that Sid isn’t at a table ready to look up at us with a huge grin on his face, but instead he is looking down on us from the stardust happy we are all together and keeping his memory alive.
When it was time to finally meet Svengoolie, our horror con fam pulled through. Between Mia and Don (who manages the successful operations of the con each year) they made sure that when the time arrived for me to gift Sven my “You’re All Grown Up Now” portrait that Frank and I would have enough time to spend with him. Don even captured memorable candid and posed pictures of us during our interaction and made sure Sven’s people properly handled his gift bag of art from me.
When talking to Sven, I was so thrilled to hear that he remembered the art piece from our online messages and was excited to finally receive it. He kept telling me how “terrific” the artwork was and even remembered that I had made a special barrette to give to him, so he could hand deliver it to his glamour ghoul co-host Gwengoolie. I also was able to tell Sven that my Dad is an artist and one of my biggest inspirations and loves tuning into the show every Saturday. He loved hearing how excited my Dad was for me to gift my work to him. Being in his presence, I couldn’t help but reflect on how seriously blessed we all are to have such an incredibly talented and kind soul as one of our local Chicagoland legends. And thanks to him always being such a big supporter of Flashback Weekend we now officially have an autographed rubber chicken hanging in our home as a reminder of this memorable moment spent with him.
After grabbing a bite to eat and some drinks with our friends, we headed to our room to start gathering the prizes and loading our carts up to head to the Ultimate VIP Cocktail Reception Party. As always, Frank did an awesome job helping me set the table up. This year it was full with the most prizes we have ever received. There was 20 generous prize sponsors and many of them were kind enough to donate more then one item leaving the party attendees in awe.
Chad, John and Don all assisted in the prize announcements and as always we announced who donated each prize before raffling them off. Frank took photos of all of us live in action while Kat was getting photos of each individual winner with their prizes. It may have been a bit more work this year with so many prizes being donated, but it was so rewarding to see the excitement of so many people leaving the party with something amazing and giving all these generous people and businesses who donated the exposure they deserved.
Donating my own artwork for prizes over the years is actually what led to me becoming the Prize Coordinator to begin with, and this year I found it fitting to donate an oversized 16×20″ canvas print of my “You’re All Grown Up Now” split face portrait of Svengoolie! Laura, a member of our beloved horror con fam had her raffle ticket number pulled as the winner and the whole party cheered in excitement for her again this year. For those who may not recall Laura won my “Daddy” oversized 16×20″ canvas print last year and Kane Hodder signed it for her at his table. She has been attending Flashback Weekend for many years and she had never won a prize until then. Now she’s on a two year winning streak with her very own limited edition Living Dead Girl Nicole print collection and my soul could not feel more fulfilled.
That evening we stopped in for the Woodsboro dance party that kicked off later in the evening before roaming the hotel and enjoying more chill time watching the airplanes fly over on our hotel room balcony. On Sunday we were tired after a very eventful weekend. We checked out and loaded up the truck and then went back to the con to make our final rounds and say our goodbyes to any of the horror con fam we could find as everyone was wrapping things up as another successful con came to an end.
Like I always say, no matter what other events and cons Frank and I go to, Flashback Weekend will always be home. Not just because its the first, the best and largest horror con in Chicago, but because it genuinely feels like our horror home away from home. We love our horror con fam and look forward to our reunion with all of them every year. Thank you for doing all that you do for us Mike and Mia! You truly have created something special. All of us feel the heart and soul you always put into this event and we are so blessed to be able to be a part of it for over 20 years!
Some of you may be setting your New Year’s resolutions right now, however with it still being the dead of winter I prefer to follow the rhythm of nature and set my intentions with the spring equinox, when light takes over darkness, life re-emerges, balance is restored, and creation begins. So for me, winter is the time to dream without pressure and reflect on what I have overcome thus far.
With that being said, this time last year looked very different for me, and what started off on a very high note came crashing down rather quickly. I was so excited to kick the year off with a brand new job where I could finally support fellow artists for a living, only to be led by a CEO full of false promises that resulted in surprise layoffs and the company closing their doors. Despite them being a startup, I jumped all in when the opportunity arose and was quickly reminded why I have never been much of a big risk taker. Having been on my own since I was 18 and always holding a job since I was 15, I was overcome with emotions. I had never lost a job before, especially at no fault of my own, and on top of it, in an industry I was genuinely passionate about. To say it was soul crushing would be an understatement. It didn’t help that it all happened with terrible timing, and I don’t mean just being let go the day after my 44th birthday, but the fact that I was left to hunt for a new job only to find myself tangled in the web of a nightmare job market filled with scammers, hackers, AI garbage, age discrimination, remote jobs that are really hybrid, too many applicants, fake job postings, and most of all, false hopes.
Unfortunately, I still haven’t escaped that job hunting web just yet, but my mindset has changed as I continue to reflect on all the blessings that have resulted from it. For instance, yes, I may have taken a risk, but I also was stuck in a very toxic work situation, and jumping ship to board on with the new startup gave me the push I needed to leave. And although everyone’s time at the startup was cut short, I was blessed to be able to work with an amazing team of women I may never have had the opportunity to meet. I quickly picked up new software and skill sets, and even some great advice and ideas that I now utilize for my own art practice. Most importantly though, I got to experience what it was like working directly with some very talented and well-known fine artists from all around the country, which was something very special that I had hoped to gain from my time working there.
As months passed, one thing remained constant, and that was me word vomiting over and over again about how incredibly grateful I am for my hardworking husband. He has not only been keeping us afloat financially, but he has been my emotional rock through everything, reminding me that just because I am not working full time doesn’t mean I am worthless, because honestly most days thats how I’ve felt. Not having the spending money to enjoy ourselves like we used to or having the ability to save like we were has definitely taken a hit to my self esteem but at the same time allowed me to gain a sense of freedom that money could never buy.
Which leaves me with the one thing I feel this year has blessed me with the most, and that was time. Something I never had before and at times still feel guilty about gaining. When working for other companies, I never had the dedicated time and creative energy I needed to fully invest into my own artwork. Writing this blog alone would have been much different, much shorter, or not even written at all. I would become overwhelmed trying to balance and keep it all together, my health often taking a toll, projects and ideas piling up because it would take me forever to finish anything, or feeling overwhelmed enough to skip the creative process altogether, which would ultimately leave me feeling unaccomplished and unfulfilled.
After being let go from the daily grind, it seemed like whenever I had a confidence crushing moment on my job hunting journey, it would immediately be followed by an uplifting art win of some sort. I now know those were signs from the universe divinely guiding and gifting me with what I had always asked for, it just arrived terribly wrapped in loss and confusion. It was like asking for flowers and the universe giving me rain instead. The seeds were planted. It was up to me to figure out that the glimmers in the rain drops only came if I provided the sunshine needed to bloom. So some days I chose to take breaks from the stress of the job hunt and strictly focus the time I was gifted to work on bringing more of my visions to life. Guilt free.
Since being laid off, I have also gained a plethora of new LinkedIn connections and although a majority of them are strangers in the real world, they’ve truly helped keep me sane. They’ve been there to boost my confidence when venting about job hunting dead ends while also being there to celebrate and support me when sharing my art wins and announcing my new creations. Many have even written up features or conducted interviews about me and my work, and others have actually become new collectors of it. Ironically, most of them may have never even discovered my work had I not been more active on the platform due to my job hunt and the time I was blessed with to focus and really go all in on it this year.
And although I was technically unemployed, I remained VERY busy. When I was not creating, applying or interviewing for jobs, I was putting in hours of unpaid work as an Artrepreneur, which really has put into perspective why it’s been so hard to keep up with everything while working a full-time job.
Top that off with everything else going on in the world, there were many days that made it harder to find the blessings and transform negative thoughts into positive ones. But I found that when I surrounded myself in inspiring environments and spent my time and energy wisely with people who would rather live in the moment than constantly focus on drama, politics, news, and negativity, I felt much lighter, healthier, and creatively motivated.
Refocusing my mindset was important for me as an artist. For instance, did someone physically steal a piece of my artwork and therefore I became a famous artist overnight due to the heist? No, but someone wanted my artwork badly enough that they were willing to risk getting caught and arrested for it.
Did I make a killing on my work this year to the point I could completely live off the income and stop job hunting? No, but I gained a couple freelance gigs that got me by, and both my Etsy and Closet Collectibles sales were on the rise, resulting in many happy dances for a girl who just wants to share her visions with the world while hoping they speak to someone as weird as she is.
So with that, I just want to show my gratitude to everyone that helped these artist milestone moments happen for me over the past “Gregorian calendar year”….
I joined Lyric, an artist first platform allowing my art collectors another way to shop my creations (the company rebranded as Latchet)
Bestselling Author, Award-Winning Screenwriter, & Entertainment Journalist Staci Lane Wilson interviewed and featured me and my work on Women In Horror
My split face portraits “Nothing Is Trivial” of Brandon Lee as Eric Draven and “Maybe Today Satan” of Kierna Shipka as Sabrina Spellman were selected and featured in the Artflow Alliance Virtual Art Exhibition: Haunted Histories from Halloween – Dec 31st
I was commissioned and completed 7 portraits that will be used for promotional and fundraising efforts for the fantasy web series Sommoners Tale created by Brandon Nyte
In celebration of the final season of Stranger Things I conjured up a limited edition Vecna – Upside Down picture frame to showcase an 8×10″ giclee print of my Pretty Bitchin’ split face portrait of Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven in Seasons 1 and 2
I checked Mia Goth and Pearl from the X Trilogy horror movie series off my art bucket list by completing my split face portrait “I’m Not Staying On This Farm”
I checked Walton Goggins and Uncle Baby Billy Freeman from the Righteous Gemstones off my art bucket list by completing my split face portrait “Voila! No More COVID!”
My split face portraits “Chop Driftwood” of Bill Moseley and “Shit The Bed” of Sid Haig were featured on multiple episodes of the Slash Sisters Podcast on Youtube
I was contracted by the realtor/owner of Teighlor Made TX to set up her WiX website from their brokerage’s company template. This included adjusting layout, updating media, hyperlinking, SEO & social media share settings, alt text, blog set up, setting up forms, service/meeting requests bookings, automations, notifications, label tags for segmenting contact leads, setting up admin roles, giving the client marketing and process feedback
I was once again the VIP Prize Collaborator for Flashback Weekend Chicago Horror Con where I doubled the number of prize contributions resulting in a very happy crowd and another successful VIP Cocktail Reception Party for celebrity guests and ultimate ticket holders!
And most importantly, I want you all to know… I’m not stopping anytime soon!
As excited as I was to type this up yesterday, I needed a little time to get back into reality mode and gather my thoughts after another killer artventure with my horror community fam at Flashback Weekend Chicago!
Frank and I started our Friday morning off by carefully loading 2 cart fulls of donated prizes and all our luggage into the truck and then ventured off to Rosemont.
For those of you that may not be aware, we have been attending Flashback Weekend since 2004 but I have been volunteering as the convention’s Prize Coordinator for the last few years. This means I am in charge of organizing and collaborating with various businesses, artists and vendors to collect merchandise prize sponsorship donations that are raffled off for the convention’s Ultimate VIP Cocktail Reception Party, held every year for Ultimate Ticket Holders and the celebrity guests. I collect, deliver, and set up the prize table at the event. I also market the sponsors by creating/maintaining the landing page, social media posts, and promotional flyers used to announce and market the prize sponsors online and at the event.
These are the 3 art pieces I chose to donate to the prizes this year. They included two oversized 16×20 canvas prints of Art and Victor (to be raffled off on their own) and one 8×12 canvas print of Freddy (to be raffled inside the Swag Bag of smaller prizes). All perfectly aligned with this years celebrity guests.
Despite there being a huge national sports collectors event taking place at the convention center next door, we were able to park in the hotel garage without any issues and were even able to check in early when we got there. A big difference from the stressfulness of last year which I think had a lot to do with the fact that there were no other big events taking place inside the hotel itself.
When we got there we unloaded and dragged all the carts and luggage to our room and then ventured off to get our badges at the registration booth, where we were greeted by the (always) amazing convention staff volunteers. We then hit up the dealer room to connect with some of the vendors who had prizes for me to pick up at their booths. Once we got those all back to our room safely, it was time to take everything in. Our first stop was to say hello to our very talented friend Chad Savage (Sinister Visions). I mean it just doesn’t feel like Flashback until we have this horror con family reunion.
After scoping out the amazing vendors and getting an idea on where everything was located, we went and got a bite to eat and had a few drinks at the hotel bar. Afterwards we got ready for a very exciting new event the convention was holding in the evening called Friday Night Frights Live. It was a fun on stage late night talk show hosted by local horror icon Svengoolie.
He interviewed horror legends, Robert Englund, Barbara Crampton, and Joe Dante and we got to hear so many great stories from all of them. They even had a musical guest who was the one and only Tuesday Knight! This new event definitely was a killer way to kick things off this year and we really hope the con continues to make this a fun new tradition.
The hotel at this point was jam packed with sports collectors from the convention center event letting out. It felt like hoards of zombies craving cards in every inch of the hotel. There was not a single place to sit in the bar or lounge areas and every table and floor area had cards spread out with groups of people standing and starring. Since I was a bit overstimulated with all the sporty chaos, we went up to the after party on the top floor to check out the panoramic views of Chicago skyline for a bit. The movement of the room itself was tripping me out, so we decided to end the evening by relaxing on our room’s quiet, private balcony.
We got up early Saturday and headed downstairs to get in before the con opened to the general public. It was time to get into full blown charity and art gifting mode.
First we stopped at Adam Green‘s table where I brought with me the 16×20 canvas print that we auctioned off for Yorkiethon 9. As soon as Adam saw it, he recognized it right away and came around the table and gave me a huge thank you hug.
He was beyond grateful for my contribution and talents and was so excited to also see the original piece in person. He got to signing the auction piece right away and then we walked over to Kane’s table to have him sign it as well.
Kane asked where the art piece came from and I was standing behind them holding the original ready to gift it to him. He was blown away when he saw it and intrigued that it was all hand drawn in pencil. I told him how the wood frame that I chose to put it in was ironically called “The Axeman” and he got a kick out that. He then told me “I really hope you’re doing something with all this talent.” while starring at all the details. My quick response was “I’m trying!” with an excited giggle.
He then told me we had to get a picture with the art piece and I was definitely not going to turn the man down..
I apologized to the folks standing in line that had to wait while all of this was happening and then Adam, as awesome as he is, had my back by saying “Sorry guys, this is for charity”.
When we were done with Kane we went back to Adam’s table where I gifted him a canvas print of the art piece as well as a Jason Voorhees squeaky toy for Arwen. We took photos with the signed auction piece and had a little one on one time with him for a bit where we told him how his work speaks to us as horror fans, and that thanks to Holliston, “piggly no wiggly” and “market basKET” now live in our vocabulary permanently, which he totally got a kick out of. He gave Frank a brotherly bond handshake when he told him how much mad respect he had for him including Dave Brockie aka Oderus Urungus into the show. He shared some fun and interesting facts with us about production and even the art used on the show. We even reminisced about our mutual dearly departed friend Sid Haig and his epic Scary Sleepover moment of kidnapping Axel the cat!
Once we safely put the the autographed art piece in our room it was time to mingle with our horror con fam and go exploring. We met up with our friends Ben and Jonathan of Dead Regime Media.
Ben surprised us with a very unique gift of horror history that he acquired from the set of The Amityville Horror movie from 2005. Apparently the crew hid trinkets on set in random places in hopes to ward off bad spirits after weird instances started to occur during filming. This included crew members would frequently wake up at 3:15 AM (the time of the real-life murders), a real body floating up on the water (where they filmed the boathouse scenes), and Kathy Lutz (who was involved in the remake’s production) whose family’s experiences in the house formed the basis of the story, passed away during the first week of filming. The piece itself is a Watkins Exposure Meter from the early 1900’s that was used to measure the power of light.
After having a late lunch and drinks with our friends, we were able to take a quick peak in as the annual costume contest winners were being announced, and then we immediately headed to our room to start gathering the prizes and loading them up for the Ultimate VIP Cocktail Reception Party!
This year, I did things a bit differently since the swag bags I created for the previous years were starting to get larger and larger each year. We offered prize sponsors the opportunity to donate a larger/higher value item to be raffled off on its own or donate smaller items to be put into one large swag bag that would be raffled off together. The thought process was to give more exposure to those who donate, sponsors not needing to donate multiples of one item, and to also give attendees more opportunity to win something. The outcome was incredible and we definitely ended up needing a much larger display table this year.
Due to so many generous donations and wanting to give props to each sponsor that donated, I assisted Chad when announcing each prize and pulled the winning raffle ticket numbers. Frank took photos of all of us live in action while Kat was getting photos of each individual with the prizes that they won.
It may have been a bit more work this year with the changes I made, but it was so rewarding to see the excitement from those hoping to win and the joy on the faces of those who did. During the event, four attendees came up to thank me and share that after all the years they’ve been coming to the party, this was the first time they actually won a prize. They were so genuinely happy to hear their raffle ticket numbers finally be called, and that made all the extra effort so well worth it.
I also got to enjoy a little time at the party with my horror con fam ghoulfriends Kat and Summer…
That evening, the hotel was once again filled with hoards of sports card collectors, but this time it didn’t phase us because we were excited to attend the live, late night performance of our friend and local master illusionist, Ron Fitzgerald. I snapped a few photos, then put my phone away to fully take it all in. The first time I saw Ron perform live was in the early 90s when my dad took me to be in the audience for a taping of his cable access TV show, Fitzgerald’s Realm. Watching him again as an adult at Flashback brought a wave of nostalgia rushing back. Even the music took me there. I vividly remembered sitting beside my dad, hearing music like Nine Inch Nails for the first time, and being completely in awe. It struck me how much Ron had influenced me. Goth culture wasn’t exactly common in our suburban bubble, but thanks to Ron’s dark, sticky, fun energy, I fell in love with it that very day. Since then, I’ve met Ron many times and become friends with him. He’s a true gem in the dark arts scene, and I’m forever grateful my dad took me to see him all those years ago.
When the show was over we didn’t get a chance to catch up with Ron because unfortunately he accidentally cut his thumb on a razor blade during the show and was getting it wrapped up. So we decided to have pizza and dessert delivered to our room and enjoyed another nice evening to ourselves.
On Sunday we were tired after a very eventful weekend. We checked out and loaded up the truck and then went back to the con to make a pit stop at Steven Luros Holliday‘s booth before heading out. On Saturday I had my “I need this to breath” moment in the vendor space when I discovered Steven’s 4 piece set of art called “Seasons”. Frank saw me attempting to pick my jaw up on the floor while the art was speaking to my soul and talked Steven into selling him the framed display for me. We agreed to wait to pick it up on Sunday so he could still display it at his booth. A killer way to end the weekend with a very happy wifey!
As I end this artventure con recap, I just want to reiterate what I’ve been saying for years…
Mike & Mia Kerz, and the entire crew at Flashback Weekend are the true beating heart of horror in the Windy City. They’ve created more than just a convention, they’ve built our midwest horror family and accepted all of us with open arms. There are plenty of horror cons out there, and we support them all, but the love, energy, and soul poured into this convention since the early 2000’s is why so many of us will always call it our forever horror home.
Thank you for keeping the spirit alive, and for giving us a place where horror isn’t just celebrated… it’s lived.
