Terry was at the bar with a co-worker when I arrived at Taste for the Anime Masquerade. When I started a second sketch of the cast of characters at the end of the bar, she decided to head home. Neither of us were in costume, so we kind of stuck out from the crowd. After the burlesque, there was a costume contest on the main stage. There was a cat lady with flaming red hair, that masked guy from Vendetta, some hooded guy who was perhaps a hangman, and some guy who I think was a Cheshire Cat. Lets face it, I don’t know enough about Anime or video games to know who was who. There were some choice prizes however from “A Comic Shop.” Next time I should make more of an effort.
The evening was a challenge. Everyone was constantly on the move in the tight space. Every sketch swam in a sea of uncertainty. I am starting to realize that I should ask people to pose. Some of the costumes were so complex and beautiful that I am certain that the creator would be honored to pose. I need to stop trying to catch the big picture sometimes and instead go in for the close up.
This was a very crowded and successful event. I’ve been told that these kind of costumed events happen fairly regularly in Orlando. If you know of such events please contact me here or on Facebook. I would love to keep sketching these types of events.