Conventions, artist alley and AuDHD

Most people visit naklejtatu for one of 2 reasons - either they saw my booth at convention or pride march or we`ve met on tiktok. Today I wanted to write about conventions.

Convention have been my safe space for many many years and , during all those years, I`ve changed and the way I visit conventions too. I started as a fan, someone who visits cons just to have fun , meet with friends and listen to panels and prelection. It was fun for years, but in the end I got into selling my art and that`s also something I love and enjoy.

What`s so fun about being a convention artist?

Meeting people directly and seeing them happily interacting with my art. I`ve done comissions, paintings, many many forms of art, but drawing cats and turning them into flags and bringing people joy with them is the most fun I`ve had as an artist. Don`t get me wrong, running a shop has it`s perks, but nothing beats the direct interaction. And selling is perfect for my ADHD - lots of changes, chalenges, something is always happening. Building a booth thats always a little bit different, finding solutions to weird prblems - like instable tables, missed packages with merchandise... that`s really fun. Really exhousting too, especially considering the fact that I`m autistic and people are realy exhousting... But in the end I can manage for 2-4 days and the fun parts make it exciting enough to make me happy. I need to rest for a long time after each con, but in the end it`s worth it. Provided I get enough rest after each event - learning how to read when my body tells me when it`s exhousted was the best thing ever.

If youre autistic yourself conventions can be both wonderful and terryfiying spaces for you. What can you do to make it better? Start with small local conventions - they`re much more managable. You can look around, check out how conventions work. Want to check something bigger that 1000 people? You can do that, but prepare for overwhelming experience - take earplugs and water, electric or paper fan, go outside when it starts to be uncomfortable. Give yourself time to sit alone and get calmer.

Have you already went to a convention? How was your experience?