INDIANAPOLIS -- The 55th running of Gen Con is in the books, and the four days of nonstop gaming drew an estimated 50,000 attendees to downtown Indianapolis between August 4-7.
The halls of the Indianapolis Convention Center featured more than 530 game publishers and vendors and 15,000 ticketed events over the four days, including the annual Costume Contest, Film Festival, and myriad gaming events and seminars. Despite the high heat outside, the show was "Even better than 2019," in terms of attendance, said Stephanie Shossow, Event Manager.
All participants were required to show proof of vaccination to attend and had to wear masks while inside Gen Con-controlled spaces. It's estimated that the weekend of Gen Con generated $57.4 million in economic activity for downtown Indianapolis.
Among the hectic energy of the Exhibitor's Hall, nearly 40 Magic: the Gathering artists were on the floor, either in attendance at the annual Art Show, or elsewhere throughout the Hall.
Aaron Miller shows off the final product from Thursday evening's Live Painting session.
Seattle-based artist Alayna Danner
Illustrator and graphic novelist Andrea Radeck.
Ben Hill, based in Florida, has six cards under his belt.
Fans were able to find prints of Bruce Brenneise's Unfinity shock land art at his booth.
Operating his Cameo Creeps booth, Chris Seaman has been a fantasy illustrator for more than two decades.
Christopher Burdett's booth was an invitation to the Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia, his illustrated novel.
Dan Scott is one of Magic's most prolific artists, responsible for more than 200 cards.
David "Diesel" LaForce has been a staple in the gaming community - and Gen Con - for decades.
Drew Baker was among the artists who created a Liliana portrait from scratch on Thursday.
Eric Deschamps opted to create his Live Painting portrait with watercolors.
Erica Williams, based in Minneapolis, is best known in the Magic community for her Secret Lair version of Arahbo, Roar of the Wild
Operating her Lunaurum booth was artist Fiona Hsieh.
The Utah-based artist Howard Lyon has more than 20 years experience and operates the fantasy art blog Muddy Colors.
Jason Engle, artist behind the "constellation" treatments of Theros-based gods and demi-gods, has published six art books since 2004.
Jeff Miracola said he got his start in fantasy art by offering up his portfolio to art directors at Gen Con in 1993.
Joe Slucher, based in Ohio, will be in attendance at his hometown Cincinnati Comic Expo at the end of September.
Illustrator and concept artist John Stanko is the mind behind more than 80 Magic cards since 2010.
Known for Kird Ape and other works of early Magic, Ken Meyer Jr. is also an accomplish portrait artist.
Illustrator Kristina Carroll is an accomplished artist, but she isn't known for her work in Magic - yet.
In addition to Magic, Mark Behm has been an illustrator for Epic Games, Valve Software, Fantasy Flight Games and many more.
A member of Magic's "Original 25" artists, Mark Poole is a fixture at events with his son, Markus.
Michael C. Hayes, based in Alabama, started his work in Magic in 2011.
Based in Utah, Miranda Meeks has been illustrating Magic cards since 2019.
Nene Thomas's first professional art job was with Magic in 1994, and since then has created a decades-spanning career.
The distinctive "old world" aesthetic of Omar Rayyan was perfect for Lorwyn, and since then he's published the Kickstarter-backed illustrated book Goblin Market.
UK-based artist and illustrator Ralph Horsley has been working professionally in fantasy art for decades.
This year's Gen Con marked the first time rk post has been in the Art Show in 24 years.
Ruth Thompson created the art for 10 cards, as well as dozens of book covers, tabletop games and more.
Known for her work on Magic lands, Sarah Finnigan is a Houston-based artist.
Based in Massachusetts, Scott Murphy has seen his work published in dozens of books, games, and of course, nearly 100 Magic cards.
Steve Argyle displayed the final product of Thursday's Live Painting session in his booth.
Known to Magic players for his Showcase treatment art, Steve Ellis is an award-winning artist and writer based in New York.
Steve Prescott has created the art for nearly 250 Magic cards since his debut in 2007.
Artist and teacher Tom Babbey hails from San Diego, with the art of 10 cards under his name so far.
Tyler Walpole, a Magic artist since his debut in 2018, was among the artists participating in the Live Painting session held Thursday evening.
Aaron Miller works on his portrait during the Live Painting session.
Working in oils, Howard Lyon adds detail during the three-hour painting session.
Modeling for the portrait was cosplay artist Olivia Gobert-Hicks.
The Gen Con Live Painting event is in its seventh year, and on Thursday featured Drew Baker, Steve Argyle Howard Lyon, Tom Babbey, Aaron Miller, Eric Deschamps and Tyler Walpole.
