I have been drawing and whatnot since as long as I can remember. Any spot in my school notebooks that didn't have notes were filled with sketches. I drew mostly from the D&D adventures that my brother ran, as well as the fantasy books I was reading. I did a few pieces based on Terry Brooks' Shannara series, but focusing on being a nerd, I didn't have much time for art in high school.
When I got to college I dual majored in Computer Science and Art History. I minored in Studio Art, and took as many art classes as my schedule allowed. I seemed to be pursuing a career in art or art education, but decided to try graduate school in Computer Science. I graduated in 2004 with a Master's in CS, but again switched paths and returned to my art interests. Mike, my brother, and I co-own Aradani Studios, a costuming and art company that we founded in 2002. We travel mostly in the Southeast United States, to various conventions and Renaissance Festivals, selling our art, and our ears.
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Michael Bielaczyc has been making art his whole life, in various media and subjects.
He has been selling and showing work since 1995, when he self published a comic book written and illustrated by himself. Going back to college at 23, he decided that art was going to be his main focus in life. In 2001, he started his own art company, Aradani Studios, which is owned by both him and his brother. Together they have shown and worked in shows across America selling both their artwork and costuming. Michael has worked for such popular roleplaying franchises such as Dragonlance and Castlemourn, but his real passion is in his personal work. He works in mediums from oil paint to latex prosthetics, video to graphite. You can see much of his new work at www.aradani.com .
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Mark is the Con Nooga 2013 Artist. Award-winning artist and illustrator Mark Helwig has a style all his
own—quirky, creative, occasionally odd, and often humorous. His focus
on craftsmanship, storytelling, and images that cause the viewer to
“double take” are traits that set him apart in today’s industry. He is
equally at home with a wide range of styles ranging from cartoons to
photorealism and he works in everything from ink to oils. His
illustrations can be found gracing the products of many clients
including gaming companies, book and comic book publishers,
conventions, and advertising for local businesses. He is a frequent
artist guest and panelist at shows and conventions across the
southeast, and his work is highly sought by discerning private
collectors.
Mark holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Kennesaw State
University, and he is a member of the Association of Science Fiction
and Fantasy Artists.
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Was our Con Nooga Artist for 2011. Published world wide, Reb’s art career has been evolving for over twodecades. Comics- enjoying a three year tenure at Marvel Comics; workrelated titles include The Inhumans, The Savage Sword of Conan, Spiderman to Excalibur. Also working two years at the late Chaos Comics;Cryptic Writings of Megadeth, Evil Ernie, cover artist on theUndertaker comic book series (click link for a more comprehensivebreakdown of comic book credits). - http://www.comicbookdb.com/creator.php?ID=6270 Reb has produced cover images for power-trade zines such as WizardMagazine, The Artist Work-Shop and Comics Source Monthly. An award winning graphic designer, Reb also enjoys a professionalcareer in advertising -design and illustration- and is a noted digitalpre-press technician and a photo-realistic, digital manipulationexpert. Today, you can find Reb in The Dungeon (his basement studio)where heworks on his creator-owned comic book projects, as well as others, andwhere he continues to refine, lend his talents to variousartistic fields.
Chris’ creativity is fueled by the influence of many
genres, including sci-fi, horror, fantasy, and gaming, as well as many
artists, including the legendary Frank Frazetta, Jack “The King” Kirby,
Frank Miller, Bruce Timm and more. Under the guise of Project
Bluebook Studios, this Cleveland, Tn., native’s work has graced
everything from t-shirts and signs, to a comic he collaborated on with
friends and fellow artists called “Bourbon & Coffee,” and even a
children’s coloring book. He is also the artist and graphic designer for Con Nooga favorite, Dicehead Games. Currentlly, he’s working on a special project and children’s book with his wife. Although he looks big, scary and menacing (and potentially mentally disturbed), he’s really just a gentle giant that would do anything for his family and friends — especially if it involves artwork! Check out Chris’ mad skills on facebook, and coming soon to projectbluebookstudios.com. It will definitely stretch your imagination!
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Sam Flegal has been fascinated by the strange and macabre from a very young age... Fortunately for his budding morbid creativity, he was raised in a household that encouraged his interest in all things weird. Sam's father was a magician and his mother a ventriloquist and clown. Sam soon started drawing things that his teachers referred to as 'dark creatures'. The encouragement from his family and friends outweighed the naysayers and discouragement from those teachers. Sam graduated Mississippi State University in 2003 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree, and he hit the world in pursuit of his own strange art. Since that time Sam has vigorously summoned the dark creatures of his mind to make unreal, tangible and the imagined, concrete. Sam currently uses his strange imagination to help others realize their dreams of undeath through the power of Zombie Portraits. Like caricature from a dark carnival, Sam takes the living and brings out their inner dead. In addition, Sam helps writers and creators bring their visions of Fantasy to Reality through his strange art and illustrations. Sam's art has been featured in books from Alluria Publishing and serve as the visual building blocks for the world of Gaena. Or just check out Sam at his website: www.samflegal.com
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Dubbed "One of the 15 sickest artists in America"
by Girls and Corpses Magazine, Dick Starr has embedded himself nicely into the
horror community. Add to his bloody drawings a twisted sense of humor, and
you'll understand why his early art got sent home by teachers on a regular
basis. Since 2004, Dick's work has been
featured in numerous galleries, horror/tattoo magazines, books, album covers,
and comics around the world. In late
2006, Dick began picking off famous idiots with "The Celebrity Death
Poll"...a rotating list of awful celebrities up for an artistic execution.
In less than 1 year, The Celebrity Death Poll became a regular feature in almost
every issue of Girls and Corpses Magazine since. Currently, Mr. Starr's resume
boasts clients from UFC, Full Tilt Poker, and Suicide Girls, to the legendary
producer/director Charles Band. If you aren't already familiar with Dick
Starr's nightmarish creations...you will be. Consider yourself warned.
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CZKWorld Studios has developed a
twisted world unlike any other. A world of infection and lies, deceit and
anger. A powerful mixture of horror and sci-fi that has never
been approached before. It is a world left abandoned by its leaders
to be governed by the underworld and undead. Readers of the graphic series
are introduced to an enraged and pissed off survivor Corey, who sets route to
find meaning/normalcy in an upside-down world. Corey finds his travels run
head on with situations that he had not bargained for. He struggles
to adapt....realizing a world he once knew and the people closest to him are
both gone. Corey will fight and unfortunately be tested beyond his
imagination before he can find peace for those he learns to later trust
..........and himself.
We are a comic studio located in Nashville,Tn and the creators
of the graphic series “Corey the Zombie Killer”. Presently our first
installment “Amity Eroded” is in print with the second issue,“Enter Thomas” to
be available during the first quarter of 2012. CZK has been well received in
Con cities such as Detroit, Louisville, Indianapolis and our home Nashville. We
are anxious to be a part of Con Nooga 2012 so we can meet all the great
people and experience the good times we have heard so much about. Please visit us at www.czkworld.blogspot.com
and also send us a friend request to Facebook telling us you will be attending ConNooga.
Your name will go on our list and we will have a CZKWorld button waiting for
you at our table.
James Ward, born 1961, grew up in Rossville, GA. He was
drawing and doodling from an early age. Upon graduation from Rossville High
School in 1980, Mr. Ward attended the Atlanta College of Art. Mr. Ward also
studied art at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. In 1993, Mr. Ward
received an Associate degree in Applied Sciences, Advertising Art from
Chattanooga State Technical Community College.
Mr. Ward has won awards for his fantasy and
native American-style artwork, including Second Prize for Professional Artist
at Chattacon 33. Mr. Ward incorporates recycled and found objects into his
work, including cigar boxes, computer discs, and feathers.Mr. Ward is a recent member of the Northwest
Georgia Art Guild. He enjoys sharing his artworks and experience with others.
Grant Cooley is a Nashville based Illustrator and Fine artist. Living
in East Nashville, Grant travels the Southeast convention circuit doing
custom artwork, panels, demonstrations and selling prints and original
works of art.
Grant graduated from MTSU in 2003 with a degree in Graphic Design and
a double minor in Art and Illustration. Since then he has worked as a
freelance designer and as the proprietary owner of a comic and games
store located in Murfreesboro, TN. After the birth of his twin daughters
in 2008, Grant decided to begin pursuing his art career while raising
his girls. In 2009 he began a series of promotional works (now residing
in several private collections) in order to generate a sense of style
and focused direction.
With feedback from some of the top artists in his field such as Dan
Dos Santos, Eric Fortune, Michael Whelan and Donato Giancola, Grant
launched himself into this endeavor and has been avidly painting since.
His works range from the esoteric to the downright silly; technically
drafted illustration to ethereal space-scapes. His work has won several
awards along the convention circuit and will soon be gracing the pages
of a few books and gaming supplements.
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Johnathon and Betsy Brock
Johnathon and Betsy Brock are a cartoonist duo living in the Nashville, TN area. After meeting in college and falling in love based on their shared fandom of bad horror movies and good cartoons, they got married and are currently living happily in a small apartment shared with an abnormally
large dog of unknown origins. Together they run Pink Pineapple Ink, which is the studio
currently represented by each of their webcomics.
Johnathon is a fan of all things geek, from the Avengers to Zombies and everything in between. He began his comic strip "Trouble Ticket" a few years ago based on the completely fictional adventures of himself and his two best friends.
Betsy is a slightly more selective geek with a great appreciation for story-driven video games and horror movies of all sorts. She began her first comic strip "FRUIT!" in 2011. She believes that most jokes are instantly funnier when delivered by food.
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Desi Turner
Desi Turner has been fascinated with cartoons,animation and cartooning his whole life. He has been a professional cartoonist from early on when he charged his classmates a quarter for tattooing cartoon characters on his classmates using felt tip markers as his tatoo tools. His art career really took off in the early nineties when he drew his own comic-strip called Lawson about a small businessman for thirteen years. His Art career went to the next level when he started Illustrating the Cosmic And comic adventures Of Nashville's Cult Superheroine Thong Girl. After the moderate sucess of the Thong Girl comics Desi Started Dezzwerks and began a partnership with Minikomixs out Atlanta Georgia , His character Kinetic Kitty is one of the Flagship characters of Minikomixs and is now on issue seven. Ebony Storm a new strip about a paranormal investigator in New Orleans Is being developed for the year 2012.
I have been drawing and whatnot since as long as I can remember. Any spot in my school notebooks that didn't have notes were filled with sketches. I drew mostly from the D&D adventures that my brother ran, as well as the fantasy books I was reading. I did a few pieces based on Terry Brooks' Shannara series, but focusing on being a nerd, I didn't have much time for art in high school.
Michael Bielaczyc has been making art his whole life, in various media and subjects.
Was our Con Nooga Artist for 2011. Published world wide, Reb’s art career has been evolving for over twodecades. 
Chris’ creativity is fueled by the influence of many
genres, including sci-fi, horror, fantasy, and gaming, as well as many
artists, including the legendary Frank Frazetta, Jack “The King” Kirby,
Frank Miller, Bruce Timm and more. Under the guise of Project
Bluebook Studios, this Cleveland, Tn., native’s work has graced
everything from t-shirts and signs, to a comic he collaborated on with
friends and fellow artists called “Bourbon & Coffee,” and even a
children’s coloring book. He is also the artist and graphic designer for Con Nooga favorite, Dicehead Games. Currentlly, he’s working on a special project and children’s book with his wife. 
Dubbed "One of the 15 sickest artists in America"
by Girls and Corpses Magazine, Dick Starr has embedded himself nicely into the
horror community. Add to his bloody drawings a twisted sense of humor, and
you'll understand why his early art got sent home by teachers on a regular
basis. Since 2004, Dick's work has been
featured in numerous galleries, horror/tattoo magazines, books, album covers,
and comics around the world. In late
2006, Dick began picking off famous idiots with "The Celebrity Death
Poll"...a rotating list of awful celebrities up for an artistic execution.
In less than 1 year, The Celebrity Death Poll became a regular feature in almost
every issue of Girls and Corpses Magazine since. Currently, Mr. Starr's resume
boasts clients from UFC, Full Tilt Poker, and Suicide Girls, to the legendary
producer/director Charles Band. If you aren't already familiar with Dick
Starr's nightmarish creations...you will be. Consider yourself warned.
CZKWorld Studios has developed a
twisted world unlike any other. A world of infection and lies, deceit and
anger. A powerful mixture of horror and sci-fi that has never
been approached before. It is a world left abandoned by its leaders
to be governed by the underworld and undead. Readers of the graphic series
are introduced to an enraged and pissed off survivor Corey, who sets route to
find meaning/normalcy in an upside-down world. Corey finds his travels run
head on with situations that he had not bargained for. He struggles
to adapt....realizing a world he once knew and the people closest to him are
both gone. Corey will fight and unfortunately be tested beyond his
imagination before he can find peace for those he learns to later trust
..........and himself.
We are a comic studio located in Nashville,Tn and the creators
of the graphic series “Corey the Zombie Killer”. Presently our first
installment “Amity Eroded” is in print with the second issue,“Enter Thomas” to
be available during the first quarter of 2012. CZK has been well received in
Con cities such as Detroit, Louisville, Indianapolis and our home Nashville. We
are anxious to be a part of Con Nooga 2012 so we can meet all the great
people and experience the good times we have heard so much about. Please visit us at 
Grant Cooley is a Nashville based Illustrator and Fine artist. Living
in East Nashville, Grant travels the Southeast convention circuit doing
custom artwork, panels, demonstrations and selling prints and original
works of art.
Johnathon and Betsy Brock are a cartoonist duo living in the Nashville, TN area. After meeting in college and falling in love based on their shared fandom of bad horror movies and good cartoons, they got married and are currently living happily in a small apartment shared with an abnormally
Desi Turner has been fascinated with cartoons,animation and cartooning his whole life. He has been a professional cartoonist from early on when he charged his classmates a quarter for tattooing cartoon characters on his classmates using felt tip markers as his tatoo tools. His art career really took off in the early nineties when he drew his own comic-strip called Lawson about a small businessman for thirteen years.