while hanging out in the dealer room giving my paws a well-deserved rest, i was listening to a few fellas talk about the death of the hobby and that in 10 years, there would be no more modeling or WF, etc etc etc...comments about pre-paints and "all the PLASTIC dealers" (aren't THOSE model kits too???) were laughable and illogical...
must be talking about some other PLANET!
i saw nearly all dealers sell out of stuff...take orders for after-WF sales...sell dozens of pre-ordered kits...and everyone just having a good a time as you can legally have...
me? great time...only had 2 "bad" WFs (out of 16!)...one i set up as a dealer, and one i brought my (at that time) galpal...
oh well, i guess there's always some jackasses predicting the end of the world too
JOHN PETIK "Christ promised the resurrection of the dead. I just thought he had something a little different in mind." http://s1294.beta.photobucket.com/
My concern, I'm always seeing a lot of the same folks at the various model shows, and very few new/younger show attendees ... and this isn't just Wonderfest this is pretty much most shows across the board ... including most local comics shows. It seems that only that larger more spectacle based shows like NYCC and SDCC are the ones that attract throngs of thousands as apposed to throngs of hundreds.
With few exceptions, the younger generation doesn't seem to be as interested in the hobby, because they have so many other things that garner their attention.
That being said, I don't think that spells "the end of the hobby" by any stretch, the hobby will continue to adapt like it has for years now, but it is concerning.
there's some teens/juniors/youngins that do some KILLER work!...aside from all the youngsters out there doing sculpts & stuff
JOHN PETIK "Christ promised the resurrection of the dead. I just thought he had something a little different in mind." http://s1294.beta.photobucket.com/
Jesse321 wrote:
With few exceptions, the younger generation doesn't seem to be as interested in the hobby, because they have so many other things that garner their attention.
Also, to consider.
Most of the younger generation really can't afford to do a show like WF.
My daughter has quite a few friends at OSU that like kits and actually buy and/or build them.
They love hearing about WF but can't afford it.
Between travel costs, lodging, eating, etc. it is expensive.
Especially when most of them are making minimum wage.
And that isn't even accounting for buying anything at the show.
So, what we get, are the hard core modelers, people at the hotel anyway, and some locals that swing by to check it out.
I unfortunately couldnt make the show. But helped my buddy finish his colossal contest piece the night before...he texted me saying people are looking more at prepaints than kits...I get that..not wanting another kit too sit on the shelf...lol..but he came home with a crap load of stuff...now hes asking how too choose which kit too start..hahaha. ..from which years haul im asking....The hobby is still alive...but economy will make us pick and choose...sadly....Thanks for all the modelers..sculptor s. Casters and enthusiasts. ...
Shows like WF are not the way to bring new modelers into the hobby. The way to do it is to introduce modeling into other environments. For the past two years our local sci-fi modeling club has participated in Emerald City Comic Con. The first year we were up on the third floor in a decent but not too large space and still drew respectable numbers to the showing. The show organizers were impressed enough to essentially triple the floor space we were given this year and place us in a more easily accessible space. As a result we drew a steady stream of viewers (somewhere between 5000-10,000 viewers) over the three day weekend. We had tables set up to the side with modelers working on various projects and had a great deal of interest and questions from the viewers. Next year it is expected to expand into a full blown model contest. Oh, and to put the crown into perspective, ECCC drew 75,000 people that weekend...limited to that number by the Seattle fire department safety regulations.
Wonderfest is an incredible experience but it isn't the place to really hook the novice...it would be far too intimidating. Once the appetite has been wetted though, places like WF become the inspiration for those beginners and the aspiration for their budding artistic abilities.
ive started going to WF early 90's after a few years i stop going bc i could never buy anything
last year i went just to get an airbrush now ive been hooked ever since. Kinda wish i started in the hobby a little earlier but hey i still feel young at 32
I'm sure this is a topic at all model clubs. However while todays kids may not be making plastic or resin kits, they are generating 3d models in software, which will be 3d printed. They're also building robots and electronic gadgets using circuit boards and kits. Times change.
In the meantime there are so many new kits coming out, I literally cannot keep up with buying, let alone building.
The local gamers here are very active. Our end of the hobby seems to miss that they are out there. Some of these young guys can paint. I'd say the hobby is alive and well.
Demographically, the GK hobby might be something with a particular appeal to those aged 30, 40, 50 and beyond. Nothing wrong with that. I don't worry too much about the younger folks getting into the hobby, since they have many other things to put their energy into. When they are ready, it will be there for them. I was thirtysomething when I started collecting garage kits, and it has never crossed my mind to quit. The hobby has served me well as a social network, creative stimulant, and stress reducer. I love it.
I want to give special recognition to Wonderfest as the nexus that pulled it all together for me. My first 'Fest was in 95 and it "blew me away" to see such incredible work. Still does. For me, Wonderfest is a 365 day-a-year event that takes place on a weekend in Louisville.
So here's to all the Grandma and Grampa Moses' who take up the hobby later in life. Cheers!
Interesting reading – the quotes below sum up my thoughts.
Things like production & promotion techniques will change, but the hobby will always be here in one form or another.
[quote="Jesse321"]My concern, I'm always seeing a lot of the same folks at the various model shows, and very few new/younger show attendees ... and this isn't just Wonderfest this is pretty much most shows across the board ... including most local comics shows. It seems that only that larger more spectacle based shows like NYCC and SDCC are the ones that attract throngs of thousands as apposed to throngs of hundreds.
With few exceptions, the younger generation doesn't seem to be as interested in the hobby, because they have so many other things that garner their attention.
That being said, I don't think that spells "the end of the hobby" by any stretch, the hobby will continue to adapt like it has for years now, but it is concerning.[/quote][quote="qtan"]Shows like WF are not the way to bring new modelers into the hobby. The way to do it is to introduce modeling into other environments. For the past two years our local sci-fi modeling club has participated in Emerald City Comic Con. The first year we were up on the third floor in a decent but not too large space and still drew respectable numbers to the showing. The show organizers were impressed enough to essentially triple the floor space we were given this year and place us in a more easily accessible space. As a result we drew a steady stream of viewers (somewhere between 5000-10,000 viewers) over the three day weekend. We had tables set up to the side with modelers working on various projects and had a great deal of interest and questions from the viewers. Next year it is expected to expand into a full blown model contest. Oh, and to put the crown into perspective, ECCC drew 75,000 people that weekend...limited to that number by the Seattle fire department safety regulations.
Wonderfest is an incredible experience but it isn't the place to really hook the novice...it would be far too intimidating. Once the appetite has been wetted though, places like WF become the inspiration for those beginners and the aspiration for their budding artistic abilities.[/quote][quote="Otto69"]I'm sure this is a topic at all model clubs. However while todays kids may not be making plastic or resin kits, they are generating 3d models in software, which will be 3d printed. They're also building robots and electronic gadgets using circuit boards and kits. Times change.
In the meantime there are so many new kits coming out, I literally cannot keep up with buying, let alone building.[/quote]
I think as long as there is a love of monsters this hobby will always be around. I had a talk a couple of days ago with a young lady in her early twenty's about of all things silent films. She saw my Nosferatu's I had painted up on the shelf and knew who he was and had seen the film and loved it. She said she even had Nosferatu and Metropolis on dvd. It kind of took me aback that someone her age would want to even watch a black and white silent film. My kids know who these characters are only because I watch the movies and have painted several figures of the classic monsters. They really don't care for this stuff themselves. Maybe I could convince my son she would make a good daughter in law!
Posts like this remind me of when I was the only teen in the local model club during that late 70s and early 80s. They were worried that the hobby was on the verge of dying out back then.
You know it's not a good day when it starts out with, "Hey boss, we've got a weird one for you."
Oh, fer cryin' out loud, can we give "the hobby is dying" caterwauling a rest for five minutes?
I've been building models since the mid-1960s, and when AMT started phasing out their 3-in-1 kits, veteran car modelers were moaning about the end of the Golden Age of car models. The hobby has been dying for half a century now.
It's been more than fifty years, and I've never seen so many options in subject matter, materials, resin parts, photoetch, turned aluminum, paints, tools, online outlets, availability, and more model shows that you can shake a stick at. The quality of GKs these days is off the charts. Molding and casting materials are advancing, cleanup is a breeze, and kits virtually fall together. And have you ever seen so many new GKs released in such a short time as the three months leading up to Wonderfest?
Answer this truthfully - How many of you guys started building garage kits as a teenager? Come on now, hands up. Probably none of you, that's how many. Why? Because they're expensive and challenging and require mastery of skills and techniques that are generally learned from a period of trial and error building styrene models or learning from a parent.
How many fathers and mothers these days take the time to spend with their children and teach them these skills? Make-and-takes are fine, but how would you feel if your daddy made time to show you how to clean a part, pin a leg to a body, clean a brush, and assemble a kit? Would you look forward to that in the evenings or on a weekend? Wouldn't you associate fond memories with that activity? Isn't that likely to become a lifelong passion?
And aren't we really teaching life lessons while building a kit with our children? Patience, perserverence, dedication, learning from mistakes, craftsmanship, and the sense of accomplishment from completing a task?
And why in the H-E-Double Hockey Sticks are "young people" defined as teenagers?
In the last few years I've seen Troy McDevitt go from sculpting cake toppers to one of the most in-demand sculptors in the business. Shakey Dave is one of the most prolific and talented builders and painters in this hobby. Sean Burford is coming on strong with Tank Girl and Aurora and all sorts of gorgeous sculpts. Jason Fauber is young, passionate, and on the come. I saw more twenty- and -thirty-somethings at this show than I've seen in years.
Shall I continue?
I had a blast at Wonderfest, yet when I come into the WF section of the forum, I see thread after thread of griping and moaning - not allowing pornographic models into NRA, the judging and "my model didn't win, no fair", "I don't understand why the organizers don't post pictures of the winners", the crowds are down, yada-yada.
Wanna keep the hobby from "dying"? Quit grousing and DO something about it. Back away from the computer, break out one of those forty gazillion kits in the closet, find a kid, and show them how to build a model.
qtan wrote:Shows like WF are not the way to bring new modelers into the hobby. The way to do it is to introduce modeling into other environments. For the past two years our local sci-fi modeling club has participated in Emerald City Comic Con. The first year we were up on the third floor in a decent but not too large space and still drew respectable numbers to the showing. The show organizers were impressed enough to essentially triple the floor space we were given this year and place us in a more easily accessible space. As a result we drew a steady stream of viewers (somewhere between 5000-10,000 viewers) over the three day weekend. We had tables set up to the side with modelers working on various projects and had a great deal of interest and questions from the viewers. Next year it is expected to expand into a full blown model contest. Oh, and to put the crown into perspective, ECCC drew 75,000 people that weekend...limited to that number by the Seattle fire department safety regulations.
Wonderfest is an incredible experience but it isn't the place to really hook the novice...it would be far too intimidating. Once the appetite has been wetted though, places like WF become the inspiration for those beginners and the aspiration for their budding artistic abilities.
I have to agree that WF is probably not the best place for most beginner's to start. For every one that does, there will probably be many more who would be intimidated, or priced out, or too far away or even that the show itself is TOO specific. Other events, local events, are a good way to start. I think probably we have to be content with being in this smaller niche, that will most likely stay that way. Within the hobby itself it seems to me the bar is raising to keep pace with the "competition." Some amazing casts, paints, and diorama's out there.
I'd say the hobby is alive and well.
