Uticon (est. 1990)

R2-D2 and the 501st LEGION

The galaxy’s favorite Astromech droid beeps, boops, and whirrs with fans.

Ample photo opportunities with Artoo as he glides throughout Uticon as only he can.

Artoo and numerous other characters from the Star Wars Universe will be seen throughout Uticon courtesy of the 501st Legion Garrison Excelsior, a professional costuming group serving Western and Upstate New York that takes great joy out of constructing movie accurate costumes from the Star Wars Universe.

BILL ANDERSON

Bill Anderson has inked hundreds of comics for Marvel (Silver Surfer, Spider-Man, Cosmic Powers, Uncanny Origins); DC (Action Comics, Superman, Superboy, Batman and the Outsiders); Mirage (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Turtle Soup); Image (Vanguard, Ethrian); Comico (Elementals, Robotech, Jonny Quest); Claypool Comics (Elvira) and countless other publishers.

He’ll have original art, prints, and copies of his most recent comic project, Crimson Storm, available at the show, or bring some back issues from your collection, and he’ll be happy to sign them for you.

You can follow him on Instagram @bill_anderson_comics

JOHN BRUGGMAN

John Bruggman was born in Syracuse, New York and graduated from Daemen University with a degree in Illustration.

He is a Cover artist and Mix Media artist who has worked on Variant Covers for Aftershock, Image and Mad Cave Studios.

John is known for his Horror, Fantasy and Portrait pieces while often combining inks, acrylics, screen printing and colored pencils.

ANDREW CIESLINSKI

Andrew is the co-creator and artist of the Darby Pop Publishing all-ages graphic novel series Lacey & Lily,  about the adventures of a middle schooler and her dog turned superheroes,

His creation – The Indestructible Dink Boy – leapt onto Webtoon for audiences everywhere and is currently in its second season.

His work includes illustration for The Mike Wieringo Tellos Tribute with Todd Dezago, art for Patrick McCuen’s The Devil and Mr Gandhi with Ink Puddle Press, character designs and illustration work for Dark Tree Films, and co-creating and illustrating the comedy series Holidaze for Dandy Press,

Andrew’s artwork has also graced many a print and poster, including for the Albany All-Stars Roller Derby and the Syracuse Crunch hockey, along with numerous private commission pieces.

PETER COLTER

Peter A. Colter was born in Utica, New York, and raised in the small village of Clinton, where the quiet streets held both beauty and chaos. A lifelong musician, writer and creative soul, Peter found expression through art and music even in his darkest moments.

His writing comes from a place of raw emotion, real experiences and renewed hope. He lives surrounded by the family he cherishes and continues to grow in faith each day. His hope is that his work reaches others who feel unseen, unheard and lost.

His debut novel, The Endless Fall is a story of darkness and light, despair and hope, death and resurrection. Ivy has one final choice to make—will she keep falling, or will she finally reach for the hand that has been waiting for her all along?

DAVE DELLECESE

Dave Dellecese is a writer and author of children’s books, graphic novels, comics, and more.

He is the co-creator and writer of the all-ages graphic novel series Lacey & Lily from Darby Pop Publishing, co-creator and writer of the adult comedy series Holidaze, has written prose for AHOY Comics, and is the author of the children’s books The Little Lamp, Lucy and the Ghost take the Stage, and Look Out! Here Comes…the Mope!

A former journalist and news anchor, he has lent his voice to The Brass Lantern old time radio adventure podcast playing former reporter-turned private investigator, Wam Dixon, and has voiced characters in the video game Mechwarrior 4: Mercenaries.

MATT FLINT

Comics, Anime, Video Games, Music and Movies. All building blocks of inspiration for Matt Flint. Growing up in Hornell, NY, those types of things would trickle in through media outlets, with comics being the most scarce and inaccessible unless you got to a larger city. All of these factored into the arts for Matt, rooted in finer arts techniques, which were then applied to anime stylized drawings and images found through magazines like wizard. Matt created art mainly with the hopes of one day doing something bigger with it. 

After relocating to Syracuse, NY, Matt found himself in a new world of access to comics, which he fell in love with all over again. Quickly becoming part of the convention scene, he networked himself out and found opportunities in selling and promoting his brand of artwork to many. This led to some new and exciting opportunities that are taking his art career to new heights. Matt recently did some exclusive covers for teenage mutant ninja turtles and toxic avenger. Currently Matt is penciling and inking a Western Fantasy comic called ” I Brought A Gorilla To A Gun Fight” as well as doing some  exclusive comic covers and working on his creator owned properties.

His works include:I Brought A Gorilla To A Gunfight,

Tmnt #2(exclusive) Toxic Avenger #19(exclusive) Tmnt #148 (exclusive cover) Quintara Stone #1(cover only) and #3(cover and interiors) Hollowed #7 (cover) Icepick #4(cover) Advent Dark #1(cover)

BRIAN LABELLE

Brian R. LaBelle is an illustrator and graphic designer.

With a four-year degree in Computer Art from SUNY Oneonta, he focuses mostly in comic book and realism artwork.

Brian is working on his own noir detective comic, The Swine Detective.

ANDY MACDONALD

ANDY MACDONALD is a veteran comic book artist who has worked with virtually every major comic book publishing house. 

He likes making comics and will continue to do so until forcibly stopped.

You can follow him on instagram via @andymacdeez, Bluesky at andymacdonald.bsky and Substack at andymacdonald.substack

LEN MIHALOVICH

Len Mihalovich is the founder of Lenovations Press, an independent publisher he launched in 2014. He has written and produced more than thirty comics, including the flagship series Section 12, which explores a top-secret government facility charged with covering up failed scientific experiments. His catalog also features The Adventures of Track Suit Man, Fantastic FanBoys Adventures, Avenger (New Blood), RedMask Rides Again, Wild West Adventures of Buffalo Bill, and Uneven Ground #1, the company’s launch into historical fiction.

In 2025, Avenger (New Blood) was named a finalist in the National Cartoonist Society (NCS) awards in the Comic Books category. Len has also written several issues of Tomorrow Girl from Antarctic Press, contributed a story to Don Simpson’s Megaton Man Multimensions, and produced stories for Yeet! from Cost of Paper Comics. In addition, he has completed his first full-length novel titled Section 12: Awakenings. This story expands his storytelling beyond the comics.

He also produces and co-hosts the YouTube podcast show Indie Comics Deep Dive with Mona and Sam, where his virtual hosts take viewers behind the scenes of creating indie comics, sharing the backstory, creative process, and hidden easter eggs from each issue.

PHIL MILLER

Phil Miller is a talented illustrator local to the Utica area. As a commercial artist, he has too many credits to list. His work has appeared on everything from toy packaging to investment portfolios. Despite this wide range, his true passion has always been comic books.

Recently, Phil was named a finalist in the 2025 National Cartoonist Society (NCS) awards in the category of Comic Books for his work on the Lenovations Press series Avenger (New Blood). He has also illustrated several issues of Tomorrow Girl from Antarctic Press, along with numerous titles for Lenovations Press, including Section 12, Fantastic FanBoys Adventures, and RedMask Rides Again. Phil was also invited to be a contributor to Don Simpson’s Megaton Man Multimensions project.

Beyond those works, his comic credits include projects with 401Comics, Johnny Lightning Comics, and an educational series from Graphics Library available on Amazon.

SEAN MILLS

Sean Ian Mills is the co-creator and co-writer of Gamer Girl & Vixen, a self-published LGBTQ+ comic series about two super-villains who meet cute on the rooftops of New York and use their powers to rob celebrities. 

Sean promised himself years ago that he would only return to Uticon when he had new comics to offer, and that time is finally here! Sean will be debuting the Gamer Girl & Vixen sequel at Uticon this year. So if you were a fan of the first story — or even just remember them — now’s your only chance to grab a copy of Volume 2. 

Sean’s other work includes short stories for The Cloakroom and The Museum of the Uncanny anthologies, and he’s working on another solo writing project, Cover Bard, for Very Big Comics.

JOE ORSAK

Inspired at the age of eleven by the artwork of JOE SINNOTT in TREASURE CHEST and JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY, Joe Orsak launched a comic strip in the newspapers of Syracuse, NY in 1982 called THE ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN ‘CUSE. The strip ran weekly for eight years. 

Joe turned to sports comics in the 1990s, working on bios of MICKEY MANTLE, BROOKS ROBINSON  and DUKE SNIDER for MAGNUM COMICS.  These books gave Joe the chance to work with his inspiration… Orsak’s pencils were inked by Joe Sinnott!

In 2001 Orsak was picked by his friend ROGER STERN to pencil and ink a two-page tale for the 9-11 tribute book 9-11ARTISTS RESPOND for DARK HORSE. In 2008 he returned to comic strips with SALT CITY, another strip about his hometown, this time with a female superheroine, written by Douglas Brode. The comic strip drew the attention of people at MCFARLAND and Co., who asked Joe and Doug to launch their line of graphic novels. Joe and Doug created YELLOW ROSE OF TEXAS the Myth of Emily Morgan and VIRGIN VAMPIRES for MCFARLAND Inc.

Joe is now working with AHOY Comics, including the recent series MY BAD, as well as several spot illustrations. He is involved with new comic book projects for STELLAR COMICS.

More of Joe Orsak’s artwork can be found at his website. 

BART SEARS

BART SEARS has been drawing comics, toys and concept art professionally for four decades, working for DC, Marvel, Valiant, Image, Dark Horse, Hasbro, Toy Biz and a number of independent publishers and developers. A few of the many titles he’s worked on include Legends of the Dark Knight, XO Manowar, Turok, Captain America and Falcon, Blade and Justice League Europe. Bart has designed toys in the C.O.P.s, G.I. Joe, WWF and X-Men lines, and creates concept art for video games, most currently Limit Break.

Creator of the cult classic art tutorial column Brutes & Babes in Wizard Magazine, Bart has inspired a generation of artists. He has gone on to create an ongoing series of how-to-draw comics books called Drawing Powerful Heroes. Bart’s amazing artwork can be found in his creator-owned series “Maiden,” created with his writing partner, Michelle Sears, which first appeared in Heavy Metal Magazine.

CORY SMITH

Cory Smith is an American comic artist and illustrator who has worked on some of the industry’s biggest titles. Breaking into the business in the early 2010’s, Cory made his mark on cult classic properties such as Magnus: Robot Fighter and IDW’S TMNT.

Cory has continued to bolster his resume with work for most major publishers, though he is probably best known for his runs on various Marvel titles like Guardians of the Galaxy, Captain Marvel, X-Men, Star Wars and Conan. Most recently, Cory has drawn covers and interiors for notable titles such as Wolverine, Moon Knight and Ghost Rider.

He’s probably drawing something cool right now.

For more on Cory, visit his official website.

DANIEL SOPP

Daniel Sopp is a writer from upstate New York.

He is the author of The Eon Chronicles, an epic saga following the story of a heroine with incredible abilities, blending elements of science fiction and fantasy.

His current work, The Vapor Files, is an ongoing action/adventure novel series that takes place in the lawless jungle of the great Amazon.

MIKE TRANVAAG

Mike Tranvaag is from the Oneonta area and has been drawing for more than 40 years. He has recently been displaying and selling his artwork.

His art focuses on comic superheroes and villains as well as a touch of science fiction. He has started drawing iconic characters from video games and Anime as well.

You can check out his artwork on his Facebook Page as well as on Deviantart.

DENNIS WEBSTER

Dennis Webster is an author of several books on ghosts, asylums and true crime.

He’s also the co-creator and writer of the graphic novel series The Trust: Silent Scream Book 1 and the horror comic What the Freak (WTF).

He’s a paranormal investigator with the Ghost Seekers of Central New York.

DAVID WHALEN

David Whalen is a husband, father, and teacher in upstate New York working hard to write, draw and publish exciting comic books like: THE OFFSPRING, WILL ALIENS DO MY HOMEWORK?, and LAYTON LIGHTSPEED.

BRANDON WHIPPLE

The artwork of Brandon Whipple, also known as Flork McCormick, ranges from classic movie monsters to modern day super heroes and timeless science fiction icons.

Much of his work can be found on his Facebook page and Official Website.

ED YANCEY

Edward Yancey is an illustrator and graphic designer who has brought numerous beloved and well-known comic book icons to life in a myriad of full-color prints.

He is also the writer and artist of the comic book “A Waste of Life: The Spencer Miller Cases” as well as the horror anthology, “Tales from the Sketch Club” and has also illustrated one of several tales in the Holidaze: All-Krampus Spectacular for Dandy Press.