An opportunity arose this summer for me to visit Anthrocon with some friends. I'm a Texas native– while I've been to a few cons in the state, this was my first time visiting one out-of-state, and certainly my first time visiting one at such a scale. I also went with friends, and it was great fun discussing our favorite art or eating together.

I'm always fascinated by places: what borders they're enclosed within, how many people call them home, and how they move and function on a day-to-day basis. So naturally, the city of Pittsburgh itself would be a big part of my trip. Indeed, one of the highlights was an early Saturday morning walk I took, crossing a bridge over the Monogahela river and seeing a big train pass under the bridge. The old architecture and the scenery of Pittsburgh were lovely. The summer heat was a bit of a shame, but coming from Texas, it was nothing I wasn't used to.

The convention itself was great. It was efficiently run, with registration a breeze. The vending area was immense, and it was great to see both artists whose work I recognized, as well as new people I knew I had to follow. The con space is immense, with plenty of space to walk around or relax.

I often feel out of place at conventions. I prefer to dress as plainly as possible– both at work or at a furry convention. And my interests are very squarely in making and enjoying furry art– illustration, writing, visual art, you name it– rather than more social practices like fursuiting, dancing, or playing games. Cons are understandably oriented towards the latter, but there's a good program of events at Anthrocon for whatever side of the fandom engages you. Increasingly, I feel as if my niche in the fandom is as an artist and a writer, so in hindsight I should have leaned more into that angle in deciding how to spend my time.

In interacting with artists– whether vending in the gargantuan dealer's den, or chatting at the tables in the sketchbook swap room– I learned a lot about how they operate in real life. While right now I'm just a drop in the ocean of the furry art world, and I'm sure it'll take time and patience to become more visible regardless, I ought to make more connections with other artists, and come to my next big con prepared.

Outside of the con proper, I also visited the Room Party art exhibition at Bunker Projects, though I missed the associated panel given at Anthrocon. I liked the pieces on display, as well as most of the zines. I wish I had heard more from the artists themselves so I could grapple with the exhibition in more detail. The exhibition as a whole was great, and I'm curious to see where future attempts at marrying furry and fine art go.

I'm glad I was able to make this trip happen, and thankful to my friends for helping facilitate it. I feel I've seen most of what Texas cons have to offer, and it's my hope to leave Texas for good next summer, so Anthrocon is a great model of the kind of con I'd like to participate in in the future.