Fuel Up

Every industry and profession in the world has conferences. If you are in a licensed profession then chances are that you have to attend conferences, classes, and seminars to maintain your certification. For the rest of us, a conference is a vital part of staying ahead of the curve.

A conference of any kind is only has good as you make it. A well-run conference will have an agenda that is timely, informative, and on topic with current trends and advancements. If you attend these sessions then you should walk away with new ideas that can not only help your company but will help you with your career advancement. If you feel like you are in a rut, then go to a conference and re-charge your creative batteries.

Networking

Networking is always a big part of any conference. It’s not just about hanging with friends and business partners. It’s about meeting new people. It’s about sharing ideas. When you have an opportunity to talk face-to-face you will find that many of your colleagues have the same issues. You have a relaxed setting to share these issues and ideas.

You could also use a conference to pitch new business and maintain current clients. If you plan accordingly you can “kill two birds with one stone”. You can save travel expenses by getting several face-to-face meetings at one conference.

EAMC 2009 at Colorado Springs

The Event and Arena Marketing Conference is coming up June 10th thru June 13th in Colorado Springs. carbonhouse is a sponsor of the conference. We sponsor this for two reasons: 1) we want to expose and market our product to this industry. 2) We want to learn as much as possible about the industry. We need to stay as up-to-speed as you do. We need to hear from our current clients and potential clients. We take this info back to the office where we can create new products that the event and entertainment industry needs to market in the 21st Century.

We hope you will join us at this year’s conference. We plan to be part of a panel session discussing online sales & marketing. We also will host a breakout presentation on what we can do for you. If you see us at the bar, tell us you read this blog and we will buy you a drink. Cheers!

EAMC 2009 Registration

Author: James Sack

I would describe my paintings as thoughts emerging from my finger tips.

Jonathan Grauel, Director of Media Design, carbonhouse, inc.

Jonathan Grauel, director of development at carbonhouse, will be on hand for a gallery night with the artist for his gallery show, VILLAGES / a collection of visual interactions, at the Warehouse 242 Gallery, Friday, December 5th at 7:00 PM.

Also be sure to get your copy of the the companion book created for the show.
On Friday, September 26th, the Gallery at Warehouse opened its fall show featuring Jonathan Grauel’s work: VILLAGES / a collection of visual interactions.  Opening night saw over 150 visitors attend, mingle, talk with the artist, meet the surgeon, and experience the work first hand. The show presents an evolution of Jonathan’s work from sketch through completed art.

VILLAGES explores and expands on Jonathan’s ‘village’ series. The show reveals some of the mystery behind the process of creation, and the way the loss of a finger from his drawing hand has impacted the way he makes art. This visual trip through live environment sketches, inked gray panels, oil pastels, and 3D installation interpretations is a stunning examination of getting there, being there, and what lies ahead.

The gallery is open for visitors every Sunday 8-12:30 and by appointment through the rest of the year.

Jonathan Grauel was also featured in a cover story of the fall issue of OrthoCarolina Magazine, which features his work and the story of the incredible surgery that has enabled him to continue making art.

Let’s make fists!

Jeffrey Brown, Writer and artist

As a creative design firm, we find inspiration from other creatives. The weekend of June 20-22, the Heroes convention took place in Uptown Charlotte. The Convention was started in 1982 by the gang at Heroes Aren’t Hard To Find —one of the premier comics specialty shops in the country.

Most of carbonhouse attended the show at some point–as well as many other creatives from around town (Shoutouts to Studiobanks and Marty Kelso).

There were many great guests this year, but what always stands out for me is the Top Shelf Productions‘ booth. They publish outstanding, contemporary graphic novels by some dedicated artists.Two favs generally make the trek to Charlotte—Jeffrey Brown and Alex Robinson. These two excel in the little episodes, slices of life stories and I highly recommended you check out their work.

One of the great things about the Heroes Con is the chance to talk with your favorite artists/writers; they can even provide original sketches for you for a minimal charge. Jeffrey had a great idea this year to create convention trading cards. Three of us had our portraits done by Jeff with a running theme. A little back story: last year Mr. Brown created a self portrait for me with him saying “Let’s make fists.” Jeffrey took that theme and ran with it. Below are Jeff’s sketches of us, which assemble a nice strip. Thank you, Jeffrey Brown!

View more photos from the convention here.

Contemporary Graphic Novels that satisfy:

Blankets by Craig Thompson
Box Office Poison by Alex Robinson
Mother, Come Home by Paul Hornschemeier
Epileptic by David B.
Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi
Sleepwalk: and Other Stories by Adrian Tomine

carbonhouse has launched a new website for RBC Center in Raleigh, NC.

The site, powered by Venuelements℠, offers many features including detailed event listings, interactive calendars, seating charts, groups sales, special offers and more.

The RBC Center in Raleigh, North Carolina, is home to the 2006 Stanley Cup Champions Carolina Hurricanes and NC State University Men’s Basketball.

Each year, the RBC Center welcomes over 1.5 million guests and plays host to more than 150 events. The RBC Center continually offers Raleigh, the Triangle, and the Southeast an abundance of sports, major concert tours, and events year after year. The $158 million RBC Center encompasses approximately 700,000 square feet. Four different seating levels provide 18,176 seats for hockey, 19,722 for basketball, 19,500 for center-stage concerts, and 18,800 for endstage 360 performances. Amenities include over 8,000 designated parking spaces, 18 permanent concession stands, over 50 portable concession stands, 37 public restrooms, as well as escalators and elevators throughout the building.

Artevation is a show of works depicting historic places and properties in Charlotte. The show is a tribute to the late Warren Burgess, an influential city planner, urban designer and talented artist who worked many years for the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Planning Commission and the Town of Davidson. Artevation will showcase many of Burgess’ architectural drawings, as well as the work of the following local artists whose work depicts Charlotte’s architecture and history through photography, fabric art, paintings, woodcuts, illustrations, and more:

• Wendy Arundel
• Nellie Ashford
• Bryon Baldwin
• Diane Davis
• Starr Davis
• David French
• John Howard
• Deborah Langsam
• James Sack

“When I was asked to participate in Artevation I jumped at the chance—especially with the tribute to Warren Burgess,” Sack said. “I had the pleasure of working with Warren for a number of years while I was vice president of the Historic North Charlotte Neighborhood Association. His sketches on the NoDa area are fantastic and were an inspiration for my NoDa series of wood block prints. Warren was a true visionary for Charlotte, and his mark on Charlotte’s fabric is a constant reminder of his work. I look forward to this show.”