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Level Up

The Capital Region is cashing in on the big business of comic conventions

Comic-themed conventions, or cons, have been around since the 1970s. Even the Capital Region has had its own Sac-Con since 1989. In those days, the events were small affairs attended by a hard-core smattering of lonely youth and middle-aged men speaking their own jargon-filled language. But in the past five years, something changed. Cons became cool.

May 19, 2015 Bill Romanelli
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Comic Crash

How offing Superman almost killed the comic industry

The day Superman died, I was one of millions of people in line throughout the country. It turned out that I could not have picked a worse time than the early 1990s to start collecting comics. I knew nothing about speculation, and larger economic forces of which I was completely ignorant were at work.  Shortly after Superman died, he nearly took the entire comic industry with him.

May 13, 2015 Bill Romanelli
Basketball court at Big Hairy Dog

Collaborative Spaces

5 companies that work together in style

These local businesses take teamwork to the next level with bold colors and innovative designs that inspire creativity and collaboration. Show us your company’s collaborative space for a chance to take over our Instagram account! 

Apr 17, 2015 Andy Galloway

Photos: Stockton Mural Project

Last year, the Downtown Stockton Alliance in partnership with the Stockton Mural Art Resource Team launched the second phase of “Out of the Box,” a mural program to beautify utility boxes in downtown Stockton and showcase artwork created by local students.

Apr 10, 2015

Photos: ESC Art Panel Discusses Public Art

The Entertainment & Sports Center art panel of the Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission met on Monday, March 30, at City Hall, which was officially closed for Cesar Chavez Day. Last fall, the panel recommended the $8-million purchase of a Jeff Koons sculpture to anchor the new downtown arena. 

Apr 3, 2015 Joan Cusick
After years working with chainlink fence as part of the family business, Stephen Lyman opened Fence World in East Sacramento in 1978. The shop handles everything from simple cut-and-weld projects to custom black- and metalsmithing. While his staff works the larger, more structural elements, Lyman uses his artistry and attention to detail to craft the stylized features. The forge — an oven used to heat the iron — can reach up to 3,000 degrees.

Steel Power

Hot and heavy with the blacksmiths of East Sac's Fence World

Stephen Lyman, owner of Fence World, has been in the family fencing business since he was a boy (on payroll since the age of 10, he says). “This is one of the decorative arts that is just limitless — the things you can’t do in wood, you can do in iron,” Lyman says with pride. “You can’t build a bridge like the Golden Gate out of wood. It has to be steel.”

Mar 27, 2015 Allison Joy