Kristen Cumings Jelly Belly Artist in Residence: New York Comic Con

One of the best things about NYCC is the creativity it brings out in people. Fans show up in incredible cosplay, painstakingly recreating their favorite characters down to the last detail or flip the script and mash up multiple characters, swap genders, or re-imagine the characters we all know and love.

In Artist’s Alley hundreds of artists line the hall with art based both in and outside of the comic book world. On the show floor and throughout the city in venues like Hudson Mercantile, authors sell and talk their written creations. However, it’s not just fans, writers, and artists getting creative, companies jump into the mix as well.

Take Jelly Belly for example who has sent their jelly bean artist in residence, Kristen Cumings to NYCC for the last four years to create beautiful portraits out of their famous delicious jelly beans. This year Cumings took on Superman and I had the opportunity to speak with her Sunday afternoon as she was nearing the finish line on her portrait. It could be easy to look at the Jelly Belly portrait as a novelty but there’s truly no underestimating Kristen Cumings’ talent and vision when it comes to non-traditional mediums.