NEW — 6 p.m. July 30, 2015
Cosplay is the art of being someone else, for fun or escape or challenge. It’s a community of conventions where fans wear elaborate and often hand-made costumes from their favorite stories. At the North Bend Library, some local youths recently had the chance to level up their cosplay skills.
“Cosplay is definitely about play,” said Jade Chung, owner and artist behind Arctic Phoenix Studios, an art, cosplay and prop shop. “It’s about having fun experimenting. It’s about the community. And it’s definitely for everyone.”
On July 11, Chung led a program called “Creating Cosplay Accessories: Foam Smithing Workshop” for local youths who wanted to learn more about cosplay design and creation.
“I’ve been into cosplay for the last three years and I thought it’d be really cool to expand and try to figure how to do stuff easier,” said Stormie Dunn, a 16-year-old who will be a junior at Mount Si High School this fall.
Dunn and the other cosplayers took blocks of hard foam that Chung brought and practiced carving the blocks into small accessories for a costume. Dunn has cosplayed before several times as characters from popular anime shows. For this workshop, Dunn was making a dagger.
“What this is, is a kind of guided experiment,” Chung said.
She moved around the library conference room, answering questions and giving guidance. She brought the head of one of her most popular pieces, the dragon Drogon from the television show “Game of Thrones.” Chung said her most popular cosplay she has done is probably Lady Loki, the Norse god of mischief from Marvel movies and the comic universe.
“I really like the dress-up aspect,” Chung said. “I like the challenge of being able to create a piece from start to finish.”
There are many reasons people are drawn to cosplay.
“One of my friends called it an extension of Halloween,” Chung said. “He said there wasn’t enough Halloween in his life.”
Raven Guzelimian is a 17-year-old who will be a senior at Tiger Mountain Community High School this fall. Like Dunn, she was trying to sculpt a jagged blade with her foam. She said she’s always enjoyed arts and crafts and might want to pursue a profession related to cosplay.
“I want to make my own things,” she said. “I have ideas to create something and I want to make something cool.”
The workshop is part of the library’s overall plan for summer activities. Maggie Wong, the library’s teen librarian, has tried to create a full schedule of engaging activities to draw in young people during the summer.
“My goal for the summer was to create a really robust schedule and to make the library a destination for teens,” she said.
The theme for the library’s summer programs this year is “Unmask” for teenagers. For children, the theme is “Every Hero Has a Story.” Wong said the library tries to emphasize reading through each of its activities.
Wong said she is happy with the turnout so far this summer. The library’s programs have drawn young people in, so it’s been a success.
“Teens are very smart and they don’t waste their time,” Wong said. “So if they are investing in something, it’s because they want to be there. That’s the great thing about the library. No one is forcing them to come. They come because they want to be here.”
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