Emporium Vernesque

A small, fun, friendly and well-organized affair.

Emporium Vernesque Arnhem Netherlands
Emporium Vernesque in Arnhem, the Netherlands, November 10 (Hilde Heyvaert)

The organization of this brand new steampunk convention has done a great job offering a wide variety of workshops, performances of both bands and tribal dance, and other things to participate in such as a group shop taken with an actual antique camera, the steampunk bake-off and many others. Aside from that there were several bars offering a wide variety of decently priced drinks, you could get some food (either from the venue or one of the many places within walking distance in town) and a handful of shops offering their wares to visitors.

The only remark I could possibly make is that the convention venue is rather small. Of course, it’s logical that for a first time they choose a smaller venue so it’s totally understandable.

But while the Willemeen is a lovely little location, it barely held all the steampunks and other visitors vaguely comfortably and space to sit was extremely limited. In November it’s also dark early and rather cold, which severely limited the use of the outside space. Should the convention expand in visitor numbers next year, and I’m sure it will, the venue will probably prove to be far too small.

Venue sizing issue aside, the very first edition of this convention did not disappoint. It was a small, fun, friendly and well-organized affair. It was a great convention and I absolutely look forward to the next edition of Emporium Vernesque.

Of course there are plenty of photos, which you can all see here.

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