At the 4th annual Composer’s Salon Concert, held at the Timucua White House, (2000 South Summerlin, Orlando, FL 32806) I was tasked with hanging the 49 Portraits done by 18 local artists a month after the mass shooting at Pulse. The portraits were created in one evening at Falcon Bar with each artist creating a bout 4 give or take. The portraits were hung on wooden ceiling beams in the entry the home. drink wine and share potluck dishes. It was a challenge climbing up and the ladder multiple times to try and get the portraits hung before the doors opened. The 49 portraits to exactly fill the beam space.
The concert featured seven local Central Florida composers: Eric Brook, Stan Cording, Paul Harlyn, Dr. Chan Ji Kim, Dr. Seunghee Lee, Sharon Omens, and Rebekah Todia, who featured original compositions including local and world premieres in a diverse array of musical stylings. Instrumentation included, piano, violin, flute, saxophone, bassoon, bass guitar, percussion, and electronic music. The most magical and relaxing sound came from a large Tibetan meditation bowl.
After the concert it was rewarding to see people talking about the portraits floating above them. People took iPhone photos of familiar faces. The show came down much faster than it went up but I had to work around people who lingered to the bitter end. Betsy Brabandt helped by removing the electrical dips from each sketch, and slipping the sketches back into the used to carry the collection. It is kind of nice to be the last one to leave such celebration of creativity and community.