Scranton PA – Drawing Social

In the evening I arrived at the Afa Gallery where the Drawing Social was to be held. I helped Angelica put out some chairs and slowly artists began to arrive. The sketch shows Jason Smeltzer playing an instrument called the Theremin. You would have heard this instrument in any 1950’s science fiction film it had a haunting otherworldly sound. Chris Gratz is playing the piano. When Ted walked over to me and introduced me to the group of artists, Chris started playing an accompaniment and the introduction turned into something of a show tune. I joined in adding lyrics as they popped into my head. This was a fun start to the evening.
The point of the Drawing Social is that musicians are bought to the artists who have a front row seat to sketch at will. It is a fantastic idea that results in plenty of lively and spontaneous sketches. In the second half of the Social, Steve Kurilla showed up and set up his drum set. I never worked him into my sketch since he sat directly in front of me and would have blocked out some areas that were already established in my sketch. Steve began his performance playing the triangle and walking around the room. On the drums Steve threw himself into the performance like a man obsessed. As the energy built he would let symbols and cow bells fall to the floor. A musical earthquake. All this energy affected every line as it was thrown down. This was art inspiring art at it’s best.
During a break I walked around and looked at what other artists were working on. Ted can be seen in the sketch right behind Chris working away with his ink dropper. Everyone went out for dinner after the Social. There was plenty of laughter and ted continued drawing on his place mat catching the artists seated around him. I had decided that I would drive south as far as I could to make my way back home. As I got up to pay my bill, Angelica shouted out something complimentary and everyone clapped. I said my good byes and was soon back on the road. I wanted to get south of Washington DC to avoid any morning traffic and so I drove till 5AM. I finally pulled off the highway exhausted and found a quiet suburban street and parked my truck in front of someones home. I unfurled my sleeping bag and curled up in the back of the truck. I woke up several hours later and then drove the rest of the day till I got to Orlando that night.