Faith Arts Village Orlando (FAVO) is an outreach ministry of Park Lake Presbyterian Church. Will Benton is in charge of helping renovate the motel which hosts artists who exhibit their work once a month. The mission of FAVO is to encourage art as an expression of faith. On January 4th, I visited to see which artists were exhibiting their work. The motel is located across the street from Park Lake Presbyterian church and is right off Colonial Drive. I discovered a parking lot quite by mistake.
Unfortunately it was raining continuously that evening. The January 4th Event focused on a New Year featuring local Orlando Art,
The FAVO Market and the soft opening of the new FAVO Gallery. This
Gallery will present all original works from local artists. All sales
from this Gallery will benefit the renovations of the property to meet City Requirements. Adequate sprinkler systems need to be installed and ramps built so the complex is accessible to anyone in a wheel chair. 19 Studios were open with Local Juried Artists showing their work.
There were several Food Trucks parked behind the motel with their generators buzzing loudly. The event was lightly attended, but the motel rooms glowed bright as the sky grew dark. Photographer Gail Peck introduced me to the work of a British Urban Sketcher whose work she felt I should see. He wrote a book called, London You’re Beautiful. Renee Wilson was showing pieces that were rendered with words. There was an image of a raven that was composed using the words from an Edgar Allen Poe poem. She does commissions where she interviews a person and then does a drawing using words from that person’s story to create the image. Bonnie Sprung was set up in the motel room closest to the food trucks.
A minister stood in an artists studio looking at the work. The artist asked him if he could bless her work since she believed in that sort of thing. I didn’t stay for the blessing. I searched for a spot out of the rain and I did a quick sketch. Mist from the rain kept moistening the page. Seth Kubersky and Donna Dowless said hello as I struggled with the sketch. The FAVO Gallery will be having it’s Grand Opening on February 1st at 5PM.