Sensual Saturday

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Torria Hudson, who I had met at the Grand Bohemian Jazz Jam, invited me to attend a sensual, sultry evening of smooth Jazz and R&B music at Tavern on the Lake (6996 Piazza Grande Avenue). VIP tickets to the event were $55 and money raised went to an organization called Miracle of Love that raises awareness of AIDS and offers free HIV tests. Terry decided to join me. When we arrived, a woman was scrambling around trying to arrange seating for people. Since she was occupied I just walked into the seating area and started looking for where I would want to sketch from. Rather than sitting at a table, I decided the best spot was right in front of the sound board. A video camera was also set up in this area. I set my stool down and was ready to go. The woman arranging the seating found out I was there to sketch and she graciously arranged to get chairs for both Terry and myself.
When I started my sketch Live Hart was doing a sound check. I used that time to block in the composition lightly in pencil. Only a few of the tables were occupied so I knew I would have to add audience members to the sketch when they arrived. After the sound check it was another hour or so before the performers came back to the stage. I had to put my sketch aside and order appetizers. Someone came around offering raffle tickets for some original art work and Terry bought a few. We didn’t win, though we did help a good cause.
Live Harts silky smooth voice was a joy to sketch to. Her alternative soul filled the room and swayed the spirits of everyone. The music was gentle, lyrical and heart felt. The lines flowed quickly to the beat. When Live Harts set was over, my sketch was complete. I packed up and started heading for the door. Torria stopped Terry and I before we left. She said I couldn’t leave because I would miss the headliner act, Miki Howard. I don’t follow the Smooth Jazz scene so I was unaware that Miki is a huge deal and she was flown in from Los Angeles for this show. Once we realized our mistake we ran back in and sat down. Miki was astounding. Her songs swept over me with a maturity and grace that left goose bumps. During one of her final numbers Miki had back up singers. She sang a song about the hard knocks of love. She wandered into the audience and asked a woman, “Are you in love?” The woman replied, “Yes I know I am in love?” Miki shouted out , “See, we are so certain about love yet it always finds a way to kick us in the butt.” She asked the back up singers how old they were and one responded, “Twenty Two.” Miki shouted, “This song is older than you!” Then her song educated us all on just how hard love can be and how we always come back for more.

Tomorrow Thor will be sketching the Emotions Dance Massquerade at the Peacock Room between 9PM and 2AM.

Silver Fern Writers Workshop

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The Silver Fern Writers Workshop (263 Orange Terrace Drive, Winter Park) is held every 2nd and 4th Tuesday of each month. I was invited by Elayne Pierson to come to a workshop to sketch. These workshops are open to anyone from a novice to an accomplished writer working in all genres. The workshop is conducted using the principles of the Amherst Writers & Artists, providing a unique setting where a writer can grow creatively while developing their craft. The workshop offers a warm inviting and encouraging atmosphere without any emphasis on right and wrong.
When I arrived I was invited to share with the group my artwork and explain how this blogging experiment came to be. I of course explained about the new years resolution that went on to change my life and about how Disney Feature Animation bought me to Florida only to close down 10 years later when executives decided people only wanted to see computer generated films. I then showed everyone the Creative Mind Experiment film I created which showcased several hundred of my sketches in a 3 minute short.
Then everyone was invited to write using my art as inspiration. I was surprised my my wife’s writing which had the added benefit of looking back over 19 years of our marriage exploring the art and our relationship.

Artist, Man, Husband or God?
I have known Tom for 23 years. I am still not sure if I fell in love with the artist or the man. Is it possible to separate the two? When I view his art I am not able to separate the hands that have held me from the hands that have held the pen and paintbrush. Tom doesn’t have four hands so I guess I just have to pick two hands. Then again, he only draws with one hand so maybe I can love the right hand of the artist and also love the left hand of the man. I am fairly certain that Tom is not a God although his German name is often mistaken for the Nordic name of Thor, god of thunder. I often think that Tom the husband and Tom the man enjoys this extra title, not only because everyone gets the name Thorspecken wrong, but also because who wouldn’t want to be confused with a god, even if it is a mythical god as opposed to a Judeo-Christian god.
I often wonder what people experience when they view Tom’s art as opposed to what I experience. I have watched Tom create images from an empty page for 23 years. My human nature of craving attention is served when I am in one of his drawings. Early in our lives together I frequently posed as a model for Tom. I was never a good model. I am too fidgety but I loved seeing myself reflected through his eyes. Nothing is more erotic than seeing yourself as a sexy figure in your husbands eyes.
What do other people see? Is a drawing fact or fiction? When I read historical fiction I believe if it is well researched, it is probably more truthful than history which has over time been told by mainly a white male perspective. If Tom draws in real time then what he draws is fact, yet since it is not a photograph and loosely rendered through Tom’s heart and mind, is it in fact fiction?—that is a rendering of an historical event that is open to interpretation?
The NYC street artist evolved into a Disney animator and has morphed back into a street artist. Albeit with many night clubs, theaters and restaurants thrown in. I suspect as the years go by I will always ask the question is Tom an artist, man, husband or god? I suspect the answer will always be elusive but be full of discoveries and joy.

-Terry Thorspecken

Tomorrow Thor will be sketching Doug Rhodehamels house warming party at Stardust Video and Coffee.

Best of Orlando

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The Orlando Weekly held a readers choice voting for the Best of Orlando. Analog Artist Digital World won third place as the Best Local Blog! The Weekly held a celebration party at Club Firestone for the winners. I wasn’t invited. I suppose only the first place winners were invited. Luckily Brian Feldman won first place as the Best Experimental Act; being in South Dakota he gave his two tickets to Katie Windish who then invited me, so I could get a sketch of the event. When we got to the club we had to text Lindy Shepherd, an Orlando Weekly writer, so she could come out and give us the tickets. As we were going in Swamburger was coming out complaining that none of the food inside was vegan. He was heading up to the Cameo to party. Once we got past the velvet red rope and entered the club we were hit with the pounding bass of the music. Certain beers were free and there was a long line for food so we muscled past Wonder Woman and Batman, up to the bar. Once we had our beers the food line was smaller so we grabbed some food and then searched for a spot to sit. I saw a spot at a counter but before we got there two guys moved in. We finally found large cushioned benches in a room where back massages were being offered.
After we finished eating, I started searching for a spot to draw from. I had seem a walkway that had an overview of the dance floor and we started going up stairways until we found it. It was hot up there and no one else was around which meant I could sketch in peace. Katie went downstairs to talk to people and I got to work. I placed my beer on the counter and got out my book light so I could see what I was doing. When I was about half way through my sketch, my bottle of beer crashed to the floor shattering everywhere. I couldn’t figure out why it fell. I hadn’t touched it since I started sketching. I picked up the shattered base and placed it back on the counter. I then realized that the bass of the music was so loud that the counter was vibrating and the bottle was once again making its way to the edge to jump. I had the same problem with my sketchbook which I had leaning up against the counter. I put two pencil erasers in my ears finally to cut back some of the volume.
Much of the focus of the sketch is on the card tables which were set up for gambling. In the upper left corner an area was set up where artists were working on a painting. The painting had Blue Moon Beer logos integrated into it so I considered it too commercial to get its own sketch. On the dance floor a giant taco was busting some moves. A photographer tapped me on the shoulder and asked if it was alright for him to shoot some photos. I guess he thought I was staff. He shot some flash photos of a beautiful model.
On three movie screens the names of the winners were being projected. I got to see my name when the Best Bog category came up, but I was at the bottom of the list with my bronze. Once my sketch was done I found Katie and she introduced me to several Orlando Weekly staff members who said I should approach the new editor about getting my work in the paper. With a new editor comes new ideas so anything is possible.

Tomorrow I will be sketching the Speakwasy at Will’s Pub on Mills Avenue between 9 and 11:30PM.

World Cup

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I put out a request on Facebook asking where would be the best place in Orlando to watch the World Cup Soccer match. Someone responded Graffiti Junktion (400 East Washington Street in Thornton Park) so that is where Terry and I decided to go. When we first entered there was literally not a seat available. Terry wanted to go to a quieter bar down the street, but I knew this is where I needed to sketch. When we went back in the bar area, I found a spot in the corner of the room and I leaned back against the wall and started sketching. This meant I would have to stand for the duration of the game, but I thought it was worth it. Terry couldn’t find a seat so she asked me for my car keys and went back to get my portable stool. Right after she left a table opened up and I sent her a text to that effect. It turns out she had left her purse with me and her phone was in the purse. She ended up walking the 4 or 5 blocks and when she got back she realized she didn’t need the stool anymore.
At the table right in front of me there were several lesbian couples who were very affectionate. I found out that the two countries competing, Spain and Portugal, both recognize full marriage equality for all citizens. In other words, marriage need not only be the union of a man and woman. The fellow with the face paint was very boisterous. He was shouting and screaming the would game which then set the stage for a very loud crowd. He noticed me sketching and he climbed over to see what I was up to. The ink work was finished and I was about to start adding watercolor washes. Thankfully he loved what he saw and he took the sketchbook from me and started showing around to friends. When I got it back I started painting.
There were several moments where everyone in the room jumped to their feet and shouted. The moment the game winning goal was scored the place went ballistic. People were shouting and hugging, it was pure pandemonium. Since the people in front of me were rooting for Spain and had on orange and yellow face paint, I thought the team with the orange jerseys were from Spain. When the game was over I found out I was rooting for the wrong players the whole time. The orange jerseys belonged to Portugal.

Tomorrow Thor will be sketching “From Dust to Life”, the art of Jason Lee, at the Peacock Room (1312 North Mills Avenue) between 8PM and 11PM.

The Chaplain Visits

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On a return visit to Margaret Hill, she was able to get up with much help and eat at the dining room table. I joined her and Mary for lunch. Mary grew concerned watching her mothers breathing worsen over the course of lunch. She helped her mother get back into bed. Margaret’s breathing grew shallow and harsh. She began to struggle for each breath and began to panic. Mary placed her left hand on her mother’s brow and then held her right hand over her mothers chest. She made a gesture like she was crumpling a sheet of paper and then she threw it away. Mary did this several times, breathed in deeply and then turned her head away and exhaled into the corner of the room. It appeared as though Mary was in a very deep meditative state. Instantly Margaret calmed down and her struggle to breath lessened. In a matter of perhaps 15 minutes she fell fast asleep. I had never seen anything like this. I was mystified. Mary is a Christian and has absolute faith in the healing powers of God working through her as his instrument. Mary also has a Master’s degree in spiritual psychology, participates in various healing/creative art ministries and studied various healing tradition in California, before returning to care for her mother.

Although I am still baffled by what I saw, from my perspective, it seems to me that Mary is able to deflect diseased energy, then channel a very intense healing energy where it then flows to the person she is in prayer for. There was an overwhelming calm and peace in her mother’s room.

As her mother slept, a chaplain and hospice nurse arrived. The chaplain comes to the house frequently to address Margaret’s emotional and spiritual needs. Mary talked to the chaplain for some time discussing her mother’s physical and emotional states. Copious notes were taken as the mother and daughter’s needs were evaluated. In the kitchen, where Mary and the Chaplain are talking, there is a photo of Margaret in her prime on the wall. It’s as if she is looking over the Chaplain’s shoulder, perhaps to observe and grace these emotionally charged and sometimes heart-wrenching discussions.

On a trip to a doctors office Mary recited a poem she was inspired to write about healing, how it flows through her and how God has used others to heal her as well. She agreed to share it, with gratitude and blessings.

A Place to Meet

Meet me…in the stillness of my touch

Allow me to feel your pain, it won’t hurt quite as much.

Meet me…in the safety of my soul

Tell me your stories, the ones you’ve dared, but never told.

Meet me…in the solitude of my heart

Lay down your sorrow, welcome healing’s start.

Meet me…in the center of the earth

Surrender to its wisdom, awaken to your rebirth

Meet me…far beyond the ageless universe

Bask in love’s perfection; nothing’s better, nothing’s worse.

Meet me when you’re willing, meet me when you can

It’s there I’ll give my best to you – my mind, my heart, my hands.

-Mary J. Hill 2005

Wedding Dinner

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Terry and I drove to Greensboro North Carolina for the wedding of Terry’s cousin, Miriam Dolin. It took all day to drive up there and when we got there we collapsed in out motel room from exhaustion. We were given a little gift bag from the lady at the front desk. Inside was a map to help us find the home where a pre-wedding dinner part was going to be held the following evening. The home was gorgeous in a really nice neighborhood. The food was served on the center island in the large kitchen area. People would fill a plate and then sit in any of the rooms on the ground floor. I sat in the kitchen’s breakfast nook and started to sketch. At events like this I tend to only hear the overall din of all the conversations. Someone can be standing right in front of me talking and I just hear all the ambient noise. Doing this sketch calmed my nerves although doing the sketch was a major challenge because of the constant movement of all the people as they loaded their plates in a clockwise ebb and flow.
Miriam seemed very calm. She worked the room, greeting all her distant cousins and other relatives who had come from out of town. She had once played Mary Poppins at the Magic Kingdom so she has a consummate warm grace around crowds of people. She was the center of attention and she relished and was quite comfortable with that. Her fiance tagged along trying to learn all the names that were being thrown his way.

Tomorrow I will be sketching Boudoir Bombshells in Groveland.

B-Side Artists

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On the third Thursday of the month, I went down to the City Arts Factory (29 South Orange Avenue) to do a sketch of the B-Side Artists show opening. This group of artists had seven original members lead by Swamburger and more artists have joined the ranks over the years. The B-Side name came from the flip side of Albums in the 1980’s, it was common knowledge then that the B-Side of the album would have the more experimental and cutting edge performances. Some of the work in this show had the feeling of emerging from the streets, having an urban feeling whose roots go back to graffiti. B-Side Artists is the urban youth underdog that continues to surprise pop-culture with it’s style, bold content, and willingness to create in artistically a-typical conditions.

Sketching a gallery opening is an insanely difficult challenge. I leaned back against a wall on my portable stool and got to work. The difficulty comes from people standing in front of you as you work. I have trained myself to not get frustrated but instead to wait or look elsewhere and draw some other detail not blocked by the person in front of me. Swamburger greeted me with a warm handshake and smile. Outside he related to me the dream he has of someday finding a project where all the arts groups in town can come together and collaborate on a project which shows the world what the Orlando arts scene has to offer.

Guerrier Peterson was the artist who’s work was on the wall opposite from where I was sitting. One painting had elephants across the base of the painting and then rising up behind them was the torso of a woman with no head and a knot of organic looking roots twisting upward out of the neck. Another painting depicted a demonic looking freak show clown with a long tongue. The longer I drew and studied the work, the more I liked it.

Betsy Dye

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Betsy Dye will be the featured artist in the July Mobile Arts Show, July 15th from 6 to 10PM. The Mobile Art Show takes place in a U-Haul van parked across the street from City Arts Factory (29 South Orange Avenue). I exhibited my work in the Mobile Art Show, and had a blast.
Betsy’s studio and apartment has a fresh retro feeling of the sixties and seventies. The walls are painted a submarine grayish green and everything in the place makes you feel like you have stepped back in time. She collects records, that’s right real vinyl, and that collection fills a huge bookshelf in the living room. Arranged by recording artists the albums are all in their original sleeves and she must have the complete works of such groups as the Beatles and Moody Blues. She collects owls and hand crafts owl dolls. On a table in the living room there was a basket full of white rabbits with huge black eyes. These rabbits are cute and yet strangely demonic. Also on the table were a bunch of round mirrors which were framed and encased in old Boys Life magazine adds. The sexist ads were light hearted and very funny. The Bob Dylan poster on the kitchen wall turned out to be a rare collectors item. Only a few of these posters were printed to promote a new record label. Betsy bought the poster for cheap and later researched to find out about it’s history.
Behind Betsy in the sketch is a blue cardboard tube tree that she plans to mount in the truck. She plans to place nests in the tree where she will then place her felt stuffed owls. In the sketch she is painting a sloth onto a wooden plaque. She has a whole series of these plaques which will be hung on the U-Hauls interior walls.
Everything about the space was warm and inviting. Sketching I felt like I had stepped back into a time when things were more tangible and less hectic. Something about the retro feeling of the place made me feel like I was finally sketching in the right time period. I felt so at ease and the sketch just flowed. I experienced a playful feeling of bliss.
As I was working on a second sketch, a friend of Betsy’s stopped in named Gina Yolango. She helped Betsy out by painting several of the cardboard cockoo clocks with a bright base coat of paint. Seated in the corner of the kitchen I really couldn’t see Gina so she never made it into the sketch. Betsy told me to pick out an album from her massive LP collection. I searched the titles of some time until I saw that she had Pink Floyd. The album “Wish You Were Here” was my immediate choice. I delicately removed the album form it’s sleeve and placed it on the antique record player. Lowering the needle was strangely rewarding. The needle gave off a familiar hiss and the album began with its delicate guitar melody. I couldn’t see Betsy working if I sat on my stool, so I stood the whole time I sketched while swaying to the familiar music. Since I was in the living room I was put in charge of the music and I fully enjoyed the responsibility.
Gina finished 2 cuckoo houses and got ready to leave. She gave Betsy a present which was a demonic little voodoo doll complete with pins piercing its blue heart, an earring and stitches for eyes. Betsy loved it and laughed out loud. As soon as Gina left, Elizabeth Cason arrived. She kept Betsy company as I finished off the last of the watercolor washes. When I was finished and showed Betsy the second sketch, she invited me to join Elizabeth and her for a bite. We went to Taco Bell. On the trip back to Betsy’s studio, it started to rain. This wasn’t just any rain, it was epic. On a mad dash back to my truck I was soaked to the bone. Every event of the evening was punctuated with laughter. You will see that humor in every piece in the show. So close up Facebook and come on out!

Tomorrow I will be sketching Jazz, Art on a Summers night at Redlight Redlight (745 Bennett Road) sometime between 7PM and 2AM.

Red Umbrella

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As I walked past this woman reading in a rare moment of calm between Fringe performances a friend said, “That is a beautiful scene, you should sketch it.” This was a rare moment where someone actually encouraged me to take the time to slow down and do a sketch. When I am among friends and family, I usually think they would get annoyed that I am sketching rather than taking part in a conversation. At parties I often quietly listen to the conversations around me, thinking the whole time that I would love to sketch a persons expression or the warm ambiance of the room. Being invited to do a sketch therefor was thrilling.
I walked up to the woman to see how long she might be reading and to make sure she was comfortable with being sketched. She was waiting for a show and would be reading for another half an hour. I sat down and got to work.
As I was sketching Ryan Price walked up to me with his video camera rolling and he asked me a few questions. The sound quality on the video is off sync and hard to hear but it is interesting to see the way I managed to answer his questions while still working. The whole time I was being interviewed I was hoping the woman wouldn’t get up and walk away.
When the sketch was finished I rushed off and headed into another Fringe show called “The Bike Trip”. This was the best show I saw a Fringe this year. It was a one man show about one mans quest to find the origins of Acid. The monologue was quick, lively and full of humanity. It made me feel more connected to the people around me. I never asked the woman’s name that I sketched, she will always be “The Lady in Red” to me.

The Second Annual Bastille Day

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On Saturday Terry and I drove to the Audubon Park Garden District to find out what Bastille Day was all about. Of course in France Bastille day is a celebration of French independence from the rule of monarchs. When we drove past Stardust Video and Coffee there were one or two tents in the parking lot and a water tank set up to dunk a mime. We almost left since it looked like nothing was happening. I expected to see waving flags, a huge crowd and plenty of French costumes. We wandered the side streets looking for a parking spot and braved the heat to walk over to Stardust. A thermometer in Terry’s car indicated it was 101 degrees Fahrenheit outside.
The door I usually use to enter Stardust was locked. We entered the door right in front of the food counter. I could hear a trumpet wailing in the room to my right so we walked that way. We were stopped and told that it would cost $10 to see the concert. I was annoyed since the event page said nothing about a $10 entry fee. He went on to explain that we would get 2 free drink tickets with the price of admission. I was ready to leave but Terry said, “Well, we are already here. Lets go in.” She obviously has a higher entertainment budget that I do. So we paid and got orange wrist bands (not red, white and blue?).
The Benoit Glazer Quartet was on stage. Terry and I sat in an empty booth close to the stage and I got to work on my sketch. The last time I had seem Benoit playing trumpet was at a concert at his home where he played with his kids. Once a month Benoit opens his home, referred to as the White House or Timucua, to musicians and artists. The quartet was really good and Benoit would end each song with some independence themed riff. The fact that he would introduce each song with his authentic french accent added to the days Bastille theme.
Between sets Darlyn Finch came over with her fiance Brad Kuhn and Beverly Browning, an author who had been on Yo Soy Latino a radio show with Darlyn that morning. Darlyn broadcasts a show called Scribblers Corner which talks all about literary events in and around Orlando. I was still rushing to finish my sketch. I was in a panic since Benoit and the other musicians were getting off the stage so I was quickly noting the colors of their clothing. I quickly threw down washes on the performers even as they packed away their instruments. I might have seemed rude but I couldn’t stop just because the music had stopped.
The next performers were Serina Jung and Lisa Firestone. Both are performing moms and their children were in the audience. Serina’s beautiful voice and acoustic guitar playing set the tone of the performance. Lisa offered back up on several of the songs on the piano but later she got off stage to let Serina serenade the audience on her own. The whole time she sang I was finishing up my sketch of Benoit adding delicate layers of watercolor washes. When she finished my sketch was complete.
Terry and I left Stardust in search of other events that were going on such as a Waiter race, a fencing demonstration and a dog show to see which mutts could best look like a french poodle. We walked over to Park Avenue CD’s and looked around the air conditioned store. The Moulin Rouge stage was still under construction. A few more craft vendor tents were set up. The Orlando Sentinel had a tent and table but no one was there. I joked with Terry that they must have all been fired as soon as the tent had been set up. We never did find any of the other scheduled events. We decided to get back in the air conditioned car and head off to hear some jazz.