Swamp Sista LaLa Friends

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Swamp Sista La La Friends began its inaugural year as an annual event on Saturday June 23, 2012. It was an epic celebration of mostly southern music, women, independent businesses (which happen to be mostly owned or ran by women), and the hippest community in Orlando (also managed by a woman). It took  place outside and inside Park Ave CDs, from 7PM – 11PM. The evening was a gathering of Swamp Sistas, soulfully connected women, (mainly) Southern women who love to keep their roots at the surface while also branching to a more contemporary sound.

Audubon Park Garden District, Park Ave CDs, and Beth McKee joined to bring Swamp Sistas together for music, fun, vendors, beer, and food in Audubon Park.

Beth McKee’s Swamp Sista group includes diverse and talented women from all over the South and also from all over Central Florida.

The goal behind this Swamp Sista La La is to raise awareness about local independent retail stores, especially record stores like Park Ave CDs, and local entrepreneurs, which Audubon Garden District often champions. By having a Swamp Sista La La at Park Ave CDs, Beth utilized the Swamp Sista network to bring people from all over the area to Audubon Park, showing them what a special place it is.

The parking lot outside Park Avenue CDs was crowded with merchant tents while Viveca Averstedt‘s swedeDISH Food Truck hummed on the road. I sat next to the outdoor stage to sketch Laney Jones and her band as they performed mellow folk tuned. I’m pretty sure I sketched her performing solo outside infusion tea once on a rainy dusk. It was a hot humid evening and by the time I was done sketching I decided to go. The swedeDISH Food Truck had a Thor hot dog which was supposed to be immense. I was tempted to order one but decided to hold off. A band was also performing inside Park Avenue CDs where there was air conditioning. Terry and I negotiated and then left.

Denna and Travis Update their Relationship Status

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Denna Beena and Travis Fillmen were married Saturday August 4th in the Winter Garden Theatre. It was pouring rain as I drove straight from work. Terry let me know that she saved me a seat. The Winter Garden Theater has been the home to some amazing theatrical productions such as “The Diviners“, and “Driving Miss Daisy“. This wedding had a flair of the theatrical and plenty of Pink. Denna’s hair has always had a shock of pink, orange and purple. Her brides maids each had a pink dress of their choosing and long streaks of pink in their hair. Groomsmen and the ring bearer, manikin Hans Hausboi, all had pink bow ties and flowers. Groomsman, Mark Baratelli had a crazy, day filled with drama leading up to the ceremony. But that is a story for another day. Bridesmaid, Amanda Chadwick, with a bright pink coil of hair on her forehead, had flown from Seattle to be in the ceremony.

Before the actual ceremony, the theater curtains opened and friendly trivia was projected on the movie screen. Denna and Travis’s first date lasted ten hours. They met thanks to OKCupid.com. Denna kept getting Travis’s bio and she ignored it five times. She finally decided that the guys she usually dated were all wrong for her, so she took a chance. They might be bipolar opposites politically but deep down the found happiness and creative unconditional love. There was a small canvas center stage and as part of the ceremony, the couple painted a heart together. Young Chloe and Naomi Borchers recited the lyrics to “Personal Penguin.” Mike Carr explained, “Why Love is Like Owning a Dog.”

It was a ceremony in which laughter was a fine compliment love. The officiant, Mike Carr, earned his ability to unite this couple from the internet. When the knot was tied, Denna and Travis took out their cell phones on stage and updated their Facebook status to “Married“. The audience cheered. As everyone filed upstairs for the reception, I rushed to throw color on the sketch. A black and White film flickered onto the movie screen as the projectionist got ready for that evenings showing. As the colors dried on the page, I went upstairs for plenty of awkward yet enthusiastic dancing.

Fantasy Surf

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Fantasy Surf, (5151 Kyngs Heath Road Kissimmee, FL 34746), has the ultimate indoor wave. Referred to as “flow boarding”, a super strong stream of water rushes up a smooth blue embankment allowing experienced surfers an endless wave. I went to the facility to talk to Adam Mulls about sketching the National Championships. The place was constantly full of participants and spectators. It is located right behind a hotel which supplies many of the younger newbies who crash and burn when they try to stand. Falling, you are pushed up and over the top of the wave by the force of the water flow. Eager parents recorded the carnage on iPads and cell phones.

A blond haired teen mounted a water proof camera to the glass with a suction cup. She stretched like an Olympic swimmer and then took video of herself riding the wave. She was able to flip her board and negotiate every inch of the wave. An even younger boy was doing tricks effortlessly.  They now have trampoline jumping as an Olympic sport. Flow boarding would be an awesome Olympic event to watch. Adam stood at the top of the wave acting as the life guard. He rode the wave once, showing some mad skills.

 Fantasy Surf is hosting the 2012 Carbon US Flow Tour National Championships
during the weekend of August 10-12th. The public is encouraged to take part as spectators
as the best flow boarders in the world battle it out for a chance at the
National Title.  If you are a FLOW Tour competitor or follower, looking for event lodging, please visit fantasyworldresort.com to book reservations for a 2 bed room condo and full amenities and sleep 6 people. When booking online use the PROM CODE: FLOW to receive a special $99.00 per night rate. Click here for the competition entry form and waiver.

Complimentary rider practice begins August 10th from 3:00pm- 9:00pm. Bleachers will be set up for spectators and the lounge will be reserved for contestants only. Outside, tents will be lined up with skateboarding, merchandise and food vendors. The competition should offer an awesome weekend sketch opportunity.

Flight Home

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I arrived at the Santo Domingo Airport several hours early. I was shocked that there were no lines. I had to fill out all the customs forms and breezed through security with no wait.I sat and watched the crowd slowly gather at the gate for my flight. A nun sat stoically never moving, while a brother and sister fidgeted the whole time. Domino’s Pizza was set up to sell slices and the ads reminded me of the domino players enthusiasm in the park.

On the flight, I sat next to a young missionary who taught English and math to students in small villages around La Cucarita, in the Dominican Republic. She explained that the schools were makeshift but the central village now had a cinder block building. She had to pay her own way to get to and from the Dominican Republic and she couldn’t wait to get home to her own bed. He T-shirt read, Love God, serve people, change the world.

This was Jet Blue pilot, Kevin Kelly‘s, last flight. He was leaving Jet Blue after 30 years of service. The first thing to flash through my mind was that the Titanic captain was retiring after his last voyage. Everyone on board cheered when we had a smooth landing. Jet Blue has a tradition in which two fire trucks spray down the plane with water for a retiring pilot. We were told not to panic. The plane taxied forever. I figured they might be going to a hanger for the ceremony, but then I saw the firetrucks with their tall streams of water arching over the plane. My window went liquid and the green trucks shimmered. Everyone was shouting and clapping. You don’t see THAT every day. It was good to be home.

Fiesta

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The closing ceremony for the Santo Domingo Urban Sketching Symposium was held at the Museo de las Casas Reales. As we walked inside, a regal peacock strutted through the lobby. Long tables were set up with all the artist’s sketchbooks on display. There was also a silent auction set up with some of the instructors work up for grabs. Everyone was crowded around the tables flipping through sketchbooks. Some people moved clockwise and others counter clockwise. I lost patience since I couldn’t see all the sketchbooks fast enough, so I wandered off to get a coke. There were also finger foods available so I ate dinner. I had a quick chat with Gabi Campinario. He seems to be moving away from sketching across double page spreads. The last few months, I have been doing the same, choosing instead to sketch in larger spiral bound sketchbooks.

Frank Ching from Seattle was doing a sketch of the spacious courtyard. Since I was still intent on seeing the rest of the sketchbooks, I decided this wasn’t an event I would be sketching. All of the Urban Sketchers were asked to stand in the courtyard where they were each called up and issued a certificate. It was just like a graduation. Since all the sketchbooks were now being ignored, I decided to sneak away to flip through the remaining sketchbooks. When my name was called, I trotted out like a triumphant Olympian, picked up my certificate and jogged right back to the sketchbooks.

When we left the closing Ceremony, we discovered that a Fiesta was being staged at Plaza de Espana. Historic fortifications were illuminated a rich orange behind the makeshift stage. Dancers were changing costumes in the lot next to the Museo. On stage a singer and keyboard player were performing Meringue. An official sat beside the stage while hundreds of locals sat in folding chairs set up in the Plaza. Unfortunately, this was the last act and as technicians broke down the stage, I rushed to throw down color washes. The Urban Sketchers had gathered at a bar across the plaza, so when I was done, I walked over for one last drink with this incredibly talented international group of artists.

Dominos

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On the afternoon of the final day there was a SketchCrawl in Santo Domingo‘s Parque Colon. I had done several thumbnail sketches of domino players in Veronica Lawlor‘s, The Decisive Moment Workshop. I decided to try and get a larger sketch done. The game is rather fast paced usually punctuated with loud arguments in Spanish about moves that could have been made. It is rather nice that people linger in the park all day. This game of dominoes would migrate periodically to keep the board in the shade of the parks trees. Along with the locals, there were 100 artists gathered in the park this day.

 One of the men viewing the game looked after me by shooing away anyone who stood between me and the board. I smiled and gave him a thumbs up for his assistance. Melanie Reim was just as infatuated by the game and she did a lively series of sketches from her spot sitting on the grass. I did a few more loose thumbnail sketches in the park before all the Urban Sketchers gathered for a group photo in front of the Cathedral.

My Last Urban Sketching Workshop

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My last Capturing the Event Workshop took place on the street leading to Puerta del Conde. I knew the ancient fort would close it’s gates at 5PM so there wasn’t much time to get a sketch inside. I was really pleased that Urban Sketcher Nina Johansson from Sweden sat in on this workshop. I admire her vibrant watercolor sketches. It was cloudy out which meant we didn’t have to hunt for shade. I sat in the middle of the street sketching the architecture. The previous day, a cocoanut salesman and guitar player showed up on this corner and I hoped they would return. Sure enough, when I was halfway into the sketch, the cocoanut salesman arrived on his tricycle loaded down with cocoanuts. He cut open the coconuts with a machete to serve it.

It began to rain and I backed up into a shop vestibule. One of the shop assistants gestured to offer me a spot to sit. This happened to me while I sketched in the park as well, a gentleman offered me his seat on a bench. They seem to take pity on aging artists in Santo Domingo.  Lapin showed up as the rain began to ease. I gave him a quick rundown on the workshop and gave him the class notes. I caught him in my sketch as he stood sketching a mannequin. Then he started asking people if he could sketch them. A crowd gathered around him as he sketched.

I gathered up the troupes and we shared our sketches. We then posed for a photo in front of the sign that I had sketched. There was a wonderful variety of styles. Everyone weathered the storm.

The Decisive Moment

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0n the morning of the final day of the Santo Domingo Urban Sketching Symposium, I took Veronica Lawlor‘s Workshop called The Decisive Moment. I have always admired Veronica’s loose spontaneous sketches. The idea of the decisive moment came from photo journalist Henri Cartier-Bresson. As he said, “There is nothing in this world that does not have a decisive moment” Veronica pulled out her iPad and showed us sketches by Ronald Searle from his Paris Sketchbook. I have a copy of this sketchbook and it is a prized possession. She also showed us thumbnails from Gustav Klimpt. She suggested we explore Parque Colon doing small quick thumbnails instead of detailed sketches. She explained that her first impulse when on an assignment was to do as many thumbnails as possible.

I found doing the thumbnails quite liberating. Each sketch had to begin with a frame. I probably could have organized the thumbnails better on the page, but I was just focused on getting each image down as quickly as possible. I worked straight ahead using ink and watercolor washes.

The first thing that caught my eye was a young man feeding the pigeons. If anyone walked too close, they would take flight all at once. I sketched a candy cart, the monument to Columbus and then became infatuated with the men who played dominoes all day long. The cathedral was a cool reprieve from the hot park. The chihuahua named Pancho belonged to a couple who stopped to talk to me in English. The owner was an artist herself and I suggested she join us for the SketchCrawl later in the day.

Urban Symposium Panel

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Right after lunch each day there was a panel discussion where instructors from  the Santo Domingo Urban Sketching Symposium would get up in front of the room full of artists and talk about their experiences sketching that day. I had this sketch fairly well layed out when Gabi approached me and asked me to be on the panel. Sigh, I would have to finish the sketch the next day. I sat center stage, sandwiched between the amazing talents of Veronica Lawlor and Nina Johansson. Gabi Campanario, who founded Urban Sketchers, had heard about my run in with the guards at Puerta del Conde and he wanted me to relate the incident. My main point was that it was important to always finish the sketch, come hell or high water. This was the first time that the person who insisted I stop sketching was carrying a gun.

It was incredibly rewarding to hear students from my first workshops relate what resonated with them.  I thought that instructing and standing in front of a room full of piers might be stressful, but the opposite was true, I felt at ease and at home among artists who shared my desire to document and record events by sketching. The next day, I sketched Marc Holmes, Lynne Chapman and Liz Steel into my unfinished sketch from the day before. Lynne, smiled broadly, radiating good humor and Liz had filled an entire sketchbook already. I had taken Marc’s class and it made me realize that it helps to be thrown outside the usual sketching comfort zone when being asked to think about sketching in a different light.

Tea, Milk and Honey

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I’ve long been an admirer of Mark Taro Holmes‘ watercolors, so the first workshop I took was his, Tea, Milk and Honey Watercolor Workshop. The fifteen or so students hiked to the Ruins de San Francisco. The first order of business was to find a shady spot from which to paint the ruins. We couldn’t go inside the structure since it was unsafe. We all sat on some stone steps across the street from the building. Marc wanted us to all follow along as he went through the steps, doing a study of a stone window on the ruins. I admired his set up which consisted of a camera tripod on which he mounted a flat board and an arm which held his large palette.

Rather than follow along, I watched intently as he mixed colors and applied washes. The first step, pour the tea, consisted of light washes of local color. That first step had to dry before the second step, a touch of milk, which involved only adding semi-opaque paint to the shadow shapes. The third pass, sweeten with honey, involved thick gel-like paint added to emphasize contact shadows. A woman walked past the ruins with a basket of bananas balanced on her head and a mule pulled a wagon laden with a whole family. As we all worked, a lively basketball game began on the court behind us. Sometimes the ball would go out of bounds, bouncing into an artist who would then toss it back.

I lost interest in the ruins and turned around to sketch the animated game. There was plenty of arguing, all in Spanish of course. Players became aware that I was sketching them and they stopped on occasion to see my progress. One little boy obviously wanted to be in the sketch and I pointed to the player shooting the basketball. It was a little white lie, but it made him happy. A little girl would pick up my brush or pencil anytime I dropped it. She was very attentive.

After we were all done, we assembled on the steps for a group photo. The workshop forced me away from using line to define shapes. For me a light bulb turned on as the sketch became more about painting.