15 Views of Orlando

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I was asked to exhibit several of my sketchbooks at Urban ReThink. The opening was on the Third Thursday in January and the work will be up through February 16th. Artists include Barry Kirsch, best known for his Murder City Photography, Ashley Inguanta, whose local photography had a surreal edge to it, Lesley Godeck Silvia, who had a bright neon ice cream swirl photo that looked great next to my sketchbooks. All the work depicted scenes from the City Beautiful. The two sketches of mine on exhibit are, Musical Mondays, and There Will be Words. Dina Mack, the curator, explained that she wanted work with a local flavor to accompany a Burrow Press’ 15 Views of Orlando Book Release Party. The book features 15 short stories written by local authors. All of the scenes in the book happen in different neighborhoods of Orlando.

Dina invited me to bring along a box of calendars to the art show opening. Urban ReThink is a bit removed from the downtown galleries that act as the hub of the monthly Third Thursday Downtown gallery hop. Dina and I sat outside Urban ReThink and she had a natural knack for inviting passers by inside to look around. Ashley was there to meet anyone interested in her work. Her pieces were hung clothes line style and they were very affordable. One young man expressed his interest in buying a piece. He insisted that she would have to frame the work however. Quite honestly the frame would cost more than she was charging for the art. I rolled my eyes. He was probably haggling because he was more interested in the artist than the art. In my sketch, Patrick Greene, Dina Mack and Ashley Inguanta were relaxing in the “living room” setting at Urban ReThink. I sketched fast with few interruptions since few arts patrons wandered in.

The gallery was a ghost town. A few people glanced at calendars but they couldn’t afford the $12 to buy one. The highlight of the evening for me was meeting Heidi Behr and Mark Egeland. Mark owns a bicycle manufacturing facility in Winter Garden. He showed me a few photos of the process and it would be an exceptional sketch opportunity. There are seven stations from metal entering the factory until the final product rolls out the doors. These are seven sketches I now want to capture. Who knew that bicycles are being made right here in Central Florida? Heidi is involved in Scooters for Hooters, a breast cancer fundraising event. We talked about how I might get more involved in this cause this year.

David M. Roth

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Folk singer David M. Roth performed at the White House. Artist Ed Sanderson stood in the corner and did a quick impasto landscape painting as David played. Ed was one of the first visual artists to paint live at the White House and he had returned several times. Davids mellow tunes all had uplifting hope filled lyrics. What made the performance special for me was the way he wove his family history into monologues between his music. His father came to this country to make a better life for his family and he had hopes that his son would one day be a success as a doctor or lawyer. David did find success doing something he loved and sharing that love of music with others.

David was asked to perform at a NASA conference and he suggested in an off hand way that he could write a song especially for the occasion. Months passed and he forgot about the promise, but the organizer called him right before the conference to let him know how excited she was to hear his song. He panicked but just happened across an article about Sputnik, the first Soviet satellite. That mysterious orb sent fear into every American heart and the space race began. His inspired song pointed out that if future explorations were fueled by love rather than fear, then we could accomplish anything.

A race to the furthest star
A race to the galaxies above
If a little bit of fear can go so far
Imagine what a world could do with love

The song he wrote was later taken into space by a shuttle astronaut. When he told his father the amazing news, that his music was orbiting the earth, his father asked, “So how much does that put in your pocket?”

Later when his father was sick and in Hospice care, David would sit bedside and play his music for him. His father wasn’t very responsive, slipping in and out of consciousness. As David was leaving hospice with his sister, he suddenly had a feeling he had to return and speak with his father. He asked, “Are you aware that I have been playing music for you?” His fathers eyes flickered open and he said, “Yes, it is beautiful.” Rob was a bit choked up as he said, “That was the only time he acknowledged that he liked my music.” A few days later, his father died. When Rob thinks of his dad, he always has that moment to treasure.

The Titanic of Trees

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Cole Nesmith and a small group of dedicated artists have been working on an interactive sculpture called “Tree of Light.” The tree’s inner structure is made of light weight aluminum welded together. Cole and Josh Owen had screwed hundreds of wooden boards, from discarded pallets onto the aluminum frame. The resulting tree must stand at least 20 feet high and must weigh several tons. It was a marvel of engineering. When I first sketched it, I referred to it as the Titanic of Trees referring to the shear size of the sculpture. Cole laughed. The tree’s unveiling was scheduled for February 2nd in Seaside Plaza on the corner of Church Street and Orange Avenue downtown.

On the evening before the unveiling, Cole and Josh worked all night long to get the tree built. A short interview done at 3:3oam that night showed the Tree of Light nearing completion. On the morning of the unveiling however, I got a Facebook message from Cole on my wall, “Unfortunately, due to damage to the structure this morning, the opening has been postponed.” I wondered what happened. Had a car hit it? Did the whole trunk just topple? I decided to drive past Cole’s place to see if they were doing work on the tree in his yard and then I drove downtown to Seaside Plaza to see if the structure was being fixed there. The only hint that the tree may have once been there were some orange cones and a small strip of electrical wire. The Tree of Light had vanished.

The next evening I went to an Orlando Philharmonic concert and Cole was there as well. He informed me that the owners of the plaza had called him the day before the tree was to be set up to express concerns they had about letting him place the art in the plaza. Though they had doubts, fearing litigation, the tree was erected anyway. The tree was near completion and the electrical wiring was being installed. Chris Clatterbuck was on a ladder working on the wiring. He shifted his weight and leaned on a branch. The welds gave way and the the heavy branch of aluminum and wood crashed loudly to the ground. No one was hurt. The owners of the Plaza now had their worst fears justified, so it is unlikely the tree will be set up there. They probably imagined someone gently pulling a chord to turn on a light bulb and then being crushed by a falling branch. Now that is interactive art!

Cole lamented the fact that he had contracted out the welding work for an exorbitant fee, and it was the welds that gave way. He said, “It was a punch in the gut when we lost the branch that morning. My greatest concern is that we’d lose the momentum we had gained. But, in reality, the pictures and video we got are actually generating more excitement than before. I have an architect working on a 3D rendering of the Tree right now. After that, we’ll be handing it off to a structural engineer to approve the changes and make sure we don’t run into this again. Then back to the metal shop to make the changes. My hope is that we’ll have it up before the end of the month.”

Phoenix from the Ashes

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Sixty five years ago, Bill Palmer’s grandparents first established the Palmer Feed Store at 912 West Church Street in Parramore. The business was passed down from generation to generation as the city of Orlando grew and developed. I remember driving past several times when I was sketching the Police Equestrian Unit heading downtown for a parade. I heard chickens clucking in front of the store. The place had a nostalgic feel.

On March 28th of 2011, the Palmers got a phone call in the middle of the night. The store was on fire. There was a firehouse only a block away and firemen smelled something burning and began patrolling the neighborhood. They called in the blaze. Bill rushed to the store. He could see the flames from many blocks away. An electrical socket had caused the blaze which burned out of control. It was a two alarm fire with chemicals and fertilizers feeding the intense flames. Everything was lost. The computer which had all the costumers and years of information was burnt as well. They had backup disks but they were also on site and burnt. Anything below the one foot high mark only had smoke damage.

Michelle Palmer related how over one hundred friends, neighbors, costumers and bible study group members showed up after the blaze. There were tears of hopelessness but friends held them and volunteered to begin moving things out of the burnt shell. Although overwhelmed by the monumental task of starting all over again, they found that assistance and unexpected aid kept them moving forward. When she got home after that first day, she found that friends had left flowers on her kitchen table. She still gets choked up just talking about it.

The fire occurred right after their peak inventory time. They had to pay off inventory that had been burned while trying to start fresh. Once the burnt product was moved out to the yard, the Palmers drove a mobile home into the parking lot and they sold items like dog food, bike tires and insecticides to local residents who relied on them. The first new product to arrive at the store were fresh green vegetable plants.

Friends and neighbors shared their gifts and talents to help the Palmers rebuild. Doors opened that they didn’t know existed. They were told to apply for a grant from the City of Orlando and they got the grant. Thankfully the walls of the building were structurally sound. The front porch was rebuilt to look just like it did in 1947. Michelle was a full time mom before the fire, but now she is helping built and shape the business as they move into the future. The family had to re examine their hopes, dreams and passions. Merchandise that didn’t move is no longer being stocked. They are carrying more organic insecticides and more modern, sustainable farming practices like hydroponics. She said the store plans to “honor the past while embracing the future.”

Folk art is now gracing the walls of the store. Behind the checkout counter there is chicken wire framed in reclaimed wood with photos from the store’s long history held in place with wooden clothes pins. Each clothes pin has the year that the photo was taken written on it. A 500 pound concrete chicken will soon be perched in the yard next to the store. Michelle is now searching for rusty hand saws to decorate the store clock, and old vintage Orlando post cards.

Michelle and her family feel blessed. Friends and neighbors offered endless gifts and emotional support to keep her family’s spirit lifted after the fire. The love shown was overwhelming. The outpouring of community support is something that has changed her family forever. Now she wants to give back and share the same gift with others. The store is celebrating its Grand Opening on March 3rd. There will be a ribbon cutting ceremony with Mayor Buddy Dyer and a City Commissioner. A local neighborhood choir will kick off the event and there will be music all day. There will be a food truck and free product giveaways. This business is back and better than ever.

Ruby Darling

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The dressing room at Theater Downtown is small and cluttered. The walls are covered with actors signatures from shows throughout the years. The mirrors are mounted on a wall with exposed two by fours. Odd items like plastic doll’s legs and birds were also stapled to the walls. All the visual chaos left me wondering where to look.

Ruby Darling, the mistress of ceremonies for the Vaudeville show sat down to get her makeup done. She had a duel leveled lime green make up box filled with theatrical makeup. Her hair was already beautifully shaped to give her a vintage 40’s era look. The hair style contrasted against her Led Zeppelin T-shirt. High heels were clustered here and there on the counter. A box of “light gloves” would probably be used in one of the acts for the Video Game themed show that would follow right after the Vaudeville show let out. They are now gearing up for a Burlesque Mega Show on Friday February 17th, 10pm, at Sleuth’s Mystery Dinner theater during Megacon!

Susan Woodberry was putting on pasty green makeup and spattering blood on her clothing for her part as “Little Sister” in the Portal themed video game show. I wanted to sketch but I was also nervous about going on stage to do my sketch. I paced around and peered through the thin translucent red curtains to see the acts proceeding the circus act. The audience was having a blast. From back stage we clapped and laughed the loudest.

Video Game Burlesque Rehearsal

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Rehearsals were running late at Theater Downtown. After the Vaudeville acts had been rehearsed, the second show, a Video Games Burlesque was run through. Chan Sterling worked as the MC in a white lab coat, a deep grey ascot and big black rubber boots. Ruby Darling appeared at the end of the runway in a sultry black and white dress that came down tight at the knees forcing her to walk like Morticia from the Addams Family. 0n the day of the show, she would be entangled in wires and deliver a menacing monologue. I’m not sure what video game the scene is from, but the burlesque dance that followed was easy enough to understand.

Jolie Hart and her boyfriend cuddled in the front row. Jolie performed an amazing high energy retro dance routine that had her gasping for air when she burst back stage. The blood covered chair at the end of the runway was for Cory Violence and Shy La-Buff’s Bio-Shock burlesque number. Shy wore a strange bunny’s mask and wore a tattered green dress that Violence would later rip off her in shreds.

My favorite number of the rehearsal was when Ruby Darling sang “Soon or a Later” to Nekkid RoboJoe. As she sang she got some Duct tape and taped him to the chair he was sitting in. When the number was over, she dragged him off stage. This routine would certainly have the audience roaring.

Vaudeville Rehearsal

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After a full run through of all the Vaudeville acts, rehearsals started on the second show on the bill, a Video Game themed burlesque. Shy La Buff and Corey Violence had a number based on a creepy game called Bio Shock. The two of them share sensual sips from a syringe full of Adam, a blood like substance. Seductively Shy pushed Violence back into a chair. He ran his hands up her legs as she dug her high heel into his chest. They were rehearsing in the Lounge of Theater Downtown while the other burlesque numbers were being rehearsed in the main theater.

Of course I had intended to get Shy interacting with Violence but as soon as I sat down to sketch, the director had notes and they didn’t continue rehearsing. I gave up on the idea of including Shy, so now it looks like Violence is relaxing in the lounge. I was distracted as well because my tablet PC had crashed that morning. Damon Natch Burke, my tech guru wasn’t sure of the problem yet. I needed the tablet to do the quick digital sketch of Poodle Murphy on target for the knife thrower. For this rehearsal, I brought a video camera and tripod, hoping I could shoot video as I did a traditional sketch but I was missing a video connector. I tried to set up the equipment in the dark but failed. I needed the tablet. I sat sullenly on the stage, much like Violence is sitting in the sketch. Being unable to perform, I felt like so much ballast.

Vaudeville

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Thanks to Shy La Buff, I found myself as part of a Vaudeville act at Theater Downtown. The lobby of Theater Downtown felt like a large cluttered living room. There was a pool table in the corner and a small piano in front of a makeshift stage. Theater posters and large photos littered the walls. I didn’t see any theatrical sketches. I planted myself in a comfortable leather seat. Actresses arrived one at a time, listening to iPods and swinging their hips.

There was a rehearsal wrapping up on the main stage so, Ruby Darling started blocking out the Circus act of which I was a part. Cory Violence stood in the center of the red carpet and began reciting “Live Circus” by Tom Waits. He had to read the lines off his iPhone at first but soon he was off script.

Every actress in the room was soon recruited to be in the act. Ruby herself became One Eyed Myra, the queen of the galley. Cherry Bob-omb took the role of Horse Face Ethel and her ‘Marvellous Pigs In Satin’. She wore a dark beard and moved with a dancers grace. A-manda Lorian had a petite frame draped in an over sized mans outfit. The floppy hat was a size too large and it always kept half her face hidden in shadow. She swayed and staggered like a drunk sailor. She reminded me of a feminine version of Charlie Chaplin. Siber Digit was Yodeling Elaine the Queen of the air. She moved with languid and heavy depression having lassoed and lost another tipsy sailor. Shy La Buff was on target as Poodle Murphy. She held her arms high and arched her back so I could sketch. Chan Sterling as Funeral Wells stood prepared to throw his hardware. He tested the sharpness of the blade with his thumb.

I only had five minutes to do the sketch on my digital tablet hooked up to a projector. I had to plan everything out in advance so I could finish in time. Each knife was on its own layer in Sketchbook Pro, so when Violence shouted, “Leave the bum!” I could flick a knife layer on and it would appear on the sketch. No physical knives were thrown only digital hardware.

Day 99 of Occupy Orlando

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It had been 99 days since demonstrators first Occupied Senator Beth Johnson Park on South Ivanhoe Boulevard. The 99% planned to celebrate the 99th day with free music in the park. The crowd was sparse, perhaps forty people but their spirits were high. There were setbacks but their voices were not silenced. I sat down and sketched during the sound check. Someone had a bunch of those New Year’s Eve noise makers. A car alarm went off and there was a call and response that happened where the alarm would sound and then the demonstrators would follow with the noise makers. There was a festive atmosphere, a feeling that this was an important anniversary. I felt good being among people who were passionate about the Democratic process.

I stayed for the first set. The performer with the Greek hat and orange shirt sang folk songs about the 99%. The sun was getting low on the horizon and the warm light made dry pine trees down by the lake glow a warm orange. Shadows grew long on the lawn. Photographers wandered about shooting photos. When the music stopped, the sketch was done. It is encouraging that voices are still being heard. I packed up and hiked back to my truck on Magnolia. Time to get back to the grind to try and make ends meet. The 99% are still standing strong.

Albannach

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I heard a commotion at the other end of the grounds and I headed that way. I grabbed a vanilla ice cream cone since there was no line. The gas powered churn sputtered and the belts shook on the machine making ice cream the old fashioned way. I cut through crowds at the craft vending tents and I finally stood at the top of a large bowl shaped hill. Hundreds and hundreds of people lounged on the hill, some in camping chairs and others seated in the grass. The Music tent was set up at the base of the hill and as Albannach played, children danced.

I stood eating my cone and scanned for a spot I could sketch from. I walked behind the tent where little boys were playing with their dull toy arrows. A woman in a Scottish dress walked back, her breasts hoisted high with a corset. I found a spot right next to the speakers where I leaned back and sketched. Albannach’s music is energetic and sparking full of life. My lines danced quickly full of the music’s energy and drive. Drum sticks twirled and moved with such speed that they were just a blur. There was something primal and raw about the performance. People on the hillside started to dance. Children spun in front of the stage until they became dizzy and fell. A drummer shouted out, “I’m thirsty!” When a woman walked down the hill with a cold pint of beer, the audience applauded.

I was buzzing when the performance was over. I knew that experience could not be topped so I decided to hike back to my truck to get home. I bumped into Sarah Purcer who is now engaged to Marco Bojorquez III. Her step daughter who is maybe 10 years old shook my hand. It was obvious they were having a great family day out. Time to get home.