Our Guide

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Terry hired a guide, named Rainald Framhein, to drive us around Panama City. The tires on his car had blown out the week before, so he picked us up in a new rental car. Driving in Panama is an adventure. Stop signs and lights seem to be considered suggestions often ignored. Cars merging into traffic would blindly accelerate assuming they would push in. There were several instances when I was certain I would die but our Rainald’s lightning fast reflexes saved us. There was a constant angry barrage of horns honking and curses shouted out in Spanish. Alison spoke fluent Spanish after six months of intensive language studies prior to her posting at the U.S. Embassy. Terry knew some Spanish from having lived in Venezuelan for a year. I knew how to say “yes” and “thank you.” Luckily many of Panama’s citizens knew English. Even better they use American currency.

The first place we explored was the Parque Natural Summit. This natural refuge was established by the United States. We hiked up a two mile dirt road until we reached a grass clearing at the summit where we had a wide panoramic view overlooking all of Panama City. I didn’t sketch since I was exhausted and sweaty from the hike and besides I had just sketched the city skyline the day before. As we relaxed, taking in the view, I noticed a long line of Leaf Cutter Ants as they marched down a tree trunk and then along the forest floor. I laughed when I noticed a smaller ant hitching a ride on a leaf fragment being carried by another ant. It turned out even this hitch hiker had a role to perform by keeping parasites away from the leaf. The constant activity reminded me of the angry traffic on the streets of Panama City. The ants were more organized than the concrete civilization below them. They cultivate the leaves to create a fungus which is their food source. They were successfully farming thousands of years before humans. To cleanly cultivate this crop the ants have been using antibiotics which the human race only discovered some 60 years ago. Research is being done that may help make hospitals more sterile and perhaps new drugs can be found from the never ending work of these tireless workers. When the leaves have been cleaned of their fungus, the ants remove the waste and pile it up in immense mounds which are easily seen on the rain forest floor.

Mennello Museum

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I went to the Mennello Museum for a quick meeting with Genevieve Bernard about a possible mural outside the building. We met in Kim Robinson’s office. Her office window looks straight out at the blank wall. Executive Director, Frank Holt, wanted to be sure the final image was cohesive. The proposed wall is 48 feet wide by seven feet high. Next week I will be meeting students who will help with brainstorming for ideas. Apparently there is a competition which will help pick which high school students can help me out with the actual painting of the mural. Details are still being worked out. My challenge is to maintain my usual spontaneous style so the mural looks like a sketch done on location. The sun beats down on the wall which waits for inspiration to strike so it can fulfill it’s potential.

When I entered the museum it was obvious that they were taking down the 1934 New Deal show and putting up a new show. The New Deal show featured paintings from the Smithsonian collection. The new deal program lasted for a very short time in 1934 and it encouraged artists to portray the American scene. Many of the paintings depicted the American dream for a brighter future. As these idealistic visions were crated away, new art went up from local Florida artists. In a side gallery paintings by Ron Van Sweringen were being hung. These paintings looked like Jackson Pollack drip paintings. The difference being that Pollack spread his canvases on the floor letting the paint drip down. Ron placed his canvases on a wall and then threw the paint at it. He referred to his painting method as “Astroism.”

After the meeting I decided to sketch as the new exhibit, called “Fla-Art,” was installed. A worker stenciled up the title of the show above the reception desk. The first new work to go up was of a man pushing aside a curtain and gazing out at the viewer. It has an ominous weight to it. Most of the other work was still from the New Deal. A miner drilled for coal, men pushed large blocks of ice in an ice house, men marched through a field to work.

As I sketched a young woman asked the receptionist about renting the museum for a wedding. She was given brochures and suggestions. Several artists walked in with canvases. I was impressed by some of the work waiting to be hung. The Fla-Art show is opening May 13th from 6-8pm. Members get in free and non-members pay $5. There will be a cash bar. The Florida Artists show will be on display through September 25th 2011.

Evenings with the Director. On Tuesdays 6/14, 7/12, 8/9, 9/13, 6pm experience an evening with museum Director Frank Holt. The walk is included in general admission. Reservations required. Call (407) 246.4278

Family Days are on Sundays, 6/12, 7/10, 8/14, 9/11 starting at 12:30pm with family arts and crafts activities and a children’s workshop at 1pm. At 2pm there is a FREE guided tour.

Portobello at San Lorenzo

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Terry loves old forts. Rainald drove us to San Lorenzo. The ruin of the fort was perched on top of a cliff high above the mouth of the Chargres River. It was first built in 1595 by Spaniards to protect all the South American gold being shipped down the river. It was destroyed by pirate Henry Morgan in 1671 and rebuilt shortly afterward. Morgan captured the fort by shooting flaming arrows which ignited the Spanish gunpowder forcing the troops to surrender. The jungle surrounding the fort was used for decades as a jungle training area by the U.S. military. On the drive in we spotted a large falcon feasting on its bloody prey high up in a branch.

Terry and I wandered the ruins together for a while rushing from one shady spot to the next, then she encouraged me to sketch while she read a book in the shade. I was delighted when she suggested I do a second sketch. Rainald was talking to a Scandinavian couple who had pulled up in an RV. They planned to camp overnight at the fort, and they chatted for quite some time in Swedish. I was feeling great after finishing the second sketch and I started walking back to the shady tree where Terry was reading her book. I was surprised when she met me half way in the forts mote.

She held up her cell phone showing me the calender. She said, “Does this day mean anything to you?” It was April 28th, her birthday. I hadn’t looked at a calender since we arrived in Panama. “Oh shit,” I thought. She was visibly upset and I didn’t know how to make it up to her. As we sat in the shade of the crumbling ruins, Rainald cheerfully approached us, and we had to shout out that we needed some time alone. A week has gone by and I still haven’t mended my oversight. I’m not sure I can. I really messed up this time. As I approach 50 I carelessly loose myself searching for the next creative rush. I loose sight of what is most important in life, perhaps overconfident in the impregnable strength of marriage.

Snap Mothers Day Reception

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The main photography exhibit for Snap was on the 5th floor of the GIA Building (618 East South Street.) I parked in Thornton Park and walked to the building. The exhibit took up the entirety of the 5th floor which was still under construction. Overhead, air ducts and beams were exposed. The walls had exposed insulation and raw metal studs. It was a wide open industrial loft. Surreal fanciful photos were everywhere. One large area was separated from the rest with a long black curtain. I stepped inside the ominous space. Large three foot high black and white photos shot by Barry Kirsch hung from the ceiling one after the other in two rows. Every photo was of a murder scene with one element, a gold watch, appearing in each shot. Most of the shots felt staged but as a whole the effect was disturbing and desensitizing.

After seeing everything I decided to focus by sketching the Dan Eldon exhibit. Mothers slowly began to arrive, and it was heart warming to watch them share the art with their children. This was an opportunity to spend quality time away from the distractions of TV and video games. They could share wild creative thoughts with abandon. Dan Eldon’s mom, Kathy, came to the exhibit and she offered a guided tour of her son’s photo journals.Dan was born in 1970 in England. When he was seven years old the family moved to Nairobi Kenya. This began his lifelong infatuation with Africa. His mom was a journalist and he accompanied her on interviews. His father worked with local community leaders. From his parents he learned how to transfer ideas into positive life affirming actions. A creative activist is someone who uses thought or imagination to catalyze positive change in our world.

He returned to Africa when he was 22 and photographed the horrible effects of famine in Somalia. His images helped spearhead a large international relief effort. He used his art to affect a positive change. Throughout his life he kept journals in which he would create expressive collages. The exhibit consisted of large screens on which large prints were made of pages from his journals. These pages offered a personal glimpse into his adventurous life. I jotted down a few of the quotes from his pages, “The most important part of vehicle maintenance is clean windows, so if you are stranded you will enjoy the view.” “Death is just a horizon and the horizon is only the extent of your view.”

On July 12, 1997 Dan Eldon was stoned and beaten to death while covering the conflict in Mogadishu, Somalia. He was just 22 years old. His mother, though devastated, had to find a positive way to deal with her grief. She formed an organization called Creative Visions and published Dan’s journals in a book called, “The Journey is the Destination.” She is intent to share his creative vision with the world. This mothers Day I got to meet an extraordinary mom. A mother’s love is eternal.

Santa Clara Panama

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Rainald took us on a several hour drive to the Caribbean coast. We stopped at a bustling roadside bodega and got some delicious mango and peach shakes. Outside the bodega women were seated behind folding tables selling lotto tickets. The tickets were displayed on an abacus style box, folded over metal support wires. Three policemen stood around a motorcycle with their machine guns slung over their shoulders. I of course wanted to sketch, but we had a schedule to keep. The point of a vacation seems to be to go to quiet, serene places to rest and relax. I seem to have a hard time doing that these days.

When we got to the coast we parked near a short boardwalk that lead to a restaurant and bar with a palm leaf roof. Lunch was delicious. I had some large garlic covered shimp that were finger licking good. People in the bar were shouting over a soccer game on TV. Terry asked our guide about a fishing village that was listed in her Foder’s guide book. He explained that most of the fishermen had sold their ocean front properties. They would be offered large sums of money, like $100,000 dollars, and they couldn’t refuse. 0nce the money was spent, many would no longer have a livelihood. At first I didn’t want to sketch. The place seemed spindly and lonely to me. Once I started however I got lost in the process.

One fishing family remained. A young man untangled a fish net the whole time I drew. Terry relaxed under the shade of a Tiki style beach hut. She checked her e-mails on her iPhone and then read a book before taking a siesta. We walked into the surf, but a very strong undertow discouraged us from swimming to far from shore.

Panama Canal

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The French began construction of the Canal in 1882 but diseases like malaria took the lives of some 20,000 workers and construction stopped just six years later. The United States proposed to finish the job but Columbia rejected the proposal. President Theodore Roosevelt helped spearhead an independence movement along with U.S. Battleship backup. Panama declared its independence in 1903. In return the U.S. was ceded a ten mile wide strip of land in which the canal could be constructed. This area was fenced off with military support. For the next six decades this affluent enclave was separated from Panama. Workers were given housing just outside the U.S. zone and these remain slums to this day.

Protests by Panamanians became frequent in the mid 1970’s. Several students died in these demonstrations. In 1977 President Jimmy Carter and General Omar Torrijos signed a treaty that allowed for the transfer of the Panama Canal back to the Panamanian government. This transfer was completed December 31, 1999.

There is a museum that documented the building of the canal. At 3pm the giant tanker ships began moving through the locks. The ships were guided by large train engines that used rails on either side of the canal. Once the ship was in the lock, the water would be flushed out until the water was down to sea level. Then the ship could sail out into the Pacific. Later in the day smaller ships could go through. It is indeed an engineering marvel and tourists lined up to take snapshots. In the harbors there was a constant line of tankers waiting to go through. When a cruise ship goes through the locks, each tourist must pay $200 so the canal generates a sizable income for the Panamanian government.

Gamboa

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The small village of Gamboa was established by the United States in the early 2oth Century to house workers of the Panama Canal dredging division. Located 20 miles northwest of Panama City, it feels remote since it is surrounded by a tropical rainforest. In the morning Rainald took us to Pipeline Road which is supposed to be a fantastic bird watching area. Terry excitedly started a life list on her iPhone noting each new bird species she saw.We had to wait a while when we first arrived for the rain to slow to a drizzle. We then hiked up the muddy road. Terry spotted a Toucan. Luminescent giant blue moths fluttered across our path. Then Rainald stopped and said, “listen.” In the distance we could hear the crashing of leaves. Something was moving out there. The sounds grew closer and we moved up and down the trail trying to see into the dense foliage. I asked Rainald if I should be looking at the ground or treetops. He said, “look up.”

There was a sudden guttural piercing howl that made my blood run cold. It sounded like an immense mammal on the prowl. I moved my sketchbook over my soft intestines. Then I spotted movement in the treetops. A large group of Howler Monkeys climbed into the tree right next to the trail. They feasted on the leaves. A mother climbed with a baby clutching her belly. One monkey eyed me curiously then went about his browsing. Thank god they weren’t as loud as they sounded.

After lunch at the Gamboa Rainforest Resort, Rainald drove us to the home he first bought when he moved to Panama. It is typical of most of the houses in the village with the first floor being wide open on silts. He has been renovating the home slowly over the years. Now the structure is wide open with the windows removed as he is reworking all the interior walls. Terry was insisting he find me a place to sketch and I just sat on a curb to get this sketch done.

He then drove us to the central town square. Terry wanted to rest so she lay down on a picnic table under a gazebo This fire station with it’s gleaming engine proudly jutting from the garage caught my eye. Rainald disappeared while I sketched. I glanced back and noticed a local man decided to take a siesta on a bench near Terry. As I was finishing my sketch Rainald walked up and introduced me to a local artist and her boyfriend who did research on butterflies. I gave her a sketchbook to flip through and we had an animated conversation about art. She was a portrait painter and she had a show going up on May 6th. She realized immediately that I would probably like to sketch the butterfly research facility. She explained how artists stay connected in Panama via Facebook. For me this chat was a real highlight of the trip, making me realize the unlimited potential in exploring a new culture. It was great to meet an artist in such a remote place. Unfortunately we were on the move and there wasn’t enough time to follow these new leads.

Casco Viejo

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Casco Viejo is the historic quarter of Panama City. It is located on a small peninsula just south of all the modern highrise construction. It is surrounded by slums and we were instructed to never walk into these districts. The old quarters streets are narrow one lane passages. The historic buildings are run down and life is lived in the open. People sit on stoops and lounge on balconies. Windows are all thrown open in the hopes of catching a sea breeze. On the way to a restaurant I caught a glimpse of a woman using her kitchen as a hair salon. A toddler stumbled unattended on a second floor balcony. Men shot craps in a narrow alley. Life bustled everywhere waiting to be drawn.

Alison brought Terry and I to a small outdoor cafe in the Plaza Bolivar. While we sipped drinks and had lunch, I sketched the monument to Venezuelan General Simon Bolivar the “Liberator of Latin America.” An Andean condor was perched on top of the monument. In 1926 Bolivar organized a meeting of independance with the leaders from all over Latin America in the plaza.
At the base of the monument there were wreaths of live flowers. Alison wished the Embassy had given her an apartment in one of the 19th century buildings surrounding the plaza. She imagined lowering a basket from her balcony so the cafe could send her up a siesta snack.

Armed with machine guns and motorcycles, there was a constant military presence on the streets. This was unnerving at first. There were only a few tacky tourist shops. The quarter instead had a sincere lived in history. I could have spent the entire week there and never run out of things to draw.I rushed the sketch so we could drink in more of the sights.

Kress Building Projection

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Snap! Had a fantastic kick off event at the Kress building downtown yesterday. I drove to the site straight from work and thus arrived rather early. The techs from Paintscaping.com were busy setting up the projector, computers and miles of cables. I decided to take the escalator at the Plaza Movie Theater to a second floor balcony which had a view over the assembling crowd. As I sketched the sun popped out from behind a skyscraper and beat down on me for two solid hours. Just as I was getting ready to add color washes, it set. I painted everything but the facade of the building, waiting for the projection to begin.

A young couple going to a movie asked me why there was such a crowd. I explained a little about how Snap is a week long celebration of photography. I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect from the building projection. There were video camera crews all around me and photographer’s flashes fired off periodically, illuminating the gathering dusk. I of course smugly held the belief that a sketch still holds it’s weight in gold.

The main event was spectacular. Phillipe Bergeron was the artist in charge of coordinating all the computer graphics in the projection. Be sure to watch the video! Of course after several hours of sketching, the projection took just five minutes. I chose to just paint in some flames quickly to set the warm colors against the increasingly cool night. Hundreds of cell phones lit up shooting video of the building, illuminating the crowd below me like stars. The video doesn’t have quite as strong an impact as watching the event live. I was deeply impressed. Snap is turning out to be a world class arts event. Be sure to head out to the Snap “Homegrown” opening tonight at the Orlando Museum of Art curated by Stephanie Latscu and Heather Comparetto. It coincides with 1st Thursdays and is bound to be an equally spectacular event. Happening from 6-9pm admission for non-members is $10. Show your support for all the visual arts. Become a creative activist.

Snap!

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Cris Phillips-George, the marketing director for Snap, invited me to a media roll out for this year’s Snap events. Jeremy Seghers introduced me to Cris as soon as I arrived at Urban ReThink. Cris introduced us all to the five day event called Snap! Snap is a celebration showcasing the work of local, national and international photographers. Starting today, there will be over a dozen exhibits, artist appearances, workshops, lectures and parties. The theme this year is “Perception & Reality.” Tonight Snap’s kick off event is a larger than life projection of photos and 3-D animation onto the Kress building (130 S. Orange Ave.) There will be four hourly shows between 8 and 11pm. Admission is free. Cris showed a sample animation to the group and the effect is stunning. The first screening will be hosted by Mayor Buddy Dyer.

On May 5th a “Homegrown” photography exhibit will open at The Orlando Museum of Art (2416 N. Mills) from 6-9pm coinciding with 1st Thursdays. The theme is “Perception & Reality.”

May 6th is the official Snap Opening Night gala and Exhibition honoring the 2011 international artists. This huge 25,000 square foot exhibition space is in the GAI Building (618 South Street) at 7pm. Tickets are needed.

May 7th is Fashion Night with two art inspired fashion shows. There will be guest speakers and lectures at UCF and CEM (500 West Livingston Street) from noon to 5pm. Tickets are needed.

May 8th is Mothers Day with a youth art reception at the GIA Building from noon to 5pm. (Ticket) There are also photography workshops at Orange Studio (121 North Mills Avenue from 10am to 6pm. (Ticket)

Cris showed us samples of some of the photographers work being exhibited. One photographer, Dan Eldon, was known for creating journals of his work. He traveled to Somalia photographing the famine and human rights violations happening there. The idea hits home to my love of the sketchbook journals I use for the blog. I can’t wait to see his work. He used his art as an activist to spearhead change in the world and unfortunately he was killed at a very young age in Somalia.

There is an online Instant Snapification competition that invites anyone from around the globe to submit digital images taken with their cell phone. Approved images are posted online almost instantly. So whip out those cells and start snapping! Snap is a huge celebration of creativity. It promises something for everyone. I will sketch as much as possible, but get out and experience it for yourself. Feed your eyes and fan the flames of your creativity!

“Be the change you wish to see in the world.”
– Gandi