RAW Artists Orlando Presents…Marvel

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On April 4th, I went to The Abbey (100 South Eola Drive, Orlando, Fl) to check out the talent at RAW Artists Orlando presents…Marvel. There was a line to get in that snaked around the corner into a parking garage.

A recording of Britt Daley‘s “One and Only” was pulsing through the room. “Awesome!” I thought. “They really are showcasing the best local talent.” However, Britt wasn’t on stage that night. Musical acts included Live Hart, Cure for Caska, and Judy Tribune. One performer who sang while I was sketching was so far off key that I cringed.

The artist that caught my eye was this body painter named Nix Herrera. He used stencils and an airbrush to create intricate lettering and designs.  It was really stunning work. The model, Sierra Missed, had a proud and regal expression the whole time. She was enjoying the attention.

Artist, Jean-Claude Rasch introduced himself.  I had met him before at one of Parker Sketch’s art critiques. I remember Jean worked on Plexiglas and the paintings would have different coloring if lit from behind. He was set up in the same spot where Parker Sketch had been set up the month before. Jean’s work had more than a passing resemblance to Parker’s work incorporating splashes and pop culture imagery.

Last time I went to a RAW event I was dressed a bit grungy, walking in with a baseball cap the bouncer reminded me to take off. This time, knowing cocktail attire was required, I wore a suit and tie. I just had to keep the tie from flopping down onto the palette. You have to be over 21 to get in and tickets were $10 in advance or $15 at the door.

Seed

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Hannah Miller let me know that she would be directing a 15-minute play called “Seed” written by Danny Kessler. She invited me to a dress rehearsal at Valencia Community College – East Campus (701 N Econlockhatchee Trail, Orlando, Fl). The rehearsal was on the East Campus, in Building 1 on the 3rd floor in classroom 368. I was searching for the room number when I bumped into Sarah Lockhard in a clowns outfit. She guided me to the rehearsal space which was an empty classroom with some boxes, a bag of seed and some recycled paper bags.

“Seed” is an existential play about the end of the world, filled with Skittles, clowns, and fantastic performances from students Jasmine Lesser, Jennifer Hurless  and local actress Sarah Lockard. Sarah stepped in when a student was unable to fill the commitment. Jasmine had been rehearsing from the start. Jasmine played the seed in bunny ears and a frilly pink dress while Jennifer played a mother earth type character. Sarah narrated the play’s opening scene and later came out in a hazmat suit to clean up the stage.

This was Hannah’s first experience directing.  As she said, “I took on the challenge to learn a little bit
about a director’s perspective on text so I’d be a better playwright.
I’ve learned a lot, I think.” Hannah and Sarah talked for quite a while about Sarah’s motivations and actions in the play. She had just stepped into a roll that had been established by another student actress and she hoped to put more of herself into the part yet the performance was only days away.

In this final week of rehearsals, Jane Henson passed away. Hannah works for IBEX Puppetry run by Heather Henson, Jane’s Daughter. Besides Hannah’s own grief, her boss’s enormous
grief, and the grief of everyone she works with, she had to handle the
overwhelming outpouring of communication on IBEX Puppetry’s behalf. To say Hannah had a lot on her plate would be an understatement, but as always, the show must go on. From my perspective seeing the run through for the first time, the play flowed effortlessly. The actual performance was during a school showcase in midday of Weds., April 10th.

The Memory Room

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It was back in August of 2009 when I first met Mary Hill and later, her mother Margaret Hill. Mary moved from California to take care of her mom here in Orlando. For five years she was responsible for her mother’s care. Margret’s pulmonary fibrosis and other conditions grew worse until she couldn’t get out of bed. It was around this time that I did several sketches of Margaret and interviewed her about her life. She died on December 28th of 2011.

It was a bit strange returning to Margaret’s old bedroom. The room seemed immense and empty. An old Teddy Bear sat on top of some shelves. This was won at a state fair by Duane Hill, her future husband, and it was the first present he ever gave her. In a box tied with twine and labeled “Junk”, were all the letters Duane and Margaret wrote each other when they were dating. A photo of Mary’s parents was on the wall behind her along with paintings of the Virgin Mary and Jesus. This was always a religious family. Mary’s aunt was a nun.

Mary was busy trying to sort all the family photos into cardboard bins. She was trying to decide which relatives should get which photos. It seems that Margaret took more photos of grandchildren than she did of her own children. Each of Mary’s brothers had a shelf where their stiff collared High School photos were stored. So much of the family’s true story remained hidden from the staged and posed family photos. Yet each snapshot could bring back a flood of memories, clear reminders of what truly happened.

Jett Backpack Rehearsal

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On April 29th, I went to Dancer’s Edge Studio (7351 Aloma Ave, Winter Park, FL) to sketch a rehearsal for Jett Backpack and the Battle at the End of the Universe, which will appear at the upcoming Fringe Theater Festival in May. It was raining like a banshee  on the drive to the theater, but the cast trickled into the dance studio lobby one at a time at first and then in a deluge. The dance studio had mirrors on three walls and the actors performed towards the fourth wall.

Much of the action took place on an intergalactic space craft with John Bateman playing a cocky and somewhat incompetent captain with Jennifer Guhl playing his salty number 1.  The play was written by Josh Geohagen and he sat on the floor pouring over the script. At this rehearsal just two scenes were blocked with Kevin G. Becker directing. Before getting to work, the cast assembled in a circle and switched places with a point and command. Another exercise involved everyone walking the room and reciting the alphabet. If two actors said the same letter at the same time, they had to begin again at A. I’m always amazed at how a cast can pull together and become keenly aware of each other working almost like a flock.

Often the crew of the star ship would be looking at an imaginary view screen which they decided was the blue cork paneling on the wall. They all would crane their heads to look up at it. Several clones perished in gruesome ways and where whisked off to air locks. Dorothy Massey played a sultry Princess Positronic who was attracted to the captain. Trenell Mooring is sort of the face of Fringe this year since she is pictured on the Fringe poster along with her son. Her eyes are set apart wide on her face giving her an exotic chiseled look. She plays the part of an alien helmsman on the ship speaking an alien dialect. This tongue in cheek comedy was consistently hilarious. I can’t wait to see the cast in costume. Since only two scenes were rehearsed, I’m left wondering how the adventure will play out.

Where: The show will be in the yellow venue which is the Mandell Theater in the Lowndes Shakespeare Center.

How much: You need a Fringe button plus tickets are $10.

Show times:

Thu 5/16 7:30PM

Sat 5/18 9:45PM

Sun 5/19 11:15PM

Tue 5/21 7:15PM

Thurs 5/23 5:45PM

Fri 5/24 6:30PM

Sat 5/25 1:00PM

Cameo Theater

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On March 22nd, I went to the Cameo Theater for a display of garbage as art. The Cameo had been closed for well over a year due to fire code violations so I was curious to see it open it’s doors again. UCF
architecture student, Jorge Boone, who recently purchased the Cameo, Wes Featherston and James Cornetet of Process Architecture, LLC hosted the art installation.

Two amazing
installations created by ten talented UCF architecture students in the alley beside the Cameo. The
students were tasked with studying post-consumer waste and developing
innovative new techniques for transforming these materials into building
systems.

One group re-purposed plastic grocery bags using tribal basket weaving techniques
to create a structural 40’x10’ canopy that sores over the Cameo’s
courtyard. The bag canopy was tied to a ladder above my head and various window bars and metal stairs. It started raining as I sketched and unfortunately the canopy didn’t protect from the rain because of it’s open weave.

The other group of students examined the structural nature of
paper mache egg cartons to create a pair of 12’x20’ wall panels that
will create the only ‘quiet’ zone in the district due to the natural
acoustic qualities of the cartons.

Several new designs for the theater were lying on tables inside the Theater. Then both seemed to focus on sprucing up the Theater’s facade. The interior was gutted clean. One student was sweeping the dusty floor. A talent agency is still upstairs as well as John Hurst’s animation storyboard artist studio.

Hopefully the new owner will resurrect the Cameo since it was one of my favorite venues to sketch. The place was raw and uncluttered making it ideal for large installations and cutting edge experimental shows. Perhaps the Phoenix can rise again from the fire codes ashes.

Toyota Service

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My Toyota Prius was due for it’s complimentary 10,000 mile service. The dashboard display reminded me of this everyday with a “Service Required” sign on the display. Pulling into the service carport, I was fourth in line for service. An attendant put a small plastic cone with the number 4 on the car’s roof.  Every time a car was driven into the service garage, he scrambled to update the cones like a shell game.

Tony Ferrando was my service consultant. He pointed out the indoor deli and suggested I take a seat in the lounge. Most of the costumers seated around the waiting area amused themselves with their phones. One woman was knitting and the gentleman seated right in front of me was reading a real paper to get his news. There was a mother with her daughter seated next to me. She had been
sitting in exactly the same spot last time I was in for service. I
considered mentioning this to her but though it might come off as
creepy.

Just as I finished the sketch, Tony called my name. He pointed out that everything checked out and they even cleaned the car besides changing the oil. All of this was complimentary which is unheard of in this age of hidden fees. He said he would still need my credit card although there was no charge. I handed it over cautiously. He laughed saying “Got ya! I actually asked a guy to start filling out a check once and he had it half filled out before I stopped him.”

The service check up was much quicker than I expected. This new dealership is state of the art, I actually don’t dread returning.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

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I went to an open rehearsal for William Shakespeare‘s Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Bob Carr Performing Arts Center on April 26th. The only performance would be the next day and it was completely sold out. I was surprised at how crowded it was getting into the theater. It turned out $10 tickets were sold to see the rehearsal. I usually sit right up front but the front rows were blocked with yellow caution tape.

I did this sketch with a fountain pen Larry Lauria had lent me. It wasn’t until I started adding watercolor washes, that I realized that the ink wasn’t waterproof. Every wash that touched a line would explode black as the ink spread. I wanted to abandon the sketch and start another, but there wasn’t enough time. I pushed forward hoping the whole page wouldn’t turn black by the end of the show.

The orchestra performed music by Felix Mendelsohn which perfectly complimented the play. There were love potions that caused mortals to fall helplessly in love with the wrong person. All the lovers were bewildered and lost. The wost case was when Titania fell in love with an actor who had been transformed into an ass. My favorite moment was the play staged within the play. Brandon Roberts as a carpenter announced the play while standing on a column. The actors staged a farcical tragedy of Pyramus and Thisby. The female Thisby  was played by a man and there must have been basketballs on his chest swinging under the Greek toga. Philip Nolan as Pyramus had a hilarious death scene in which he kept poking his sword at his impenetrable chest plate. He apologized to the assembled audience on stage and said “Well, this is actually more of a dress rehearsal.” He finally shoved the sword inside the armor and had a long winded agonizing death scene that he milked at least three times. Even members of the orchestra couldn’t stop laughing.

It was a delightful evening and I hope the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra and the John and Rita Lowndes Shakespeare Center continue to collaborate.

Dialogues with Collectors Series

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I went to the Cornell Fine Arts Museum, (Rollins College, 1000 Holt Ave Winter Park FL) on Tuesday March 19 at 7pm for the free Cornell Fine Art Museum’s, Dialogues with Collectors Series. This series of dialogue will expand on the collecting theme of the museum’s 35th anniversary exhibitions by opening a conversation about why, what and how people collect, and the role of the collecting instinct as a vital part of preserving our history. Roberta Green Ahmanson, a philanthropist and the current chair of the board of the Museum of Biblical Art, (MOBIA), New York City, spoke about her private collection of biblical art and the Ahmanson family collecting legacy.

Roberta pointed out that her husband came from a family of collectors, but as a young boy, he lived in a bedroom upstairs from a Rembrandt. His father kept the house the perfect temperature and humidity to preserve the painting. Unfortunately that made the place intolerable for his son’s bedroom.  Roberta and her husband met because of their shared faith. She began collecting artwork that affirmed that faith. She doesn’t tolerate Sunday School biblical illustration. She looks for subtle messages in contemporary artists work as well as old historical pieces.

It was encouraging to know that there are people out there today who are passionate about collecting art. Perhaps the daily struggle to keep creating will one day reap some small reward. Admission the the museum is free all this year to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the institution. I suppose that is a reward in itself to Central Florida. Also Roberta’s talk is available on UTube, should you be interested.

Banished from Sketching Polasek’s Eden

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In the Orlando Weekly, I read about a free oil painting demonstration at the Albin Polasek Museum as part of the Winter Park Paint Out. I talked to a docent inside and checked to be sure it would be alright for me to sketch the demonstration. He said it was fine. I had met him once before at an art critique at Barefoot Spa. He does paintings in the style of Frank Frazetta. It was good to catch up with him. Last year I had been asked to do a series of sketches during the Paint Out for Winter Park Magazine, being given full access, but Terry scheduled a vacation to Panama that week and I had to back out. It was a good trip.

I still hadn’t done a single sketch of any Paint Out festivities, so I was excited to finally get an opportunity to sketch and promote the event. I was just beginning to ink in this sketch when the docent came out and said that someone higher up had decided I couldn’t sketch. I politely packed up my sketchbook and left, fuming. The artist demonstrating hadn’t even started to put paint on the canvas yet.

Back at the studio, I quickly finished the sketch I had started. Since the sketch lacked detail, I decided to play with it in Photoshop. I suppose this sketch now makes me a Digital Artist in a Digital World. If the “No Sketch Policy” was put in place to protect the identities of people attending the workshop, then this  image solved that issue. I always finish a sketch once it is started. Had I posted the sketch and article the next day like I wanted to, more people would be aware of all the wonderful artists gathered in Winter Park. I suppose I should have arranged a press pass beforehand, but I didn’t think it was needed since the workshop was free. I only found out about the Paint Out the day before.

Terry said that the Polasek staff might have had Boston Marathon bomb jitters. I suppose my sketch supply bag can look quite ominous but it never left my side. I was profiled as a deviant artist even though no one could have seen what I was doing. I had my back to a hedge to be sure there were no curious bystanders. It is odd to feel like a criminal for taking notes with interest and putting lines on a page. I can’t imagine sitting through a workshop without keeping my fidgety fingers active. I learn better that way.

The next day, I contacted the event co-chair Hal Stringer, and he he wrote, ” We have a very strong policy that the gardens are reserved exclusively
for paint out artists during this week. Our staff was not aware of the
nature of your sketching and the relationship it has to your blog. We
would welcome being featured in one of your articles. Feel free to come sketch during one of the remaining three demos if you
wish. But, please stop by the front desk and ask for me or Debbie
Komanski so we know you’re on property. We’ll make sure the staff
knows you have our permission to sketch the demo for your blog.”

This was the state of the sketch when I was asked to stop.

I really don’t understand the policy of asking an artist to stop sketching. Anytime I am asked to put my pen down, I feel my right to self expression has been compromised.  There were cell phone photos being flashed all over the web promoting the event. I doubt any phones were confiscated from attendees. I’m still annoyed that the staff member that made the decision, whoever that is, did not approach me directly. I could have reasoned with them, but the volunteer that was sent to stop me was blindly following orders. The Polasek is private property however, and they can enforce any rules they like. Hal, the co-host of the Paint Out has been a dear friend and did everything in his power to help me the next day. Unfortunately I didn’t have the time to go back for a second attempt at the sketch.

If the ghost of John Singer Sargent, or Sorolla, offered a painting workshop in Winter Park. I might sit with my hands folded neatly in my lap to watch them work. Then again, I consider it a sin that no one ever sketched these masters as they painted. It would be my moral obligation, a chance of a lifetime. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to live in a world where large groups of artists could gather together and sketches weren’t discriminated against?

Dress Rehearsal, The Little Mermaid

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On April 10th, I went to the Bob Carr Performing Arts Centre to sketch a dress rehearsal for The Little Mermaid with Robert Hill as the Artistic Director and choreographed by Katia Garza. I went in via the stage door and backstage ballerinas where busy stretching. Most of the dancers were very young middle school and high school students. It would have been nice to sketch from back stage but this was my first time ever sketching a ballet in town and I didn’t want to get in the way. There were lots of dancers and I wasn’t a part of this world . I made my way to the auditorium seating.

This was a full run through of the show with the dancers performing to recorded music and narration. I thought the narration was overkill but I imagine it was staged with younger viewers in mind. The costuming was quite elaborate. Ariel stood out from the blue undersea world in her bright pink costume.  Rear screen projections did a great job of creating the undersea setting. When Ariel rose to the surface, a flock of young white sea gulls danced gracefully. As a princess, she had everything, but of course she wants what she doesn’t have. Legs are required for dancing. As any mermaid would do, she gave up her voice to walk beside her man and they lived happily ever after. After the run through, Katia gathered the dancers and shared notes. There was just one performance on April 13th and I’m certain it was amazing.