Food Truck Bazaar

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Mark Baratelli sent me an e-mail letting me know that he had a framed “Best Of” award for the Mennello Museum mural that I did. He was hosting an Orlando Food Truck Bazaar at Fashion Square Mall and he said he would have the award with him. I of course would travel any distance for such a major award. The sun had set by the time I got to the Bazaar. About 35 food trucks were circled up, like western covered wagons. The first two trucks, Firehouse BBQ and Twisted Cuban were the brightest trucks in the bazaar with flashing lights and bright red paint. I sat down in the middle of the “coral” and started sketching.

Unfortunately, by the time I was finishing the sketch, many of the food trucks were running out of food. Viveca Averstedt of “swedeDISH” food truck looked over my shoulder to admire my work. Her blue truck with yellow stripes was also running out of food and they were cleaning up. She offered me an onion and cheese pie dish. I asked, “how much.” And she offered it to me on the house. It was absolutely delicious. The crust was light and flaky and the cheese and baked onion pie was sweet and rich. It came with a side salad with a tangy vinaigrette dressing. I might be tempted to come out to the next food truck bazaar to see what else she has on the menu.

Mark Baratelli found me and gave me the award for the Mennello museum mural. He said it was a good turn out with 1,500 people stopping out during the course of the evening. These bazaars are spreading throughout Central Florida and the trend continues to grow. People love to come out on cool winter nights to sample the food and relax in lawn and camping chairs. A few days later, I saw the swedeDISH food truck parked beside Tom & Jerry’s Lounge near the Enzian. It seems quite a few food trucks park there in their off hours.

City Arts Factory

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As part of ArtsFest, City Arts Factory opened its doors for free. Actually, I’m pretty sure you can walk into City Arts Factory anytime for free anyway, but they were also offering a chance to register for a chance to win gift pack including tickets for two to SAK Comedy Lab and Jazz Brunch at the Grand Bohemian Hotel. Since I had time in the afternoon before going to Full Sail, I decided to go to City Arts to sketch. Of course the place was empty.

The hallways were lined with “Youthful Expressions” from children from the Boys and Girls Club of Central Florida. It was fun to see some of the pieces awarded red, blue and yellow ribbons, just like in a Country Fair. The work was from children in the surrounding four counties. The winners of this exhibit would move on to exhibit in the Regional South Eastern competition. Winners from that would move on to a National exhibit. I still remember the thrill I had as a child when I won a blue ribbon in a county fair in New Jersey. Any one of these kids could one day become great artists if their work is valued. Perhaps one day, I can help inspire these kids.

I decided to sit in the hallway and sketch “Orlando Guitartown” created by Munte Olinger. The large Guitar was inspired by Counting Crows and contributed to the space by Ford Keane and Jennifer Quigley. I remembered that Ford Keane is the owner of the building that houses Avalon Gallery and he is the President and CEO of City Beverages. Jennifer Quigley is Principal of WBQ Engineering. Children’s art consisted of, a bowl of spaghetti, a sea monster, and a series of colorful circles.

I was most intrigued by hand prints in cement in an indentation in the tile floor. These were hand prints of Mayor Buddy Dyer, Ford Keane and Jennifer Quigley. This must have come about when Orlando had lofty ambitions of becoming Hollywood East. A pair of pliers and some nails were placed on the cement and then the hole was filled with a piss yellow resin. The only people that entered the hall were searching for the restrooms in the back. A husband fingered his cell phone as his wife was in the bathroom.

Rite of Spring

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As part of Arts Fest, the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra opened up the Bob Carr so anyone could see them as they rehearsed Igor Stravinski’s “Rite of Spring” as well as Beethoven’s Symphony Number 6 “Pastorale“. I sat near the front row with a view off into the deep off stage wings. During any actual performance, sound panels are set up which block a view off stage. Cole Nesmith was there with some of his friends seated one row behind me in the center of the auditorium. He looked a bit ragged and worn with exhaustion from having set up and dismantled his 20 foot high “Tree of Light”. After a heavy tree branch broke off and crashed to the ground, he is having a 3D model made and getting a structural engineer to check the tree’s stability. I admire the huge Live Oak trees I see around town now all the more. Any tree is a marvel of engineering.

Conductor Chris Wilkins introduced “Rite of Spring” to the sparse audience. He said that in the ballet, a woman danced to the music in a pagan ritual to the point of exhaustion and beyond. He wouldn’t say more since children might be present. The music war raw and primal. I had never heard it performed live and the dissonance and complexity of the piece were exhilarating and unexpected. I only knew of the music thanks to Fantasia. This is the pop cultural image of primordial creation that has been burned into our collective memory.

Most of the audience cleared out during the break after “Rite of Spring” was performed. They missed the second half of the rehearsal. I had plenty of work still to do on the sketch so I worked right through the orchestra’s break. When “Pastorale” began to play, I began splashing pools of color on my sketch. Of course “Pastorale” also was in Fantasia. This music evokes feelings of a much more peaceful time perhaps on a country estate. Walking back to my truck, the music gradually was overwhelmed by honking horns, and the rush of traffic as people hurried about downtown.

Dog Powered Fundraiser 2.0

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D-D-DOG POWERED ROBOT: UPLOAD DPR FUNDRAISER 2.0, tonight, Saturday, February 25th 2012 from 7:00pm-11:00pm. You have only minutes before the awesomeness begins at Stardust Video & Coffee (1842 East Winter Park Road.)

Dog Powered Robot is returning…and he is bringing the whole robot crew with him! To ensure mega-awesomeness, he has activated the ultimate upgrade of ANDY MATCHETT & THE MINKS! Prepare to have your mind circuits blown!

Join TEAM DPR as we celebrate and raise money for our 2012 full length Fringe show: DOG POWERED ROBOT AND THE SUBSEQUENT ADVENTURE.

Post script: Three prints of my sketches of Dog Powered Rehearsals and performances are still on display in Stardust Video and Coffee through March 15th. Prints sold help raise funds for DPR.

Full Sail Construction

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Construction at Full Sail is an on going process as the school takes over store after store in the strip mall where I work. Once the tenants leave, the whole facade is usually stripped of all its brick work and then a new facade is put in place with strips of aluminum and paneling. Birds nest in the stripped facade and they get angry, chirping loudly when their nests are confiscated by construction workers. Glass paneling is decorating the building that used to be an Albertson’s Supermarket. All the temporary fencing just means I have to walk further to get to the few remaining restaurants when I want to get some lunch. A new coat of stucco usually polishes off the job before students start filing in.

Drunken Monkey

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That clock on the wall must have stopped. I agreed to meet Terry for a Beau Soleil concert at the Plaza Theater. Beau Soleil is a Cajun band and Terry just loves them as do I. I decided not to sketch the concert, so instead I went over to the Drunken Monkey right across the street to eat and sketch. I ordered a hot Portobello mushroom sandwich that was absolutely amazing. To drink, I ordered a mango slushy. A guy seated on a couch in the corner of the room was reading his iPad. Hear no evil and speak no evil wooden monkeys were squatting on a bookcase full of board games. The woman seated at the table in front of me had the intriguing habit of holding her index fingers over her lips when she wasn’t speaking.

A heart made of broken mirror shards was mounted on four colorful panels next to the door. As I sketched, someone approached and said, “You’re that artist!” I didn’t quite know how to respond. It was Banjo Bob. He showed me a painting of an owl on a wood panel he was working on. He had been painting outside, but it had started to drizzle. Banjo works at the Drunken Monkey and he said I could exhibit my sketches there any time. I just might take him up on that offer sometime. Hot soup, hot coffee, warm heart. I always enjoy returning to the Drunken Monkey.

The Beau Soleil concert was amazing. The crowd was older than I expected with plenty of gray hair. When I glance in the mirror however, I realize, I fit right in. Terry and I danced quite a bit. Since I wasn’t sketching, I soaked in the music and drank. After two beers I was dancing like Fred Astaire. Terry suggested we show off our best Cajun dance moves. Another couple had some really smooth moves as well. Between sets, I talked to the woman, Joanne Conero. She and her husband Al teach dancing up in the Villages. She was also a member of the Clearwater environmental group. It was at a Clearwater festival more than 20 years ago. Incredibly small world. When Terry returned with another beer, we were shown a new move which we now have to try out sometime. I miss the Clearwater, a community with a heart and a cause.

I no longer go to Drunken Monkey since they used one of my
sketches without consulting me on their Internet welcome page. I usually
support local businesses but I can’t support theft. This was the sketch stolen.

American Shoe Repair

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American Shoe Repair (616 North Bumby Ave) is one of the few if not the only place to get your shoes repaired. I went based on a reader’s tip. The room where repairs are made is segregated from the rest of the store. When I told the store manager that I wanted to sketch, he seemed very leery. His wife was intrigued however so I was allowed to sketch from behind a glass partition. The large red machine was a burnisher. A large cylinder spun to polish the leather. High heeled women’s shoes were piled up everywhere. People must be repairing their shoes in this economy rather than buying new pairs. I do have some shoes at home that are a bit worn in the heel. Now I know where to bring them.

Traditional Irish Music Session

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Every other Wednesday, Vicki Gish and Scott Vocca host a Traditional Irish Music Session at Claddagh Cottage Irish Pub (4308 Curry Ford Rd) starting at 7:30pm till whenever. Vicki and Scott are from the band “Crooked Road” and I had recently seen them perform at the Mennello Museum Folk Festival. The bar is a real hole in the wall with dark oak booths, tables and chairs. There is a sign near one table that says, “Reserved for Musicians.” The electric piano was set up and there was an accordion a fiddle and some bows on the tables. A few patrons were eating dinner but everywhere there were tall glasses of dark Guinness.

Natalie Doyle the groups pianist offered me a pint to sip as I sketched. I couldn’t refuse. She explained that the accordion player was Gerry Hanley from Galway, Ireland. She explained that he had given up playing for a while but now he was back into the swing of things. Kathleen Cavanagh on pipes entered a little late and she let everyone know that she had Girl Scout cookies back in her car if anyone was interested. Soon the magical traditional Irish music filled the bar. The musicians closed their eyes as in a reverie and swayed to the beat. The two women having dinner beside me were ecstatic. They had wandered into this hidden gem by chance.

An Irish Session is a gathering of musicians playing traditional Irish music (occasionally including other Celtic genres such as Scottish, Brittany, Cape Breton, and French Canadian) on traditional Irish instruments. Traditional Irish music is made up of dance tunes such as reels, jigs, hornpipes, slides, and a few other miscellaneous forms including polkas, set dances, airs and songs. It is not so much a performance but a sharing of traditional tunes among the musicians and those who care to listen. The instruments might include fiddle, flute, accordion, uilleann pipe, concertina, tenor banjo, whistle (a.k.a. penny whistle, tin whistle), mandolin, bodhrán, guitar, and sometimes piano. An Irish Session is not a “jam session”.

An Irish elder gentleman named Shawn wanted to meet Gerry from Galway. They shook hands and told tales of the homeland for a bit. Then Shawn sat down and began to sing a traditional Irish ballad solo. Scott shushed the room trying to silence the loud talkers at the end of the bar. Then everyone joined in on the chorus singing, “I met her in the garden where the praties grow.” With his second song, I sang along, “Come down from the mountain Katie Daly.” I’m Irish on my mothers side and warmed by the beer and music, I glowed. A woman dropped off a small Teddy bear holding a heart beside the old gentleman singing. When he was finished singing, someone explained, “You have a secret admirer.” The sketch ebbed and flowed with the music taking form almost on it’s own without any second guessing from me. After I drained my Guinness and finished the sketch, I had to go. I needed to start fresh on a new job in the morning. I shouted good night to Natalie and Vicki who stood and shook my hand. I owe these amazing musicians a beer, but I know I’ll be back. If you haven’t been to one of these sessions, you have to go.

Night of Fire

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Crealde held an event called “Night of Fire” at the school campus (600 St. Andrews Blvd. in Winter Park). Tiki torches lined either side of the long gravel path leading back to the school. I wandered around trying to decide what I should sketch. There was a huge kiln about 8 feet tall that filled a shed. It was burning hot but there was little activity around it. I then found this little garbage can kiln in action. The garbage can glowed red hot, sitting on top of fire bricks. The flame was fed by a propane gas tank. This is referred to as Raku firing.

Lynn Warnicke would remove a properly heated ceramic pot with long metal tongs and place it in a garbage can with newspapers. The newspapers would smolder and then burn. I was blinded quite a few times by the smoke, finding myself downwind of the cans. A garbage can lid would be lifted and then the tongs would be used again to drop the pot in a vat of water to cool down. The finished and glazed pots would then be lifted by hand and placed on a bench where they were all lined up.

There was a constant flurry of activity and I was never certain if I was catching the right moment. I learned about the process as I sketched and now that I better understand it, I would probably get a better second sketch. There was no time for a second sketch. I walked around searching for Terry. There was a cool sculpture behind the school, lake side, that shot up a blue flame into a tall glass tube. There had been a bronze pour but it was finished before I got there to sketch. A story teller waved her arms as she spoke to enchanted children and parents.

Inside the school, Ken Austin was demonstrating his watercolor techniques and Megan Boye was in the print department showing people the process. There were prints and paper hanging and lying everywhere. It was an amazing event. I probably cold have learned a thing or two had I lingered.

Orlando Improv Festival

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On February 6th & 7th, Mark Bartelli of the Daily City hosted the Orlando Improv Festival at Urban Rethink as part of Arts Fest. When I arrived, Mark used a bright red sharpie to write “sketch artist” on my name tag. I was rolling with the big boys now, an official sketch artist. This was a smaller, more intimate Festival than last year but Mark still had a plethora of posters.

I set up my artist stool next to a speaker and started blocking in the space. I was sitting next to a college student with a camera around his neck. He had “Press” written on his name tag. He confided that this was his first time using the camera. My inflated ego shrank. The two young women seated in front of me were from the same school. The woman in the stripped shirt asked several audience members questions. “So, what do you hope to gain from tonight’s performance?” “Well Missy, I hope to laugh!”

The evening consisted of long form Improv. The audience would supply a few cues and the performers would keep the Improv going for the duration of an hour. The first group, Offsides Improv is the one I sketched on stage. The performance centered around the strained relationship a couple had developed with someone they had kidnapped. For the longest time we were left to assume this was a typical insular family. The audience was packed full. Mark actually had to squeeze a few more chairs on the sidelines to fit in late comers.

Once the first improv group was finished, the room had to be cleared so people could pay to see the next group. I believe there were five performances each night. The second comedy troupe was “Nobody’s Sweetheart.” This was a notable performance since Peter Murphy had returned to Orlando from LA to be in the show. Peter played the part of a corporate executive speaking with lazy employees. He kept the action lively and his irony brought plenty of laughs. After two hours of Improv, my sketch was finished. I decided to head out to the street with the second audience and head home.