Milk Bar Beer Garden Mural

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It had been a while since I went to the Social Chameleon. The inside of the place has been changed drastically with a large bar added. It is now an extension of the Milk Bar. I ordered a beer to sip while I worked.The front room was expanded into what used to be the kitchen. Harmonious Universe owners, Todd Morgan and Rodney McPherson, were out back getting paint ready and setting up. This wasn’t the first time the mural had been worked on, it was already covered with images. Laura and Todd Morgan were just recently married and I let her know that Terry and I just celebrated our 20th anniversary. She asked advice on how to make it last, and the only thing that popped into my head was “compromise.” I’m a man of few words when I’m sketching.

Artist Frankie Messina shook my hand and I later saw Pam Treadwell. I didn’t notice them working on the mural. High on the mural were some roses which I believe had been painted by Libby Rosenthal.

Artists slowly trickled in during the night. A photographer had his digital camera set up to take a shot every five seconds to create a time lapse view of the murals progress. A couple sat at the table I was seated at. Trevor and Nikki Divine told me that on New Year’s eve they plan to have a painting party with 60 artists in attendance. I definitely need to sketch that. They both recently had given up full time corporate jobs to peruse their art. At one artist’s gathering, Trevor was told he was more expressive and painted better when he used his fingers. Now he is strictly a finger painter. It turns out I had sketched Trevor and Nikki once before at the Cameo. I need to find that sketch and post it.

When a spot opened up on the wall, Trevor and Nikki painted side by side. Trevor painted a Buddha-like face and Nikki a delicate spiraling symbol. With so many artists looking to add their mark, there is the possibility that their contribution might get covered up as the mural evolves. A young woman arrived with a tall ladder. She braced it against the wall and moved some pebbles to give it a sure footing. With a bold magic marker she drew a robotic looking face and torso of a beautiful woman with her inner tubes and pistons exposed. Her boyfriend held the ladder like a gentleman. She worked with quick deliberateness. Then just as quickly as she had appeared, she was gone.

Later as I was packing up to go home, Rodney looked at the sketch and said, “I’m glad you caught her. She came out of nowhere, like Bat Girl!” We laughed. “She had some mad skills” he added.

Post script:

The artist scaling the ladder was Morgan Wilson. I had seen her work one other time when Sam Flax was having artists paint murals on the side of the new store. The mural depicted here was later white washed when new owners bought the building.

Faith Arts Village

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Faith Arts Village (221 East Colonial Drive) is a ministry of Park Lake Presbyterian Church that provides a place where the faith community and local artists can work together to share their gifts of inspiration, beauty, and spiritual expression to promote peace, understanding, and well-being in the larger community. As a ‘village’ it will emphasize the activity and integration of many constituents: local artists, church members, community patrons, schools, and civic groups. Faith Arts Village Orlando may include:

* Studio space for artists

* Green and exhibit space for community gatherings

* Meeting and classroom space

* Gallery space

* Open air markets

* Outdoor performance space

* Cafe space for refreshments

* Possible future residential space for designated guests

* Teaching art as an expression of faith

When I arrived it was dusk and the old motel loomed dark before me. Its dark iron gates made it resemble the Bates motel on the deserted side of the motel I approached from. I heard music however and then the hum of a food trucks gas generator. In the parking lot behind the motel there were folding tables and chairs set up. The ground floor motel rooms glowed warmly. I walked into the various rooms to inspect the arts and crafts. I spoke with one artist and she told me that rent for one of these studio spaces would be $300 a month. Considering she wasn’t selling much work, that price would be too steep for her. Donations were accepted for Second Harvest Food Bank.

At work Larry Loria told me about the Torpedo Factory in Alexandria Virginia. There, an old factory was converted into artists studios. Artists were only charged $50 a month, so they only needed to sell one piece of art to cover the rent. That project revitalized the historic district and now it is an expensive and exclusive neighborhood. I wondered if Faith Arts Village could do the same thing. It is located just a few blocks away from an intersection where I always see people with cardboard signs begging for money from cars at the stop light.

In another room, Mary Hill was helping children paint picture frames with bright tempera paint. I love watching kids paint. They have no preconceptions and they work with raw abandon. Mary rushed to fill cups with paint. One boy asked for gold and she was pleased to find she actually had gold paint. I leaned forward and dipped my brush into some of the bright pink paint. A little blond girl looked at me with a touch of anger, her lips pouting. “Mine!” she said. He mom coached her that it was polite to share. Will Benton, the executive director of the village welcomed me warmly. He asked me to paint something on his T-Shirt. An infinity symbol was already painted, so I added a fish symbol with a single brush stroke.

The Village seemed to have more of a flavor of a family friendly crafts fair rather than a serious place to create art. But of course that might change as the place grows and as artists start using the studios. The motel is still being refurbished and all the artists were only there for the duration of the event that night. This could be the seed of something Orlando desperately needs, a true arts district. The event was part of the monthly “Third Thursdays” downtown gallery hop but the motel is so far from downtown that it was invariably isolated from that event. As I left, a father asked if I would show his son a sketchbook. The boy was delighted flipping the pages like he was devouring a comic book. A new urban sketcher might have been born that night.

Gay Pride 2.0

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The Gay Pride Parade had been rained out a month ago, so this was a second attempt to celebrate tolerance, equality, and diversity in the City Beautiful. I went down to Lake Eola to sketch the preparations for the Gay Pride Parade and Terry came down when the sketch was done. I parked on Cathcart Avenue a fair distance from the celebration. Walking down Cathcart I ran across these Wells Fargo horses and knew I had to sketch. The old stage coach was just being lowered out of the 18 wheeler when I arrived. Then the horses were walked out and they happily munched on the grass. Every yellow wooden spoke on the wheels was polished by a cowboy. Music began to pulse behind me and I texted Terry to let her know I was done with the sketch.

A young girl help a half inflated balloon on her chest and she squeezed it saying, “My booby balloon is sad.” Rainbow colors were splashed everywhere. There was a phalanx of scooters with pink ribbons tied to the handle bars. Macy’s had a giant red star in the parade, just like they have in the Thanksgiving parade in NYC. Disney was out in force with voluntEARS helping, and rainbow Mickey Mouse bobs being thrown out to the crowd.

With a series of texts, I found Terry and we found a spot curbside to watch the parade. Churches were out in force in the parade. The First Unitarian pointed out that this is what Jesus had to say about homosexuality, “Zip. Zilch. Nada.” What he did promote was justice, equality and compassion. The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence marched by with their colorful makeup and habits billowing in the breeze. People shouted “Hey hey, ho ho, Homophobia has to go!

Candy and bead necklaces were thrown into the crowd. Terry did an amazing job of catching most of the loot. She caught some condoms. I saved all the fliers, sure that they offered hints to future sketching opportunities. Tiny beach balls bounced into the crowd. A Labrador retriever across from us bit a beach ball and ripped it apart. Loud motorcycles roared by. Eliot and Fern rode together in a convertible. They have been together 48 years.

Thanksgiving

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For Thanksgiving, Terry and I drove down to Port Charlotte to visit my sister Pat Boehme. The two hour drive was surprisingly care free. Terry slept most of the way down as I drove. We were surprised we didn’t hit traffic around Disney or near Tampa. Zorro, our umbrella cockatoo, made the trip as well, hanging upside down from the bars in his travel cage most of the way. When we arrived, Pat told us that the turkey was ready. She had prepared a delicious traditional feast. I love those crunchy bits she puts on top of the green beans. After several servings of turkey and stuffing, we all started to slow down.

I did dishes while Mike Napolitano showed Terry some of the new plants in the backyard. Then we all retired to the living room. Mike watched football games on TV. Terry reclined on the couch opposite me and drifted off in a tryptophan induced sleep. Zorro was happy as he could be perched on her knee.

The road Pat and Mike live on is going to soon be expanded with a traffic circle added to the corner they live on. When all the construction is done, their little slice of tropical paradise will have been decimated. Most of their side and front yard will be gone and the drainage ditch will be right next to the house like a medieval mote. They are afraid that the homes foundation might be compromised. They had hoped the town or county might buy the property so they could afford to move, but no offer has been made. An Orlando lawyer is now involved on the case.

2D Animation

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Last month we had a husband and wife learning animation together in the front row. They gave their all and produced some stunning animation. In general the whole class was full of aspiring animators and there was friendly competition to come up with original and inspired ideas. I’m starting to get used to drawing on the tablet. I just need to put the lines down quicker letting them slide over the glass. With my water color sketches, I have a very limited palette. Suddenly on the tablet I have millions of color choices. That alone causes me to slow down.

I am now at Art Basel Miami Beach and I realize that I can’t yet scan the drawings I have been doing. I just searched the hard drive to pull up this digital sketch. I’m considering bringing the tablet out to sketch today. We were walking all day yesterday from 11am to well past midnight and I know I only saw a fraction of the art. I don’t like the notion of carrying it around after the battery dies however. A sketchbook that dies after several sketches is a pain. Yesterday I did four sketches. The tablet would die after two sketches.

Storytelling Drawings

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In the 2D Animation Lab at Full Sail, students returning from the lunch break are asked to do a storytelling drawing. They are given a theme and asked to do some thumbnail drawings and pick one idea to execute. The drawings aren’t supposed to be highly rendered works of art, but rather simple, playful ideas. Sample suggestions include, standing in line, waiting for an elevator and moving something heavy. At the end of the 10 classes there are six or seven examples from each student and the best three are graded.

Pirates of the Caribbean had just come out in movie theaters. Larry Lauria came up with a new theme called “Pie Rats of the Caribbean.” Dan Riebold likes to tackle each storytelling himself on the white board. His whimsical sketches help inspire and challenge the students. Often there is a movie screen which he works behind like the Wizard in the “Wizard of Oz.” Dan was drawing a rat which had just been punched by a slice of pie. The vicious pie had not been sketched yet. Larry likes to do small sketches as well. When the students were finished, they were asked to tape it up on the white board. Of the ten to twenty students it is always fun to see all the different ideas that students generate.

Britt Daley Music Video Released!

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I did a series of sketches the day Britt Daley’s music video was being shot in the Orlando Repertory Theater. Since that day, Scott Wilkins, the writer and director, has been working feverishly at an editing bay to polish the final cut. This video was shot gorilla style in one day featured the talents of some amazing local performers who volunteered to create some fun lighthearted magic.

Britt invited cast and crew to her parents home for a special advanced screening. People brought side dishes and Britt’s dad lit the grill for a barbecue. Terry and I arrived first and Britt showed us her private recording space in a room beside the garage. As more people arrived, they hung around the kitchen counter before retiring to the screened in porch. Scott arrived later and when he tried plugging in the hard drive, it didn’t work. It was assumed that the adapter on the hard drive was broken so he rushed out to see if he could find a replacement at a Radio Shack.

The food was served, and periodically Britt got a call from Scott who was having no luck finding an adapter. He eventually returned, annoyed and defeated. After dinner Britt pulled out her laptop which had a very early edit. Scott explained how he intended to multiply shots and he was embarrassed that a more polished edit wasn’t available. We also watched a blooper reel with silly outtakes. There was plenty of laughter. The next week it was discovered that a breaker had burnt out in the Daley residence. The adapter was fine, they just needed to find a working wall outlet.

Now all the blood sweat and tears has paid off as the final edit is now going viral on You Tube. Enjoy the latest from Orlando’s own electro-pop goddess!

The Drop Cloth

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A refreshing breeze blew through the barn. A drop cloth was nailed to the rafters. The steam rising from the boiling cauldron full of sugar cane juice, had to be protected. They didn’t want it to cool too quickly. There were Krispy Cream donuts on the table. It’s a shame I wasn’t hungry. The man seated next to me was a virtuoso with a fly swatter. He killed every fly that landed anywhere near him. I feared that if a fly landed on my sketch, he would react, and with a flick of the wrist, leave a bloody mess on the sketch. I occasionally waved a fly away from my face. Glass cups and boxes were repositioned on the table to widen the killing field.

I was offered some boiled peanuts which I never tried before. They were wet, salty and delicious. The next time I see a boiled peanut stand on the side of the road, I am stopping. Orange County Sheriff Justin Barley drove up in his patrol car. He introduced himself to everyone in the room and then there was a lively conversation about petty crimes in the area. More sheriffs arrived. I think they came for the food.

Patrick Greene’s mom started putting out a lunchtime spread. There was a mound of crispy fried fish, the tails still intact. There were cornbread nuggets also fried, and a beef stew that was thick with Lima beans, thick cuts of meat, and an oily sheen. I waited till all the helpers had served themselves and then I tried a little of everything. I kept sketching as I ate. A hound dog curled up on a rusty bed spring behind me. Chickens were clucking in a coup. Distracted, I mistook their clucks for the sounds of children in a playground.

Several of the men started checking out the sketch. The fellow with the grizzly black beard asked, “How long you been in Florida?” I knew where this line of questioning was leading. I said, “Over twenty years”, perhaps stretching the truth a bit. “Well,” he said, “Not a bad sketch considering you’re a Yankee.” The man across from me commiserated. “I’ve been here 49 years and they still consider me a Yankee!” We laughed.

When I had to leave to get to class, I shook the hand of Patrick’s step dad. I hadn’t been introduced yet, but I suspected that this stoic man was in charge. His face glistened as he stood beside the cauldron, the steam wafting in front of his face. Patrick explained that the steam from the cane syrup actually leaves a sweet crust over everything it touches. A rural Midas Touch.

AADW 2012 Events Calendar

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Buy Now

This calender is only available through pre-order and at special events.

From Julie Norris on behalf of OurLando,

Ourlando had a brilliant idea that I think you will be interested in partnering with as a fundraiser for your organization. We took Thomas Thorspecken’s brilliant sketches of Orlando area arts & culture events, and used them to create a MUCH needed 2012 Event Calendar. Plus we made it a fundraiser for area organizations with a custom cover = the local arts lover dream gift that gives back to great independent organizations and supports Thor’s work!
We just put the final touches on the the project and are planning to go live with pre-orders as early as this Monday (12/5/11). I wanted AADW readers to be one of the first to see the partnership opportunities to either get your event listed and or have a custom cover.

If you know of a local arts organization who could benefit from this fundraiser, then please have them take a thorough look at this partner’s page, and then fill out this form to reserve a space. Since we are working on such a tight holiday deadline, the sooner the better for this information to be returned to us. We will let you know as soon as your partner info is updated on the online store so you can send an email blast to your list to fulfill pre-orders.

Please note, this is produced as an Ourlando publication and we are asking that all partners become a member of Ourlando and join with us in support of local & independent efforts (if you aren’t already). Please sign up online now if you can, otherwise we just need your commitment that you will join and we can deduct your membership fee from your donation when we pay it out in January.

We know that this is a tight turnaround, but we just came up with this idea mid-November and are so passionate about Thor’s work and promoting all the local goodness we just couldn’t wait until next year to do it. This is a volunteer undertaking by myself and Emily Rankin on behalf of Ourlando and in support of Thor. I will be handling the design and website and Emily will probably be communicating with you about this moving forward.

Thanks for all you do to co-create a better Ourlando and have a fabulous day!

Julie Norris
Consultant, Writer, Adventurer & Ecopreneur
http://julienorris.wordpress.com
Dandelion Communitea Cafe, Co-Proprietor
Front Porch Radio, On Air Host
Gaia Mama, Holistic Blogger
“Be the change you wish to see.” Mahatma Gandhi

Boiling the Cane

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Patrick Greene told me about his family’s tradition of harvesting and boiling cane in late November. I got up at the crack of dawn and drove east through downtown. There was a violent panic to the traffic as people rushed to their jobs in the city. I drove till the East West Expressway ended and then continued east. I missed the farm’s driveway on my first pass. I turned around in the parking lot to a natural preserve. I wasn’t sure how far to drive down the dirt road, so I followed it back to a barn. When I got out of my truck a hound dog let out a hollow howl. He was harmless, he came up and sniffed my hand.

A dozen men, many with cowboy hats, sat around several tables swatting flies. I asked for Patrick and they directed me back to the house at the road. I drove back. Patrick greeted me at the front door. His mother was in the living room and she apologized for the mess although everything looked in it’s place to me. She is an artist herself and she pointed to several rendered pencil drawings that she had done. They were framed and looked good against the dark wood paneling.

Patrick walked back to the barn with me and introduced me around as “the artist.” The cane had already been harvested. Then joked that we should have gotten up much earlier to help with that. The cane was crushed by a mechanical crusher and the sweet liquid was gathered. My sister Pat Boehme had some cane growing in her yard in Port Charlotte. I asked to cut a stalk so I could see how it tasted raw. I cut out the soft inner pulp and chewed on it. Raw cane is delicious but once the initial burst of flavor passed, I had to spit out the chewed pulp. A neighbor said that as a child, he was given raw cane as a treat instead of candy.

Back in the barn a large cauldron full of cane juice was boiling. Thirteen rows of cane were not harvested since they had plenty of cane juice for the boil. The heat was intense and the steam rose. Several men were always on hand to skim the surface removing the debris and thin film that rose to the surface. All morning the furnace blazed. An inner metal cylinder was placed inside the cauldron and mesh was wadded up and inserted around the edge to soak up more of the film. A breeze began wafting the steam away. Several men tacked up a green drop cloth to block the breeze. It seemed the steam needed to linger and rise straight up for the boil to be most effective. By the end of the day all that would be left was a thick syrup which the women would bottle. This is a true old Florida tradition, a look at an art form that is fading away in our fast paced times.