Sketchy Todd

Posted on by Thor

The Sketchy Broads, Lindsay Boswell and Jenny Coyle held a sinister sketch session for local artists at Austin’s Coffee (929 West Fairbanks Avenue). I arrived right after work and ordered an ice cold Yak coffee. I found a seat in a movie theater seat facing the front door. Lindsay arrived shortly after and I helped her move some furniture around. I let her set up the fancy photo lights and backdrop. Slowly artists arrived. As the models were doing quick three minute poses, I focused on blocking in the whole scene.

One artist arrived dressed in a suit of purple armor. He had pointy ears and wore dark sunglasses. His long dark hair flowed over his shoulders. A large bongo drum was slung over his shoulder in a satchel. His name was Konrad McKane and he was portraying a character he created from a graphic novel called Alkaya, the legend of Empyro. He sat on a cushy red couch to sketch. I have to find out where he performs on that drum so I can sketch him in action.

After this pose with the bloody knife, Jenny cut her thumb as she was putting the dull blade away. It turned out that the corner of the blade near the base was still sharp. She calmly washed the wound in the kitchen and waited for a band aid. I cringed, watching the blood pool up in her cupped hand. These two will go to any length to achieve bloody accuracy with the characters they portray. They offer blood sweat and tears every month for our sketching pleasure. At last my arm is complete again.

Mennello Museum Mural Unveiling

Posted on by Thor

So many things had to fall into place for the Unveiling of the mural. I ran to Sky Craft to get 80 alligator clips which would hang the original sketches done of each person in the line. I also managed to forget the power cord to my tablet PC in the classroom at Full Sail. I drove over there and thankfully Nina had the keys to get me into the room. I was a sweaty mess after running all over town but I arrived at the museum an hour earlier than expected. This gave me plenty of time to set up. I borrowed a folding table from the museum’s garage and set it up under the tent I had used as shelter from the sweltering sun the entire time I worked on the mural. I hung many of the original studies, clothes line style on the iron gates around the museum. Kim Robinson let me borrow some nice folding walls on which I hung a dozen more sketches.

I set up a printer and the tablet so I could make prints for people on demand. Anyone who posed for the mural could get a free print of the sketch done of them. The originals were all on sale for $50 each. I made a few prints of the whole line as well. As I was finishing getting everything in place, Terry arrived to help out. She assisted me as I duct taped down electrical cords so no one would trip. It was a cloudless beautiful day in the low 80’s. I couldn’t have asked for a more picture perfect night.

When everything was in place, I started the sketch. The first people to arrive were volunteers for the museum. I sketched them quickly in front of the mural. Soon there was a steady stream of people and I explained over and over again how the idea of the mural had been generated. Genevieve Bernard and I visited a high school art class in Narcoossee and asked the students what they felt defined Orlando. One girl said she was always standing in long lines when she went to clubs downtown. We spent the rest of the class discussing who stands in lines and why. A Facebook event page invited people to come to the museum to be drawn in the line. Over 64 people from all walks of life came to be sketched. At the unveiling many of the people who modeled returned wearing the same clothes they posed in. It was fun taking pictures with the models next to their depiction on the wall. All the photos made the mural an interactive experience. The evening was a whirlwind as I made prints, finalized sales and socialized non-stop.

Spirit Halloween

Posted on by Thor

I had planned to sketch a dance rehearsal but the instructor was sick and I didn’t get the note. On the drive home, down Colonial, I saw a large sign for Spirit Halloween ( Colonial Promenade 4628 E Colonial Dr.) I turned into the shopping complex. Halloween has always been my favorite holiday. I decided to see how many people were shopping for costumes this early in the month. I leaned back against a metal pillar in the store. Within a minute a store clerk asked if he could help me. I explained about the blog. He decided to get the manager. Betty Ruocco came out and said she was delighted to see how the sketch turned out.

In the center of the cavernous store was the “Spirit Playland.” A large scary swing spun carnival like. Each swing held a different demonic baby. One baby held a human brain which it was eating and another baby was chewing on its own foot. A fortune teller booth had a red haired, green skinned baby whose head would periodically spin around, exorcist style. Many of the displays were large mannequins that were for people’s front porches. One display had a telephone where people could scream into the receiver as they were threatened by Ghost face. Many people posed here for photos.

Little pads that said, “step here” were scattered in front of displays on the floor. One little boy must have assumed I was an employee because he kept asking me what would happen if he stepped on a pad. I would tell him what I had observed and then he would tentatively approach the display and step down. A ghoul rose from the grave growling with smoke wafting up over the tombstone. The boy screeched and ran away looking for his sister. He coached her to step down and then they both screamed. This game held an endless delight for them.

At the check out counter Betty rang a cow bell. Every time a customer bought a purple pumpkin or a brightly colored rubber wrist bracelet for a dollar, the cow bell was rung. All the money raised from those sales went to Arnold Palmer Children’s Hospital. On October 18th Spirit Halloween employees are going to the hospital with costumes for the children to celebrate Halloween in style. Over 4.6 million dollars in cash and merchandise were donated to children’s hospitals since 2007. What a great cause. Go down and keep that cow bell ringing!

The B52’s at the Amway Center

Posted on by Thor

It had been raining all day. I was putting finishing touches on an illustration for the Orlando Opera Theater Company when I got a text from Rick & Terry Loewen, “Free concert. B52’s.” I wrote back, “Your kidding! Now?”. “Amway Center let them move the concert indoors. You guys need to come. We will save u seats.” Terry was with Amanda watching “Ides of March.” I texted her to let her know about the free concert. I was going to see the movie with them but I ended up driving to the wrong movie theater. When the movie was over (they didn’t like it) Terry called and agreed to pick me up and rush over to the concert. The warm up band, Logan Belle, was just getting started.

We drove downtown in the pouring rain. Terry couldn’t see the lines on the road and she kept slowing down. She took a wrong turn and we got lost on side streets. She missed a second turn to the road that lead to her office where we planned to use the parking garage. She did a U turn on Orange Blossom Trail and relocated the street. When we parked I fired off another text letting Rick and Terry know we were on foot. She let me know they were seated behind an orange Hooters table. When Terry and I stepped out into the deluge we heard a Train horn blast. There were train tracks between the parking garage and the Amway Center. We jogged towards the tracks. The barriers hadn’t dropped yet. As we ran across the tracks the horn blasted again and we were blinded by the locomotive’s light.

When we entered the Amway Center Terry had her purse checked. My sketchbook was tucked in my belt like a pistol. My pallet was in my rain jacket pocket. I wasn’t frisked. My artists contraband made it through security. We asked several people where the Hooters table was and we were told we needed a wrist band. When we asked about a wrist band we were told we didn’t need one. VIP’s had seating on the floor for $150.We took an escalator to the second level then walked down to the floor. The place wasn’t crowded. Half the VIP seats were empty. Rick and Terry waved to us and we grabbed our seats in the third row.

I started sketching as the B52’s took to the stage. Our seats were on makeshift aluminum bleachers. Everyone was dancing and jumping up and down to the music. The bleachers rocked and swayed. I relaxed and let my lines flow with the turmoil. Terry shouted at a lady to sit down in front of us. Many of the early songs I didn’t recognize. When the band began playing “Love Shack!” I knew my sketch was done. Terry and I agree that this is our song. We danced and shouted out the lyrics. I grabbed Terry by the waste and we bumped hips to the beat. I can check this item off my life list. I believe everyone should hear “Love Shack” performed live at least once in a lifetime. On the floor of the Center everyone continued to dance to “Rock Lobster“.

Vampire’s Ball

Posted on by Thor

There was a media preview of Vampire Ball at the Orlando Ballet building near Lake Ivanhoe. I arrived a bit early and hung out with several reporters in the lobby. I looked down a long hallway which had a large puddle which was being mopped up. The building is below the water level of Lake Ivanhoe so the water keeps seeping in. At the top of the open staircase several young dancers were using the railing to balance as they stretched. I entered the room where the preview was being staged and I started blocking in the room before the reporters entered.

Robert Hill the Ballet’s Artistic Director introduced the show. The choreography is all original as a matter of fact they are still polishing dances right up until the show opens. All of the dancers lined up chorus line style and each introduced themselves and said where they came from. The first dance had a Frankenstein theme. A dancer lay prone on a coffee table and the mad scientist brought him to life. Another dance had a sinister vampire who seduced his victims through dance. On the sidelines there was a large cast of dancers who watched as they stretched. They all came on stage for a huge zombie fight scene. The zombies fought as if in a neighborhood turf war.

Whenever I’m alone with you played and a young couple in love danced and embraced. All of the choreography was fluid, well staged and exciting. This was modern ballet with an edge. It was visceral and exciting. The Vampire’s Ball is being performed October 21-23. This is a show I certainly don’t want to miss.

Apple Store Line

Posted on by Thor

Terry suggested I go to the Millenia Mall to see if there was a line of people waiting for the latest iPhone release. I don’t go to the mall very often so this was an adventure. I had been to the store before and I swore it was on the second floor. I walked the full length of the mall and had to double back. It was actually on the first floor and I had walked over it in the first five minutes of my quest. I decided to stay on the second floor and look down at the long steady line of people waiting. A brick of a security guard stood by, should any riots break out.

It was less than a week since Steve Jobs died. A storefront window was turned into a shrine. There were flowers and a small box of candy at the store’s display window. Colorful stickie notes covered the glass with short notes like: “Keep thinking different.” “RIP Steve, the world loves apples.” “iCame, iSaw, iMiss you.” As I sketched, two former students stopped to say hello. I asked Phil if he was here to get an iPhone. “Are you kidding? Those things cost like $400. I have a student loan to pay off!”, he said. My old iPhone is working just fine. I will not upgrade unless the glass breaks or I drown it. The new iPhone apparently has loads of new features but I just need a phone that works, and sometimes I feel a little too connected. Most people I draw have their eyes plastered to that tiny screen. I want my eyes to keep taking in the bigger picture.

In 1984 Steve introduced the world to a new form of computer. I desperately wanted one of these early Macintosh’s. Terry had a contest going at her new job at Shearson Lehman Hutton. If she brought in enough clients through cold calls, she could win a Macintosh. She worked incredibly hard in part because she knew I lusted for that machine. She got it. I used that tiny Mac to design a whole book, which I self published. I knew this new digital age would change everything. I still have that old tiny Mac. I brought it to Full Sail in Steve Jobs honor the day after he died. I plugged it in and the machine hummed to life sounding like a 747 after 20 years of hot storage in our garage. Terry and I have worked together to bring our dreams to life. Today is our 20th wedding anniversary. It was my dreams that brought us to Central Florida. Dreams change, but my hope for an ever brighter future never dies. “Maybe all the plans we made would not work out, but I have no doubt, even though it’s hard to see. I’ve got faith in us and I believe in you and me.“

Tiberius Rex and Pixie Duste

Posted on by Thor

Terry met me at Stardust Video & Coffee for Dustoberfest. The place was quiet and I had finished my first sketch. I warned Terry that Dustoberfest wasn’t exactly a wild party. She had gotten dressed and insisted on stopping by. The food was actually really good. I ordered a Kielbasa with sauerkraut which came with an egg sunny side up and mashed potatoes. Washed down with a Hofbrau beer in a tall beer stein it was the perfect German meal.

When Terry arrived she got in line to order some food as well. In line she met Tiberius Rex and Pixie Duste who ordered before her. Instinctively she knew I couldn’t resist sketching a vampire. She sent them over to my table. Tiberius introduced himself asking if I was the artist. I asked them to sit across from me and immediately started sketching. Tiberius’s eyes were white with a black line surrounding the iris. It gave his gaze an unnerving snake like quality. He was the most amicable vampire I’ve ever met and he smiled so I could sketch his fangs. He was very proud of their gentle inward curvature. I admired his casket ring and magnificent snake’s head walking stick.

Pixie Duste was far more demure. Her shock of jet black hair covered her eyes and her welders glasses had bold red Xs over the lenses. As I sketched her, Tiberius did a jig with his shoulders to the music keeping her amused. They were an adorable goth couple. When the sketch was done, Tiberius said, “Look, we truly are immortal now!” he laughed and gently kissed Pixie Duste. Pixie Duste unwrapped her blood red Tootsie pop and sucked on it. They reminded me of Terry and myself when we were first dating.

It was a crisp chilly October and we went to a Pumpkin Festival a few miles up the Hudson River from New York City. I was sketching the crew of the Clearwater, a Dutch Sloop and environmental group founded by folk singer Pete Seeger. The sloop still sails the Hudson River teaching children about life in the river. The Clearwater hosted a pumpkin sail every October sailing down river and selling pumpkins off town docks. Children crawled among the pumpkins playing and trying to pick the perfect pumpkin. Terry met me for this Pumpkin Festival and we spent a wonderful day together volunteering. For the first and only time in my life I painted a few children’s faces. That evening there was a square dance and we danced the night away. We were infectiously in love and one woman actually asked Terry to tone down her “public displays of affection.” I’m glad Terry laughed off the request, we kissed and hugged each other with abandon. Who cared what other people thought!

Dustoberfest

Posted on by Thor

When I heard about Dustoberfest my mind lit up with images of busty domineering German women serving tall steins of beer and bratwurst. I imagined a Tyrolean band with a tuba horn and accordion playing folk dances as a large crowd spun on the dance floor. When I got there, I did find Bratwurst on the menu but I was told they ran out of bratwurst and would have to substitute it with kielbasa. Being a homogenized American, I knew I probably wouldn’t know the difference. The Stardust Video and Coffee (842 East Winter Park Road) staff was scrambling around in the kitchen. Most of the staff was in liederhosen. I ordered a Hofbrau German beer. When served, Ich sacht, “Danke.”

I sat at the end of a long table made from antique doors with a thick layer of ocher varnish on top. Doug Rhodehamel, in liederhosen sat with friends and staff at a central table. Balloons and streamers in the colors of the German flag decorated the ceiling. One long yellow balloon with two red balloons at it’s base was a bit suggestive. A little girl was dancing and playing in the room. A staff member went to cut off the long thin yellow balloon at the base but the whole clump fell down. The girl was ecstatic with her large bouquet of balloons. She proceeded to pop them causing every one in the quiet room to jump and shout “Woe!” There was some German music playing on the radio but it soon degenerated into modern pop. After several hours, Doug and other staff members changed out of their liederhosen.

So there was little pomp and circumstance, no polkas or twirling crowds but the food was good and the beer delicious. Friends talked the afternoon away as I sketched. Life was good.

Occupy Orlando

Posted on by Thor

The Occupy Wall Street demonstration in NYC has caused similar demonstrations across the country. Occupy Orlando began at 8am on Saturday October 15th at the Orlando Chamber of Commerce. The protest’s aim was to unite the 99% of Americans struggling to survive today’s economy. The organizers asked people to come out not just as individuals but as participating citizens of society. I parked several blocks away expecting a large crowd. As I walked closer I heard the voices over loudspeakers. The crowd wasn’t as large as I expected. There were perhaps a hundred people in the public park carrying signs and milling about. There were so many cameras that I thought the media accounted for a quarter of the people there.

I immediately focused on the group of people meditating. I set up my artist stool and started to sketch. As I got lost in the details I relaxed and the din of the demonstrators grew quiet. The first person at the mic was a singer who unfortunately sang off key. A woman running for public office spoke of the day she took her child to Lake Eola to watch as the people feeding the homeless there were arrested. Her little boy couldn’t understand why people would be arrested for feeding the hungry. The surreal is common in the City Beautiful.

At one point I found a TV cameraman blocking my view. A microphone was shoved in my face and I was being asked questions about the demonstration. I guess when the media get desperate they interview the media. The reporter’s questions were argumentative so I lost interest and returned to my sketch. He seemed to want to imply that a corporation’s only responsibility is to the stock holders. But I’m a stock holder who is losing money. I side with the protesters since I undeniably make less money than I did before 9-11. There were conspiracy theorists behind the mic who I didn’t quite follow. Of course with all the invitations of free speech, a man stood on a milk crate with a bible in his hand and he shouted hell and damnation.

I had to be at work by 1pm. I finished the sketch of the silent meditators and realized I had time for one more short sketch. I sat near a group of children painting bright signs with finger paint. A young girl was making a sign with sharpies on foam core board. The sign read…”Dumbeldore would be Disappoint.” Did she run out of room on the sign or did the sign simply not make any sense? One sign I did like was, “We need more Jobs.”

There was going to be a march downtown. I decided I had to leave in case the march shut down the street I was parked on. The demonstration felt unfocused and splintered. The demonstration was peaceful with an undeniable dissatisfaction in government and corporations. As I left people were still arriving. One guy shouted to me, “Hey, your going the wrong way!” There may hare been close to a thousand people ready to march through downtown. Part of me was angry as I drove to work on a Saturday. I had a headache. I had red sugar coated aspirin but no water. I popped two aspirin in my mouth. I couldn’t swallow them. The sweet coating wore off quickly and the sharp sour aspirin taste kicked in. I shoved the aspirin under my gums and it dissolved slowly leaving a bad taste in my mouth for hours.

County Morgue Make Up

Posted on by Thor

We found a table at Antonio’s across the street from Stardust. I ordered a pesto pasta dish that had absolutely no flavor. The place was getting packed. I sat across from Terry facing a wall. A table behind me filled up with zombies. I didn’t know zombies ate spaghetti. Perhaps it wasn’t spagetti hanging out of their bloody mouths. It might be veins or the flesh of the living. After our disappointing meal we walked out into the night. The undead were everywhere. A group of zombies stood outside the liquor store but the proprietor wouldn’t let them in. The undead had to recruit the living to buy alcohol.

The corner of Corrine and Winter Park had three gas stations which separated and illuminated three large gatherings of zombies. The parking lot outside Park Avenue CD’s had food trucks and two stages where the undead could perform music. Terry stopped to pet a living dog and I hunted for a spot to sketch. I settled on the County Morgue Make Up tent. For $15 people could get a scar or deathly make up. I focused most of my attention on the make up artist with the Mohawk. He carefully crafted a deep gash into a woman’s cheek. She was delighted when she saw how horrifying she looked. Wendy Wallenburg who lives in the neighborhood had no idea what was going on. Some zombie’s car was blocking her driveway and she was suddenly surrounded by the undead. Terry and Wendy wandered while I sketched.

Halfway into this sketch, I realized I should be getting the undead to pose for quick sketches. Terry could wrangle the subjects and I could crowd the undead together into a single sketch. Terry lost patience with me and went home. I considered getting one more sketch but I felt defeated and left. I had to get home before all hell broke loose.