The Orlando Nerd Fest closing party rocked The Geek Easy.

Posted on by Thor

The fifth day of the Orlando Nerd Fest was an after party held at The Geek Easy in the back of A Comic Shop (114 S Semoran Blvd #6, Winter Park, FL). Early in the day, the crowd was pretty thin, but it grew more crowded even as the sketch progressed. As I understand it, a bus transported Nerds over from the Orlando Airport Mariott. Wendy Wallenburg was there with Brian Minnich, the photographer she represents. Several girls in costume entered the bar, but they quickly disappeared, perhaps feeling over dressed for the occasion. A guy in a lab coat was the only other person on the edge of being costumed.

As the band performed on stage, guys gathered on the dance floor. One dance involved marching in a circle and the moves seemed as well rehearsed as the duck dance at a wedding reception. Wendy was busy with her social media as she sat across the room in the only cushy comfy chair. I recognized the performers from a Nerd Festival I had covered last year.  They performed an edgy nerd rap that had the crowd raising their hands in the air. I’m sure the party heated up after dark, but with one sketch done, I decided to call it a day. That was a wrap for this year’s Nerd Fest for me. Next year I should arrange to sketch people in costume. The talent involved in putting together some of those costumes is astounding.

Nerd Fest is a Mecca for Nerds.

Posted on by Thor

Orlando Nerd Fest was a five day event held at the Orlando Airport Marriott (7499 Augusta National Dr, Orlando, Fl) from August 7th to August 17th.. It is apparently the biggest and best annual multi-day nerd party! It is part music festival, part family reunion, and all fun! Dr. Vern one of Orlando Nerd Fest’s founders, issued me a press pass for the entire event. There was free parking in an empty field behind the hotel. The dirt road had a large mud puddle at one point. I’m glad I didn’t part near that puddle, because cars that did got a serious splattering.

 When I got to the entrance, I met Wendy Wallenburg and Brian Minnich, the photographer she represents. Like me Brian has an eye for anything out of the ordinary. Nerd Fest offered that in spades. People casually wandered the hotel halls in cosplay costumes. They sat on the floor playing some sort of role play card game. With so many sketch opportunities I felt a bit overwhelmed. I just needed to start a sketch and accept that I couldn’t see it all at once.

Wendy became obsessed with winning the Ms. Pack Man arcade game. Since she was so focused, I decided to sketch the game in progress. Periodically guys would come over to coach. One guy stepped in to show her how it is done and he got a much higher score and dared her to beat it. That caused her to become even more obsessed. The Star Trek pin ball machine to her right broke down and the vendor pried it open to get at all the servos and electrical guts of the machine. In about a half hour he had it back up and running. I tried my hand at playing Ms. Pac Man once Wendy gave up. I would flick the joy stick hard left or hard right but  my reflexes just weren’t quick enough. It’s an infuriating game and it was game over all too soon. I felt like a bit of an outsider at Nerd Fest, but I suppose any true nerd would feel that way.

RV’S Going Away Studio Art & Yard Sale!

Posted on by Thor

Robin Van Arsdol, (RV), was preparing to leave Orlando. His Orlando Studio, Realm 54, (54 W. Illiana Street Orlando, FL) was open to the public and anything was for sale to help him make the move to Miami. I met RV only once before when we were both applying to United Arts for Artist Development Grants at the same time. RV has been a working artist in Orlando for the past 40 years. He has had studios in several places in town and his studio hosted an International Graffiti Conference once a year. The studio I visited was a large industrial warehouse accessed by a large garage door. There was a pile of bibles for sale as well as a sporty red Corvette covered with his art. Wendy Wallenberg and Brian Minnich showed up to show RV some of the photos they had shot and to get a release signed.

RV graduated from Georgetown College in 1972. In 1973 he began his masters at NYC.  He was very active in the NYC graffiti scene and in the 70’s he worked with some of the city’s most active and prestigious artists. His family lived in Orlando since 1972 and in 1977 he moved here. He always bounced back to NYC whenever he could, spending six months in NYC and six months in Orlando. RV’s work has been in 70 exhibitions in European city’s in Italy and Paris France.

In 1983 RV became obsessed, creating public graffiti art inspired by the following biblical passage, “Woe unto them that are with child and suck in those days.” The passage reminded him of Hiroshima.  Any prenatal baby is instantly affected by any radiation. He began clandestinely to cover building with images that suggested radioactivity. Large pink tulips resembled mushroom clouds. Gun boats and airplanes covered exterior walls. He was a man on a mission. His art defied the lie that war is a necessary evil. Thinking back to my student years in NYC, I do think that I saw some of his work on a parking lot wall. When I mentioned Keith Haring, RV rummaged in his studio and showed me two of Keith’s subway chalk drawings. RV’s work covered sections of the Berlin Wall.

In Italy in 2004 RV began painting his Pinocchio Screaming Man series. In some images the screaming man is seen in front of mushroom clouds. He is still creating work at a break neck pace, functioning on just four hours of sleep. RV was a director of the Orlando Museum of Art‘s Associates Program from 1979-1986. Miami should be a great fit for RV. There an entire neighborhood is covered in graffiti. It is a shame that Orlando’s arts scene isn’t vibrant enough to hold onto him.