Orlando Soup helps fund creative ideas in Orlando.

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Orlando SOUP was modeled after the successful Detroit
SOUP, a micro-granting dinner celebrating and supporting creative
projects in Orlando. For a donation of $10, attendees receive soup (made
by Edible Orlando using fresh, local ingredients), salad and bread.
Before dinner is served, attendees will listen to four short community
project proposals covering a range of topics such as art, urban
agriculture, social justice, social entrepreneurship, education,
technology, and more. During dinner, attendees cast a vote for their
favorite project and, at the end of the night, the project that receives
the most votes is funded by $7 from each attendees’ donation. Winners
appear at future SOUP dinners to report their project’s progress.

I went to the Soup crowd funding event on August 13th 2014at East End Market. (3201 Corrine Dr, Orlando, FL). The walls were still covered with my framed sketches. It was great to see so many people in the community room sharing creative ideas. The room buzzed with excitement. I had been asked to work on a mural to cover the front facade of the Fringe offices in the Ivanhoe Village district. Scottie Campbell set up an online crowd source page to try and raise the money to pay me for the project. About $2000 had been raised for the proposed project, but that was less than half of what was needed. Scottie decided to pitch the idea at the Orlando Soup event to make more people aware of the project and raise more funds. His pitch was eloquent and exciting and it helped that my work was visible on every wall. Oddly, though I was in the room sketching, I was never called up to the mic since Scottie covered every base.

Another presentation this evening was by Cole Nesmith who was raising money for The Creative City Project which featured live performances throughout downtown Orlando by local and international arts groups. Cole wants to pay the artists involved but raising the funds needed is a full time job. I wanted to do life sized interactive portraits on the street as my contribution. Unfortunately I was in Australia when the Creative City Project became a reality, so I didn’t get a chance to experience or sketch any aspect of it.  For this Orlando Soup presentation, Cole made a tactical error when he gave everyone in the room a tiny battery and light. The audience became so involved in trying to get the light to work, that they must have missed Cole’s underlying message that it takes everyone’s involvement to light up Orlando with creativity.

Pat Greene gave a presentation about his Transit Interpretation Project (TrIP) and exhibition. He had photographers ride the new Sun Rail trains to take photos of fellow commuters. He needed funds to help hang the exhibit which was at the Gallery at Avalon Island  (39 South Magnolia Avenue, Orlando, FL). This show happened while I was away as well. Patrick got the most votes to help fund the TrIP Project show.

Mark your calendar. The next Orlando Soup is January 20, 2015 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm at East End Market. (3201 Corrine Dr, Orlando, FL). The community room is upstairs. It is a great way to see what creative projects are brewing in Orlando.

Rusty Spoon

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Paul Alexander hired me to do a sketch at The Rusty Spoon, (55 W Church St, Orlando, FL) on Saturday December 4th. A party of about 30 people were going to gather for dinner for the first time. Paul knew of my work because of a sketch I did at a City Beautiful Church concert at the Lake Eola Band shell and the kind recommendations of talents like Aradhana Tiwari, Cole Nesmith and Holly Harris.

The group gathering was known as Cru. They are an international ministry with members coming from Africa, the Netherlands, Asia, Australia and Europe.  The person that Paul most wanted me to catch was Ken who had 25 years experience leading a Cru group in Asia. Paul is in charge of Digital Strategies which utilizes social media to promote the groups message to the world.

I was the first to arrive at the rusty spoon. The woman who greeted me at the door knew what I was up to cause she said, “Oh, you must be the caricature artist.” I cringed a bit since I’m not a caricature artist, but I let it pass. She went to get the waiter, who knew more about the large group I was going to sketch. He lead me to the back of the Spoon where four tables were reserved for the party. The waiter, who also thought I was a caricature artist, let me sit in an empty booth that thankfully didn’t have a table. I had plenty of room to work. I started blocking in the perspective of the place. Raw old fashioned Edison bulbs illuminated the scene.

Paul and Anne Alexander arrived as did my wife Terry. She spoke to the couple for a while and then went to watch the football game at the bar. Paul and Anne love this restaurant, although Anne lamented that the art work never changes. I have to admit that it is a bit odd having pigs, goats and cows staring at you from the walls, especially if you eat meat. People arrived and mingled. Then as each person took a seat, I quickly placed them in the sketch.

Amazingly, the sketch was done when everyone finished dinner. Some people wandered over to see what I was up to. One jovial fellow from Africa asked where he was. He must have been way back at the fourth table because I hadn’t sketched him. He said, “Your sketch is fine, bot it is incomplete without me.” Even Paul is hidden from view since his wife is seated in front of him. I managed to keep Ken clearly in focus although a late arrival sat in the corner seat blocking my line of sight toward Ken most of the dinner. I had to move and reduce the size of this person to keep Ken visible in the sketch. It is fascinating how much can be altered and recreated while still keeping a believable document of an important event. I didn’t have time to eat or drink, but Paul told me the food at the Rusty Spoon is delicious. With the sketch done, I rushed off to the Kerouac House for a pot luck dinner.

The Artist’s Survival Guide

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The Artist Survival Guide, organized by Brendan O’Connor, is an Urban ReThink Signature Series event recurring monthly. It aims to provide artists and the artistically curious with the building blocks needed for professional creative careers in Central Florida, and will culminate in a printed Artist’s Survival Guidebook after 12 months of programming. Artists art enthusiasts, and the artistically curious gathered to find out about the building blocks needed to be successful in Orlando and Central Florida.

The first installment was an introduction to the Arts in Central Florida. Panelists included:

Jessica Bryce Young the Arts and Culture Editor at the Orlando Weekly, Devin Dominguez the Director of Development at the Art and History Museums of Moorland, Flora Maria Garcia, President and CEO of United Arts of Central Florida, Donna Dowless, Official Ambassador of Love for the City of Orlando an accomplished local artist and art supporter, and Terry Olson, Director at Orange County Arts and Cultural Affairs, at the Maitland.

Flora noted that the arts in Orlando, tend to be overshadowed by the theme park industry. Private funding isn’t as high as it is in similarly sized cities. The problem is that people in Orlando come from other states so when they invest in the arts they first consider their home state or city. People come and go from Orlando in a constant stream. Donna insisted artists need a stiff spine. If a creative idea is shot down, the artist should realize that “No” is just the first step. Keep asking and pitching ideas until “Yes” is the answer. Jessica noted that since Orlando is a smaller city, it is much easier for an individual artist to make a difference. Terry briefly spoke about a program that Cole NeSmith started that brought the arts to the streets of Orlando every day for a week. Devin restated something Andrew Spears had told her, that an artist needs to be creative daily. Donna pointed out that one thing most artists need, and some never find, is a “voice” that permeates all of their work.

The gallery scene in Orlando still is a mystery to me. Most paintings I see are on the walls of bars and restaurants. I’ve read of instances where patrons have censored and stolen art on restaurant walls. It amazes me that artists pay to exhibit their work at City Arts Factory. Donna said that the cost to exhibit art work used to be much higher.

Tree of Light

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On June 14th, the Virginia Drive Live Street Party was held all along Virginia Drive in Ivanhoe Village. Scottie Campbell, the Ivanhoe Village-Manager war running from street side tent to tent. I saw him when I first got out of my car and then several more times as I walked down Virginia Drive. Vendors and artists were busy setting up.

    Virginia Drive, between Alden Road. and Haven Drive, in Ivanhoe Village came alive with late night shopping, food trucks, street vendors and artists, entertainment, and more! A wine stroll guided people you from merchant to merchant. I stopped at the beer garden, Sponsored by TheDailyCity.com, in the lot next to The Venue. Mark Baratelli of TheDailyCity.com stopped to say hello. There had been some drama among the food truck vendors he invited to the event and he had to straighten it all out.

As the sun set, the Tree of Light illuminated the area where DJ Chris Mendez was spinning tunes. Parents relaxed, sipping beers while their children played in the grass. The Tree of light has a welded aluminum structure inside with wood boards from shipping palettes screwed to the outside. I saw the structure as it was first being built in Cole Nesmith‘s yard. An exotic computer program used to make the lights flicker in a sequence when they were turned on with pull chords. Small diode light strips in the mason’s jars looked like fire flies. The heavy Florida rains had some of the jars collecting water. The draw strings were no longer an option. All the lights were always on. The tree was going to be set up in downtown Orlando but after working all night to gel it set up, someone leaned a ladder against a branch and the branch crashed to the ground. No one was hurt, but now the sculpture was seen as a dangerous liability. Cole and his team of artists and engineers went back to the drawing board reinforcing all the inner supports.

Children couldn’t resist trying to climb the tree. A group of three or four toddlers gathered at the base and used the roots as a boost to try and get up the trunk. Thankfully, parents moved in and pulled the children off. Had the kids gotten up to the branches, the results could have been devastating. Worst would be if an adult who has had too many beers decided to climb the tree on a dare. As a teenager, I once drank so much that I decided I had to climb to the top of a telephone pole. I was alone, so I wasn’t trying to impress anyone. I did it cause I was drunk and therefor indestructible. Sometimes I’m an idiot.

A City Beautiful Christmas

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I got an invitation from choreographer Holly Harris to see a City Beautiful Christmas at the History Center downtown. A City Beautiful is a recently formed church that doesn’t have a permanent brick and mortar home yet. I witnessed a fabulous celebration at the Lake Eola band shell. Cole Nesmith welcomed me when I arrived at the History Center. Much of the service would be happening inside the Orlando Regional History Center. Then the congregation would walk out into the park for an arts performance. The performance is what I planned to sketch, so I leaned against one of the tall pine trees and started blocking in the stage. There was an hour to show time.

White gossamer fabric hung from pine boughs.  The fabric glowed yellow in the street lamp light. Two sculptures of alligators are permanent residents of the park and they overlooked the proceedings. A grey bearded man with a sleeping bag slung over his shoulder was talking to Holly for the longest time. He was invited inside but he preferred the outdoor air like me. He was to thin to be Santa Claus. He stood a short distance from me and watched me intently. He struck up a conversation, letting me know he was from Ohio. Distracted and lost in the sketch, I answered his questions but kept my hand and eyes busy. I’m a bit rude when working, and he soon wandered off.

A box sat at the center of the staging area. A tech tested it out. With the lid off, it erupted, sending up a large plum of fake snow lit from below. Dancers all dressed in black began to form themselves on the grid of the stage. They all held candles. White paper bags with candles inside illuminated the path from the History Center leading people to the staging area. I had assumed everyone would sit on the grass to watch the show. I had guessed wrong. Everyone stood, and I lost my view. I had only sketched half the dancers. I could see one or two dancers between peoples heads. A fellow in front of me apologized, I told him not to worry. I’ve learned to accept any staging difficulty. I decided to relax and start painting. Catching the magical candle light at night would be a challenge.

Music was playing that sounded like Danny Elfman‘s sound track to Edward Scissorhands. Since I couldn’t see the dancers, I imagined ice sculptures forming with the chips floating in the air like snow. The luminescent pillar of snow blew skyward up above the wall of backs. For a magical moment, it was snowing in Central Florida. Air and Cole spoke messages of love, acceptance and Christmas joy, as I presume the dancers performed. Everyone in the audience was issued a candle. One single flickering flame became two, then four then a sea of light. Everyone’s voice was raised in song. There would be a second performance, so  the lights were extinguished as the crowd dispersed, I continued to sketch. The sketch felt complete even without the full cast. The gator looked hungry enough. With another hour till the second performance, I decided to pack up and head home.

Thriller Flash Mobs

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The Creative City Project came about as a result of a conversation between Cole Nesmith and Terry Olson, the Director at Orange County Arts & Cultural Affairs. The Creative City Project involves gorilla style performances in public spaces every day of the month in October.

The Orlando Ballet had a Thriller themed flash mob on October 12th in the Plaza Theater Courtyard in Downtown Orlando at noon as part of The Creative City Project. I arrived a bit late and there was a crowd of people in business attire milling around the plaza. A 7-11 which recently opened in the plaza was packed. I was afraid I had missed the flash mob but  Robert Hill, the company’s artistic director let me know that there would be three more performances about every 15 minutes. Each performance would be just three minutes. That would be a challenge to catch an entire cast dancing in three minutes. I felt I had bit off more than I could chew.


I climbed the stairs for an aerial view of the staging area. Suddenly I was surrounded by the entire ballet cast all dressed in black. They were posing for a photo in front of the Plaza Theater marquee and resting before the next performance. In the bright noon light they tended to look more like cheerleaders rather than zombies. I considered sketching them, but they went back downstairs just as I started. A woman’s piercing scream shifted my attention to the courtyard. She ran to the center of the courtyard, screaming the whole time. People turned to look concerned. Then Michael Jackson’s Thriller boomed from the sound system. The entire cast danced as zombies and ghouls. People kept gathering to watch. Then as Vincent Price laughed, the performers disappeared. The flash mob was used to help promote Vampire’s Ball which will run from October 19th to the 21st. The show is advertised as being frightening, erotic, and campy. I saw a preview from last year’s show and it looked amazing.


Tonight after 6PM at the City Arts Factory, Yow Dance will also be performing a Thriller Flash Mob as part of Dia Des Los Muertos and Monster Factory. At this flash mob, everyone is being encouraged to join in. So put on your best zombie attire and get out and dance! There will be makeup artists at City Arts Factory in case you need some extra gory wounds.

City Beautiful Church

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I went downtown to the Lake Eola band shell to meet Sarah Lockhard and a Voci dancer named Brie to discuss possibly doing a live projected sketch during a dance performance. Cory Violence would be reading a Tom Waits poem called Watch Her Disappear. Apparently every day in October there will be public performances like this all around town. When I got close, I noticed musicians playing in the parking lot behind the Polish Catholic Church. Meals were being distributed to the homeless and the music suggested that they surrender to Jesus.

When I got to the band shell, I sat in the back row and waited for Sarah. A band was setting up on stage with a large screen behind them. The screen and projector system would be perfect for the performance piece Sarah was considering.  One of the tech guys walked up to me and introduced himself. He was a former student of mine who was volunteering to help out with the City Beautiful Church concert. Since Sarah was a no show, I decided to sketch the band as they did their sound check.

Cole Nesmith explained that this church would be moving into a new bricks and mortar establishment just south of Lake Eola in a couple of weeks. In the mean time they were worshiping in the park. The band was quite good, playing lively and uplifting Christian rock. I’d never heard the songs before. Some of the lyrics were, “There is an army rising up. Break every chain. I may be down but I will rise. It may be dark but God is light.” Cole gave a sermon about the Prodigal Son, who took his fathers inheritance, squandered it and then returned home begging for food and forgiveness. The point of course was that god is all forgiving and full of love. Clouds of gnats swarmed around my head. I swatted they away as I drew. I finally had to leave in the middle of a song to get away from the bugs. A couple ran after me as I walked around the lake. They wanted to see the finished sketch. Their son was at the key boards.

Connected: An Interactive Experience

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Connected: An Interactive Experience was sold out. Aradhana Tiwari directed the show, and Holly Harris was the choreographer. I had a ticket but unfortunately didn’t have one for Terry. Jimmy Moore decided I could start sketching the space early so long as I used my artists stool. I picked a seat in the second row and saved a seat for Terry. All the seats in the theater had been set up with audio ear buds. This was a huge undertaking to set up in the 15 minutes or so before the house opened. Wired had to be duck taped to the floor and each audio connection tested. Terry and I were going to share a set of ear buds. The cast circled up in the center of the black box theater. Cole NeSmith said, “We are asking the audience to take chances, and I hope we all step up to take those chances with them.” He climbed into a three foot square box and he shouted to me, “Don’t look Thomas!” The stage manager shouted, “One minute to house open!” People shouted back, “Thank you one!”

The audience rushed in, and sure enough every seat was taken.  An announcer or guide, addressed everyone asking them to raise their hands if they could hear him. Everyone raised their hands, but I was sketching, my hands were busy. The show began with an isolated spotlight on the box, center stage. A light emanated from a hole at the top of the box. Two dancers circled and interacted with the mysterious box and then Cole, as Jacob was pulled out. Jacob’s mouth was taped shut and he wore sunglasses and earphones. Jacob was shut himself off  emotionally from the world around him.
As he faced moments from his past that caused him to isolate
himself, he was awakened to deeper levels of intimacy in his current
reality. The Guide invited each audience member on a
unique, introspective journey into their own past. This illuminating process of discovery welcomed the
audience into introspective and interactive moments that were
risky, challenging, humorous and healing.

Jacob was in several scenes in which his hurtful past was dredged up. He was usually focused on some small undefined task as others argued and interacted around him. His mom berated him constantly. The small boy was meek and introspective but the elder Jacob shouted, “NO! Stop!” Everyone  in the audience had been given point lights. They were asked to illuminate the light if someone had said hurtful things that forever stayed with them. The room was aglow with point lights. Terry shifted and my ear bud fell out. As I fumbled it back in my ear, the guide said, “See you are not alone, we all face the same fears and challenges.” Dancers walked on diagonals occasionally freezing in their hectic life as Jacob studied them. Audience members were invited to pose on pedestals along with Jacob. Long colorful paper ribbons were handed out to the audience and they were unfurled from person to person. A black light illuminated the ribbons and they glowed brightly in the dark room as dancers pulled them back in. Like Jacob, I was focused on a task. Sketching in the darkened theater was a challenge. With my earpiece constantly popping out, I gave up on it and sketched furiously. Without the guide, I was observing but very much isolated from the emotional involvement of the show. The performance rushed by and I struggled in the dark to catch a moment.

Connected, An Interactive Experience

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“Connected : The Interactive Experience” is the story of a man named Jacob who has shut himself off relationally from the world around him. As Jacob faces moments from his past that have caused him to isolate himself, he is awakened to deeper levels of intimacy in his current reality.

But Jacob isn’t the only one journeying into his memory. Through the use of technology, The Guide invites each audience member on a unique, introspective journey into their own emotional, physical and relational past. This illuminating process of discovery will welcome the audience into introspective and interactive moments that will surely be risky, challenging, humorous and healing.

This 60 minute theatrical experience combines drama, choreography and technology to connect the audience with the performers on stage, with one another and to the deepest parts of themselves.

I first learned about “Connected” when I went to Cole NeSmith‘s Facebook page to ask him about “The Tree of Light”. It turns out that “The Tree of Light” will be installed at Lake Eola on a cement pier that juts out into the lake on the Roseland Avenue side. The tree is just on hold until Cole finishes his work on “Connected.”  When I asked Cole if he felt that the Connected rehearsals are “sketchable”, he replied, “Yes, stop on by tonight!”

The rehearsal was at Downtown Credo (706 W Smith Street). Credo is a coffee shop in College Park where you pay what you want for your hot cup of Joe. I couldn’t imagine a dance rehearsal in a coffee shop so I had to see for myself. When I arrived, I noticed the dancers warming up in a back room. Holly Harris, the choreographer told me I could sketch from anywhere. I couldn’t place Holly, but she later let me know that she did the choreography for “The Pink Ribbon Project” which I had sketched. There was a couch in the room where the dancers were warming up so that is where I ended up. The cushions kept me from moving my arm as I drew, so I sat on the arm of the couch and moved the back cushion for freedom of movement.

In the first dance sequence, Cole sat in the center of the room wearing headphones and sunglasses. He held a flashlight which illuminated the ceiling. Dancers explored and swirled around him essentially guiding away from his insular world. Holly explained that some of the dancers would be holding canvas panels which would catch the shadows cast by fellow dancers. The dance studio was dark and Cole began to explore the edges of the staging area which meant he would be interacting with the audience. At one point, he lit up my sketch pad and looked down in wonder.

The second dance sequence was even more complicated. Dancers walked along diagonal lines and then froze for a moment while Cole moved among them. Later a group of four dancers stood center stage and individual dancers would move between them being tuned and toned through touch in a swift staccato factory styling before moving off refreshed and invigorated. Holly explained that these central dancers were “teaching people to connect.”

Connected will be premiering at the Green Venue at the Orlando International Fringe Festival in May. Tickets are $9 plus a Fringe button which is good for all the Fringe shows. Mark your calendar and get Connected!

  • Thursday 17 May; at 7:45pm

  • Saturday 19 May; at 8:30pm

  • Sunday 20 May; at 11:30am

  • Monday 21 May; at 5:45pm

  • Tuesday 22 May; at 8:45pm

  • Friday 25 May; at 10:15pm

  • Saturday 26 May; at 2:45pm

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.