South Beach Drink and Draw

Posted on by Thor

After a long day of sketching at Art Deco Weekend in South Beach Miami, the Urban Sketchers then met for a drink and draw a block away from the beach at Abuella’s Cuban Kitchen. A group of us ate dinner downstairs and then the plan was to to hold the Drink and Draw upstairs. There was some confusion with the restaurant owners who seemed unaware of the plans that had been made weeks before. The dinner we had was sub par. An 18% tip was
already in the bill and I decided to fill out the digital form to give a
20% tip instead. After seeing someone else fill out the form I realized I had
given a $20 tip rather than 20%. The waitress gave me a $20 bill back.

One sketcher came downstairs and said the space upstairs was cold and weird. That made me want to go up and see for myself. Ultimately we did all go upstairs to an outdoor patio that overlooked the street. I liked the curve linear cornice in front of which many of our group sat. It was indeed spacious and weird, I liked it.

To my right the discussion turned to mixing music as a DJ. Several of the group were into mixing beats. James Richards spoke to an artist at length and Pam spoke to James’ wife. I focused my attention on finishing this sketch for the duration.  One artist was told she would have to order something other than a water or she would have to leave. She had just paid for a very expensive tasteless diner downstairs. She stood her ground. This evening left the impression that South Beach Miami is cut throat and rude.

Drink and Draw

Posted on by Thor

Sarah Jane Rozman hosted a Drink and Draw at The Nook on Robinson (2432 E. Robinson St, Orlando, Florida). I host an Orlando Drink and Draw (ODD) once a month as well so I decided to stop in to see how this Drink and Draw differed. The biggest difference was that a winner got $$$ for their bar tab! The artists in attendance all were given a theme so all the at produced tied together. Finished pieces were taped to the wall. Since I was working on this sketch, I didn’t follow the rules.

The good thing about this venue was that the Drink and Draw directly followed Tasty Tuesday which is a food truck event that happens each Tuesday in the parking lot behind The Nook. This guarantees that Tuesday nights are going to be pretty crowded. I knew Sarah since she used to work at Art Systems in the print department. Unfortunately the color printer seldom worked so I started getting my prints at RT Art instead.

In 2019 I let ODD lapse since Orlando Urban Sketchers were hosting so many successful sketch events. Unfortunately those outing were almost all on days I was teaching art at Elite Animation Academy or Crealde School of Art. I still try and sketch every night so my best chance to meet fellow artists is to start hosing ODD events again once a month.

Horror in the Milk District

Posted on by Thor

I went to a Drink and Draw in the Milk District and parked on a side street. When I left the event I noticed a bright orange glow and decided to change my route home and drive towards the light. On Kilgore between Primrose and Graham I found this lawn littered with graves and a skeletal dragon. Since I had already done a sketch for the night I wanted to get home but I made a mental note to return the next night.

On Hallows Eve I returned and parked a short distance away, not wanting to block the view. I considered sketching from across the street but a neighbor had on a bright light which I considered a distraction. Instead, I sat right on the curb and started to catch as much of the scene as I could. Fairly early in the sketch, I noticed the owner of the home walk out looking at his cell phone. I figured he must have seen me from inside and wanted to see what I was up to.

He later related that his cat had been acting strange and so he wanted to see why. He then noticed birds chirping which was strange since it was nighttime. When he got to the end of his driveway I decided to say hello. He nearly jumped out of his skin, a reaction I hadn’t expected. He hadn’t seen me until I spoke up. He later said that he thought I was seated in a wheel chair. I must have been a ghostly apparition. Then we joked and talked for a while. I told him about my childhood memories of carving hundreds of pumpkins each Halloween for my families annual display.

Most of the figures on his lawn are action motivated. The dragon’s eyes light up and he opens his mouth to hiss. The skeletal cat and skeleton leaning against a gravestone do much the same. Neighbor walked by to check out the display, and Pam Schwartz joined me to check out the display. She chatted to people as I sketched. It was a friendly relaxing neighborhood gathering.

Loose Lips at lil indies.

Posted on by Thor

I hosted a Drink and Draw at lil indies (1036 N. Mills Ave,, Orlando, Florida 32803). As an added bonus, Tod Caviness was hosting a literary reading event called Loose Lips which began later in the evening. Three landscape architects showed up, along with Colin Boyer. We sat at corner table to get a good view of the room which felt like a grand parent’s basement. The room slowly filled with authors. I sketched Tod at the microphone as he introduced the first author. Karen Price read a fiction pie set in Paris France. It was a story about an artist who had to deal with a flooding of the Seine River. Today, no artist could afford to live right on the Seine. When visiting Paris, I sketched the art studio of one of my favorite artists, Daumier. His studio had a gorgeous view over the Seine.

Just yesterday, I moved into a two bedroom apartment in Thornton Park. My lease had been terminated by a snow bird that returned to Winter Park two months early. With my lease terminated, I had to find an apartment fast. I posted my predicament on Facebook and amazingly a friend offered an apartment that is right downtown and the first evening after the move, I walked to the venue I was going to sketch. I think this is the first time in 22 years where I didn’t have to drive to where I wanted. to sketch. I walked through the beautiful downtown neighborhood full of quaint 1940’s restored bungalows with a friend. It was an ideal evening.

A creative crowd at the Dribbble Meetup at Envy Labs.

Posted on by Thor

I went to sketch at Envy Labs (618 E South Street · Suite 620 Orlando, FL)  for an event called the Dribbble Meetup. Every one was scribbling away on graphic design concepts when I arrived. They were working on spec to create a new Orlando Designers logo. I was please to see many of the designers working old school putting pencil to paper. The venue provided dotted paper. There was drinking and drawing with the hope to win more than bragging rights. I’m not sure what prizes might have been offered, but wasn’t tempted. I have my own agenda. If someone wants to design a logo they would need to hire me.

Many artists were more interested in hanging out rather than focusing on design. The open bar in the corner was constantly busy. Carlos Basabe an amazing illustrator who attends my Drink and Draw events stopped by to say hello. It is wife is a designer so that is why he gets the invites.  I’m not sure how I was invited, but it was fun to see a crowded room full of creatives. Music set the beat to the evening. An MC named Daisy stood at the front of the room with a megaphone. She let everyone know how much time was left to create. I timed my sketch to her announcements. She then walked around the room, still projecting her voice with the megaphone. She was quite funny.

There was apparently an art swap going on as well. Designers were encouraged to bring in any stray prints they might have to swag with fellow artists.I didn’t actually notice any swapping going on. Dribbble is a growing artistic community. If you are a creative, you should look them up. And there are indeed three bs in Dribbble.The hand writing recognition on this Windows 10 tablet sucks. I may need to get a wireless keyboard and learn to type. The ghost in the machine keeps changing what I write.