Art Class

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Dog Powered Robot rehearsals were held in this art classroom. Christie Miga taught art classes here and I decided to stop by to see a class in action. This was before I started sketching at Elite Animation Academy and it was while sketching this class in actin that I decided it was inspiring to see kids creating using pencil and paper. One of the instructors actually posed for the students and it was great t see them step up to the challenge and sketch her as she sat in her chair. Kids don’t accept limitations. If you suggest they try creating something, they create something.

It is only when kids get older that they start to feel like they aren’t doing sketches accurately enough. I on the other hand keep striving to get back some of the childhood innocence and directness each time I do a sketch. Inspiring kids to catch the world around them by sketching is a challenge but sometimes it feels so good to see a kid embrace old technology as a way to slow down and truly experience the world.

Magic Beyond the Mouse

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In
May of 1989, The Walt Disney Company added an
animation studio in Central Florida.  Spearheaded by animation industry
expert, Max Howard, the Florida studio grew from a crew of 40 to more
than 400 in the mid-90s, before closing in January 2004.

The studio was responsible for the box office hits: Mulan (1998), Lilo and Stitch (2002) and Brother Bear (2003) and contributed substantially to films such as, The Little Mermaid (1989), Rescuers Down Under (1990), Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992), The Lion King (1994), and many more, reinvigorating the animation industry and The Walt Disney Company.

The
artists and staff at the Florida studio fostered an atmosphere that
bottled a type of magic that is hard to put in words, but anyone
familiar with the facility can attest that working together, this team
created a family that no other Disney environment has.

I teach an Urban Sketching class at Elite Animation Academy (8933 Conroy Windermere Rd, Orlando, FL 32835). The primary goal of the class is to introduce young students to the idea of carrying a sketchbook everywhere they go. Elite was formed by a former Disney Feature Animation artist and its mission of delivering traditional and digital art courses remains true to this day. It is a place where students can build a portfolio of work should they choose to pursue a career in movie making or game design.

A few blocks away from Elite, is Art of Fitness (5154 Dr Phillips Blvd, Orlando, FL) which was also formed by a former Disney Feature Animation employee named Ron Beta. Ron decided to mount an exhibit by former Disney Artists showcasing their art since the Disney Feature Animation Studio closed in 2004. In 2004, the Orlando Disney Studio was  just starting production on a new project tentatively called My Peoples or A few Good Ghosts that was about a folk artist living in Appalachia that made puppets out of re purposed parts. For instance Abe Lincoln was made from an old broom. I was slated to do the key drawings for a villainous possum and I was gearing up to find the final look of the character.

I invited my Urban Sketch students to sketch the installation of the exhibit. In my sketch you can see a full wall of wildlife paintings by Aaron Blaise and some mermaid watercolor paintings by Ronnie Willford lined up at the base of the mirrored wall. I had simply framed one of my Urban Sketches to add to the show. In all, twenty one former Disney Artists exhibited work in the show. When the Disney Studio closed, these artists proved that there is magic and meaning to life after the Mouse. Hopefully my students took away the lesson that working for any particular a studio isn’t always the crowning moment of an art career. Every artist who remains curious is always evolving.

Waiting for Fireworks at Lake Eola

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I finished teaching an Urban Sketching class at Elite Animation at 3pm on July 4th 2018. I decided to drive to the Pine Street studio since it is so close to Lake Eola and there is a parking spot behind the building. I didn’t think to see if any of the downtown Orlando side streets were closed. My direct route to the studio was blocked, so I had to snake north in an effort to make my way around Lake Eola. Luckily my block was not closed as well.

Walking to the lake only took a few minutes once I had parked. Rain threatened, with dark grey clouds on the horizon and it began to drizzle. I seldom sketch outside in the summer since there is usually a rain storm every afternoon. My plan was to sketch the early arrivals at the Lake. People come with picnics and hang out for the afternoon so that they are guaranteed a spot lakeside for the fireworks after the crowd presses in.

This couple has three pizza boxes along with some cans of coke and an incredible assortment of groceries still in the plastic bags they got at the check out counter. The band shell across the lake still sported he rainbow paint job it got for Pride after the Pulse Nightclub Massacre. The fountain was working and come evening, it would be lit up with red, white and blue spotlights. All the swans were out in the middle of the lake probably intimidated by the crowds of humans that kept circling the lake. The path was barricaded at the World of beer, so i imagine the fireworks would likely be launched from around that area.

The couple I was sketching smoked the entire time I was there and they were perched on a carped of dry pine needles which would ignite like a wildfire with any spark. Of course with all the sparks raining down from the sky, I imagine a few cigarette butts might be the cities least concern. To my right was a stage for a band, so this spot would certainly be extra crowded once the sun set. I left when the sketch was done because a fabulous meal of ribs awaited back at home. The neighborhood is a war zone of amateur fireworks anyway. Last year the smoke was so thick on the street that visibility was reduced to a few feet as if a London fog had descended. It is now dusk and the explosions are picking up their pace.

Sketching Blackrock with Elite Students.

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On the final class of my Urban Sketch course with my Elite Animation Academy students, I tend to bring them to Blackrock Bar and Grill, a restaurant that recently opened in Windermere (8965 Conroy Windermere Rd, Orlando, FL 32819.) I order an appetizer to share with the students. At Blackrock, your choice of meat or seafood arrives seared and sizzling, sitting atop
a square, inch-thick piece of volcanic granite, heated to 755 degrees.
Your server demonstrates the process of slicing, cooking, and time
needed – as quickly as a minute – before reaching your preferred
doneness.

On Sunday afternoon when we went to sketch, the bar was active with sports fans. It was too early for the dinner crowd, so we didn’t get to experience the sizzling rocks being delivered to tables. The point of this exercise was to focus on one point perspective. I showed every student this sketch in the early stages with the one point out by the far window which is the brightest light in the sketch.  I ordered a pretzel and cheese fondue appetizer for $9.99. Cheese and caffeine are fine fuel to do a quick sketch. I had a real talent in this class. The young girl seated in front to f me was doing stellar pencil line work. Her sketches were brilliant and it would have been nice to push her even further, exploring color and mass.I just hope she keeps doing a sketch each and every day which was my main mantra throughout the 10 classes.

This month I will be teaching Urban Sketch principals to adults for the first time at Crealde School of Art (600 St Andrews Blvd, Winter Park, FL 32792) on Sundays. I am excited to get the opportunity to share my experience with artists who are already well into their artistic journey. I did one workshop at Crealde and had a blast teaching. The Crealde classes start on Sunday January 28th. Contact Crealde if you want to join us. Classes will start in the classroom with a clothed model and then expand outside the studio so that we explore the community with our sketchbooks. The Urban Sketching: Tips and Techniques class starts at 9:30 PM until 12:30 PM each Sunday. Time to crack open those sketchbooks.

Urban Sketching with the Elite Animation Academy Summer School students.

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I had 16 students for the Elite Animation Academy Urban Sketching class last week. My thought was to bring the students to a different venue each day to sketch.With 16 students we tended to fill up any available seats. The best solution was to divide the class in half and have half the students in one venue and the other half in another. I stayed with the students at Subway, and the interns stayed with students at Planet Smoothie. The lesson for the day was largely about one point perspective. I encouraged the students to find a vanishing point at their eye level and have all the lines in the ceiling panels and floor tiles point at it. There was a mirror on the brick wall across from us and one student could see his reflection in the mirror. I explained that the vanishing point was right between his eyes in the reflection.

I sat down with each student and did a quick composition sketch so they could see how to build a sketch from the outside in. Prior to going on location we had done a series of five minute sketches that broke down the scene into 5 or 6 large shapes. Some students caught on quickly while others needed time to grasp the concept. I painted this sketch digitally the evening of the class by scanning the pencil sketch and painting behind it on a layer. A stop motion movie was created of the entire painting process and I showed that to the students to encourage them to push any sketch that they do towards being a painting by adding color. On the last day, they took their favorite sketch and added watercolor to it. It was a bit of a messy class but the students were very focused for the duration. There is something about adding color that makes a sketch become art.

Elite Animation Sketch class.

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This week I have been teaching a summer sketch class at Elite Animation, (8933 Conroy Windermere Rd, Orlando, FL 32835). I have 16 students and the goal of the class is to encourage the students to carry a sketchbook everywhere they go.  The first class we went over basic shapes and perspective and then for the afternoon we took a field trip across the street to Panera Bread. With 16 students we pretty much filled up the restaurant. It was encouraging to see many of the students using one point perspective for the first time while drawing on location. I remember when I first started drawing on location in NYC. I would circle the block multiple times until I worked up the nerve to start a sketch. Getting these kids started early means they are less likely to be concerned with sketching in public as they grow older.

For the second class, we went to a local retention pond to draw the ducks and bucolic scene. A family of ducks were very cooperative, with the mama duck and her chicks perfectly happy to pose for the intrepid young artists. It was hot however, even in the shade, so attentions wandered. One student started herding the ducks rather than sketching. It was a typical case of leading them to water but it was up to them to drink. Several students took in the entire scene and were right on task. We left a bit early to get back to the air conditioned classroom.

For the afternoon, I taught them the basic proportions of a face and then we set out to do 16 sketches in which students faced-off and did a sketch of each other. I tend to throw out the tasks rather fast and one student unfortunately got intimidated. I thought the student was acting when their head went down on the desk in agony. I later learned that another student had told him that his drawings weren’t any good. I’m of the opinion that any drawing if closely observed and sincerely done has value. The interns reassured the student for a bit and then I offered a personal lesson which gave him the confidence to return to the group and start working. It was reassuring to see the student that had been crushed only an hour before laughing as the next sketch was completed. Honestly art is a game, it is challenging, but can always be fun if approached with the right attitude.

Elite Animation Academy’s slogan is, “Developing young minds through the art of animation.” I’m proud to be part of a team that helps keep art alive in the hearts of students here in Central Florida.

Life Insurance

Posted on by Thor

I teach drawing fundamentals at Elite Animation Academy, (8933 Conroy Windermere Road Orlando Fl). Sometimes I teach story boarding, digital painting in Photoshop, and traditional hand drawn animation. This Academy has been growing with a new space opened in Tampa. With this new growth, the founders decided to offer a free life insurance police for employees.

After a full day of teaching, the insurance agent sat down with each employee to explain their coverage. As I waited for my turn, I sketched the conference in progress with Jason and his R2D2 lunch bucket. I had just recently separated from my wife, so it made no sense to list her as my beneficiary. The reality of this seismic change became became weighty as the life insurance policy was explained. There is only one way out of this life. My hands have a price.

Elite Perspective Class

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At Elite Animation Academy, 8933 Conroy Windermere Road, I teach a drawing fundamentals class for middle school and high school kids who are getting portfolios together for college. In the last class I was pleased that an adult was brace enough to sit in with the kids to refine his drawing skills. this class was about 1 Point, 2 Point and 3 Point Perspective. There were plenty of drawings done with rulers to define a floor plane, but I also encouraged the kids to also look for perspective angles with a looser eye.

In the early classes they often sketched from maquettes of movie animated characters. In this class they then had to lay out a floor plane grid and try to sketch multiple characters on that grid. It is the essence of what I do sketching on location every day. People become pieces on a chess board and I place them where I need them in the composition. I can’t resist the temptation to sketch when the students are really engaged in their work. My sketch employee the same principles as the lesson plan on a larger scale than the assignment. Students gestures fascinate me.

Liahona LDS Books: A Deseret Book Location.

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Liahona LDS Books: A Deseret Book Location, (8905 Conroy Windermere Rd, Orlando, FL 32835), is a Mormon bookstore supplying religious reading material, music, movies, art, jewelry and gifts.  I didn’t know the meaning of Deseret, so I asked Linda Sarascino what it meant and online. “The State of Deseret was a provisional state of the United States,
proposed in 1849 by settlers from The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City. The provisional state existed for slightly over two years and was never
recognized by the United States government. The name derives from the word for “honeybee” in the Book of Mormon.” 

I decided to bring my Elite Animation Academy, Urban Sketching Students to the bookstore to sketch. A statue of a prophet held out his to let costumers see the items on the counter. American Flag triangular flags were draped along the counter. My students sat in the stores reading room chairs. I need to encourage them to get closer the action. 

A very well dressed family entered the store and wandered the racks. There were children’s books and toys in the bad of the store. I never knew there were so many religious children’s books on the market. American flag and cloud paintings hung on the wall next to the entry door. Prints were arranged in the wicker basket. The sales lady was from New York City as was the family. They were in town for the Morman Convention. I was fascinated by this clean fashionable sub culture. My mom used to dress me up in a new suit every Easter with an embroidered label on the breast pocket. For whatever reason their clean cut out fits brought me back. 

Outside the sun set behind the duck pond.  My students got some decent sketches, and this was the first class, where I encouraged them to add watercolor to their sketches. Perhaps there was some divine intervention.  

Black Rock opens on Conroy Windermere Road.

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I teach an Urban Sketching Course at Elite Animation Academy (8933 Conroy Windermere Rd, Orlando, FL 32835). The main premise l to encourage students to keep a sketch pad with them at all times, so they can document the everyday moments of the lives. How often have you gone to a restaurant and found the wait time intolerable? If you sketched then it would see like the service is always too good since you don’t quite have enough time to finish the sketch you started. To a sketch artist sitting still, I work seems to us by. The challenge is to catch enough of those moments to bring the sketch alive. In this sketch, those two servers in aprons never actually stood and spoke to each other. Each was speaking to some one else who walked away before they could be captured. As the artist, I get to decide who interacts to each other in my world.

Service was actually very good at Black Rock (8965 Conroy Windermere Rd, Orlando, FL 32819). The restaurant gets it’s name from the sizzling steak it serves on literal hot rocks. I think the rock keep the steaks hot longer. I didn’t order a steak. I was here with my three Urban Sketches to sample an appetizer and to sketch. This was the final class so we pulled out all the stops using co to as well as line. Watercolor doesn’t hold up very well on | thin animation paper use in class, so I encouraged the student to try colored pencils to add color. I played along with them doing this sketch to show how I might approach the scene. The scene incorporate foreground, middle ground and background.

We had guacamole which was also served in a black rock dish. I can say that the appetizer was quite good, and I hope to return someday to try a full meal. The food certainly smelled delicious as servers walked past with the sizzling meals.