Giddy Up Go at the Wedding of KC and Bob.

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After the quick wedding of KC Cali and Bob Szafranski in the back room at Elixir (9 W Washington St, Orlando, FL 32801), the wedding party moved up into the bar area. There the order of business was socializing and Country music. Giddy Up Go began to perform on the small stage at the front of the room. Most guests kept their distance and shouted above the music. I talked to the artists that KC had invited. Then I walked into the bar to survey the scene. I’m recently separated, I should work the room and try and meet some new people. I never quite feel comfortable in loud shouting matches at bars.  Instead, I nestled up close to the band, leaned against a pillar and sketched. Any stress melted away.

Kelly and Courtney Jean Canova arrived during the reception, and began to shoot wedding photos. The large group family photos were shot just to my left. I had to watch my feet to avoid tripping anyone up. Two women at the end of the bar were loving the music. They shouted and whooped. I was surprised no one danced while I was working on the sketch. I tapped my toes the whole time. There is something reassuring about Old time country music. You don’t have to think too hard.

Giddy Up Go’s music hearkens back to the style of country that was played in smokey
ol’ honky tonk bars for patrons tryin’ to forget their troubles. From
Waylon to Willie, from Buck Owens to Hank Williams, they travel back
down that “lonesome highway”.

I had to rush off to Hamburger Mary’s to meet and sketch a survivor of the Pulse Nightclub tragedy. It was a whirlwind day of celebration and reflection of unity, love, and loss.

The Wedding Party featured retro radical tuxedos and brides maids gowns.

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The Wedding Party held in a hotel on International Drive was a chance for Orlando Wedding planners to experience a retro reception for themselves. The reception room was decorated to look like a wedding reception from the 1960s. Jaimz Dillman was at the entry in a gorgeous vintage gown and her husband was in a proper tux to greet guests. The wedding cake immediately caught my eye. It was multi layered with Greek columns for support. There were separate cakes for the groomsmen and brides maids. Staircases lead to the main cake with the groomsmen and bridesmaids perched on the steps. Below the main cake was a tiny illuminated fountain. The cakes creator proudly explained to people the incredible amount of work that went into its creation. It wasn’t cut up the entire time I sketched it which is a shame because I was hoping to catch that action. I don’t believe it was ever cut up and served.

A dating game style show was set up and couples competed to hilarious effect. The disco ball was a nice touch to the overall look. My favorite tuxedo was baby blue with plenty of frills. They should bring that style back. It turned out that this room wasn’t the main event. Everyone was whisked off to another more spacious room. I remained behind until the sketch was done. Photographer Kelly Canova and a fried returned to this room since it was the only place to have a quiet conversation. I’ve met Kelly and her husband Gene quite a few times at various arts events. Gene is an accomplished muralist and artist. When I had a solo exhibit at Snap Space, Kelly and Gene loaned me an old beat up artists table which was used to showcase my daily artist kit. I got a chance to catch up with Kelly as I finished my sketch.

When my sketch was done, I went to the bigger, wilder party going on next door. A woman hung from a chandelier where she poured drinks. I started a sketch, but her shift ended and she tried to get down. The clasps that kept her suspended got caught and she couldn’t get down. A man came over to help her. He tried to support her weight while she struggled with the hardware. Finally the clasp was set free and she dropped to the floor. The dance floor was full of women in wedding dresses dancing the night away. I tried a few appetizers and then slipped away to get back home. I had invited Terry but she didn’t come to the party since she knew I would be working.

pARTicipation

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It had rained all day on Saturday March 29th. An e-mail flash from the Maitland Art Center had said the that evenings “pARTicipate” would go on rain or shine. pARTicipate is an annual fundraiser where local artists are assigned a table to host and decorate. The dress code was cocktail attire, with a flair. The email highly recommend wearing comfortable (flat) shoes. This is a traveling party, and there will be walking on bricks and grass. I considered wearing my hiking boots to transverse the mud but they didn’t quite go with the suit and tie. Guests could take photos at the photobooth, make pieces of art at a creation station, visit any of the artist demonstrations, and bid in the silent art auction.

Terry and I were assigned to Robert Ross‘s table. Amazingly he had small 5 by 7 inch paintings matted as a gift for each guest.  One painting was a colorful plein air painting of a lake and the other had neutral greyed down colors depicting a barn and fence. It had a Grant Wood simplicity. Each wall of the architecture was a single brush stroke. Long after the event Robert contacted me to get a high resolution scan of the painting because he wanted to use it as a study for a much larger piece.

A large tent had been set up in preparation for the rain but thankfully the sky cleared up just enough so that there was I gorgeous sunset over the lake behind the Art Center. Glowing balloons lead guests back to the tent which was outside the Art Center’s fortifications. I didn’t sit for diner. Instead I stood at one of the high top tables to sketch. Three Full Sail students also sat at Roberts table as well as Kelly Canova who was photographing the event.

Voci dance performed a ritualistic dance accompanied by a drum. Terry and I explored the auction items inside the museum. Terry did place several bids but didn’t win the items. It was shoulder to shoulder standing room inside the museum. This annual gala is really a highlight every year to see what Orlando visual artists are doing. Dawn Schreiner‘s table was a playful pop up book style map of Orlando. Another table had art supplies so that guests could create.

Wrapping the Maitland Art Center

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March first was Artist Colony Day at the Maitland Art Center (231 Packwood Ave W, Maitland, FL). Between 2-6pm there were Open Studios and hands on activities, then between 2-6pm The Maitland Art Center was wrapped in blue plastic. I’m sure the idea is inspired by the art of Christo. The entire month of March was filled with experimentation and collaboration referred to as Art 31.

I expected a crowd on day 1 but instead found that the only people on site were the dozen or so volunteers. A food truck was purring behind me as I started to sketch. The wrap began at the South east corner of the building. Two volunteers on the roof lowered a roll of clear blue plastic on a string. The volunteers on the ground secured the plastic with a cinder-block brick and then the roll was pulled up to the roof where it was again secured with a brick.

Courtney Jean Canova rode up in a recumbent bike to say hello. He had biked from his home about 11 miles away. I admired his exercise ethic. My bike has broken spokes and flat tires and has been neglected for years. Perhaps it is time to give that bike some love, attention and use. Cortney parked his bike and then started shooting photos of the volunteers at work. Courtney’s wife Kelly arrived by car so that Courtney didn’t have to bike all the way home. Linda Saracino was at the event for a short time. She lamented the fact that such a cool event was getting so little attention. I did what little I could with a sketch.

As I making final preparations for my retrospective show, Courtney came through in a crunch when I put out a request for an old beat up table to put my art supplies on in the exhibit. He had a battered old drafting table that fit the bill perfectly. I also picked up an old French folding table from Kathy Wilhelm Witkowski but the drafting table was picked for display. Kathy has a studio called “New Leaf Studio” which I’m now curious to sketch. The name implies fresh new foliage after a long winter or perhaps it simply implies the leaf’s in a table.