Festa Itlaiana

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I went to Lake Lilly Park in Maitland where there was an Italian Festival. The festival was in the venue right on Lake Lilly. I parked a few blocks away at the Maitland Art Center and hiked the short distance to the festival. New cars were parked on the grass from a local dealership. I decided to sketch a food tent that was doing a booming business. They were selling freshly made cannolis. Cannoli consist of tube-shaped shells of fried pastry dough, filled with a sweet, creamy filling usually containing ricotta. The heavy set guy was stirring the cannoli custard. I believe they filled the cannolis on the spot as they were sold. I was sitting next to an Italian family. The young boy was running everywhere and the petite wife seemed to be always trying to wrangle him in. They didn’t seem to mind my sketching.

Once the quick sketch was done, I scouted inside. There were expensive slices of pizza. and I ordered one. On stage was a singer who was crooning Frank Sinatra classics. The next act was an accordion player. In the corner of the venue were exotic Venetian masks. Another table offered travel plans to Italy. The audience relaxed at the round tables. By the time I made my way back outside, the cannoli vendor had run out of cannolis. I was devastated. How could I write about my experiences without at least tasting a cannoli? There was an Italian ice vendor who still had product, but I didn’t decided to try any.

The scene inside reminded me of the wedding scene in the Godfather movie in which classic Vegas performers entertained the guests. This small event just lacked that level of professional polish. In general the vendors were commercial and not necessarily Italian themed. For instance Verizon was offering information about their Internet packages. I was desperate to get rid of At&T which gave me horrible reception in my apartment. They also never figured out how to mail me my bills, so it was stressful to have to double check to make sure i was paying them despite never getting billed. Probably because of this Italian Festival, I ended up switching to Verizon and Now my reception is better and they send me monthly bills. Life is much easier. it was satisfying to get rid of AT&T which offered literally no costumer service.

In NYC there were always lots of these ethnic street festivals. I miss just running into festivals on the fly. Festivals do exist in Orlando, you just have to keep an eye out to find them.

A Russian Christmas.

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On December 11th, the Maitland, Presbyterian Church (341 N Orlando Ave, Maitland, FL 32751) presented A Russian Christmas. Russia is well known for producing talented composers like Tchaikovsky and Prokofiev. This concert presented sounds of the holiday season with a Russian flair. June Flowers, who organizes music a presentations around Central Florida, asked me to come and sketch the performance. June introduced me to Elizabeth St. Hilaire who is a visual artist and also a violin player. I made sure to get Elizabeth’s pinch hair in the sketch. 

The Artistic Director and Conductor was Eric W. Mendez. Most arrangements were purely instrumental, but Cantique de Noel featured soprano Laura Bertshinger. Her performance elicited a standing oration. The Emcees for the night were Sent in a columnist Scott Maxwell, and Margaret Patten. Scott mentioned an article he had just written about 101 of the things that make Central Florida unique. I had just read that article and pulled it out of the paper because it contained so many sketch opportunities.  That article listen the Maitland Symphony Orchestra as one of the unique 101 gems. 

The concert was free, but of course donations were encouraged. This concert was certainly a way to warm up to the Christmas season. I slipped away during A Christmas Festival by Leroy Anderson. I wanted to avoid the crush of the crowd when the concert ended.

Heartfulness Meditation

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I went to the Maitland Public Library (501 S. Maitland Ave., Maitland, FL) to “learn simple techniques that improve wellness of being.” This Heartfulness Meditation happens every second and fourth Monday of every month, 6-8 p.m.  I have attended group meditations before which consisted of 45 minutes of silent meditation, followed by a group discussion. I focused on the blankets on the floor thinking people would be sitting there as they meditated. I was wrong: they sat classroom-style in rows of tables and chairs outside the sketch’s composition.

Only one person was in the room when I first entered. She had bright blue hair and confided that this was her first time meditating here. She had tried YouTube meditation videos and was afraid that the PC hooked up to the TV meant more of the same. The mediator for the session was a young Indian fellow whose name I never caught.

For most of November I had to spar with a friend who I feared would be a delinquent client. My head was spinning, wondering what I could have done differently to preserve the friendship. The damage was done. My instructor seemed to sense this and he began by talking about someone who is obsessed with a fight. He had a nervous laugh that reminded me of a nephew of mine. With thoughts of the fight in mind, a person is already on guard, prepared for another fight. He offered us a guided cleaning. He used the metaphor of a dirty home. Sometimes cleaning just moves the dirt around. He equated a meditated cleaning to be like opening all the windows and doors to air out the space. The weather is finally cool enough to allow for that. My mind definitely needs to be aired out.

The goal of his meditation session was to clear the heart space. He wanted us to imagine a source of light within which has no luminosity or radiance. Light is the most subtle thing to meditate on. When we imagine a light without illumination, it puts the mind on the edge of an inner dimension where we don’t deal with thoughts but build heartfulness based on silence. He dimmed the lights to the room and everyone closed their eyes. I, of course, sketched, searching for the light in the dark room. Halfway into the sketch I realized everyone had taken their shoes off. Darn it, I couldn’t even get that unspoken cue right. The brush sounded insanely loud on the page, so I slowed down my painting to try and stay silent. I doubt I succeeded.

After the cleaning, we proceeded to a silent meditation which lasted perhaps half an hour. The goal was to stop chasing impressions and thoughts. To live life calmly. Our thoughts derive their power from our attention. Thoughts are like a river or clouds in the sky: when we feel them coming, then we have to let them go. Will power must be used to remove impressions. The will needs to be precise and firm. There were four others seated on folding chairs in the room. One left early and the woman with the blue hair left during silent meditation. Heather confided afterwards that meditation cultivated negative feelings in her mind. Her results were the opposite of what was hoped for. He let her know that this session had been short, and with regular daily practice she could achieve the heartfulness that would allow a life of being balanced and poised.

With the sketch complete I lowered my head and relaxed. A minute later the session was over. I’m hoping that sketching gives the heartfulness he was talking about. My thoughts were limited to lighter, darker, larger, smaller. My inner dialogue about conflict had no room to grow. My heart stopped pounding in my ears. A truce meant a hope for peace.

Marla E. Artist Opening.

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The Maitland Civic Center on Lake Lilly is trying to change it’s image. It has been renamed “Venue on the Lake” (641 South Maitland Avenue Maitland FL 32751). People perceived the Civic Center as being run by the city. The venue is however privately owned. It has undergone a major face lift recently, including, Linda’s Corner which was the east wing’s catering area. They considered calling it Linda’s Bar, but that was vetoed as being too low class. The outside landscaping was redone along with the patio and decorative outdoor lights.

George Williston gave everyone a quick lesson in chairs. The Center used to be full of simple folding chairs. It turns out folding chairs have a butt life of at most half an hour. New black banquet  chairs have a butt life of about an hour, and the new green banquet chairs have a butt life of several hours. I was pleased that I was sitting in s green banquet chair. Danial Jordan performed on flute and saxaphone as patrons sampled the banquet food and free drinks. The evening was mostly a fundraiser to continue the restorations at the Venue. There is a theater in the Ivanhoe district called The Venue, so perhaps a better name is needed.

The gallery area between the east and west wings was also re-modeled. Artwork by Mark E. Artist was on display. Her large abstract painting incorporate en-caustics to create three dimensional patterns on the surface followed by bold colorful brushwork. Marla has a face designed for smiling. Her wide eyes were magnified in her 1950s styled eye glasses. My favorite painting had a blue and green field on the upper two thirds of a vertical panel.  An simple brown arching line seemed to define a ground plane with encaustic squares filling a grid pattern. Circular “planets” floated above. I believe the show is up for several months, so stop out.

Art Under the Stars.

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Art Under the Stars in Maitland surrounds Lake Lily where Maitland Boulevard forks off from Orlando Avenue. Run by the Maitland Rotary Club, the art show runs today from 10am to 4pm. I met a friend and quickly tried to decide where I should sketch. My first thought was the foot bridge that straddles the lake. From there all the tents and stages were visible with the lights reflecting in cascading patterns. An illuminated fountain glowed yellow in the center of the lake. I decided against in view, though, since I felt it was too far from the action.

After crossing the bridge, I simply planted myself on a grassy knoll and started sketching a few tents. A painting of sunflowers byFiona Collins caught my eye. Fiona and her husband moved from Canada to Florida, and this is her first Maitland show. Her work is painted with thick bold brushwork. Besides the large paintings she also had coasters and trivets with her art printed on it. Her husband runs a printing business that specializes in printing art on useful household items.

We ran into Dawn Schreiner and her husband, Eric. Dawn didn’t have a tent in the show, but just came from the VIP party. She does magnificent loosely painted portraits, usually on recycled cereal boxes. We shared our thoughts on the work of Toulouse Lautrec, and the healing process Orlando is still going through since the Pulse shooting.

It was a cold night and I decided to get a hot pretzel. I hugged it to my chest to warm me up before trying the first bite. It had a garlic-parmigiana flavor and was softer than expected but it tasted great.

Linda Saracino introduced me to the sculptural ceramic work of Cheryl Mackey Smith, a former McRae artist now living in Ashville, NC, who really impressed me. She creates small shards that look like fossilized shells or exoskeletons, and mounts them on a white board in shadowbox frames. Other forms fold over on themselves like ocean waves with tiny peas interspersed. Every piece felt like it belonged in a museum.

Ed Myers did the poster for the show this year. All of his paintings have a narrative, often touching on how communication is changing in the future. He works digitally and prints the paintings on large canvas panels, often assembling several panels to form a whole. For example, Thomas Edison had a light bulb where his brain would be; and a painting of a beautiful young woman had typewriter keys arching across her forehead. Some pieces incorporated video, like a portrait with one eye blinking. People are naturally attracted to motion.

Head on over to the festival today, and see all the art in the light of day. It is a show well worth seeing. Live music, art and a festive atmosphere will make for a very pleasant afternoon.

United Arts is offering Artist in the Community Grants.

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I went to a workshop offered by Mary Giraulo, the United Arts of Central Florida Manager of Grants and Arts Education at the Maitland Arts Center (231 Packwood Ave, Maitland, FL). The room was pretty full and the Power Point presentation was already started. An author had read about my Life Sketch project where I went to retirement homes to sketch people and get their life stories. I had collaborated with several authors in the past. While they conducted the interview, I sketched. This worked for me because once I start a sketch, I’m lost in the moment until the final wash and lines hit the page. Any conversation is a distraction that takes me cot of my “zone”. One author I worked with took her own life and the other decided it was too much work after a few write ups.

I decided this grant would help pay for the author’s time as well as my own. She was considering a grant for another project as well. I asked at the workshop if an author could collaborate on one project and also get their own grant and it is possible. The tricky loop hole in this grant is that United Arts would only fund half the amount needed. The rest of the funding would have to come from private sources.  The maximum grant amount is $2,500. So I would need to match that amount.

Via e-mail the author let me know that she decided against collaborating on my project. I have 3 days to decide if I will apply for the grant on my own. Perhaps I don’t need an author but instead I could use a tape recorder. When I’m sketching people, they tell me stories even when my attention is mostly on the sketch. Perhaps I could ask a few questions and keep working. I have to finish a large illustration in the next few days and then maybe I’ll fill out all the paperwork. I’ve started keeping track of all the opportunities that are available as I move ahead and this is just one of many. As an artist, you have to pick your battles as you learn to survive as an artist.

Art Car

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March at the Maitland Art Center involved a solid month of artistic events called Art 31, meaning 31 days of art. On March 25th, I arrived early for the Artists Critique and Conversation in the Germaine Marvel Building, 210 W. Packwood Avenue, Maitland. Artist and muralist Andrew Spear had covered a Toyota with symbols and patterns inspired by the many sculpted patterns on the Maitland Art Center campus. The car was silver and some of the panels had been painted white to accentuate the line work added to the car. He made a wonderful use of just one color, orange which  showed up throughout. The car had a pizza delivery or taxi signage with information about Art 31.

Although we never experience fall or winter here in Central Florida, there were plenty of leaves blowing around the carport across from the Art Center. Which reminds, me, it was a very windy day. A couple had taken the afternoon off and were bringing their ten year old son to the museum. He noticed me seated in the car port and kept his eyes on me. His parents never looked anywhere but straight ahead. The building had recently been covered with blue plastic as part of the 31 days of art. The plastic rustled and snapped in the wind.

I was one of the first people to arrive at the Critique which was a blood bath.

The Cottage at Lake Lilly

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Dawn Shreiner took over the Artist Critique and Conversation series at the Maitland Art Center from Josh Garrick. Dawn asked me to be a panelist on the evening of January 28th. The Facebook invitation said that the Critique would be at the Cottage at Lake Lilly, 701 Lake Lily Drive, Maitland FL.  I decided to get to the cottage early and sketch. As the sun set, it projected wonderful golden beams across the lawn. Big ugly ducks waddled right up to me to see what I was up to. Maybe they thought the paint was food. They eventually lost interest.

I found it odd that no one entered the cottage as I sketched. It was getting close to the start time of the critique as I finished up. Dawn finally arrived and I joined her on the porch. A small card was taped to the door that said the location had been changed to the Maitland Art Center. “Josh darn it!” Dawn said and she took off. I shouted out that I would be there soon.  I threw down a few more washes on my sketch then packed up to head over.

This artist development series offers artists a unique opportunity to have their work reviewed by a panel of professional artists. Camilo Velasquez was the other panelist. Ironically Camilo was the guest panelist the last time I was a panelist over a year ago. There were only three artists who wanted feedback on their work so the session was quick and to the point. Delores Haberkorn showed a large painting of a Christ like figure floating in space cradling a fetus in his out stretched hands. He stared out at the viewer in an unnerving way. We stressed the need for some soft edges and warmth in the fetal form. I pointed out that Christ should probably look at the child in his grasp. This painting was a big departure for Delores, so it was exciting to see her tackle new ground. Dawn offered insightful feedback on composition and maintaining a center of focus. Another artist showed paintings done from photos and there is always a sort of uncommitted calmness to work filtered through another photographer’s lens. Another artist showed a sumi brush painting of a horse. I thought it was direct and bold but would become simpler and more direct after she did several hundred of them. I encouraged her to find a horse barn and do these brush paintings from life. Camilo advised her not to mimic a culture that developed the style over hundreds of years.

Camilo ended by saying there was plenty of love seen in all the work shown. Our comments were meant to help guide the pieces towards completion, but as long as each new painting was approached with love, then the artist is on the right track.

The next critique takes place on Tuesday, March 25th at 6:00 PM

Featuring Lead Panelist Rebecca Sexton Larson

March Guest Panelists: Famed Gallerist Mindy Solomon

 LOCATION THIS MONTH: GERMAINE MARVEL BUILDING

210 W. Packwood Avenue, Maitland

The Art & History Museums – Maitland (A&H) proudly hosts Artists’ Critique & Conversation,
an exciting initiative to assist in the professional development of
local artists.   Artists’ Critique & Conversation is held
bi-monthly, on the 4th Tuesday of every other month at 6:00 p.m.

Artists’ Critique and Conversation is FREE and the
public is encouraged to attend. A bar is available with beer, wine,
water and soft drinks.  Artists of every medium and skill level are
encouraged to participate in the critiques.  Each critique will review
up to 9 artists, and all artists must sign up in advance. Interested artists can sign up in advance for one of the nine slots by emailing rebecca@artandhistory.org. 

The Maitland Food Truck Cafe

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On June 10th, The Mother Band performed at Lake Lily as part of the Maitland Food Truck Cafe event. The band was just starting to set up when I arrived. My focus shifted to the long line of food trucks, so I sat down and started to sketch. A TV news crew was there interviewing food truck chefs. That made me suspect that I was on the cusp of a breaking story.  Perhaps a food truck was a front for a huge drug trafficking ring. A gun fight could break out, forcing me to sketch from behind the cover of a tree. Perhaps it is mob week on TV and I’m imagining things.

 I’ve seen the retro styled Yum Yum truck before at other Food Truck events. The Tree House Truck was new to me. A mom and her daughter ordered a meal and sat at a picnic table to eat. A Korean girl looked over my shoulder inspecting at every line as I put it on the page. The sky was getting grey with storm clouds and thunder rumbled across the lake. It began to rain with a trickle of large wet drops to start. I was under the cover of a tree and the leaves offered shelter for my sketch at first. Then the deluge started and I quickly packed away the sketch and ran for my car. By default, the sketch was done. As I drove home, I realized I was hungry. Why on earth didn’t I order some food. I’d make a terrible “Foodie” since my focus on sketching distracts me from tasting. I also forgot to listen in to how the band sounded in the distance. Strike two for my in depth reporting.

Mark your Calendars! The Maitland Food Truck Cafe is tonight, Wednesday August 21st and August 28th starting at 6pm on the shore of Lake Lily. The event is closed for the month of September and will reopen on the first Wednesday of every month starting in October.

Plein Air Paint demonstration Frank Ferrante

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On Saturday June 15th there was a free Plein Air Paint demonstration by Frank Ferrante at the Cottage, located on beautiful Lake Lily Park in Maitland. I walked all the way around the lake, figuring a plein air painting demonstration would be outside. “En Plein Air” after all is a French phrase meaning “in the open air”. I finally discovered a small sign that pointed to the cottage. Perhaps ten to fifteen artists had gathered to watch Frank work.

Frank is originally from New Jersey and three other artists were from the Garden State as well, myself included. He now lives in Port Orange, Florida. Frank studied painting with John Osborne at the Ridgewood Art Institute. He painted every Sunday with John Osborne outside for many years. The methods he learned were handed down through several generations of artists having begun with American Impressionist Frank Vincent Dumond who taught at the Art Student’s League in NYC. Dumond died in 1961, the year I was born.In 1966 Frank Ferrante was stationed at Paris Island and he joined the Beaufort Painting Association.

The demonstration focused on the formal elements of painting composition, color values, structure and form. Emphasis was placed on composition, capturing light and dark shapes, atmosphere and mood while using strong color harmony. Frank utilizes what he calls the prismatic palette which mimics the prismatic effects seen outside. The ROYGBIV colors of the rainbow were arranged across the top of the palette. Anything upright in a landscape would catch the sunlight to become orange. The sky is like a big blue lamp and water reflects the blue of the sky. Frank began with a very rough valve study in which he scumbled blue grey paints onto the canvas to find the darks of the scene. He was painting a path that lead back into a palm tree filled grove.

He then put up a canvas of the same scene that was much more developed. He talked about folding darks into lights and lights into darks. His brush strokes were X’s and he worked moist oils into moist. His brush gets plenty of abuse and it’s flat shape becomes warn into a point by the time he is done with it. Studies that he does on location are usually smaller and only one in thirty ever becomes a studio painting. He stressed that the darks in a painting are very important.  I discovered that I didn’t have my brushes in my bag to finish my sketch! I started putting in some darks using graphite. Then I took everything out of my bag and discovered one abandoned brush in the bottom of the bag. My sketch was saved. The demonstration was much shorter than I expected. After the demonstration, I joked with Frank that his demonstration was like one of those cooking shows in which the finished cake was already baked and under the counter. We both laughed.