The Accidental Historian

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The Orange County Regional History Center (65 E. Central Blvd. Orlando, Florida 32801) is creating an exhibit that will run from September 21, 2019 through January 19, 2020 called The Accidental Historian. The premise is that every day citizens could be historians without even realizing it! That’s certainly true of many bloggers, urban sketchers, photographers, and more. In this engaging exhibition, patrons can learn how individuals who are absorbed in documenting the world of today accidentally become some of Central Florida’s finest historians for the future. Catch a glimpse into some of the museum’s favorite collections that were created for the now – more than 100 years ago.

I was  invited to contribute to this exhibit. The above sketch was done in front of the History Center in the exact spot a historical photo was shot back in the 1920s.  It was fascinating to see what has changed and what has not changed. The 55 West building is certainly new but many of the buildings on this street look exactly the way they did 100 years ago. If you go to the History Center web site you will see that this sketch was married to the old photo from the past creating a unique split screen view of this intersection at two separate points on the timeline. A larger than life framed version of this split screen is being created so that people who go to the exhibit can walk inside my sketch for a family photo opportunity. Anyone on the black and white photo side will be shown in black and white and anyone on my sketch side off the scene will be in vibrant color. I cant wait to see how this turn out in practice.

Besides my contributions to the show, other members of Orlando Urban Sketchers will have their work on display since the artists of today will be each leaving behind a unique view of what it is like to live in Orlando. So put September 21, 2019 on your calendar and come to see the history being recorded in unique ways every day right here in Orlando.

Waiting for the Lake Eola July 4th Fireworks

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I experienced the Lake Eola Fireworks with Pam Schwartz and her family visiting from Iowa. July 4th also happens to be Pam’s niece, Destiny’s birthday so she gets to celebrate her birth on the same day as our nation. We all got a strong lesson in Central Florida History before heading down to the lake along with artifacts like a KKK robe and a lynching photo. On the same floor of the Orange Country Regional History Center there is Love Speaks which features art created in answer to the Pulse massacre three years ago. The history Center is just one block from the lake and we hiked to the lake with a picnic blanket, some lawn chairs and a cooler. We got to the lake about four hours before the fireworks were scheduled to go off.

The crowd grew thick as we approached the Disney Bandshell which had live music. Food trucks. TV trucks and various vendors were around the bandshell. A bus was parked at the end of Washington Street adjacent to the park so that no madman could drive into the park to kill pedestrians. As we spread out our blanket I scanned the high rises looking for spots where a gunman might decided to fire on the crown below. Our blanked fit nicely between two other families. Kids played cards and grew squirrely as they lost patience.

I decided to sketch a woman seated next to us who had a piece of luggage which had a convenient shelf that opened up as a portal to a TV screen. She had on head phones and around her neck was another digital device probably for audio. I had been tracking storm clouds using my iPhone radar and predicted about a 50 chance of rain. As I sketched it started to rain. Pam went back to the museum to get some red white and blue umbrellas and also some Geico blue ponchos for the kids.The rain never got heavy enough to keep me from sketching. The opposite was true. The rain settled the crowd down making the scene easier to draw.

Orlando’s 5th Annual Celebrity Bartender Night

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The Center, and Tito’s Handmade Vodka presented Orlando’s 5th Annual Celebrity Bartender Night was held at SAVOY Orlando (1913 North Orange Ave, Orlando, Florida 32804.) Some of Orlando’s most well known local celebrities were serving from behind
the bar. Pam Schwartz, the Chief Curator at the Orange County Regional History Center was invited by the Center to be one of the Celebrity bartenders.

While Pam served drinks, I sketched as the crowd filled in at the bar. At several spots along the bar there were illuminated boxes which would act as the stages for dancers. Unfortunately no one was dancing while I sketched. It honestly seemed like a rather slow night at the Savoy.

Of course, on June 12, 2016 the scene at Pulse was much like this one, with people out having a good time. I still check for back entrances and possible escape routes. We live in crazy times, but it is good to see that isn’t stopping anyone from getting out and having a good time. All of the celebrity tips went to provide lifesaving health and counseling programs for the
LGBTQ community at the Center. It felt good having a drink and a buzz for a good cause.

Food Share

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The Saint George  Orthodox Church on Lake Eola (24 N Rosalind Ave, Orlando, FL 32801) holds a a weekly food share in the parking lot behind the church.

I had gone to the Library to sketch a game night event but there was no one there. Instead I sketched the food share from the library window. Behind me was a rainbow of books. It was a rainy day and the clouds loomed steel grey on the horizon.

 Chairs were set up in the parking lot for people coming for food. There was music and a sermon. Hunger seems to be a motivator for saving souls.

The Straight Street program, gives anyone who has interest an opportunity to “get in where you fit in”. They currently host food shares on Tuesdays at 5:30pm and every Sunday at 4pm. The
Tuesday food share takes place in downtown Orlando at the St. George
Orthodox Church parking lot.  The Sunday
event is a Pop Up Food Share that requires a bit more participation from
volunteers.

Food shares were shut down by a city ordinance in Lake Eola Park in 2006. Volunteers from Food Not Bombs were arrested for feeding the 50 to 100 people in the park.  In April of 2011, the Court of Appeals ruled in a unanimous decision to uphold the city limit of twice-yearly food-sharings in public parks. After the decision, food-sharing groups can only serve meals in the
specified parks twice a year. Parties caught without a permit could be
convicted of violating the city ordinance. Individuals or groups could
be fined $500 or spend two months in jail if they continued to
distribute weekly meals.

The St. George
Orthodox Church food shares have stayed strong despite the city ordinance. The Styrofoam food containers tend to be left all over the place in Heritage Square park in front of the Orange County Regional History Center. The History Center and the Library have to do much of the clean up work.

Emily’s Tattoo

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Emily Arnold used to be the assistant curator at the Orange County Regional History Center. She decided to get a tattoo on her right bicep of a gorgeous bird. Since she is an artist she was very discerning about who should create the tattoo. She decided that Steve Roberts of The East Tattoos was the man for the job. One of Steve’s major influences is the work of John James Audubon which made him the perfect artist for the job. Her boyfriend who also worked at the History Center kept her company through the long agonizing process.

The East is an appointment-only private tattoo studio located just north of Downtown Orlando in Ivanhoe Village. Overlooking beautiful Lake Ivanhoe, The East offers a completely personalized experience in a relaxed and comfortable space. Each of the artists work independently; scheduling our own appointments, setting our own prices and corresponding with our own clients.

Two of the tattoo artists from The East stopped by as I was working on a mural on Ivanhoe Park  Brewing. They asked how I planned to do the line work on the mural, and I explained that I was debating about using Krink markers or acrylic paint applied with a brush. One of the artists did graffiti and he said the Krink markers fade quickly over time. He had first hand experience from work he had done in the past. Because of that conversation I abandoned the Krink brand and have been doing the line work with a brush. 

Since getting the tattoo, Emily and her boyfriend both left Orlando. The arts in Orlando left their mark.

Wild Hogs Roam the Streets of Winter Park

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Pam Schwartz, the head curator at the Orange County Regional History Center needed to do some research for History in a Glass which is a fun event where local craft bartenders compete for bragging rights by creating libations inspired by historical themes and artifacts.

The theme for History in a Glass was going to be about Winter Parks history of having to deal with wild hogs wandering the streets of downtown at the turn of the century. The city had to pass an ordinance banning these wild hogs from the streets.

In 1903, animals were doing a lot of damage, so five-day permits were
issued to
kill squirrels and destructive birds. Permission was also granted to kill
alligators in the town’s lakes. Another ordinance levied a $25 fine
and or 25 days at hard labor for persons found guilty of playing games
on Sunday. At the same time, the sale of intoxicating liquors was
prohibited, except by a physician’s prescription.

In 1905, the Travelers Insurance Company asked town officials to protect
their property from damage by hogs running wild inside the town. A
committee was appointed to look into the matter. The committee learned that state law authorized towns with more than 500 residents
to pass an ordinance that prohibits hogs running wild. As Winter Park
had only 461 residents, it was powerless to stop the problem. (Such and
ordinance successfully passed two years later after a petition drive.)

A recent ordinance prohibits the creation of art on the streets of Winter Park. Sec 70-10 Regulation of Street Performers. “The City Commission finds that street performers in certain  areas of the City defined herein and designated as prohibited public area have interfered with and have a substantial likelihood of interfering with pedestrian and vehicular traffic of the City, including residents, business owners and occupants, and visitors and tourists by, among other things, attracting audiences which congest the prohibited public area, increase the likelihood for conflict and disorderliness, and may impede the ability of emergency personnel to reach various locations. Moreover, such street performers may cause or contribute to pedestrian and vehicular safety risks through increased congestion, sight obstruction, and obfuscation, and obstruction to pedestrian right of ways and crosswalks. The city finds the existence of street performers in the prohibited public area adversely affects the City’s interests in maintaining the aesthetics of the prohibited public area and character of the same in the city with a unique historic downtown district.”

(1) “Perform and performance means to engage in any of the following activities: Acting; singing; playing musical instruments; puppetry; pantomiming; miming; performing or demonstrating magic or acts of illusion; dancing; juggling; or the public display of and composition or creation of crafts, sculpture, artistry,writings, or compositions, including the application of brush, pastel, crayon, pencil, or other similar objects applied to paper, cardboard, canvas, cloth or to other similar medium.”

To celebrate these historic ordinances the History Center shared this strange history while tasting some amazing craft cocktails. Patrons got to laugh at Winter Park’s long history of absurd ordinances which continues today. Winter Park is working hard to keep the streets clear of wild pigs and artists. Bottoms up.

Making Ribbons at the Center

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On May 22, 2017 there was a suicide bombing at the The Manchester Arena in the United Kingdom. An Islamic terrorist
detonated a shrapnel-laden homemade bomb as people were leaving the
Manchester Arena following a concert by the American singer Ariana
Grande. The incident was treated as an act of terrorism. 22 innocent concert goers died. 59 were injured.

A year before in Orlando we had suffered an act of terrorism that took 49 lives at the Pulse Nightclub. As an act of solidarity with the City of Manchester, people gathered at The Center (946 N Mills Ave, Orlando, FL 32803). A video crew was on hand to record a video of support and love for the city of Manchester. Members of the Orange County Regional History Center had gone to the event to show their support. They all sat around the conference table waiting for the event to begin.

Someone mentioned that there was a bag of pins and unfolded ribbons that were waiting to be made. Pam Schwartz, the chief curator at the History Center suggested they get the bag out since there were many idle hands. Soon everyone was folding the ribbons and securing them with pins. I tried a few myself and it is a tricky process at first, which quickly becomes routine. Ribbons began to pile up on the table. I am sure the safety pins pricked more that a few fingers.

Soon members of the community were being recorded with their words of support and this impromptu ribbon making session became the backdrop for this video of solidarity. What the world needs now is love sweet love, now more that ever.

Jorge Estevez DNA Test

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Jorge Estevez, a WFTV Channel 9 news anchor, was invited by Pam Schwartz, the Orange County Regional History Center Chief Curator, to take an Ancestry DNA test to learn more about his family history. She also researched the family histories of other well-known Central Floridians, including
Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer; 
journalist Brendan O’Connor of the Bungalower; Toni Pressley, Orlando
Pride soccer team defender; and Geraldine Thompson, state
representative and senator and founder of Orlando’s Wells’ Built Museum.

Jorge met Pam at the History Center Research Library where she asked him about what he did know about his family history. To do the DNA test he had to spit into a test tube which was a great photo opportunity for Melissa Procko, History Center Research Librarian, who was documenting the moment with video and still photography.

A line of Jorge’s family tree comes from Cuba which turned out to be problematic for online research since Cuban records must be researched from the courthouses and archives on the island. Pam was afraid she might have bit off more than she could chew, but she enlisted the help of a genealogist who specializes in Cuban research. This genealogist also does research for a TV program called Finding Your Roots.

It turns out that Jorge comes from a family line which is renowned for being public servants who notarize documents. Being a notary in those days was a position of high honor. She even found their notary stamps. The family line was researched way back into the 1500s. Jorge joked that he has never had a tattoo, but he is considering getting a tattoo of one of those ancient hand-drawn stamps since it means so much to him.

FOX Station

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Pam Schwartz was asked to go into the FOX News Station for an interview about an exhibit at the Orange County Regional History Center. The exhibit was Things come apart which featured photos by Todd McLellan that showed everyday objects like smart phones and lawnmowers blown apart to show all the parts.

Things Come Apart has ended and has been replace by Genome: Unlocking Life’s Code. This is another Smithsonian traveling exhibition but the History Center staff has created a section that uses the Genome to tell something about Central Florida history. Five Central Florida celebrities were asked to give DNA samples and Pam used that information and online resources to research their family trees. Mayor Buddy Dyer found out that is family has ties back to the Revolutionary War making him and his sons eligible for admission into the Sons of the American Revolution. Former Senator Geraldine Thompson found a relative she never knew about. A man had been trying to find his father for many years. When Geraldine’s DNA went online it became clear that he and she were related. Her brother was this man’s father. Unfortunately her brother has died so this man can never meet his father in person, but he has an aunt he has never met, and they have stories to share.

The TV cameras had just one operator. For the most part the cameras were fully automated wandering from mark to mark like Roombas. The cameraman didn’t seem to have much to do. An hour of waiting, and a quick recording session resulted in just moments on the final cut shown on TV.

ODD at Lake Eola Wine Company

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ODD (Orlando Drink and Draw) is a monthly sketch event I host where I invite artists to go to a different bar each month. There is no model and no instruction, it is just a chance to get out and meet other artists while working on a sketch. I was living near Lake Eola and Eola Wine Company (430 E. Central Blvd Orlando, FL 32801) was just a block from my studio, so this was a convenient location to hang out and sketch.

I ordered a red wine and sketched the length of the bar. It was early in the evening so the place was just starting to fill up. There is a certain refined atmosphere to the place as patrons sip glasses of red wine rather than mugs of beer. Well, they do have beers, but wine is the usual drinks of choice. This was a rare evening where no other artists came out for the night. I think the prospect of downtown parking scares off artists. Regardless, I had fun blocking in my sketch and when done, I simply walked the block or so back to my studio.

The next night, I was interviewed by Pam Schwartz of the Orange County Regional History Center about my experiences in the weeks following the Pulse Nightclub Massacre. Since that night, she tends to join me on many of these types of sketch outings. I tend to keep my head in the sketch for the entire hour or two until it is done, so she can chat with artists or patrons while I work and when I am done, I join the conversations. For me this is the best of both worlds, I get absolute focus and then come up for air and enjoy the company of the artists around me.