IMMERSE: The Art of Athleticism

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Pam Schwartz and I explored IMMERSE on Friday night. We started at the north end and walked our way down Orange Avenue towards the Dr Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. The first stage had a monumental Red Bull truck parked behind the stage pumping out the tunes. Red Bull BC One Cypher dance performances didn’t start until 7pm so we continued on our way south. In the former entry to City Arts Factory, Ha’Ani Hogan had set up a tall wall of paper flowers which made a great photo backdrop. A mom was photographing her son as we walked by. Quite a few artists were working on free standing 6 foot tall walls creating murals.

The next block had the large Massey Stage with an exuberant dance company which I believe was the LMHS Unity Step Team.   As we walked behind the stage the dancers moved to the loud drum beats of The Mood Designers. I noticed a volcano belching flames and smoke a block further south so we kept moving forward. The volcano seemed like it should make a good sketch subject but it was fenced off on all sides, keeping any people out of the scene and possible sketch. Since I had sketched Architect of Air the day before we headed that way. An aerialist was spinning on some silks in front of City Hall but it seemed like a rehearsal not drawing any crowds as of yet.

I had sketched the inflatable structure that housed The Art of Athleticism the year before but noting was happening inside. There fore I was extra curious to see what it was all about this year. When we entered we saw a crowd of people dancing in front of a large screen. Each persons silhouette could be seen on the screen in bright colors like orange and blue. When they moved their arms, arcs of brilliant blue, orange and magenta would be drawn on the screen following their moves. If they moved fast enough blue sparks would shoot across the screen along with vibrant yellow splatters. This was a great opportunity to people watch. Most adults lost interest rather fast but the young at heart and kids could be entertained for an  extended time. As I sketched Pam watched the Dr Phillips Stage which had a Raymi Dance Company. She had never seen anything like it so I was a bit sad that I didn’t catch that performance. When I finished the sketch the Orlando Ballet was performing a lively modern dance routing along with fast paced turn of the century french tunes. Robert Hill has done an amazing job of transforming the dance company so that they appeal to a younger audience. There was sass and attitude that I loved. Vampires ball is coming up at the Dr Phillips Center for the Performing Arts and the ballet director let the crowd know that it is a show not to be missed.

It was dark by the time my sketch was done so we explored Immerse by waling our way back north, seeing each staging area a second time but now in the romantic mysterious night. Between Jackson and Church streets, there was a black structure covered with chalk drawings done by everyone passing by. Every square inch was covered in brightly colored chalk drawing. Inside was a series of rooms that were intending to explore the senses. The first room smelled like a camp fire. We ducked under a black cloak into the next room that was filled with sounds. Another room was covered in mirrors and had bright Chinese lanterns. Then a final room had spices, fruits and various farmers market items each of which could be touched.

We waited for a dance performance to begin at the Church street stage but there were technical difficulties that kept the dancers just stretching on the stage. Further down Church street there were several areas set up like live TV recording studios. A band was set up and playing really loud so the broadcasts must have been on hold. A narrow alley way was set up with collages by Christie McLennan that seemed to be a statement about pop culture. Butterflies spread their wings and took flight from this collage world spreading up the walls. The title of this piece was Wasteland. Despite spending several hours exploring IMMERSE, I know we only got to see and experience a fraction of what was there.

Immerse 2018 by the Creative City Project

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The Creative City Project was started in 2012 by Cole Nesmith as a way for people in Orlando to discover the amazing talent that is to be found in the City Beautiful. The first year was small being produced with very little budget but the event has grown through the years. It is one of the signature Orlando events that I enjoy sketching each year. For the past five years the idea has been to present all this talent in one night, but this year the event has expanded to fill two evenings.

This year I co-hosted ODD (Orlando Drink and Draw) on the first evening of Immerse. I set the meeting location at the former City Arts Factory which is a landmark familiar to most artists. On that Pine Street block, the Red Bull truck was set up along with a bar to get the party started. I had already done 5 drawings that day of Story Corps interviewing people at the Orlando Public Library, so my parking spot had been found much earlier in the day. I thought I might be “Sketched Out” for the day but once I felt the energy of the event I had to put my pen to the page. Noga Grosman arrived and we considered the idea of getting a spot in an Orange Avenue bar and watching the event unfold from a bar stool. Other artist hadn’t arrived yet, so I started this sketch and she sketched one of the five stages set up throughout downtown. Another artist had messaged that he might arrive about an hour late, so we both got busy sketching while we waited. A member of the Red Bull staff expressed an interest in buying this sketch and we will see if that pans out.

A rap artist took to the Red Bull Stage and did a mic check for about half an hour. He then broke into an improvised rap in which he picked people out of the crowd and used their fashion sense as a spring board for his lyrics. I started to think that no other Urban Sketchers would show up, so I branched off to sketch at another stage. Immerse would be in full swing from 5pm to 11pm, so the night was young.

Red Bull Wings At Work: Outdoor Workspace.

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The Red Bull Wings At Work: Outdoor Workspace was held at Seneff Arts Plaza at Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. Downtown workers were invited to grab their laptops and sunglasses for a day of collaboration, inspiration and creativity. This was an opportunity for downtown workers to break out of their everyday routine and work in an unique outdoor location that fostered creativity and productivity. The day included speakers, reverse pitch groups, networking opportunities as well as a relaxing space to get work done.

The Wings At Work pop up workspace was built from scratch. Red Bull brought in a stage and seating for an area to host a Creative Mornings Orlando lecture session as well as additional speakers throughout the day. Red Bull partnered with Factur and Vudoo Wood by John Vu to build out the space with conference tables, seating areas and “living office space” where consumers can host a meeting, work on a project or brainstorm with others.

I settled in on my portable art stool making sure i was in the shade of a large orange umbrella. All the blue umbrellas on the central lawn had Red Bull logos on them. The event was well attended. It would be nice if downtown workers always had the choice to work outside. I kind of suspect the relaxed atmosphere prompted more socializing that work. The gentleman in front of me  however was diligently typing away at his laptop computer.

Red Bull BC One at Snap

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Red Bull and SNAP! Space, (1013 East Colonial Drive, Orlando, FL) presented the Official Opening Night for Red Bull BC
One North America Finals and a special hip-hop vintage photography
exhibit by Bronx photographer Joe Conzo. 

Special guests,included B-Boys performances, music by DJ Lean Rock,  DJ Rasta Root and cuts by Urban Stylez Barber Lounge. The event was free and open to the public.

This was probably the biggest crowd I ever saw at Snap. The black and white photos documented the early years of graffiti art and the emerging hip hop scene in NYC. B-Boy performances would break out spontaneously in different corners of the venue and a large crowd would gather around as if stopping traffic on a crowded sidewalk. The DJ outside kept the beats pumping. I settled in near the barber lounge to sketch people getting free haircuts. The cuts happened fast and furious. I didn’t linger too long after the sketch as done. I was going to the B-Boy Finals the next day and would catch all the dancing on the main stage at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts.

Red Bull presented Hip Art Inspired Water Cooler Conversation

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On July 24th, Red Bull Curates presented the Orlando Canvas Cooler Project in the gorgeous Orchid Room at 122 West Church Street which was once Paris Hilton’s Nightclub. As I arrived, Red Bull girls with backpacks were getting ready to work the venue in their tight shorts and v-neck shirts. They were about to climb a metal fire escape staircase to enter the building. I asked if that was the entrance and she pointed me toward a door around the corner with a Mini Cooper that had a huge Red Bull can on the roof. There were two entrances, one for media and one for everyone else. I decided to walk in the Media door. The volunteer looked for my name on the list and I wasn’t there. I repeated my name several times until she said, “Alright, you must be media.” If you believe you are the media, then you are the media. I had a tablet in my bag because I want to start drawing with it more often. I decided to stick with paper however since the room was so spacious that I felt I needed to work across a large spread in my sketchbook. Digitally, I tend to spend too much time zooming in and out of the program which means I’m not sketching as fast.

20 Orlando artists were picked to decorate Red Bull coolers. Of these artists tow were picked for the possibility of being picked for the chance to have their creation show at this year’s Art Basel in Miami Beach. Judges for the Orlando event included, Sam Flax Owner of Sam Flax Art Supply, Patrick Kahn the founder of Snap! Cultural Events, Inc, Commissioner Patty Sheehan of Orlando District 4 , Coralie Claeysen-Gleyzon the curator of Jai Gallery,and Erin Sullivan the Senior editor at the Orlando Weekly.  

Featured artists were, Brandon McLean,
Andrew Spear, Skippy, Adaro Art, Winkstyles, Soco Freire, Peter Van Flores III, DRES13, Holly Tharp, Chris Rodriguez,
Christopher Reason, Swamburger, Peterson, Sean Hartman, Christie Miga, SPEN and Wolfrich. There were a wide variety of colorful styles. I was a bit disappointed that all the coolers were already finished. I had hoped to sketch the artists at work. They had eight hours to complete the work on the Sunday and Monday before the event. Canvas tarps were spread around the venue and tables so the artists wouldn’t make too much of a mess. Christie Miga claimed she was so nervous about the event that she was considering backing out. She did an amazing job however when the ax hit the grindstone.

Sketching the event was a challenge since the crowd was endless and ever shifting. People stopped to say hello every few minutes, and I was happy to say hello but then got right back to work. I didn’t have the luxury of being able to relax when the sketch was still unfinished. Billy Franchey, from Artsfund introduced himself and he was fascinated by what I do, but he didn’t have a business card and neither did I. He is responsible for these events all over the country. Terry explored the room and was able to interact socially with everyone we knew. The winners for the evening were Marcos Cruz and Gregorii.  Both artists are represented by Jai gallery. Their pieces might end up in the scope art Fair in Miami as part of Art Basel but they are up against 10 other who were winners in cities around the country.  There was also a peoples choice award that was given to G. Lemus. A social media contest in November could put him in contention as well to have his creation shown in Miami’s Art Basel. The next Red Bull Curates events will be in Houston on August 14th and in Philadelphia on September 25th.

As I walked Terry back to her car, she told me that Patty Sheehan had told her that the Red Bull marketing people might like me to document future events around the country. It is funny that I was working so hard that no one mentioned this idea to me. I suppose people don’t want to interrupt me when I’m in the middle of the process.

StarCraft II

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Red Bull sponsored an event called “Training Grounds II” at Full Sail Live (3300 University Blvd

Winter Park, FL) on June 26th. The huge venue was full of an audience of several hundred people. On the large screen, the video game, StarCraft II was being projected. The two opponents were in a clear sound proof booth facing one another and furiously tapping computer buttons and scrolling with their mice. Two announcers sat behind microphones giving a blow by blow description of what was happening on the big screen. The problem was that nothing they said made any sense. I had stepped into an alien world.

At the side of the venue there was a round table station set up with six computers. This was the place where contestants who were not playing could warm up and train for their battle on the big screen. Ear pieces plugged the players into the game’s audio soundtrack isolating them from the audiences shouts and clapping. As I sketched, the announcers broadcast what was happening…

“What is this going to turn into?”

“The Cyber Core is a tell for TLO.”

“He’s putting up a gateway.”

“He has two queens now and a third on the way!”

“TLO spots the probe!”

“A lot of Circs rely on the queens.”

“The Nexus are going to clean this up now.”

“Succeed is going to try and drone up again.”

“TLO is droning very hard!”

“Unless it is a micro hatch, it isn’t needed.”

“He needs to warp in some centuries.”

“Nexus is going to be hyper fire! Good game!”

The audience clapped wildly. The lengthy match was over. My general impression was that some sort of outpost civilization was constructed by glowing crab like things. There was always an aerial gods eye view of the field of battle. Perhaps there were lasers? I was too far removed from the action to be able to make sense of anything. The audience however gasped and reacted to every skirmish. It was sort of like watching two armies of ants building two mounds then fighting to slow down the opponents progress. I was confused. Perhaps this is the future of entertainment, with virtual battles played out for an audience.