April Fools Day Move

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On March 31 much of the move was completed to get into the new studio which is south of Downtown Orlando. Across the street is a lake but I can only see it through the gaps between lakefront homes.

I put a series of lakefront paintings I had done post pandemic over the fireplace.

Three ducks were hanging out in the front yard having a conference before they waddled of across the street to get back to the lake.

The Disney desk can be taken apart in three sections. The main body of the desk has to be the heaviest piece of furniture ever created. It has some sort of evil dark matter inside of it that doubles the pull of gravity. Considering I am using it to just support a laptop and iPad, I could get away with a TV table. Once the desk was moved and reassembled I could truly feel moved in. I have tons of books I still need to unload and put on the bookshelves but that is why I am writing this article. I am procrastinating. After the desk was set up, we noticed a lizard behind the wire grating in the fireplace and I left him alone figuring he could find his way back out up the chimney.

This morning as I was working at my Disney desk, he scurried out from one of the shelves. This was clearly his new home. The place has been deserted for over a year while renovations were being done, so I guess he has been a resident longer than me. However he had to go. I got a Chinese takeout container which is the only thing I have approaching Tupperware, hoping I would catch him. And let him back outside. He was super fast. He kept scrambling behind boxes and in the end I was leaping and throwing the container hoping it might land over him. He got away and I pulled a few muscles in the effort. He is now a permanent resident. His name is Speedy Gonzales.

Pulse.

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While driving down Orange Avenue to hang the 49 Pulse Portraits at the Cardboard Art Festival, I passed Pulse for the first time since the horrific shooting. I parked in the SODO Shopping Center where the Cardboard Art Festival is located, an then walked back north to Pulse, three blocks away.

Pulse has become a destination where people from around the world, come to leave an offering and pay their respects. Personally I find the Mylar balloon with hearts for eyes and a smile disturbing. There was a constant stream of people taking photos and reading the names of those lost. A banner had a painting of the Dali Lama that said, “my religion is kindness.” I positioned my set in the only spot with shade from the black fabric that obstructed a direct view of the building. A wooden skid had color paint swatches arranged in a rainbow with the names of the fallen on each swatch. Above the skid, was a tear in the fence’s fabric. People tended to stay clear of me, perhaps thinking I was an attendant, but a few walked up to the tear to peak inside. There was a cooler opposite me show people get thirsty. On the ground, candles were arranged in a pulse pattern. The candles closest to me were flattened from being stepped on. When people first arrive they approach, the skid to red the names. Twice I watch people step on the candles. One girl couldn’t get the hot wax off of her sandals. A sign announced that the Orlando History Center collects Pulse memorabilia for their archives. The decaying scene is constantly changing and the regular afternoon thunderstorms speed up the process. Paper and cardboard signs quickly fall apart.

An hour into doing this sketch, I swear I began to smell death and decay. In my old home, rats would occasionally get caught in the walls, and the smell is quite distinct. Perhaps I was smelling mold on the teddy bears or the smell of wilted flowers, but it definitely smelled like death. Smell is my weakest sense so it must have been pronounced. I have a friend who lives right behind the 7-11 across the street. She said, the bodies were placed behind a fast food establishment, and to transport them, simple everyday vans were used. She remembered the feeling of dread every time a van passed her house. She never counted, but it felt like an endless procession. Fire Station #5 is located one block from Pulse. Some people who were shot, ran to the firehouse, but firefighters couldn’t open the doors until they were given the all clear. With the sound of gunfire, the firefighters could not treat the wounded until police arrived. Once the doors were opened they immediately found bloodied victims hiding from the shooter behind the brick walls of the firehouse. They found a man shot to in the abdomen. They transported him inside firehouse and stabilized him. This relatively calm area soul of downtown Orlando had become a war zone.

The Cardboard Art Festival is bigger than ever.

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The Daily City 3rd Annual Cardboard Art Festival moves from the Mills/50 Orange Studio to a retail storefront South of Downtown Orlando (SODO). It is in the Sodo Shopping Center, at 45 W. Crystal Lake Street, store #117, Orlando, FL on the same side as TJ Maxx, across from Gator’s Dockside which just opened this past Wednesday. I went to sketch the media preview event and immediately decided to sit below Doug Rhodehamel‘s huge cardboard submarine. A blue wave animated bulb illuminated the $4,000 sub which was accompanied by a small school of $40 to $60 deep sea fish. One of the fish sold immediately and Doug asked me to help him get an orange (sold) sticker on the fish label. We both stretched diligently on tip toe to get the job done. Doug is about to start a series of cardboard sculptures of Star Wars space craft. He explained that the walker would be about 5 to 6 feet high so that it would be eye level. When I asked how big the cardboard Death Star would be, he said he would consider a collaboration with Planet Hollywood to re-make their globe.

Cardboard twin towers brought back memories of the horrific events of 9/11.  On the back wall, a huge cardboard mural by German Lemus showed a human heart surrounded by howling wolves, clenched fists, a ram and police in riot gear. I was sitting in front of paintings on cardboard of western landscapes by Timothy Thomas. He was born in Connecticut and raised in Maine where he studied film at
Rockport College. He now lives in Orlando, FL with his wife Tina. Since I was painting, I kept being asked if I was the artist. First they would point at Timothy’s work and when I said, “nope” they would assume I was Doug since I was sitting near his submarine. All of the cardboard props from this year’s Fringe hit show, Robyn Da Hood: a Rap Musical were on display. You can pose in the golden carriage or on horse back. Artist Brendan O’Connor  who runs The Bungalower, struggled to lift the hammer of Thor.

I spoke with Banjo Bob who is best known for his hardboard T-Rex skulls.  He had some skulls on display, but even more impressive was a fully automated cardboard telescope he had created. He wrote a program for a cell phone that would allow a user to move the telescopes position. An image from the telescope was then visible on the phone. The program even allowed the telescope to automatically track a star. Since the earth is rotating the telescope would keep adjusting motors to keep the star in sight. He fabricated the cardboard parts at FACTURE  (520 Virginia Drive Orlando FL) a non-profit maker space here in Orlando. The collaborative space is part workshop, wood shop, metal working, crafts, and fabrication laboratory. I have to get over there to sketch. It sounds amazing.

Today, Sunday July 26 the daytime Cardboard Festival Gallery hours, with a suggested $5 donation, are from Noon-5pm. From 1-3pm Kids Fringe will host a Cardboard Matinee ($1 per kid). Kids aren’t the only ones who get to play. There is an interactive cardboard creation corner where anyone can create a cardboard masterpiece.

Artists@Work

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First Thursdays, Third Thursdays, it seems like Thursdays are the only day that art happens in Orlando. Now on every Wednesday
artists gather in SODO to create art outside OLV Cafe (25 W. Crystal Lake St. Suite 175) which is located in that new Super Target street mall in SODO. The address is misleading. I walked down Crystal Lake watching the numbers get smaller. I found out that the restaurant is located half way around the block inside the shopping area.

When I arrived, Parker Sketch was setting up his work area. He was setting up right outside the entrance and I immediately knew that I had to sketch him at work. It was getting near sunset with the sun just an inch above the Super Target. I wouldn’t be adding any color until it got dark. The square canvas Parker was working on once depicted a blue meanie. The canvas changed quickly as he applied paint straight out of the tube or jar. A pink mass began to take the form of a splash. When that paint dried, blue was quickly layered on top. Zinc white was layered over the background and later a light ocher was slapped over that. It was a delight to see colors and forms change so quickly. He is working on a series of paintings that depict splashes which ties into the splashy spattered look of his playful work. He pointed out that he couldn’t sling paint quite the way he could in his studio because no matter how big a drop cloth he used, the paint would always find a way to get on the pavement or brick work.

Parker organizes a monthly Artist critique session and he is pivotal in getting people together to make and talk about art. He said that he promotes other artists because it helps elevate the Orlando art scene. If there is a vibrant art scene then that helps him. His reasoning is identical to the reasons I often give for why I report on the arts scene daily. It was Parkers Facebook announcements that had me out sketching at OLV and considering what a great time I had, I’m bound to want to go back. What artist wouldn’t?

Parker let me know that artists can get a cup of wine for free when they worked outside the restaurant. Now that is a true motivational perk! I ordered a tall glass of Pino Noir. It was sweet and tasty and helped keep the lines flowing. In all about eight artists set up and worked the evening I stopped by. A mom was out walking her toy dog with a girl friend and her two children. After they admired my sketch “It’s righteous”, they started talking about how they would have to come back. They liked the bohemian vibe of being around artists. The mom was being flirted with most of the evening. Her ten year old daughter took an interest in what I was doing and she wanted to play, so I gave her a sheet of paper and let her borrow a brush. She eventually filled the sheet with vibrant colors which is essentially what I was doing. Another artist hard at work.

Kelly Stevens,who organized Nude Nite each year, was there having dinner. She stopped over and thanked me for putting Nude Nite in my 2012 Event Calendar. We discussed the months of work that goes into the show and perhaps I will get to document the behind the scenes process more this year. inside at the bar, Todd Morgan and his wife, Laura were having a drink. Todd founded “Harmonious Universe” which does murals with the help of anyone willing to pick up a brush and help. I sketched the progress of a mural done in the beer garden behind the Milk Bar down in the milk district. I found out the restaurant was closed and that entire wall was white washed.

D.J. Mo’Negro was mixing music outside right next to the entrance. I was tapping my foot to the beat. Parker pointed out that one beat reminded him of “Time keeps Slipping Away.” Once I heard it, I couldn’t help but sing the lyrics out lout. Parker and I were both singing as we painted. Late in the evening the DJ started mixing frenetically. Parker shouted out, “Stop punching buttons!” The toy dog started barking at the D.J. He shouted back, “What?” He stopped the music and the barking stopped. Once he flipped the music back on, the dog started barking again. I shouted out, “Everyone’s a critic!” Shortly thereafter the D.J. started packing up.

Nude Nite

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This year Nude Nite was in a large warehouse South of Downtown, (SODO). Terry and I arrived in separate vehicles. I parked in front of a cement factory. Terry got to the event before me and greeted me at the entrance. We got to the event early but it was already packed inside. The first thing we saw was this woman seated nude on a blue inflatable chairs with a red fabric covering her head and a phone outlet cord plate where her face would be. I started sketching Immediately. A sign invited people to pick up the phone. On occasion people would sit opposite the woman and hold the phone. Most people only did this long enough to have their picture taken. As one patron said, “I am presuming that’s what pay-for-phone-sex sounds like. It was hard to hear, because of all the ambient noise, but I did hear enough.” As the crowd grew thicker, fewer people took the seat since there would be an audience watching them for a reaction. Terry came back after wandering and looking at all the nude art. She mentioned that there was nowhere to sit in the whole place. I suggested she sit opposite the woman I was sketching but she didn’t want to become part of the performance.

After the first sketch we walked around together and I got to see all the art for the first time. By now the venue was jam packed. Emotions Dancers slipped gracefully around among the crowd. Periodically one of the dancers would let out an ear piercing scream. We kept bumping into people we knew. I recognized the work of some of the artists I know. For the second sketch, I watched beautiful women get body painted with graffiti from head to toe. I noticed that no one was completely nude. women always wore panties. A more accurate title for the event might be Topless Night. Sketching the body painter, I was often bumped by photographers who were so excited to shoot a nude body that they never looked where they were going. Actually this was true all night, everyone stared and crashed into one another.
I was starving. We had been to a reception prior to Nude Nite but the food was gone by the time we arrived. Terry had some sushi provided by Sushi 101. She couldn’t use the chop sticks provided so they wrapped a rubber band around them to make them easier to use. We wandered around looking for an open restaurant but nothing was open but fast food restaurants. We were almost home before we had to give up and go to Burger King.
I found out that an artist who exhibited work at Nude Nite had a painting go missing. If you see this painting anywhere around town, leave a comment on this blog. The artist is offering a reward for information leading to its return. The reward is either a print of the painting or a small original charcoal drawing of the artists choice. I had my own work disappear at a Sonesta Hotel fundraiser and work has been defaced at Pom Poms Cafe, we need to stop the madness or Orlando will become a cultural backwater.

Guitar Hero

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As part of Amanda Chadwick’s Seven Days of Celebration, she invited friends over to Rockin Joe’s Coffeehouse + Bistro to play Guitar Hero. January twelfth was the actual day of her birth so this day of celebration would count as the official birthday celebration. Rockin Joe’s is located in SODO (South of Down Town Orlando). I had never been to this part of town before and I was shocked by the huge Target store that greeted me as I tuned the corner. I could almost hear the heavenly hosts. This mega store stands out like a monolith beckoning shoppers to it’s doors. The coffee shop is located on the shopping district built around the Target. It is small and quaint. At the front of the shop is the eclectic sofa, arm chair and coffee tables shown. Jeremy Seghers is seated in the arm chair plotting to take over the world. Once again many of Amanda’s friends were SAK comedians so there was plenty of playful banter.
Having never played Guitar Hero, I could not tell you who was winning or who was loosing. Amanda seemed to hold her own but I think she might have had her ass whooped by the more experienced players. While I was sketching I decided to order a peanut butter cheese cake. It was sooooo good! I might go back again just for that cheesecake. Amanda was given a cupcake and we all sang Happy Birthday. As her friends started to leave, Amanda stood on a chair to show a very tall friend of hers what it was like to hug him. When I finished my sketch, people were already starting to drift away. Amanda said I should try Guitar Hero, but I didn’t want to make a fool of myself. She was encouraging and supportive, but I think Guitar Hero will have to wait for another day. I don’t think being a Rock-star is in my blood.