Weekend Top 6 Picks for April 20 and 21, 2019

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Saturday April 20, 2019

9am to 5pm Free. Earthfest 2019.  Renningers Mount Dora Flea Market and Antique Center 20651 US Highway 441, Mount Dora, Florida 32757. ART ARMY Mt. Dora. is hosting a Big Art festival to introduce the newest
addition to Rennigers Flea Market. Its very own Art Village; that
showcases more than a dozens of artist’s regularly. And what better way to do all that then by celebrating our blessed mother Earth. We will be giving tours of our very own earth made
dwellings on site. Meet the earth man himself Sean Micheal Flynn. 5
alive artists doing live art, Jim Preston, Bryan Abbey, Color Me Crazy –
Leona’s Art. Live music by Glofish Music, Southern Classic, Adam
Engelson and others. LIVE art performances throughout the day. 100
vendors, artists ,Performing Arts. Crafters, Body painting and healing
arts. Plus food vendors!!!

10am to 6pm Free.  Central Florida Earth Day 2019! Lake Eola Park, 512 E Washington St, Orlando, FL 32801. Central Florida Earth Day is back–bigger and better than ever! It will
be held on Saturday, April 20, 2019 from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at
beautiful Lake Eola Park in Orlando. Please join us at the largest and
most prestigious Earth Day event in Central Florida.

The event
will include healthy living and eco-friendly exhibitors, speakers, and
presentations; non-profits; fun and games for kids; dog and cat
adoptions; restaurant booths; environmental and humane education; artist
and craft corners; and live music and entertainment. Central Florida
Earth Day will draw both committed environmentalists and those who want
to learn more about how to protect our health, the planet, and its
inhabitants. You can promote your business or group to thousands of
people who want to learn more about environmentalism and the varied
products and services that support an eco-friendly and a veg-friendly
way of life. All money raised will be used for local environmental
education and outreach.

For more information, visit www.CFEarthDay.org.
This website will be continually updated as additional sponsors,
vendors, restaurants, speakers, musicians, etc. are added. Please check
back often for all the exciting changes! If you are interested in being a
vendor, please go the Vendor Packet page. If you are interested in
being a volunteer, please go to the Volunteer page.

Please also join us for other Earth Week activities to be announced. See you at Central Florida Earth Day 2019!

4pm to 6pm Cos-Play Figure Drawing. Elite Animation Academy  8933 Conroy Windermere Rd, Orlando, FL 32835. Five minute poses with a few longer poses mixed in for loose gestural sketching. Thomas Thorspecken is the instructor.

Sunday April 21, 2019

1pm to 4pm Public Open House Chalk Walk Winter Park Paint Out Polasek. 633 Osceola Ave, Winter Park, FL 32789. Winter Park Paint out artists drop off their first painting in the gallery. The Albin Polasek Museum and Sculpture Gardens will be hosting their eleventh annual Winter Park Paint Out from April 21 to 27, 2019.

The Winter Park Paint Out officially starts with this Easter Sunday open
house where festival artists will paint in the picturesque sculpture
gardens. Artist Cory Wright will lead registered teams in the Student
Chalk Walk competition by creating a chalk design on one of the garden’s
sidewalk squares and then giving participants two hours to create their
own designs. All K-12 students are invited to register in teams for the
competition by e-mailing rfrisby@polasek.org.
Complimentary art activities for all ages will be available in the
gardens throughout the afternoon as well as a free lakeside performance
by the Florida Symphony Youth Orchestras. Visitors are encouraged to
bring blankets and chairs; limited seating will be provided.  The gallery and sculpture gardens will be free to the public during
the week-long event which will feature twenty-five professional plein air artists
will paint at the Polasek Museum and locations nearby with art lovers
invited to watch the artists at work, view their recently completed
paintings in the gallery and attend free painting demonstrations.

Artwork created during the Winter Park Paint Out will be available
for purchase with a portion of the proceeds going to support the museum.
All artwork may also be viewed online as it is created at winterparkpaintout.org.

5pm to 12am No Cover. “It Is Here”. ICEBAR Orlando, 8967 United States, 8967 International Dr, Orlando, FL 32819. Fans of the hit fantasy drama television series “Game of Thrones” are in
for an icy treat as world-famous Icebar Orlando announces its
month-long celebration “It Is Here” to commemorate the series finale.
From Saturday, April 13 until Saturday, May 18, guests of the coolest
bar in Orlando can take the throne within Fire Lounge with no cover
Sunday through Friday and enjoy the bar and dance floor, or cross over
the wall and join Night’s Watch inside of Icebar featuring
specially-themed Game of Thrones cocktails available on a secret menu.
Guests will receive a souvenir digital picture, take in live ice
carvings every Saturday starting at 7pm and entertainment by special
guest DJs. Icebar will also host Game of Thrones trivia Sunday through
Thursday from 5pm-9pm and Fridays and Saturdays from 5pm-7pm. Trivia
participants who get five or more answers correct will receive half-off a
drink and be entered to win a $1,000 VIP experience. No tickets are
required for “It Is Here”. The “Small Counsel VIP Package” with bottle
service, appetizers, desserts and faux fur coat upgrades is available
for $350 (five people).

8pm to 11pm $5 Donation.  Folk Night with The 502s, Beemo, Jordan Foley and the Wheelhouse. The Falcon Bar and Gallery 819 E Washington St, Orlando, Florida 32801.

The 502s

www.the502s.com

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WH9P25k3yF8

The
502s are a raucous indie folk group formed by three cousins from
Central Florida. Since 2015 The 502s have taken their swaggering blend
of Americana across the coast including Okeechobee Music Festival and
Communion Records’ NYC showcase. Their album is a heartfelt invitation
to good old-fashioned fun, and their Facebook video for lead single
“What To Do” has garnered over 600,000 views on Facebook. Enjoy the
ride!

Beemo

https://www.mynameisbeemo.com/

Beemo
is an acoustic Americana band with mountain music roots from Orlando,
Fl. Their sound is a blend of indie-rock, Irish folk, bluegrass, and
elements of the singer/songwriter genre, drawing inspiration from REM,
Johnny Cash, Nickel Creek, and Ray LaMontagne. In 2018 Beemo released
their first full-length album Bustin’ Out, and were named Best Folk Band
by Orlando Weekly!

Jordan Foley and the Wheelhouse

jordanfoleymusic.com

“He’s
got a sound and voice that’s effectively situated between a little
twang and a lot of soul. He doesn’t try too hard because he doesn’t need
to. Confident in the pocket and the natural power of his expression,
Foley’s probably one of the more finished and articulated young examples
to emerge in the local Americana scene lately.” – Orlando Weekly

Nightmare Before Christmas Cabaret

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I went to the Falcon Bar and Gallery (819 E Washington St, Orlando, FL 32801) to sketch the Nightmare Before Christmas Cabaret staring Marisa Ashley Risque. In the window of the bar, was a sing from the Pulse Foundation that said, “We Will Not Let Hate Win.”

This was a fun edgy and funny show for those who wanted to celebrate Christmas in July. There was live acoustic guitar and plenty of cross dressing. The drag performer was proud with a full beard, push up bra, and full white fur coat. Some shows like this might fall back on lip sinc to carry the tunes, but Ashley Risque has a fabulous  voice that can belt out any Skellington themed tune. Ashley was dressed as Sally, Jack Skellington’s love interest. She sang Sally’s song with deep baleful and tragic sincerity. The arts though stitched and sometimes missing an arm are still thriving in threadbare Orlando.

Weekend Top 6 Picks for February 9 and 10, 2019

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Saturday February 9, 2019

8am to 1pm Free. Parramore Farmers Market. The east side of the Orlando City Stadium, across from City View. Purchase quality, fresh and healthy food grown in your own
neighborhood by local farmers, including Fleet Farming, Growing Orlando,
and other community growers.

4pm to 6pm Free. Young Voices. JB Callaman Center 102 North Parramore Ave Orlando FL. Teen Open Mic Every second Saturday of the month.

9pm to 11pm Free. The X-Files Art Show. The Falcon Bar and Gallery, 819 E Washington St, Orlando, FL 32801. The X-Files Art Exhibit is inspired by the classic television sci-fi
drama where two F.B.I. Agents, Fox Mulder the believer and Dana Scully
the skeptic, investigated the strange and unexplained, while hidden
forces worked to impede their efforts.
Artists include:
Aaron Booher
Ashley Joy Hallenbeck
The official BankyArt
Billy Myers III
Christin Keene
David Ussery
Jeff Wilfong
Luce Sky
Mitch Scott
The Art of Plinio Pinto
RachelToxic

Sunday February 10, 2019

10am to Noon Free. Heartfulness Relaxation and Meditation Class. University, 5200 Vineland Rd, Orlando, FL 32811. The Method of Heartfulness A simple and practical way to experience the heart’s unlimited resources.

Noon to 1pm Free. Yoga. Lake Eola park near the red gazebo.  Bring your own mat.

1:30pm to 5pm. Get some food and drink. Florida Gospel Jam. Fish on Fire 7937 Daetwyler Drive Belle Island FL. Non Denominational Gospel open mic Every 2nd and 4th Sunday.

Drunken Spelling Bee

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I went to The Falcon Bar and Gallery (819 E Washington St, Orlando, Florida 32801) for the inaugural Drunken Spelling Bee. The master of ceremonies was “Kirk” holding a megaphone to announce if the spelling was correct or wrong. Any contestant who got a spelling correct got a free shot of Sake.

Contestants had a chance to impress the crowd with their amazing spelling skills. For the low price of $5 contestants got entry into the competition, a draft beer of your choice, and a sake shot between rounds to keep it interesting. I found a small spot by the front door for an angle to sketch the contestants.

Words to be spelled started off easy and grew progressively harder. One woman traced the letters in the air with her finger as she saw the spelling play out. The bar was packed full of people waiting for their turn. It was certainly fun to watch people agonize over their answers.

Social Media Think Tank.

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Mark Baratelli of The Daily City, organized a social media think tank at IZEA in Winter Park Village in which participants would outline one thing that worked for them to promote their business, and then they would ask a question of the other participants to learn Some thing new. New social media platforms are popping up every week, so it is impossible to stay on top of all social media platforms. Some people spread themselves to thin, not getting the most out of any one platform.

Melissa Marie who owns The Falcon Bar and Gallery, now has her bartenders using snap chat which raises awareness about what events are going on in the bar. My question had to do with the ways to promote events to media like newspapers and magazines in town. A week after the meet, I got an email from one of the attendees that had a list of all the media contacts in town. I am slowly getting those contacts entered as a list in g-mail so the I can sent out press releases to everyone.

Mark was proud that he had used Twitter to stay in contact with every media that shared his mission of enlightening and entertaining. It became clear that there is much I need to learn about social media but there are only so many hours in the day.

Evoca 1 paints a mural at Falcon Bar in Thornton Park.

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Artist Evoca1 paint original artwork on the wall outside The Falcon Bar and Gallery last week. The artwork is curated by The Falcon and sponsored by Thornton Park District Main Street.

About the artist:
Dominican-born and Miami-based, Evoca1 is a figurative painter, designer and muralist, who is strongly influenced by his Latin American culture. Founder of Sketches for Mankind, Evoca1 works to raise awareness to important local and world issues through art. His powerful imagery can be seen on walls from Mexico to Peru to England.

About this project:
The Falcon become a fan of Evoca1 after seeing his work in the Wynwood Arts District in Miami during Art Basel a few years back and then again more recently in Saint Petersburg, FL during the Shine On Mural Festival. His figurative style is what attracted us to his work and is also what makes it unique from the more traditional mural styles. Evoca1 and The Falcon chatted about what makes The Falcon Bar and Gallery and Thornton Park District distinctive and he came up with a concept that compliments our beautiful historic neighborhood and the uniqueness of The Falcon Bar and Gallery.

I loved how boldly the artist worked. His first bold brushstrokes that blocked in the composition where still visible as I sketched. He used a large paint pan as a palette and worked on the mural like it was an oil painting, gradually building up the lights.  He used a large flat house paint brush as his tool of choice. He spent most of the well refining the mural. Periodically admirers would stop and ask a few questions.

Lake Eola at night.

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I did This sketch before the Orlando Drink and Draw (ODD) at Falcon Bar and Gallery (819 E Washington St, Orlando, FL). I got to Falcon Bar early and it wasn’t open yet. So, with an hour to kill, I walked to Lake Eola to do a nocturnal sketch. The park had Christmas light decorations up and the loud speakers were blaring sappy holiday tunes. I wonder how these ducks, swans, geese and grebes can stand listen to the mall music all day. They must feel like disgruntled store employees who have to listen to the same music over and over again during the holidays.

A lone man with a backpack was feeding the ducks, so he became my reason to stop and sketch. There are signs all around the lake that stress that the ducks and swans are on a very strict diet. Feeding them bread is harmful their health. That doesn’t stop well meaning people who perhaps can’t red or don’t care.

In 2010 about nine swans were stolen from Lake Eola. Four swans were recovered from an exotic-animal
rescue in Lake Butler, a small town about 30 miles north of Gainesville. The birds had been purchased for $700. The owner of the animal rescue was in shock. He was not a suspect in the theft. The birds were easy to identify because they each have an embedded micro chip. One of the birds, a blind black Australian swan named Bruno, has lived at Lake Eola for years. That same year, two suspects stole two docile black swans by corralling them into their car. These two swans were recovered and returned to the lake.

In 2011 Goeffre Peter Smart, 24, stole a large white swan. A witness saw him walk in down Robinson street with the swan. A trail of fed the lead the police straight to the suspects home  in the Eola Heights neighborhood at 1023 Ridgewood Street about three blocks from Lake Eola. The swan was in Smart’s backyard unharmed. It is safe to say Smart wasn’t that smart. He faced charges of grand theft, grand theft of a commercially
farmed animal, being in a park after hours and animal cruelty. His bail was set at $3,050.

In 2012 Another man, John Wynne, waded into the lake and sieved a black swan named Ruffles by the neck and pulled it to shore. He held the bird hanging by its neck and said to passers by, “Hey look at this.” He was charged with animal cruelty and grand theft with a $1,000 bond.  He was about to face trial when a key witness backed out, and Wynne walked free. In 2013, Lawrence Labonte, 51, was accused of deliberately allowing his dog to attack one of the iconic swans at Lake Eola Park, named Joe, who later had to be euthanized. He unleashed his Dachshund and encouraged it to attack. A witness took photos of the attack and Lawrence’s face. So what is the penalty for cruelty to animals in Orlando? From my quick research, it is just a $5000 fine.  In none of the above cases, did I read about a conviction.

In researching the history of abuse and theft it becomes clear that the captive Lake Eola swans face danger every day from the citizens of Orlando. This is animal abuse or par with keeping Killer Whales in captivity at Sea World. About 40 swans have been kept at Lake Eola since the 1920s. Does this history of cruelty date that far back? I bet it does. If swans attack, they have every reason to defend themselves. The swans have had their wings clipped, an amputation that prevents them from flying and escaping from danger. If the swans had all their flight feathers, they certainly wouldn’t stay at Lake Eola.

ODD6 at Falcon Bar and Gallery.

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Orlando Drink and Draw (ODD) ventures to a new bar each month to sample beers and sketch. There is no model fee and no instruction. This is just a chance to get out, meet fellow artists and draw. I’m hoping to sketch in Central Florida’s best dive bars, so suggestions are always welcome. Mondays are usually slow event wise in Orlando so ODD usually happens on the First Monday of each Month. In December I changed the date to a Tuesday since Kirt and Maxine Earhard had a wedding ceremony on Monday. In their honor, January’s ODD will be at Maxine’s on Shine.

Melissa Marie was gracious about letting artists descend on The Falcon Bar and Gallery (819 E Tosh-0, Washington St, Orlando, FL) on December 8th. I never know how many artists will show up, I might sketch alone, or there could be up to a dozen artists who stop out. On route to the Falcon bar, I learned that Melissa
Marie’s sister, Anthea, had just died at the tender age of 32 from a pulmonary embolism.The message appeared in my Facebook news feed and then flickered off to show a more recent post. My heart goes out to Melissa and her family.

The bar was empty when I arrived around 6pm except for the bar tender. I ordered a cider and started sketching. An open mic night was scheduled to begin at 8pm so I hoped some of the stools would fill up by then. Brian OHalloran who has attended past ODD events stopped in. I told him the news about Melissa Marie’s sister and then he did a black somber sketch of the Falcon Bar o his iPad. The only color in his sketch was the red candles which to him represented sacred funeral candles. My sketch, has a similar dark feeling. All the art on the walls was by local artists. The theme seemed to be pop culture, super heroes and manga. Perhaps there was no theme.

The bar tender was watching a show called Tosh-O on TV. There was an insanely long clip of a woman tweaking, so I sketched the gyrating butt on the screen. Another sine, sh shouted “gross! and I glanced at the tube to see a weight lifter vomiting as he lifted the dumb bells over his shoulders. I wished I hadn’t looked up It seems a sad commentary on what Americans need to see to be entertained.

Brian and I chatted for a while after our sketches were done. I had missed a sketch opportunity he had given me a tip about. It was a candle light service at an angel statue for women who had lost children in childbirth or at a young age. He and his wife Maggie attended and he said it was one of the most emotional experiences he has ever had.

I had brought in a stack of paper for an ODD sketching concept I wanted to try out. I call it a $ketch Off. Artists face each other on bar stools and are given 5 minutes to sketch each other. Neither artist is posing, so it is a bit hectic and the results can be unexpected especially after a few drinks. Since there were just two artists, it was a chance to try it out. I switched to pence and paper since me tablet battery was low. Brian was game, and he worked on his iPad, although he said he was a bit intimidated at first. He is an architect, so people aren’t his specialty. While doing the sketch, he laughed off his concerns, and the result is far more interesting than a realistic depiction. Asking people to pose for five minute is actually outside my comfort zone as well. I tend to usually keep my distance and watch a seen unfold from afar. At some galas and costumed events I should start asking people to pose so I can capture some quick close up sketches.

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ODD 5 at The Brass Tap

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The fifth Orlando Drink and Draw (ODD) was held at The Brass Tap (Mills
Park 1632 N Mills Ave, Orlando, Florida). Mills Park is a new
development featuring apartments and a strip mall near the theaters on
Princeton. There used to be a tiny store on the corner of Mills and
Virginia called “Cash Lust Translator“. That store sold of cash
registers and the owner held on to the store for the longest time which
held up the development project. I regret never going into Cash Lust
Transactor to sketch.

Having never been to Mills Park, I got a bit lost looking for The Brass Tap.
In all about six artists stopped out to drink and draw. I was pleased that
two new artists came out. Audrey Zindler and John Nadeau are regulars at the Crealdé
sketch classes. John sat at the end of the bar and as I sketched l debated if he was an artist or not. He does wonderful loose oil paintings in the figure drawing classes. Audrey showed me his work on her phone. She is now running the Sunday Morning
sketch sessions and I’m encouraged to start sketching from models again.
The Sunday morning sketch sessions are from 10am to 12:30 pm at Crealdé
School of Art, 600 St Andrews Blvd, Winter Park, FL. The cost. $10. I
need to loosen up my digital sketches and this seems like a great way to
do that.

Carlos Basabe was working on a sketch of a steampunk penguin with a jet pack which I believe is for a beer label. He recently shared a beer label design for Chiberian Warmer and it is hilarious. Vote for it if to like it. I had the notion of having artists do quick 5 minute sketches of each other, but by the time everyone had arrived, I was contently working on my sketch and I couldn’t stop, so I let everyone drink and draw in piece. My beer for the night was Funky Buddha and I had a pretzel to munch between sips. When my sketch was done I joined in on a conversation about the Walking Dead. I like having the opportunity to see what other artists are up to and being able to wind down after the sketch is done. Usually when I sketch each night, I pack up the art kit and head home once the sketch is complete. 

Mark your calendar. ODD 6 will be held December 7th starting a 6 pm at The Falcon Bar and Gallery. If you know an artist who likes to drink, draw or both, let them know.

The Falcon and Gallery is a haven for local artists.

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The Falcon Bar and Gallery (819 E Washington St, Orlando, FL) always has local art to see. The shows usually have a theme. There was recently a Bill Murry themed show and I sketched a local actress and dancer for a show titled Porn. I went to the first social media Round table hosted by Mark Baratelli at IZEA and Melissa Marie, the Falcons owner was there. As a local business owner, she realized early on that social media is the way to promote business. Her bartenders are encouraged to use Snap Chat to share happenings at the bar with friends. I didn’t even realize snap chat existed. Social Media keeps changing so fast, I need to keep up.

Mondays at the Falcon is for the men. Tuesdays are for locals, there is trivia, Uberbahn, open mics and DJs on most days of the week. On Sunday nights at 9pm there are the “Fear the Walking Dead” watch parties. You have to love a bar that caters to zombie loving patrons like myself.  If there is a zombie apocolipse, I’ll be ready with a sharp sword and a sketchbook. Once a month, Mystery Sketch Theater, now hosted by Plinio Pinto, is a great way to loosen up and sketch cos-play models for $5. If you are a voyeur like me, the Falcon will satiate that guilty pleasure and your thirst. Now that I’m hosting Orlando Drink and Draw (ODD) on the first Monday of each month, I need to find out if the Falcon will host the growing band of vagabond artists one month.

Mark your calendar! The next event at the Falcon is DJ Lavidicus on Sunday September 11th starting at 9pm. Come out to hear the very best in Industrial, Goth, EBM, Synthpop and Darkwave. Everyone knows where they were on September 11th of 2009. If you drink enough this night, you might not remember as clearly. Never a cover, always a good time! (21+) If you check my AADW calendar, you will always find Falcon events in the mix.