Moon Jelly illuminated the In-between series.

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On Saturday March 5th, Moon Jelly performed at the Gallery at Avalon Island as part of the monthly In-between series. When I arrived at the upstairs theater, Kate Shults was setting up the lighting and video effects. Hanging vines had their branches wrapped in foil as if to protect them from harmful radiation or alien attack. A vibrant green lamp caught my eye to anchor the scene and I sat in the front row to start sketching. Steven Head, the guitarist made a comment about all the “foiliage”.  He let me know that his family would be sitting to my left. He was also surprised that I was working digitally. He got ready to perform by putting on a pair of glitter socks. A photographer asked all the band members to hold plants and she photographed them before the show.

I just wanted to be sure I was fine where I was seated before committing to the sketch. Moriah Lorraine Russo sat next to me, and I felt at ease since she is an artist herself. My concern was that the room would go dark and I would be be the jerk with a giant illuminated tablet. People have been shot in Florida for turning on their digital devices in a dark theater. She reassured me that she enjoyed watching the sketch develop. Hopefully others felt the same. 

Timothy Murray, the other Moon Jelly guitarist, held up the small purple vase to let people know that they could place any tips inside since they were not getting paid for this gig. He was good about reminding the audience that he would be making the announcement multiple times.

Anna Wallace, the lead singer also performed on an Omnichord. She had on giant eyelashes and plenty of glitter around her eyes. The bands music is classified as pop psych. “Round, soft, colorful, senseless and unknowing. Polka-dots can’t stay
alone; like the communicative life of people, two or three polka-dots
become movement… Polka-dots are a way to infinity.” – Yayoi Kusama. Before the show, band members joked that it was hard to be weird but accessible. 

The music flowed and ebbed with a mysterious electron vibe. One song flowed seamlessly into another. The lyrics were quirky and fun. I absolutely loved the show which took me back to the brooding seamless concerts of Pink Floyd. Moon Jelly however had a much light flair. Blurred and pixelated images flickered on the screens. Listening was like a dream in which you find you are floating, a bit out control, but certain that things will work out. The audience went wild when the music found its resolution. Moon Jelly was the opening act for Mutual Benefit. I felt satiated when their set was done and decided to slip out before Mutual Benefit was set up. It was a great concert in a great venue. 


After the show, I got to see the plein air art show now hanging in the gallery. Kelly Medford, an American Artist has been living in Rome where she does a plein air painting every day. We collaborated on an Orlando Sketch Tour workshop on Valentines Day weekend and it was such a fun experience.

The Inbetween Series brings cutting edge music downtown.

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On the third Monday of every month, The Gallery at Avalon Island (39 S Magnolia Ave, Orlando, Florida) hosts the In-between Series. It is called the In-between Series because the art gallery is in-between shows. Soon after the concert, new art is loaded into the gallery and hung. Steven Head was listed on the invitation, but the trio consisted of, Doug Mathews on base, Mark Piszczek on sax and Chris Cortez on Guitar. Mark explained that one of the pieces was autobiographical having to do with his childhood growing up on the space coast. Mark’s father was a devout fan of classical music and it played
daily on the family phonograph. This early exposure to concert music and
the presence of highly competent music teachers, instilled a love of
music that later turned into a life long passion.

The music from this Jazz trio was both soothing and cutting edge.  The low resonant base contrasted the energetic searching melody of the sax. There was a yearning to the music, an endless reaching out. There is no better music to sketch too.

Mark and Chris have been working on opening a new music venue called The Blue Bamboo Music Center for the Arts at 1905 Kentucky Avenue just south of Fairbanks in Winter Park. He showed me plans for the 4,000 square foot warehouse which will become a studio quality performance space. The venue will feature state of the art sound, grand piano, back line equipment, stage lighting and a large projection screen, it will also be set up to record concert and performance video in high definition. The Center will also serve as an art gallery featuring local and international artists.

Unfortunately City codes and ordinances have tied up the construction and renovation. Creating a new arts venue in Orlando is not an easy task. The Center will hopefully open in 2016. It is a sure sign that the arts continue to grow in Central Florida.

Jim Ivy’s Tangled Bell Ensemble at Avalon Island

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The In-between Series is held at The Gallery at Avalon Island (39 S Magnolia Ave, Orlando, Florida) features unique musical acts in the art gallery when one art show has come down and another is about to be mounted. In May, the gallery hosted Jim Ivy’s Tangled Bell Ensemble. The performance used the early 20th century poetry work of Japanese author Akiko Yosano as
inspiration for the performance entitled “Midaregami” (Tangled
Hair). Jim, who performed on saxophone and acted as the conductor, assembled a cast of 11 members. Many of these performers met for the first time that evening.

Though structured, since there was sheet music, the evening also featured mystical and haunting improvisation. Several Buddhist prayer bowls and a hanger found their way into the music mix. The Japanese lyrics added to the my site of the orchestrated store that unfolded. Wires flowed like tangled hair from sound boards and the electronic signals were mixed by a sound man working on his laptop. When the singer stepped up to the mic, the piece felt operatic in scope.

Improvisation shifted from one band member to the next with unexpected twists and turns. Ivy let loose on his sax in a joyous explosion. However, much of the performance was abstract and tinted with sadness. 

Functionally Literate

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Functionally Literate is Burrow Press‘ quarterly-ish reading series that aims to connect, entertain, and possibly intoxicate, Orlando’s community of writers, bookworms, lit nerds, and the intellectually curious. Each Function pairs the best writers in Central Florida with visiting writers from all over the world. This event was held at The Gallery at Avalon Island.

This sketch is of John King who earned his MFA from New York University in 2010. His work has appeared in Palooka, Gargoyle, The Newer York, the 15 Views of Orlando
project, and others. He is currently a composition Sherpa at the
University of Central Florida, and he is the host of the amazing writing
podcast, The Drunken Odyssey.

I always love sketching these readings because as I sketch, my mind wanders allowing me to imagine the scene the author is painting. This is what a creative community is all about. An intimate audience gathering to share stories. The next Functionally Literate event will be held on January 16th at 7pm at the Orlando Shakespeare Theater (812 East Rollins Street Orlando FL). Authors will include Matthew  Salesses and Kristen Arnett.

Take A Look, And You Will See Into Your Imagination!

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 On Third Thursday, I wandered downtown to see what art exhibits were opening up. On the drive, Terry called me to let me know there was an outdoor concert in front of the Doctor Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. I decided that DPAC therefor was my sketch opportunity for the night. I stopped quickly into City Arts Factory to see how the Square exhibit looked hung. I submitted one square print and it was nestled in neatly among many of he talented local artists. My print hung just inches from the incredibly talented Rebecca Rose, also nearby was Boy Kong, Andrew Spear, Jennifer Payne, and Scott White. I made an impulse buy and purchased a print by Plinio Pinto. It is now hanging in my living room. The curator didn’t want me to take it off the wall right a way. He suggested I return at the end of the evening. 


I started hoofing it down to DPAC to sketch the concert. On the way I ran into Joe Rosier who had grown out his white beard and had on a red Santa cap and a red shirt. His plan was to get some fish and chips at the Irish Pub before he started gallery hopping. We walked past two women smoking outside the pub. One shouted out, “Hey Santa, you should come inside, you would be the life of the party.” Joe turned to her and said, “First let check my list, I have to see if you’ve been naughty or nice.” Since I wanted to get to the concert to sketch, I left Santa as he finalized the negotiation. When I got to DPAC, the concert was over and chairs were being folded up and stacked away. Alright, change of plans there had been a trio performing at Avalon Island. That was my new sketch opportunity. 


As soon as I entered The Gallery at Avalon Island (39 S Magnolia Ave, Orlando, FL) I bumped into Kathy Blackmore. I had worked with her at Disney Feature Animation and at Full Sail University. [ miss the camaraderie, laughter and insanity of those times. The Gallery was presenting Take A Look, And You Will See Into Your Imagination! an exhibition that features children’s book artists and illustrators. Kathy’s children’s book illustrations were part of the exhibit. After a quick walkabout, I started sketching. At two tables there was brown packing tape acting as a table cloth and canvas. Colorful markers in a cup acted as the center piece. I was delighted when Tori Kelly and her two children started sketching on the brown paper. Kids sketch with such confidence, They still enjoy the simple pleasure of putting lines on a page. Children’s book illustrator, Ethan Longjoined the kids and he showed them how to draw on of his characters. The kids were mesmerized soaking in his every pencil stroke with their hungry eyes.

A gentleman and two women sat across from me. He started drawing an intricately branched tree with a purple bird perched way up high. Earlier in the day, a repairman had told me the he let his Moluccan Cockatoo climb the branches in a large tree in his yard. His bird would climb to the highest branches and then come back down when called. Zorro, our Umbrella Cockatoo had never experienced that freedom. Hawks and falcons can sometimes be seen circling overhead. As protective owners we would never risk allowing Zorro to climb beyond our reach. He might climb to the top and never look down, requiring a call tot fire department to get the hook and ladder.

 It turned out that the sketcher across from me was the husband of  Zebo Ludvicek, one of the artists whose work was on exhibit. She asked to see my sketchbook when I had finished sketching the trio. She took her time flipping through the pages, she seemed to truly like what I do.  Her husband reaffirmed her sincerity saving, ” She means it, she doesn’t usually like anything.” We chatted for quite. a while about art, both digital and traditional before I decide to get a beer with a day of the dead skill on it which was laced with Taquilla. It gave me an immediate headache.

Kathy was in a conversation with artists Anne Jewett, and Janeen Mason. Janeen said she would give me the name of a friend of hers who lives in Saint Augustine. That city has a law that make creating art in public spaces a crime punishable with a fine of $500 and or 60 days in jail. There is a demonstration in Saint Augustine on December 21st against this insanity and I plan to drive over that way to sketch the demonstration. Janeen’s friend is on the Saint Augustine historic preservation committee and she might help get me out of jail if I am caught sketching. Anne told me about a unique crowd funding source for artists called something like Patrion. People pay a small sum, like a dollar to see sketches for a project as it progresses. It is an ingenious idea and I plan to research it more. It could bring what seemed lit an impossible dream to life. I also have I say that Anne’s illustrations were magical with a old world classical glow. If you happen to be walking by Avalon check out her work in the front windows. It will amaze you.

The only other artists that I didn’t meet were, Fred Koehler,  and Loreen Leedy.The Avalon exhibit was clearly my favorite discovery for the evening. The show will be on display at the gallery until January 16th. The children’s books are available at Bookmark It (3201 Corrine Dr #109, Orlando, FL).

The In-Between Series where you can expect the unexpected.

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The In-Between Series takes place every month on the Monday before each Third Thursday at The Gallery at Avalon Island (39 S Magnolia Ave, Orlando, Florida). Thad Anderson’s Sextet performed in January 2015 to kick off the monthly series of New Music. When I hear sextet, I imagined classical musicians with violins, cellos and flutes. This sextet however was all about pure primal new age drumming. A large Critique computer screen was set up in front of the phalanx of drums to display the sheet music.

Ashley Equality Inguanta created an installation stage set that had a small porcelain Virgin Mary with a small vile of perfume or holy water, and rose pedals on the alter and floor. A small rug was set up in front of the alter so that anyone could kneel down if they wanted to. Unfortunately no one stopped at the alter long enough to be included in the sketch.

La Empanada Food Truck was parked in the alley next door, so there was plenty of good food available along with drinks from the Avalon Bar. Sketching to the drums beat loosened up my lines and made me throw washes down with much more vigor.

The next concert at The Gallery at Avalon Island will feature Chris Corsano and
Bill Orcutt on Monday December 28th. The doors will open at 7pm and the
concert will begin at 8pm. All ages are welcome. Click here to check out the event Facebook page for more information.

The Creative City Project brings downtown Olando alive for a night.

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In July of 2014 I went to a meeting at The Gallery at Avalon Island (39 S Magnolia Ave, Orlando, FL) where Cole Nesmith discussed his idea where the Creative City Project could bring together all the separate arts groups in together to stage multiple performances on on night in Downtown Orlando. Cole is a well versed public speaker and he did a great job expressing his excitement for the project. At this early stage there was much work to be done trying to get grants so that some of the artist could be paid. Not all artists live on sunshine and dreams.

I considered the idea of being part of the Creative City  Project, by doing life sized standing portraits on a large sheet of brown parchment paper. I did something similar to this at Drip with chalk on the black walls. I could knock out a portrait about every ten minutes. In the rush of doing my daily sketches, I lost track of this idea.

When the Creative City Project hit Downtown Orlando, I documented it with my usual sketch. Artist named Plinio Pinto and Melissa Marie from Falcon Bar set up a mini art studio in the street with a UHaul truck as a backdrop. They had a model in a mechanic’s outfit posing with  a motorcycle and they invited anyone to stop and draw. It was a great idea. Unfortunately when I arrived, the model had just taken a 20 minute break and I barely caught a glimpse of her as she walked away. Another great sketch opportunity lost. There were plenty of other sketch opportunities however since there were multiple stages up and down Orange Avenue for about 5 blocks.

Plans are already in the works for next year’s Creative City Project.

Kicked out of Sam Flax. The story of an Otter and the Gun.

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When I got back from NYC several weeks ago, I checked on Facebook to see what sketch opportunities I should pursue in Orlando. One of the first images I saw was a photo of a person posing in front of a Sam Flax event poster that had a low resolution harshly cropped version of a sketch I did at the art store’s grand opening celebration. The original article promoted the store and the artists. The image had been lifted off the internet without my consent or knowledge. Later I learned that the sketch ran as an animated banner on the art store
commercial website, as fliers, ads in newspapers, call to artist forms and the list
goes on. This has happened many times before, with the The Winter Park Chamber of Commerce, The Galley at Avalon Island, the Downtown Arts District, others like Ivanhoe Village District and the Orlando Weekly  ultimately went on to do the right thing, by paying for the reproduction rights. I aired my frustration and annoyance on Facebook at this copyright infringement from a store I had shopped at for years.

What followed was a long thread of comments about similar cases and advice on the best course of action to take. It also however,  opened a dog eat dog divisiveness in Orlando’s tiny arts community. Because of that, I regret making this issue public until it was resolved. Then a troll entered the fray. He was furious that I had expressed my frustration and annoyance publicly before I spoke with Sam Flax.  He used the thread to promote a recent mural he did and then cursed, and berated everyone who tried to reason with him. I thought he was joking so I toyed with him a bit, but he didn’t have a sense of humor. His stance was basically shut up and draw, although he seemed to feel I was too old to draw. Such an angry, bitter person is fascinating for a moment, but then I got bored with his tirades and stopped reading. My apologies to anyone who tried to reason with him.

The troll is a member of the B-side Artists. Asaan ‘Swamburger’ Brooks
who helped found the group asked me to call him since he didn’t understand my frustration. We both discussed our viewpoints and although we didn’t agree on all points, we both shared a mutual respect. I gained insights that will help me redirect my energies with future infringements. We all make mistakes, but what a person does when they realize their mistake tends to define them. Sam Flax and I ultimately talked on the phone. We negotiated some form of compensation for the reproduction rights and he told me the check was in the mail. A sketchbook manufacturer also wants me to do a demonstration at the store, so I respected Sam for putting the incident behind him, and moving forward. I was invited to a workshop on using stencils at the art store, so I couldn’t resist the urge to go in and sketch now that the air was clearing. Danny Rock had given a similar workshop at Blast Studios and I learned quite a bit.

That morning I put on a black T shirt with a sea otter on it. Sea otters are constantly active, very curious, and rather playful. They were hunted to near extinction, and they were decimated by huge oil spills, but their population is making a slow recovery. Sea Otters have been known to playfully climb on tourists kayaks just to see the reactions. At Living Room Theater, actors start off each show by saying to each other, “Can l call you Otter?” with the response, “Sure, can I call you Bear?” I was Otter for the day.

The workshop was at 5pm which meant I had to drive through hellish rush hour traffic on Colonial Drive to get to the store. I arrived about 15 minutes late. I wasn’t concerned though, since I mostly wanted to sketch the students at work. When I entered, an employee shouted, “aren’t you Thorspecken?!” That was an odd welcome. “Yes.” I replied. “Where is the workshop?” I asked. “Have you met?” he asked, gesturing to a man at the far end of the check out counter. I approached the man warily until I realized it must be Sam Flax, who I had never met. We shook hands, but I was distracted since I was late to start the sketch. He asked if I got his email that the check was in the mail. “Yes, thank you.” The only person who understands my distraction as I hunt down a sketch is my wife who has had to live with it for years.

The workshop was upstairs. There were four students and a store employee with plenty of empty chairs to choose from. The instructor was wearing a T shirt with a handgun pointed towards the students. The total number of gun related deaths in the US in 2014 was 12,569 the death toll in 2015 is already 11,811. The US leads the world  in guns per capita with 270 million guns in the hands of citizens according to a 2007 survey. The gun explained that he prefers to paint on walls rather than show his work in galleries. He offered me supplies, but I didn’t want to be a bother, I was already concerned since I had arrived late. “I have my own supplies.” I told him. Then he froze and his eyes darkened.  “I’m alright.” he said. I sat down. “No, I’m allllright.” He said again. “Me too.” I said pulling the smallest sketchbook out of my bag. “No, I have to ask you to leave.” Great, here we go again, I thought. I needed to buy a little time to block in the sketch. “I thought that this was a free artist workshop. I don’t have to sketch you if that is an issue.” In New Mexico in an outdoor public market, an Indian woman got upset when she saw me sketching. She was concerned I would steal her soul if I sketched her. I put a large basket in her place, and sketched everyone else. I don’t think that was the issue here.”Is this my workshop?” he asked the employee.

The staff woman went downstairs to get “the manager.” I threw quick pencil lines on the page. I had only minutes to work. The gun’s face was etched with deep lines of anger. His hands were fists in his lap. “He is here for a reason.” he said. Then he sat mute. Sam Flax came upstairs and escorted me to the store exit. “You have to be kidding me.” I said to Sam. I get it however, Sam was stuck between a rock and a hard place. It was the guns workshop and if he wanted fewer students, he was entitled. Sam explained the the gun doesn’t want me promoting his events. Best to leave him in his cage of anger, although I’ve admired and discussed his work in three separate articles in the past on AADW.  As I left, the female employee said to me,” Thanks for bringing ‘that’ in here to a safe place.” All I had brought in was my curiosity and I sketchbook. “You’re welcome?” I asked. I posted the incomplete sketch just to let you see what I put on the page in the panic of the moment.

The next day, I returned to the art store to complete the sketch. All the empty seats remained. I figured that with the instructor gone, I could relax and study the room. My rough sketch had already established  where I should place the figures. Even before I had my sketchbook out of the bag, an employee came up the stairs and asked me what I was doing. “Oh, I’m just finishing up a sketch.” I replied. “You can’t be up here unsupervised.” he replied. Ugh, he’s just following orders, I thought. “All right, I’ll just shoot a few photos and I’ll get out of your hair.” This is a rare case where the sketch had to be finished back in the studio. 

Did I have to walk into the lions den? Perhaps not, but at this point in my life I would prefer to try and understand someone who has a different opinion than my own, rather than avoid them. I want to listen and learn and of course sketch. Hatred needs to be stared in the face. When the KKK demonstrated in Maitland, I stood face to face with a grand poo-bah or dragon as he aimed his large mace can at my face. If he sprayed the mace he would be arrested. I’ve seen the look before. I don’t get it. After I got kicked out of Sam Flax, there was an ocean of possibilities. I went to a Base Orlando, Body Painting Circus event where I was welcomed with open arms. Time to play and enjoy the uninterrupted sketching process again. Creativity among the chaos, I was back in my happy place. “Hey, I love you’re otter shirt.” a model shouted.

Benoit Glazer at Avalon Island

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On the third Monday of each month, The Gallery at Avalon Island (39 S Magnolia Ave, Orlando Florida), hosts the In Between Series, a music series before the art goes on the wall for Third Thursday. June was a bit different because the nude photos by Yuri Maiorov  stayed on the walls until a fee the concert. Benoit Glazer usually hosts concerts in his custom built acoustic living room in the White House, he works at Cirque Du Soleil in Downtown Disney as the composer. He was on the trumpet along with Dan Jordan, Doug Matthews and Bobby Koelble some of the
greatest jazz musicians from Central Florida.

There were lofty sounds from flutes and clarinets, African flavors, and funky
odd meters, with a touch of sad ballads and angry mobs. The music related the story of a storyteller. It was about 2 boy named Abu, and his muse Lela. The music ebbed and flowed with intensity. The event was catered by Maxine’s on Shine.

The Inbetween Series at Avalon Gallery is a hidden gem of the Orlando Music scene.

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On February 15th I went to the Gallery at Avalon Island (39 South Magnolia Ave, Orlando, Florida) for the salon style in-between series. Patrick Greene, Avalon’s curator host this music series between art exhibits on the week before Third Thursday when all the downtown galleries have opening for their new exhibits. This group featured a bass guitar, drums, a xylophone and a cello. There was no cost to attend, but donations are always welcome. I set up to sketch behind the drummer and sketched with vigor through the performance. The group was known as “Attached Hands“. The experimental music felt new age and melodic. It soothed and felt improvised.

The hippest folks in Orlando can be found at Avalon once a month.The In-between Series just won the “Best New Imaginative Music Series” by voters of The Orlando Weekly.  The series is cultured, it’s progressive and it’s free. The next performance will likely be August 17th but that is unconfirmed since the invitation isn’t out yet. It is a relaxing way to start out a Monday evening once a month.