I joined the Orlando Urban Sketchers for a sketch out at Dezerland Park (5250 International Drive Orlando FL). Though there are thousands of cars om display, my eyes were immediately drawn to the 007 Tank from the movie Golden Eye. Red dice and playing cards with silhouettes of characters holding guns also hint at a casino angle to the movie. I made sure to check out the tank chase scene online, but I haven’t seen the whole movie.
To get this angle for the sketch, I had to sit in the middle of a wide walkway with dual yellow lines running down the center like a roadway. I was a little concerned that tanks might rumble down this roadway often but only groups of tourists walked by. Very few people noticed what I was doing even siting in the middle of the road.
In the movie Golden Eye. This tank moves insanely fast chasing a small European car. The tank swerved and did a 180 and somehow kept right up with the car. In real life, most tanks do not go faster than 18 miles per hour. I was sketching this tank because I was so caught up in a time when patriotic generations of Americans were shipped over to Germany to fight fascism.
After all the Orlando Urban Sketchers met near the clown car and did a throw down along with several group photos, we then went to the 007 Themed Restaurant for lunch. In the room behind the 007 themed restaurant there was an entire plane from a James bond film along with other vehicles which I assume were from the movie. An intrepid short film maker could shoot an entire movie using the movie props at hand.
There were few vegetarian options. The choices all seemed to be meat and caffeine. I ordered a loaded potato which seemed like a reasonable vegetarian option. The menu didn’t say what it was loaded with. It turns out it was loaded with thick sticky Velveeta cheese and crumpled bacon bits. I had just started a plant-based diet but this was my first week, so I let the Bacon and artery clogging cheese slip past my lips.
It felt so good to gather with fellow artists at the theme park. Not many stayed for the “food” but it was still awesome to meet artists I had not seen before and see their work. One fellow did a really fun sketch of Fred Flintstone’s Yabba Dabba Doo Car that I really liked. Other artists focused on the carousel, the arcade games and the insane collection of autos. This was a great sketch opportunity.