49 crosses.

After the horrific massacre at Pulse Nightclub, 49 crosses were placed at Lake Beauty of the Orlando Regional Medical Center where victims were taken in the moments after the shooting. The medical center is just a few blocks north of Pulse on Orange Avenue. Never has an emergency room been so close to the scene of a mass murder. Despite the best efforts of the ER doctors working under triage conditions, 49 lives were lost. The rifle used had only one purpose which is to take human life with brutal force. These 49 crosses became a place of pilgrimage for a community trying to find reason behind an insane and pointless act of hate and violence. Other countries look at America’s love affair with gun violence with shock and amazement.

An Illinois man,  Greg Zanis, 65, traveled more than 1,000 miles from his home in Illinois to Orlando, Florida, in the wake of the massacre.  His pickup drove to Orlando with the 49 handmade crosses, one for each of the victims that died. Zanis also brought markers so that people could write messages on the crosses. Every surface is covered in writing.

The crosses are now stored at the Orlando Regional History Center off site facility. The warehouse is home to the museum’s vast historical collection which are not currently on exhibit in the downtown museum. I was sworn to secrecy about the off site location and the route was purposefully convoluted with a myriad of pretzel turns and back road circles.  Upon entering the facility, Frank Weber, the County Photographer, shouted out, “No food or drink!” as he pointed to a sign with the same message. Museum staff gathered in the break room to finish their Starbucks coffees. My coffee had a taste of caramel. I’m beginning to understand the allure of living off of coffee alone. Frank had an admirably inappropriate sense of humor that helped lighten the atmosphere. To enter the warehouse we had to walk across a sticky mat which removed any dirt or insect eggs from the soles of our feet.

The conserved crosses were each stored in grey archival boxes, specially made for them with clear fronts so the crosses can be seen. The memorial items left at each cross are stored in separate boxes right above the corresponding crosses, which were stacked several shelves high. Colorful items collected from memorials and vigils were stacked everywhere. Over five thousand items are still being preserved, and catalogued. It is a Herculean and thankless task being executed with love by the History Center staff.  The crosses will be on display in June as part of the one year vigil to honor victims, their families, survivors, and first responders. It seems like only yesterday when this horrific event shocked and saddened Orlando. The wounds are still very visible if you look.

Staff removed crosses from their boxes and stood them clustered near Frank, who shot a three quarter view of each cross, front and back. Large industrial flashes created clean shots which will be used for an online database of the collection. After each cross was photographed, it was moved near the loading dock, so they will be ready to go on public display in June. These wooden crosses are heavy and lifting 49 of them tests muscles. I found it odd that a historic rifle storage cabinet was right beside Frank as he shot the photos. Staff and Frank wore blue conservator’s gloves to be sure not to get body oils onto the painted surfaces of the crosses. These gloves ripped at times and had to be replaced. The warehouse was reminiscent of the final scene in Indiana Jones when the arc of the covenant was stored away. However, in Orlando the memories of those lost to senseless violence is being kept alive. The hope is that we as a community can grow stronger.

Painting demo: A Plein Air Picnic.

Painter, Harold Frontz gave a painting demo titled, “A Plein Air Picnic”. I had high hopes of seeing a beautiful woman with a white parasol feeding grapes to her fashionable partner while a stocky lap dog sniffs in the grass. It was a gorgeous day at the Albin Polasek Museum, (633 Osceola Ave, Winter Park, FL 32789). The museum is on three acres overlooking Lake Osceola. I walked down to the water’s edge to watch the water lilies as they bobbed on the water’s surface. Rachael Frisby the museum curator wandered from artist to artist to check on their progress.

Inside, plein air paintings that were still wet leaned against the walls waiting to be hung. The paintings were freshly created by artists who were part of the Winter Park Paint Out happening April 23rd to the 29th. Free painting demos were available all week long. For me, it was a great opportunity to learn from other artists.

Harold Frontz was actually painting a still life that he set up on a white linen tablecloth. A red apple sat next to a bro me bowl holding some ferns, along with some yellow flowers described them, “happy grapes.” He rubbed a warm ground onto the board and quickly roughed in a light drawing using a #2 bright brush and slightly darker pigment. a larger brush and showed it to the audience. “This is the secret of impressionistic painting” announced. He could use the flat edge for large brush strokes and then turn the brush to get a thinner stroke. He uses a Masterson sealed palette which is like Tupperware. He lined the bottom with brown paper and set a sheet of glass on top of that. I immediately want to adopt that idea.

Harold uses a separate brush for every color. He organized his wet brushes on the palette lid. He uses lots of paper towels. He adopted the practice from portraiture of placing the light side of the face against a dark background and placing the dark side of the face against a light background. Transparent darks we applied to his canvas first. Harold blocked in his painting he stressed the importance of using the brush strokes, define direction, shape, and form.

Harold stopped and sat in the front row. He gave an overview of the points he had covered in the demonstration. The funniest thing he said, was that he is soft spoken, because at home, he can’t get a word in edgewise.

Weekend Top 6 Picks for April 29th and 30th.

Saturday April 29, 2017 

7pm to 10pm $125 7th Annual Science of Wine. Orlando Science Center (777 E. Princeton St. Orlando, FL 32803.) Uncork your inner sommelier and scientist at one of Orlando’s most unique wine and food events. Science of Wine, presented by Southern Glazer’s Wines and Spirits, allows you to experience the science behind the taste and body of your favorite wines. Dine on hand-selected pairings provided by some of Orlando’s best restaurants. Ready your mind and palate for a night of wining, dining and learning.

The Science of Wine raises critical funds to provide operating support for educational programs and opportunities for science learners of all ages to experience the fun and discovery of Orlando Science Center.

Sample more than 150 wines from the world’s major regions and dishes from more than 20 Orlando-area culinary partners

Learn how to taste like a pro with Julie Pepi at Science of Wine Idol (Less than 20 seats remaining!) Become an expert on perfect pairing at the Swine and Sons Provisions cooking demo- Limited seating available

Learn to create healthy, wine-inspired desserts with Kristine Thomas

Participate in live entertainment like creating a wine-themed canvas painting and cigar rolling

Bid in our silent auction to support the mission of Orlando Science Center–to inspire science learning for life

7pm to 9pm $7 per class. Dance Orlando Festival 2017. ME Theatre (Marshall Ellis Theatre) 1300 La Quinta Drive #3, Orlando, Florida 32809. A festival to showcase the versatility of dance as an art form ORLANDO, Fla.

The ME Dance company will present its 2nd I Dance Orlando Festival, Orlando’s first arts festival to solely explore the art of dance to its richest extent. Registration for the dance festival has opened for all local and regional dance schools and companies interested in participating.

The event will take place April 29 and 30, 2017 at the state-of-the-art ME Theatre, which is specially equipped for dance performances of all kinds. I Dance Orlando Festival was introduced to bring together the local community of dancers,choreographers, performers, educators and students in a cooperative manner that will allow them to perform new works and also inspire and educate the public through dance.

The festival aspires to create an environment for students and artists to cultivate their talent and artistry to its fullest potential, all while strengthening public appreciation and support for this unique and vast art form.

“The I Dance Orlando Festival is designed to offer a supportive, non-judgmental atmosphere aimed at cultivating a creative exchange of ideas,” says Marshall Ellis, founder and artistic director of ME Dance and concept designer for the festival. “The festival will encourage artists to explore new grounds, offer a creative outlet, and also provide both local artists and the public the opportunity to experience dance in a new way.”Throughout the festival, the ME Dance School will host open, drop-in classes (no registration needed) for the general public for the deeply discounted price of only $7 per class.

7pm to 10pm SAFE Words Slam FINALS! Henao Contemporary Center 5601 Edgewater Dr, Orlando, Florida 32810. This event will determine a team of 4 poets that will represent Orlando at the 2017 National Poetry Slam in Denver, CO.

Sunday April 30, 2017.

Noon to 1pm Free. Yoga. Lake Eola near red gazibo.

Noon to 3pm Donation. Music at the Casa. Casa Feliz Historic Home Museum, 656 N Park Ave, Winter Park, FL 32789. Harpist Catherine Way.

10pm to midnight Free but get a coffee.  Solo Acoustic Spoken Word. Natura Coffee & Tea, 12078 Collegiate Way, Orlando, FL, United States. Every Sunday.

Science Center Talk about OSIRUS-Rex.

At Live from Orlando, It’s Science Night Live! Out of this World Space Edition! at the Orlando Science Center, (777 E Princeton St, Orlando, FL 32803), Dr. Campins spoke about OSIRIS-REx, is an exploratory spacecraft which will intersect with asteroid Bennu to collect surface dust to be returned to Earth for analysis. He showed slides of the spacecraft’s sterile construction. The craft has been in it’s Outbound Cruise Phase since Sept. 8, 2016. Bennu is about 600 feet in diameter which means it rotates slow enough so that surface dust should be still intact..

It Completed Earth-Trojan Asteroid Search around the L4 Earth-sun Lagrange Point on Feb. 20, 2017.  Although no new Earth Trojans were discovered,
the spacecraft’s camera operated flawlessly and demonstrated that it
could image objects two magnitudes dimmer than originally expected.

Completed six-month instrument calibrations in March 2017.

Live from Orlando, It’s Science Night Live! Out of this World Space Edition!

At Live from Orlando, It’s Science Night Live! Out of this World Space Edition, held at at Orlando Science Center, (777 E Princeton St, Orlando, FL 32803.) Dr. Campins spoke to guests at Science on a Sphere (the floating orb on Level 4) for about an hour before his official presentation talking about the OSIRUs-REx mission one-on-one with people. This mission sending a satellite to intercept an  asteroid approaching to Earth. When the craft gets close enough an arm will extend and and slap the  asteroid will raise particles which will then be Earth. The composition should give hints about the earliest history the solar system.

Dr. Campins instrumental in bringing the project to reality. target asteroid is named Bennu which is a B-type asteroid with a 500 meter
diameter. It completes an orbit around the Sun every 1.2
years and every 6 years comes very close to Earth.
These close encounters give Bennu a high probability of impacting Earth
in the late 22nd century. Bennu’s size, primitive composition, and
potentially hazardous orbit make it one of the most fascinating and
accessible Near-Earth Objects and the ideal OSIRIS-REx target asteroid.

A tall woman made hand shadow puppets on the globe as people asked questions mission.

Curator of Exhibitions and Collections Pamela Schwartz.

I first met Pamela Schwartz, The Orange County Regional History Center Chief Curator three months after the horrific Pulse Nightclub shooting that took 49 lives. I had contacted artist, and History Center Collections manager Whitney Broadaway, about sketching interviews with survivors, family of victims and first responders. It just so happened that Pamela was beginning interviews, so the collaboration made perfect sense. Pamela is an artist herself, so she understood what I do.

Pamela had been working as the History Center museum curator for just four months when the Pulse shooting happened. As politicians and first responders scrambled for a course of action, Pam was making plans on how the History Center could play a role in preserving the history that was unfolding. Multiple memorials were appearing with people leaving flowers candles and personal mementos. Rather than have all these items end up in a landfill, Pamela spearheaded an effort to collect, preserve and catalogue all of the thousands of items in the museum archives.

The collections work happened under grueling conditions in the height of the Florida summer heat. It was thankless work since not everyone understood or appreciated what the museum staff was doing. To date over five thousand items are still being preserved and catalogued. In this sketch Pamela is working late at night cataloguing the 49 crosses that were left at Lake Beauty next to the Orlando Regional Medical Center where people were treated after the shooting. After being collected, each cross was placed in a specially made archival box with a clear front. All of the memorial items left at each cross would fit in another box that slips behind the cross inside the box, keeping everything together. Preservation of the crosses was a challenge since they weren’t built to last. Pamela took photos of each cross when they were at the hospital, showing them the first day and then sequentially with memorial items added over time. A large online database was created where memorial items can be seen. The crosses were supposed to go on public display 6 months after the shooting but Hurricane Mathew shut down those plans and canceled the Pride Parade. With one year fast approaching this June, the crosses are once again being considered as a symbolic centerpiece to honor each of the victims.

On Pam’s desk are several EMS and fire department rainbow patches which were custom made to honor the senseless loss of life. It is just one example of the many small gestures that people continue to make in order to deal in some way with the tragedy. Such items are often sent straight to the museum since only the memorial at Pulse remains. Lake Eola and the memorial at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts have since been collected and are now being preserved.

On this night the subject for the interview didn’t show up, so I sketched Pam at work. She entertained me with stories about her family in the midwest. She has been working in museums since she was 14,  so she was immediately up to the challenge when the Pulse Tragedy occurred. Interviews are still being conducted and likely will continue for years to come. Not everyone is ready to talk about that night. Just locating people is a challenge. Some wounds may never heal. I feel fortunate to be using my art to help document this story.

Orlando Traveling Mural Meeting.

The Orlando Traveling Mural meeting was held on the second floor at Sam Flax. Colleen Ardaman moderated. I arrived a bit late and the meeting was well underway. Several news stations were there along with survivors, and family of victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting. Some of the painting s of victims were hung on the wall behind a panel of people involved in the project. The fact that this mural will help memorialize the people lost was stresses by Mayra, the mother of Amanda Alvear who was tragically shot that evening of June 12. Colleen mistook the portrait above Mayra’s head for Amanda, but it was Amanda’s best friend Mercedes who also died that night. Amanda may have been able to escape that evening but she went back for her friend according to Amanda’s brother.

Much of the meeting was an opportunity to express the good will surrounding the project. People directly affected by the tragedy will be adding hand prints to the panels to allow everyone to contribute as a community. Coleen handed out sea shells to everyone in the room. She explained that the shell was a reminder of the living being that once inhabited it. The mural would act as a similar reminder.

The survivors sat in front of me at the meeting. A female newscaster crawled close to them so she could hear their names. I write the names down and hope to meet each someday. India Cedeno, a Pulse shooting survivor, said she also survived 9/11 in NYC. She began to recount how she and her son had escaped the club that night. As she spoke, she got choked up. Christopher Hanson another shooting survivor comforted her. As she recovered she explained that she was overwhelmed by the love in the room. I still don’t know if art can heal, the talk rings shallow to me, but it is bringing people together which in itself opens doors and breaks down isolating barriers.

Swampy, The World’s Largest Gator.

I spotted Swampy, the Worlds Largest Gator on a road trip heading West on 50 towards the space coast. I was driving out to sketch a rocket launch, so  I couldn’t stop. After the launch, I had to stop and sketch Swampy. Swampy acts as the gateway to Jungle Adventures, A Real Florida Animal Park, (26205 E Colonial Dr, Christmas, FL 32709). The gator’s 200 foot length guarantees the world record status. 

Jungle Adventure is home of rare Florida Panthers, Black
Bears, Wolves, White-Tailed Deer, Tropical Birds, Reptiles, Mammals, and
other critters. You enter this timeless old Florida Hidden
Treasure into a lost world that time forgot. You can see, hear, smell (ewww) and feel, old, authentic Florida. Unfortunately the park was closed by the time I got back around sunset. I couldn’t swell anything from the parking lot.

The park offers a gator jamboree feeding, and a cruise aboard the Serene Passage on Green Gator River, deep inside a
natural Florida habitat teeming with alligators, flocks of birds and
authentic old Florida replica, Spanish Fort Mees. Guests can cruise among 200 gators and survive.

Admission for Adults ages 12 to 59 is $23.95.

Seniors aged 60 and older cost $20.95

Children 3-11 cost $16.95

Children under 3 are free.

West Art District faces a white wash by the city of Orlando.

The West Art District is located 1011 West Central Avenue near Westmoreland. Walking here was an adventure from downtown Orlando. Several blocks of Central are closed off due to construction of the new Orlando City Soccer Stadium. Fencing closed the street but the sidewalk remained open. The Homeless coalition had cardboard boxes and bundles possessions blocking part of the sidewalk. The sight of the colorful murals brightened the otherwise dingy neighborhood.

In May, the City of Orlando will be holding a public hearings to address code violations for this group of buildings known as The West Art District. According to city code, a building can not have murals on the front of the building. These buildings have all four walls covered in murals. A neighbor of West Art District put in the complaint. Harrison Rai, the manager of the property fears that the city wants to whitewash the front of the buildings. With the Orlando City Soccer Stadium gentrifying the neighborhood more people might have a chance to see the murals. In Miami’s Wynwood District, every building is covered with murals created by artists from around the world. During Art Basel, an international artists exhibition, new art is added to the walls each year.

Several years ago I was asked to design a mural for the front of the Fringe offices. Money was raised to fund the project but before work began, the building was torn down to make room for a sky rise condo. Had I actually completed the mural, it might have faced a city whitewashing because of the ordinance.

In
2015, the City created a new, streamlined process to approve artistic
murals and allow for this creative expression to expand in the City.
Below is an
overview of our current mural policy process. Any mural not meeting
these requirements may still be allowed but would require a sign permit.


Location
in the City: The artistic mural must be located in a non-residential
area that is designated as an activity center or mixed-use corridor
inside a Main Street or Market Street that isn’t a historic district or
be adjacent to a LYMMO or SunRail station.


Location on the Building: The artistic mural must be on either the sides or rear of the building.


Height
of the Mural: The artistic mural can only take up a certain percentage
of the wall depending on the height. No mural can be more than 60 feet tall.


Commercial
Message and Text: The artistic mural can have a sponsor (text or logo)
but can not take up more than 5% of the mural. Any non-commercial text,
separate from the sponsorship, can also not take up more than 5% of the
mural


Maintenance
Standards: Prior to painting, the area must be properly cleaned and
primed. If the mural is defaced, peels, fades or is not maintained it
will need to be repaired or painted over within 30 days.


Approval
Process: Artistic murals require a joint application of the property
owner and artist to the City. The application includes the concept for
the mural, size and location. The application must be submitted in
advance of the mural being installed. Murals inside the Downtown area will also require approval by Appearance Review Board staff. 

With so many rules regulations and reviews, artistic expression seems boxed in, much to the standards of the Orwellian 1984 society.

Weekend Top 6 Picks for April 22 and 23.

Saturday April 22, 2017

1:30pm to 4pm Free. Protest of St. Augustine’s Anti-Artist Laws. Plaza de la Constitucion and on St. George Street. PleinAir artists from around the nation will converge on St. Augustine in protest of St. Augustine’s Anti-Artist Laws, and Historic City News local reporters will be there.

Currently PleinAir artists in St. Augustine are subject to 60 days in jail and a $500 fine for “illegally” PleinAir painting or drawing in the City’s downtown parks and sidewalks. PleinAir painting is defined as painting in the open air or painting outdoors.

In support of St. Augustine’s PleinAir artists’ First Amendment rights to Freedom of Expression in public spaces, PleinAir artists will “illegally” paint and/or draw throughout the City’s “prohibited” parks and sidewalks.

In defiance of the City’s Anti-Artist laws, PleinAir artists will set up their easels in the Plaza de la Constitucion and on St. George Street starting at 1:30 p.m., in individual acts of civil disobedience. The “Paint In” will last approximately two-and-a-half hours.

Artists who do not wish to be arrested plan to set up a small easel and a blank canvas, symbolic of their support for the local artists, and in protest of the City’s restrictions on their First Amendment rights to paint and draw in public spaces. The city has laws that ban “painting,” “drawing,” “displaying,” and/or “selling” art in public spaces, but none against setting up an easel with a blank canvas. Laws against “intentionally” blocking or impeding pedestrian traffic still apply.

All of the artists who plan to paint or draw recognize that they are subject to 60 days in jail and a $500 fine if they “illegally” create art in the City’s “prohibited” public spaces, and are making provisions to make bail.

Starting at 1:00 p.m. we will begin meeting with people in the Plaza near the former “Slave Market” to answer any last-minute questions and hand out extra 8.5″x11″ signs.

6pm to 9pm$120 for members, $150 for non-members. Participation Dinner Affair. Art and History Center, Germaine Marvel Building 231 W. Packwood Avenue Maitland, FL 32751. One of Central Florida’s most intriguing fundraising events,
Participation is a feast for your senses. Local artists transform dining
tables into works of art, and guests enjoy dinner with the artist at
these unique creations. The evening includes live performances and
demonstrations, a silent art auction, elegant dining and more.

 2017 Artists: Bob Barnett, Victor Bokas, Whitney
Broadway, Stephanie Cafcules, Nathalie Chikhi, Anthony Deal, Danielle
DeGuglimo, Marla E, Jeri Eisenberg, Lauren Gilmore, Derek Gores, Dan
Hess, Matt Larson, Rebecca Sexton Larson, Faren LeJeune, Richard
Munster, Suzanne Oberholtzer, Danny Powell, Kelly Maier Rex, Rebecca
Rose, Elizabeth St. Hilaire and Trent Tomengo.

8pm to 10pm $5. The First Annual Tribute To Morgan Steele. Will’s Pub 1042 N Mills Ave, Orlando, Florida 32803. A Tribute to local artist, writer, eco-activist, and Legend Morgan Steele.

Featuring:

Dirt McCoy and Friends with:

Sabrina Ambra

Mandaddy

Erik Grincewicz

And Mick McIuan

Franchise

Love Destruction

Eugene Snowden

And Jim O’Rourke

Local Artists and Exhibits



Sunday April 23, 2017

10am to noon. Free. Painting Demo Light on water Michelle Held. Lake Lily Drive, Lake Lily Dr, Maitland, FL 32751. Part of the week long Winter Park Paint Out hosted by the Polasek Museum.

1pm to 3pm $40 Yoga Sketching Workshop. The Art of Fitness, 5154 Dr Phillips Blvd, Orlando, FL 32819.

Thomas Thorspecken (Thor) will offer instruction on how to draw the human form by sketching a Yoga Master in
action. The class will cover the importance of finding a quick gesture
before focusing on detail. Poses will be short to start 1 minute to 2
minutes) and get progressively longer as students loosen up. 10 minutes
for the longest pose. We will focus on loose line work that stresses
keeping the figure from being vertical or stiff. Get a drawing workout
while drawing a yoga workout.

Art Of Fitness is a personal training and yoga studio in Dr. Phillips.
The studio features an upscale design focused on inspiring clients to
look and feel like a work of art. Golf fitness, meditation, tai chi,
nutrition, personal training, yoga and yoga with pet therapy is all part
of the atmosphere at this creative studio.

Elite Animation’s mission is to provide the highest quality education
with top industry experts in the Art of Animation to students around the
world from ages 8 and up (and Adults). We strive to offer a unique,
engaging and innovative animation programs, bringing real life
experiences to the classroom and providing students with the tools to
maximize their marketability and increase their opportunities for
college placement and advancement in various industries, not just
Entertainment.

9pm to 11:55pm Free but get a coffee. Comedy Open Mic. Austin’s Coffee, 929 W Fairbanks Ave, Winter Park, FL.  Free comedy, or give it a try yourself.