We're Moving on Up!

Not to be confused with Mr. and Mrs. Peck, the moving on up I'm referring to is our city, Orlando. Great cities have great public art and that's all there is to it. We now join that list.

Remember last week when I posted the sculpture photos as a sneak peek? As well, I included the email invitation regarding the "official unveiling" scheduled for this past Monday night. Well, Mr. Bruce was in town, we went, and was it ever special. Oh my word!

Beginning the night meeting at the corner of Church Street and Orange Avenue, we were so pleased to see a great crowd awaiting dusk when the lights would go on. I shared an album on fb of the sculptures which I'll include here in the interest of not going crazy with photo overload. So, they are in the order of how we saw them. That said, there are always more to share. As we approached the plaza, I finally saw the Lynx bus advertising the market.

I can't remember who told me about it, but I wouldn't be surprised if that were one of the gazillion photos I've taken there each and every week for six years. Super good.

After the official lighting we made our way to the History Center, one of the sculptures I didn't show you before. All of them have been outfitted with LED lighting, making them really special. To put this one into scale, Bruce is inspecting the materials.

I must say, the city did a beautiful job with everything, providing water and live entertainment at each stop, ranging from a harpist, to none other than our Joseph from the market!

And who do you see joining in with Joseph and Jesse, his new bride? Why, it's none other than Mayor Dyer. Anyone who knows Joseph would not be surprised that he was stationed at the site sponsored by Anheuser Busch with free beer for all. While we were chatting with J & J, I mentioned the Mayor was coming up. Immediately they broke into Luckenbach, Texas, knowing MD would love that one as he's known for his love of country and blues.

Along with the music and refreshments, the artists were there to answer questions and of course, receive praise for their work. I suppose one of the things about being mayor is having your photo taken by everyone. Here he shows up again with artist Meg White,

whom we chatted with briefly. We wanted to know what the "Muse" is made of, and how long it takes to make something that large. The answers? Two years is the normal time, however, with help she made it in eight months. Indiana sandstone is the answer to question number one.

Moving along, we came to another of my favorites, purchased by none other than Darden Restaurants!

It must be the trend because changing lights seems to be the thing; the colors ran the gamut while we watched in awe. This piece is made of aluminum.

Visiting last week, this one was still in the finishing stages of installation.

To the left of the photo you'll notice, if you are looking, a man and woman, he wearing a suit and tie, while she is in a jacket. That would be Mr. and Mrs. Massey, the donors of this spectacular piece. Discovering that through an overheard conversation, we too took the opportunity to thank them for their generosity. Graciously he deflected the praise, spreading it to his wife and employees. We thought they were the owners of the Massey Cadillac dealership here in town, only to discover they own Massey Services, a pest control company. How about that? Bugs, as it turns out, are a big business.

We stopped next at the Park Services Open House, and what should I see upon entering? Lying on the reception desk was the calendar! That, of course, made me happy. Next up, the two sculptures adjacent to the market. Well, look who was there!

No, I'm not trying to overload you with pictures of Mayor Dyer, instead the woman to his right is the force behind the project, Jennifer Quigley, whom I know nothing about. She, obviously is so excited to see her vision of the last two years come to fruition. As well, she's dancing to the New Orleans Dixieland band!

You've seen the big tree just behind my market booth space, but what you do not know is the donor of that sculpture, "Cedars of Lebanon" was the gift of a man David worked for long ago. He owns several gun ranges in the area. Guns, as it turns out, are also big business. I don't know if he also provided the food at this area, but it was rocking with a big crowd and Lebanese music. Unfortunately we got there after all the food was consumed. This young woman told me she had to remain where she was for the next hour!

Apparently this whole dress as a tablecloth thing is not new, but it was to us! I suspect these performers were from Universal Studios. Wherever they came from, they looked amazing!

For the record, we did not ask anyone to photograph us in front. :)

It was all so darn exciting to see the enthusiasm for the arts. We left beaming, finishing the night up at one of our old favorites, Dexter's in Thorton Park.

Years ago we spent considerable time and money at this place! If it were up to Bruce we would have still made it part of our date nights, but yours truly complained about the food. Surprisingly, and in a good way, I can no longer make that case.

Well, that was some night, and if that weren't enough, Tuesday night I was privileged to attend a big deal event at the Cheyenne Saloon, taking photographs for Dana, the manager of the property. Let's do that story tomorrow as I want you to digest this exciting evening first. In our fast-paced world it is easy to be thrilled one moment, and then almost immediately be ready to move on to the next big thing isn't it?

The City Beautiful

Some of you may not know that Orlando uses "The City Beautiful", as, maybe you'd say, a nickname. Sort of like Chicago is "The Windy City", although I don't know if they have that printed on stuff. Certainly we do. Familiarity breeds contempt was something I learned from my parents long ago, and while I don't think I have contempt for Orlando, I certainly am very familiar with our city having lived here nearly 55 years. That said, I'm sure I don't see it in the same way new folks and tourists do. Today, instead of setting up my tent at Lake Eola, I strolled around the whole lake looking at some pretty amazing new public art. Scott Maxwell, one of the few remaining columnists for the Sentinel, wrote this about it today. Say what you will about chain restaurants, but they sure are good community partners; Darden contributed big bucks for this project. Without further ado, let's take a look-see, want to?

For weeks now, this sculpture has been in place across the lake from my space,

and I've been dying to see it up close. Most of the other sculptures have been enclosed with fencing for quite some time now, however, this one has been in glorious view--so very beautiful in person. Continuing my walk, after parking near Matt's old apartment on Broadway Street, I  am struck by how the park looks on a Friday morning, with people strolling, walking dogs, and some folks running, on what is a beautiful weather day, the kind of day the tourist board drools over. You can usually spot the tourists as they are taking photographs, sort of like me. :)

Swans, the park is known for the multitude of swans, as you'll soon see.

Whether or not we're known for our turtles is not for me to answer.

Okay, more swans with the paddle boats fashioned to imitate them.

Why look, it's the Sun Trust tower! The super looking turquoise band shell has just been re-painted. Disney provides the funds for this, one of the few things that I can think of they are involved with inside the city limits. Remind me of others if you think of any.

A few friends posted photos on Facebook of this remarkable sculpture,

which as you can see, is still being planted. All of the new sculptures are interesting, very much so, but none so much as this one of a lady lying on her side with dirt and asiatic jasmine covering her body.

Honestly it is so fantastic I hardly know what else to say, and that's saying a lot, when I run out of words! A little later, on the other side of the lake, a fellow asked me if I'd photographed, "the lady of the lake", which seems like a clever title to me. Because none of the installations are entirely finished, there are no name markers for me to share the details. While I've been typing this an email from Terry Olson, the arts director for Orange County came through,

In the next ten days there are four public art events around Orlando!  You are invited to join me at them.  The visual image of our city is changing rapidly and for the better.  I hope you are excited about it like I am.

Monday, November 11, 10:00 am  Dedication of Red Tails Monument/sculpture outside the cafe at the Orlando Science Center.

Tuesday, November 12, 6:00 pm   Illumination Ceremony for the upgraded Tower of Light at Orlando City Hall, 400 S Orange Ave

Monday, November 18, 5:30 pm    Unveiling party for the eight SeeArt Orlando sculptures starting at Church & Orange with a Lymmo bus to and entertainment at each of the sculptures (but it will be a great night for walking the route).

Tuesday, November 19, 6:00 pm    Unveiling of the Urban Art Museum (outdoor art), 932 N Mills

I hope I’ll see you at one or all of these outdoor events.  Let’s celebrate the beautiful weather, the beautiful art and the  beautiful people that are part of our community!

Posters for all four are attached in the one pdf.

-------
Terry Olson, Orange County Arts & Cultural Affairs

with a few more details about all of the exciting events happening in our city. If I am gushing over the lady, I'm still making my mind up about this one.

Perhaps you noticed it across the lake in the first photo? Sitting on Central Avenue, across the street from The Waverly, it, too, was unveiled a few weeks ago. What do you think? 

The installation of this sculpture has wreaked a little havoc with our market loading, and unloading, set as it is where we come into the park every Sunday.

I know I really like this one, even more so now that I can see the base, which has been enclosed with the curtained fencing for a month or more. My booth sits under the tree on the left. Asking the workers what comes next around the base, they were a little sketchy. Although I've seen this same scene below for more than six years, almost every Sunday, it looks so different without all of the vendors. Well, duh, of course it does!

See the ligustrum tree on the left? Bruce ties our tent to it every week. So, how beautiful are the oaks? Beautiful.  Heading along the path to the right, here is one that I'm also still puzzling over.

This too, has been shrouded for weeks. Not only was it hard to photograph, but it's hard to understand what the artist is trying to say. Or, at least it is to me. How about those gigantic feet!

I may not understand the meaning, but I sure can appreciate the movement in the figure, as well as the clothing. Some folks are so talented, it's mind boggling!

Continuing around the lake, past the playground, I knew there was one more I hadn't seen yet. By golly, it was a perfect day to see this one.

What one Gail? Well, the sidewalk is closed while they complete the installation, so I couldn't get the shot I wanted, but here is a little closer shot: 

Wondering why I said it was a perfect day to see it? Those metal wands, or more like rings, if you will, rotate by wind power, which is in abundant supply today. In case you're wondering, this one is on the corner of Eola and Robinson, across from Panera.

Whenever I go to England, I marvel at the trees, however, I've got some pretty spectacular ones in my own backyard don't I?

Remember what I said about the swans? Here's yet another swan reference.

More typical of the art seen heretofore in the park, it is a little baby in comparison to the new pieces! While it's true that 55 million tourists come to our area annually, most never see the real Orlando, instead, spending their hard-earned vacations in the theme park area. In fact, I hear almost weekly from people who do venture downtown how surprised they are by what they see. Sometimes they even say the city is beautiful. 

Well, now it is even more so with the addition of bold, interesting and in some cases, beautiful public art! Thank you, thank you, for both the artists, and those generous folks who made it possible. I hope you enjoyed your "sneak peak."

Oh my gosh, just as I was finishing this up, I notice the two turtles at the base in the above photograph. 

How I love photography!

p.s. I have no idea why on the web the text font changes because it does not for me...