A Week at Sarsota's Hermitage...or summer camp?

A few weeks ago, I was privileged to be one of eight decorative artists from around the country invited to spend a week at the Hermitage on Manasota Key. The Hermitage is an artist retreat, which was originally started by the Sarasota Arts Council and is now self sustaining, from what I understand. You can read all about it on their website.

For our 'retreat', eight decorative artists from around the country, were invited to spend a week here to paint a mural, which was given to the town of Englewood. Originally, we thought we might collaborate on one large mural, but quickly decided to showcase, in effect, what each of us does on a daily basis. So we each painted a four by eight foot panel.....outside....under a tent....and the stars. It was quite the experience, and THAT is an understatement.

The artists, as I mentioned, came from all parts of the country.....
We had two brothers, Todd and Eric Lindburgh, from Virginia Beach, VA. Shannon Clark, from Hollywood, CA. Tania Seabock from San Francisco. Pat Ganino from somewhere in Connecticut. Elena Ortega from Key Largo, FL. Skip Dyrda (me)....from good old Sarasota and last but not least, Erik Schlake, from Englewood. It was Erik who had the original idea and posed it to Bruce Rodgers, curator at the Hermitage and then to the Englewood Community Redevelopment Authority. Ultimately, the entire project was funded and unanimously approved by the Sarasota city council.

By sundown on a lazy Sunday, we had all arrived and began to get to know each other. A few had met at various conventions and shows and most of us at least knew about each other but never met. It really didn't take long for all of us to be best of friends. Some credit for that has to go to Debbie Marks and her assistant Jesse, from the CPA. They were sort of our 'camp councilors' I guess.....or house mothers:-) A more appropriate title might be 'amazing' since they treated us like royalty and fed us way too much food. I think much of the food was donated from various Englewood restaurants (I'll get that list later) but Debbie would show up bright and early most mornings with the best baked goods, that she made! That coffee cake was deadly good....wow...

The plan was that we would start painting Monday morning but some of us just couldn't wait to get started and began working on our panels Sunday night. Each panel had it's own, very large easel and they were all set up under a huge tent on the Southern edge of the property. For the first few days we didn't have many lights since no one figured that we would be painting until the wee hours of the mornings. I don't think anyone quit painting before 11pm and most painted well past midnight, even on Monday night after we got slammed by a fairly strong storm. All the panels got wet and one mural basically melted off it's panel. The muggy weather made the donated paint dry way too slow for some of us but by the end of the week, all eight panels were finished and hanging in downtown Englewood. In fact, the contractor was picking up finished panels by Friday noon. That's only four and a half days. Of course, we all worked a minimum of 14 hours a day.......

And it wasn't ALL work. Like I said, we ate well. And this is where the summer camp part comes from......more like summer camp with no adult supervision:-) I'm being facetious, of course....sort of......
For example, Tania, the artist from San Francisco, has been a part of the Burning Man festival with her husband for several years. They perform in a show that involves dancing and fire.....as in torches and ...um....fire breathing. So.....she taught us how to do that....the fire breathing part. It was very interesting. Pretty wild, actually. No people, animals, plant life or structures were harmed during our lessons:-) See the video here.

And then there was "The Red String Incident" Those of you that know about my work know also that I include a red string in all my work. I've done this for about 15 years. One day after painting all morning, I walked up the hill to the main house to have lunch. I hadn't realized that most of the other artists were already there and that Debbie was there making sure everyone had enough to eat. Tuesday was leftovers day so I opted for a slice of pizza. When I went to serve myself, I was instructed to sit at the table and I would be served. OK....fine.
My pizza arrived with a nice piece of red string on top. Cute:-) Thanks, guys. The it took me about ten minutes to realize that everyone had red strings tied around their wrists. Wow....now that was really nice, I thought.
But little did I know that they weren't done with me. That night, after painting for several hours after dinner, most of us had congregated in the main house. Many had their laptops out and others were just talking. I think it might have been between midnight and 1 am when I finally decided to head down to my cabin to call it a night. Early the next morning, I stumbled my way back up to the main house to make a pot of coffee, only to find Erik (the one from Englewood) standing in the kitchen......coffee was already made and he had this huge grin on his face. I asked what he was so happy about and he mumbled something about food and friends and everything going so well. I poured a cup of coffee, walked to the window and looked out to the parking lot to see my white Ford Explorer......completely covered in red string, along with several trees, benches and the fence! Too cool.....I was smiling all day. All week. Still......

And that little story was what this little experiment was all about.....friends. I made friends that week that I'll never forget.....I may never see some of them again. I hope that's not the case. Regardless.....this was an experience I'll treasure forever. We worked hard.......had fun....ate too much and became the best of friends...all of us. And the little town of Englewood received eight kick-ass murals for a fraction of what we would have normally charged any of our clients.....basically for room and board.

Thanks to Erik for the idea and all his hard work to make his dream a reality. To Debbie Marks and her assistant Jesse, for waiting on us hand and foot (and cooking). All the donors of food, wine, easels...everything. Bruce Rodgers for agreeing to host the project and putting up with eight crazy artists. To Sarasota County for funding the project. And most of all, to my new friends......
And oh, yeah.....to my wife.....for allowing me to go to summer camp with no adult supervision:-)

I'll eventually update this page with a link to a website all about our experience as well as a video I'm creating from the photos everyone took. In the meantime, enjoy the photos below....and sorry for the long post....

Skip

More Press.......and a little surprise

I've been very fortunate to receive my share, and maybe a little more, of press.....the free variety. Back on December 15 of last year (2007), Nichole Reber wrote a very nice article about me and what I do for Style Home Magazine, which is part of the Sarasota Herald Tribune. Most people that read the article indicated that it was the best so far and I'd have to agree. Nicole did a really nice job, as usual. You can click HERE to go to the press page on my web site and then from there go to the full article......Thank you Nichole and thanks to Lisa McQuaid, the art director who called for more info and photos. Nice job.

Now for the surprise. For the last few weeks, I've been updating my emurals.com web site, which I hadn't done for a couple years. I'm almost done with it so check it out....
Anyway, I Googled my own name and found myself linked to (or is it from?) a site called wonderhowto.com (don't go there...yet) And it was there that you got sent to HGTV's website where they now have the video I did for their Modern Master's TV show several years ago. Well....it's no longer there:-) My guess is that either HGTV or High Noon Productions, the production company that created my video, made them remove it.....

However, my video IS on the HGTV web site. So you can go to my Press page HERE and simply click on the Modern Master's logo. Below is a screen capture of me lying on the very clean and newly painted floor of my studio while they were taping. It doesn't look near that good right now.

A Visit to the Venice Golf & Country Club

This past week I spent some time at a home in the Venice Golf & Country Club, which is a very nice community. I was hired to paint a mural outside near the home owner's pool. They wanted some kind of tropical plant in an urn and so....that's exactly what they received. Oh....and a bird....
So below is a detail of said bird and my ever present red string. As you can see, the wall was extremely rough.


The images below show the entire mural up close and from across the lanai.

And this photo shows one of the neighbors parked in the middle of the road. I'm not sure if it's a Florida Panther or a bobcat....it's looks too small to be a panther. If anyone knows....speak up.

Skip

Ta Daaa....Thank You, Stuart, Florida

After almost three months of painting, mostly seven days a week, in the sun, I have finished the murals at 47 West Osceola Ave. in Stuart, Florida.

The plan was for me to finish this last week painting another mural inside the alcove. That idea was scrapped and instead, I painted the numbers on the keystone over the front entry. And that was it...done.....finished.

The last corner I finished, which I mentioned in my previous post, is the Ashley Gang corner. As you can see in the first photo, they have just emerged from inside what could be a bank, or not, hands and pockets full of the money they just made off with, and apparently quite pleased with themselves.




The next photo shows the lower niche in that corner which various elements that depict the history of the Ashley Gang as they pertain to Stuart, in particular.

The most interesting element, and a surprise to me, was that large poster in the lower left corner. It's an over sized image of a movie poster. The movie is called "Little Laura and Big John" and was actually filmed in Stuart. It was apparently all about the adventures, and demise, of the Ashley Gang. I've not yet viewed the movie but I read, and was told, that it's really bad. It starred Karen Black and Fabian and was distributed by Crown International Pictures, famous, I believe, for their 'B' movies. I guess this one was more like a 'C'.

Some of the other elements are a wanted poster showing an actual image of John Ashley. Next to that is a framed portrait of Sheriff R.C. "Bob" Baker, who ultimately arrested the gang. Below is a 20's era photo of the old bank that the gang robbed, which is now a restaurant called The Ashley Restaurant. Great food....
Up above in the little alcove you'll find bags of money and jugs of rum and moonshine, socked away by the gang.

And last, but not least, is the finishing touch...the address....

And so.....I'm back home. I've mentioned previously all the nice people I met in Stuart....and I'd like to mention those that I can remember....recall that I spent the entire summer in the sun...so I probably lost quite a few brain cells in the process....more than normal and more than I could afford.....

The people I met and would like to thank....at least some of them...

First and foremost would be Mike Ryan, the developer. A great guy, easy to work with and very understanding. Not only did Mike expand the amount of work I was initially expecting to do, he trusted me. I didn't always have sketches 'approved' for many of the smaller windows and even parts of the larger niches. We really collaborated on much of the project and in fact, the Frances Langford corner was his idea, and a good one, at that. And what a great family he is surrounded by...Tommy., Larry, wife Lyla (gee...I hope I got that right....) and darn...I forget some of the others names. Great crew....

Thank you just as much to Robert Flagg. This is the guy that contacted me way back....over a year ago. He was the original developer and the guy with the vision to paint Trompe L'oeil windows on the sides of the building.....so thank you Bob.

Mayor Mary Hutchinson, who I sort of met by accident. I was waiting for some storm clouds to pass so I could go paint and stopped by her husbands gallery. We had some great conversations and her husband is very talented.....and he designed the street flags in Stuart, as well. Also Chuck and Robin from the Community Redevelopment Department, who told me about Stuart's previous mural program.

The Tram guys, especially the one who mostly works what might be the 'second shift'. He often brought his riders by to show me working on the murals.

Linda from the Geoffrey Smith Gallery. I painted her dog in one of the windows. I regret that I ended up leaving on a Wednesday....I forgot that they are closed then so I never got to say goodbye to Linda...darn.....I'll be back though.

Tara and the crew from the Ashley Restaurant. Also Jeff, Lolli and Mike from the Black Marlin. I never took time to eat there....but I will.
Paul Daly, owner of the Flager Grill and Bar, who talked me into joining a meeting of the Downtown Merchant's Assoc., after I just got off the lift, all soaking wet and dirty....thanks for the beer, Bernie.

Terri Monaghan from the Martin County Convention & Visitors Bureau, who I met at the above meeting and sent letters to other periodicals suggesting articles about the murals.....

The Stuart/Martin County Chamber of Commerce for placing my press release on their website.

Tom Corcoran, of TreasureCoast.net property management for showing me that great condo I stayed in for almost three months. Also a pro football fanatic like myself....

Albert and crew from Albert G.'s as well as Debbie from the place next door. They all often 'checked up' on me....just to check my progress. It was great meeting you all...

The nice lady from Rhetta B's across the street. Of course, I forgot her name, too, even though we talked a few times. Maybe that was Rhetta!

Of course all the guys that worked on the building while I was there.....
John....who posed for my fisherman corner.
Mark, the job super.
Patrick, Jamie and Jamie Lee, the painters. Patrick is a Dallas Cowboys fan....too bad.
The tile guys.
Chris the handyman and his assistant...

And last, but not the least, Pat Beonde', who stopped by to check up on me often, many times accompanied by friends (I think she knows everyone in Stuart). And for inviting us to her great birthday party, where I met even more nice folks.

I'm sure I forgot someone.....but that only means I forgot while I'm writing this....as things come back to me, I'll add them here....

So that's it for my 'Summer in Stuart". Onward to the next project....

Once again, Thank you Stuart, FL.

Skip

Local Press and a Little Controversy

So far, this has been an extremely positive experience here in Stuart, Florida. I've met tons of really nice people, and even a few questionable people....but they were the minority, for sure. Once I'm finished with this project, I plan on mentioning all those I can remember...which will be a challenge, to be sure.

Anyway, the Stuart News sent a photographer over to shoot some photos of what I've been 'up to' , pun intended. So a couple weeks ago, Matt the photographer (Matthew Ratajczak) Showed up shortly after 8 am. I'm not sure he knew what he was in for given that I had been currently painting on the East side of the building and that by 8 am, it's already extremely hot up there. I'm pleased to announce that we both survived....soaking wet, but we survived.

After several phone interviews, first with a staff intern whose name I unfortunately forgot, and then by Bill DeYoung, an article was published in the Stuart News, Martin County section. They did a great job and I probably talked to much, which shouldn't surprise anyone that knows me. The one odd thing was the headline, which went as follows....
"Double Take Reveals Murals Not Real"
Hmmmm. Think about that for a sec. As some comments suggested on the website version, the murals are actually real, it's the subject matter and elements that are not real. But maybe that's being picky, I suppose. I certainly appreciate the good press. This is yet another article that at first started out as a 'mention' until they found out what I was doing and well...if a picture is worth a thousand words, four or five pictures are even better. So thank you Stuart News, Bill DeYoung, his intern, who was very nice....we laughed a lot, and of course, Matt. To see the article as well as photos online, go here....
Skip's Article in the Stuart News
I think that it's a sort of shortened version of the original article. Don't forget to view the slide show, which was a really nice touch.

Ok...oh....the controversy. Right.

One evening, I was up on the lift, preparing the last corner of the building for painting. I heard someone calling up to me, which is a common occurrence. So I acknowledged him and he asked me where the Ashley Gang was...my first thought was to say that they were all umm...dead. But I didn't...so I told him that they would be painted in the top niche of the corner I was working on....
So he asked me where I did my research and did I know that they had murdered three police officers near Miami. I didn't know that, I responded. He wondered if it was a good idea to 'glorify', in his words, a group of murderous thugs. I responded that I wasn't exactly doing that and that it was part of Stuart's history. I also asked him if he knew that after the gang had robbed the Stuart Bank, they were arrested and later allowed to escape by the sheriff . At least, that's something I read online. He shrugged and mumbled something while walking off into the sunset.
Later the next week, the very same guy wrote a letter to the editor of the Stuart News asking the same thing. So I did some research and found some interesting information.
What I looked for, thanks to friend Abby's suggestion, was info on Bonnie and Clyde stuff. It appears that towns all over Louisiana and Iowa compete for tourists, and their money, looking for info and exhibits about Bonnie and Clyde. And one in particular caught me eye. As it turns out, the town of Stuart, Iowa, community leaders are seeking a state grant for a revitalization project that includes a mural commemorating a bank robbed by Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow. Visitors frequently stop to photograph the site of the April 16, 1934, heist, now the town's police station. Weird, eh? I've had all kinds of strange coincidences since I've arrived here....more about those later......

Also, I received an email from the city that said...."any artwork that portrays local lore or history in the community whether it is good or bad; it is still colorful and unique to us. Having said that stay the course we are behind you all the way."

I should mention that the Lyric Theater here in Stuart has bronze stars embedded in the sidewalk at the entrance to the theater, including one for the Ashley Gang. Down the street is the Ashley Restaurant that is full of Ashley Gang memorabilia and I also found out that there was a movie made about them called "Little Laura and Big John".

The photo above shows the Ashley Gang mural in progress....I have a lot of small changes, mostly with the shadows, but there will be two more characters and more money floating down.

That's it for now.....more later....

Skip

Stuart Murals.....some windows for you

Windows....fourteen windows. I had six of them on the west side of the building and have eight on the East side. The one below shows some clown painting something. It looks like he has his 'plans' taped to the wall.....
Funky hat, eh?

























In the next window is Mark, job supervisor, keeping an eye on everything. Mark's an all around nice guy and has been really helpful since I've been here in Stuart. I suppose that a set of plans he's holding, held together by my red string, of course.
The young in the photo hanging on the wall is Mark's son.


























Next we have the proverbial cat in the window. Every window needs one, so says my sister. So here it is in all it's sun-basking glory......


























And last, but not least, is Patrick the painter, lowering a bucket of paint to his comrades, who you will meet later. That blue thing at the bottom is part of the lift and the vertical gray bar on the right is the plastic wire-guard on the cement electric pole. It's really tight back in this corner.



























I'll post a few more window pictures later and then the Ashley Gang corner, which I've already started....