What defines your
City?
This is where our
minds were set on when it came to design our own Orlando Urban Sketchers Logo.
So what define us
Orlandoers…?
When one thinks
"Orlando", first comes to mind are those famous ears - Mickey Mouse
Ears!, Disney Theme Parks symbol known to the entire world. Second to mind
comes; Florida sun, white sand beaches, forever green, palm trees, beautiful
weather year round. Haaa, so beautiful!
But when you live in
Greater Orlando, Florida, your mind and focus are always set on the quality of
life surrounding you - your rich community life, leisure time, nature, blue
skies, torques color water, that comes as a package - how not - with Florida's summer extreme
heat and summer thunderstorms.
Orlando, a young
city, is also a big hub for arts - all sorts of Art. Disney and Universal
Studios raised generations of artists locally here. Our city is like a magnet
to artists and as such, art defines us greatly. Art surrounds us and shapes us and therefore creates the best environment to
build and develop a dedicated community of Urban Sketchers.
As individual Urban
Sketcher who lives in Orlando you are always on the hunt for special moments
and locations that define your life as a resident of Central Florida. Your
sketchbook and pen are most likely in your car, in your bag, ready to be pulled
out and capture in sketch a moment, a place, an art piece, an architectural gem
or event you go to.
Therefore, when it
came for us, the Orlando Urban Sketchers Chapter, to design our own logo in
celebration of a one year to our chapter establishment anniversary, we
brainstormed all the above factors searching for our true identity and
decided…, It is not going to be the easy catchy Mickey Mouse ears!
Viviana Castro, a
local young landscape architecture designer volunteered to take on this task.
In her design of Usk Orlando Logo she was inspired by the elements that define
Orlando - "The City Beautiful" and focused on Lake Eola located in downtown
Orlando;
Urban skyline, blue
water lines, ever green land that stretches to the horizon, lakes, nature and
wildlife.
Lake Eola is like a
navel in the heart of Downtown Orlando. It's surrounded by lashed greens,
Cypress trees and Florida Palms, sculptures and art displays, the Rainbow
amphitheater, the vibrant green fountain, swans, birds and other wildlife, and
people; Orlandoers and visitors as one who all come for a stroll and a leisure
time around the lake. Farmer markets on the weekends, art and craft events,
concerts and performance by the people - for the people!
That's really who we
are, a loving and hugging Floridian community who always unites in good or bad
time. We are a community. We are the people.
For all these good
reasons we at Urban Sketchers Orlando chose Lake Eola as our May Sketchcrawl
event that we combined with the reveal of our Usk chapter LOGO!
So we went on a small scavenger hunt... :-) and then met together to present our finding.
Here's Orlando's Urban Sketchers collection as seen and captured by each individual sketcher at the Logo reveal Sketchcrawl event.
Centered
sculpture by C.J. Rench
Centered is a bold monumental sculpture made of eight individual forms arching in perfect balance with a kinetic yellow center able to spin in the wind. Because each piece of this sculpture is fabricated in various widths and colors, Centered seems to change its shape from every angle it is viewed. Centered makes reference to how Orlando is the center of family fun, experiences and memories. The yellow form in the center also pays tribute to Orlando’s clear and sunny weather.
Walt Disney Amphitheater / aka The Rainbow.
The Walt Disney Amphitheater was donated to the City of Orlando by the Walt Disney Company in 1989. An outdoor venue and stage, it’s an excellent site for public events, community plays, dance performances, outdoor movie showings, and free concerts. The look of the theatre reflects the beach scene of 1950s Florida. The bandshell was built in a retro design with a scallop-shaped facade, and from above, the amphitheater seating also fans out from the bandshell in a scallop shape.
Muse of Discovery
Sculpture by Meg White
The Muse of Discovery is a monumental
sculpture made from earthwork and limestone that portrays a reclining woman
gazing at her opened hand, which is large enough for a child or adult to sit
allowing its visitors to be part of the sculpture. The Muse of
Discovery is a fanciful and interactive piece that excites the
imagination of all its viewers. You are invited to sit in the hand of the Muse
and discover your hidden potential as she whispers to you.
Ducks boat rides are popular among families at the Orlando community.
Take Flight
Sculpture by Douwe Blumberg
On the water’s edge of Lake Eola, Take Flight depicts a flock of birds ascending into the sky. The birds are made from cast alloy and welded together to create the sculpture which complements the Lake Eola walkways and shoreline. Capturing a fleeting moment of beauty and defying gravity, Take Flight embodies a spirit of freedom and transcendent joy.
Centered
sculpture by C.J. Rench
Centered is a bold monumental sculpture made of eight individual forms arching in perfect balance with a kinetic yellow center able to spin in the wind. Because each piece of this sculpture is fabricated in various widths and colors, Centered seems to change its shape from every angle it is viewed. Centered makes reference to how Orlando is the center of family fun, experiences and memories. The yellow form in the center also pays tribute to Orlando’s clear and sunny weather.
Centennial Fountain
The fountain was built in 1957 and called the Centennial Fountain to mark the 100th anniversary of the naming of Orlando. In 1965, it was renamed the Linton E. Allen Memorial Fountain in honor of the local banker who pushed for its construction after being inspired by fountains he'd seen in Europe.When the fountain was switched on the crowd gasped as the main spout shot water 75 feet into the air, the multi-hued lights came on, and smaller spouts around the fountain's rim threw a fountain of water around the beautiful edifice.
From the beginning, the fountain has had its detractors. It may have been inspired by the great fountains of Europe, but none of those had a 1950s-chic seafoam-green plastic skin that glowed from lights within. Some joked that it looked like a flying saucer had splashed down in Lake Eola.
- We at USkO might be still a small body group of local urban sketchers in Greater Orlando but we know that as more we sketch, as more we share, most likely we will become a significant body of urban sketching artists, sharing the love and our city views with the entire global community of our Urban Sketchers peers around world.
*** Event Sponsor: DIXON TICONDEROGA art supply company, Lake Mary, FL
Thank you #Dixonticonderoga - we loved the #Lyra Aquacolor crayons, the variety of #Canson watercolor and sketching paper and all the other art supply goodies you provided.
