I’ve been on the road. This trip I was working on a refurb at 6 Flags of the Okeefanokee Swamp now called Monster Plantation. The last time I was at the park I was in grade school. We spent a lot of time on the Swamp ride because in the middle of miles and miles of blistering asphalt it was one of the only places to sit in the shade.

It was surreal to be there as an artist. It was even more surreal to return to a place where when I last visited most of my innocence was still intact. It was yet even more surreal to return to a place that, while I was going through monumental changes of my own, hasn’t changed at all. I didn’t find comfort in it.

A good friend of mine, EC, recommended me for the job. It was great to see him again and to meet his girlfriend, Camille. They are Brooklyn hipsters right down to their painted on clothes and unruly coifs. The city vibe suits them. Both are artists and musicians who have found a way to hold on to creativity AND pay the rent, no small feat. They are also still young enough to be undaunted by late nights on the town combined with early mornings on the job. I, on the other hand, am old and need my sleep so I didn’t get to spend as much time with them away from the sight as I would have liked.

This is the first scenic gig I’ve been a part of where my primary scope was not painting. I was there to hang the murals that provide the back drop for the story of the Plantation. The murals hang behind the scenery around the entire course of the ride. We hung 20 some odd murals ranging in size from 5 to 50 feet long. The murals arrived to the site late in the game because of last minute changes by a fickle art director. Because of this they had to be commandeered around the scenery and the hardscape. This made their installation extremely challenging. Even though it was a trial it was probably for the best that they went in last.

Hardscape is a scenic term for concrete. The hardscape crews are notorious for coming on site and blowing concrete on EVERYTHING. They rarely, if ever, use a shield or clean up after themselves. Consequently, what is a pristine piece of art when you leave the site in the evening can become a pristine piece of art cover in splatters of dried concrete by the next morning. Painters hate hardscapers. Judging by their lack of respect for the painters’ progress I’m guessing the feeling is mutual.

All in all it was a fun and interesting gig. I’m happy to be back in Orlando but boy is it HOT! Thank God my Orlando gig isn’t outside. I don’t think I could hang.