Month: February 2018

Orlando, As You Like It

Like many other towns in Florida, Orlando too grew around a fort called Fort Gatlin. These forts were built to protect the settlers from the Seminole tribes. Many towns still go by the name of the fort, such as Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers.

Orlando was originally called Jernigan

Orlando was originally called Jernigan but changed its name to Orlando in 1857. Many theories abound as to the origins of the name. One theory states that Orlando was named after a soldier, Orlando Reeves, who was killed by the Seminole tribes in 1835 while he was defending Fort Gatlin. Another theory states the soldier’s name was Orlando Jennings, not Orlando Reeves, while another disputes these theories stating no soldier by the name of Orlando was killed during the Seminole Indian wars.

Another theory states that a J.G. Speer relocated to Jernigan from South Carolina and started reorganizing Orange County. During the process he came up with the name Orlando after the character in Shakespeare’s “As You Like It.” Interestingly one of the main streets in downtown Orlando is called Rosalind who was Orlando’s lover in the play.

Rosalind Street, Orlando

I like to believe that perhaps Mr. Speer did name Orlando because another area in downtown Orlando is called Ivanhoe Village – maybe he liked English literature and named this street after Sir Walter Scott’s 1819 book.  Another neighborhood is called Lorna Doone – could this be named after R.D. Blackmore’s 1869 book? There’s also a Lake Sherwood – perhaps named after the Robin Hood’s Sherwood Forest.

I love the idea of all these names and characters from British Literature naming Orlando and its neighborhoods!!

(Images Courtesy Orlando Travel Sites & Birmingham Museum).

An Ode to A City

Patrick Martinez was born and raised in Los Angeles, with a multicultural heritage – he is Filipino, Mexican, and Native American. This gives him a unique persepective and outlook – something that he has translated into his artwork – all of which show that his figers are firmly placed on the pulse of his city and the nation.

He captures the essence of the city and its forgotten nooks and crannies – neon signs from convenience stores, bakeries, and barber shops that tell desparate stories, funeral wreaths for sale on street corners, a shocking pink bogainviilea peeking out from over a fence – all these show up in his mixed media work – and convey messages about forgotten streets and overlooked people.

Martinez has taken very ordinary neon light signs seen in local shops and bars and turned them into meaningful works of art.  In one, the neon sign reads, references German (anti-Nazi) pastor Martin Niemoller’s  (1892 – 1984) well known quote: First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out Because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out Because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out Because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak for me.