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FAVO – An artist’s rendering of a monthly artists’ open house at Faith Arts Village Orlando. Photo: Park Lake Presbyterian Church
When it comes to the arts, people often say “it’s all about timing”…and it turns out, timing is great for FAVO – the Faith Arts Village Orlando collective.
It’s almost time for December’s monthly open house – sometimes still called First Friday, though they now extend to Saturday. This coincides nicely with the start of the holiday market season and the end of FAVO’s gift card collection that will go to Grace Medical for the uninsured and underinsured.
It’s all happening December 2nd and 3rd.
But wait – what is FAVO? So glad you asked. As executive director Will Benton explained in this 2019 interview, it’s a creative space with creative beginnings.
Will Benton:
FAVO is part of the ministry of Park Lake Presbyterian Church, located directly across the street from downtown Orlando. FAVO is originally the old Davis Park Motel, built in the 1950s. It operated as a hotel until around 2010. And then it was emptied. The church demolished several buildings to make way for a parking lot, but left several buildings. So from that, we had a lot of conversations about whether we would use the hotel property to feed the homeless… [those] type of thing But it didn’t work out according to the city’s zoning and various things. So our pastors Dan and Helen DeBevoise said, “Can’t we do something creative with that space,” and I, being the church’s organizer, and working with them for 15 years, I said, “Let’s do a creative village of working artists! ” So that’s kind of how it all started.
Nicole Darden Creston:
And it is, in fact, what it is – a creative village of working artists. Tell me how it works. Do they rent rooms?
Will Benton:
The building has 36 rooms and 22 of them are full-time rentable spaces. And we use them. I have a waiting list of people always trying to get in. So when a vacancy is available, I fill it.
Nicole Darden Creston:
So tell me about First Friday (also known as the monthly artists’ open house), and then what?
Will Benton:
We open all 36 rooms. So it’s all local art – amazing, creative people, from sculptors, jewelry makers, painters, mosaic artists, anything you can imagine, all opening their doors on First Friday. We usually have food trucks, live music, kids art tables and it’s a good time, free event for everyone.
During the monthly open house event at FAVO, all motel room/studio doors are open. Photo: Park Lake Presbyterian Church
Nicole Darden Creston:
So you can walk, you can browse, buy…talk to the artists?
Will Benton:
absolutely Artists love it. Some people think artists are unapproachable, or don’t know what questions to ask artists. But you can ask artists about a particular color or what inspired them to come up with that idea or idea. So it’s a little less scary than it might be.
Nicole Darden Creston:
The whole place is lit up and all the curtains are thrown back. So you can see through the windows in all of the artistic spaces?
Will Benton:
correct And you can enter the ones you choose
Nicole Darden Creston:
Now, is it necessary for art or artists to be Presbyterian or Christian in nature?
Will Benton:
Absolutely not. Absolutely not. We welcome anyone and everyone who wants to come to the property. Art is of the judicial type. So the artists who come have to be of a certain level, we try to make it an art village. So we try to make sure it’s pretty good quality stuff. Again, there will be 36 rooms, there will be multiple artists and each room will… why not go out and have a good time with the family?
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