It's a day after Halloween, and I'm writing this while sitting in the 83 degree sunshine as the smell of salt on a humid afternoon sea breeze rolls in and tropical birds swoop overhead. I often ask myself, preceded with a record scratch, "How the hell did I end up here?" far away from the place where I had lived my entire life. The answer to that question is complex, but the most accurate statement would be that NEON brought me to the Sunshine State, and I simply made the decision to tag along.
In the wake of having to cancel NEON 2020, slamming on the brakes that hard took its toll. As an event organizer for over 15 years, my life was upended, and the resulting stress led to a lot of dark, sleepless nights trying to figure out what to do next. At that time I had resolved that another NEON Retrofest could be a long shot at best and that I would have to find new ways to connect with others into this retro ephemera that we adore. For that reason, I started streaming on Twitch during the unseasonably cold spring of 2020, despite never expecting to become a streamer. For me it was a cathartic way to connect with others sharing similar interests even as my career as someone who created immersive, real world experiences fell apart. Night after night I'd go live and host tiny little virtual NEON Retrofests from the building where my rows of arcade games sat in the darkness, and in doing so I met a lot of awesome people who felt the same way about these cultural touchstones as I did. I've continued streaming every other night to this day, as I truly enjoy it now, but in truth it was something different that could never actually replace a real event.
Amanda, the other half of NEON, had been planning a small vacation down to Florida in 2019 as kind of a wind up to the NEON 2020 planning season after her graduate program ended. We had originally thought about hitting some 80s/90s landmarks and documenting the trip, and I scouted out a number of places to check out. Of course I approached this task from the same "preservationist" standpoint that I've always used with a lot of retro stuff, whether it be Synthwave, arcade collecting, cult film, and the like. At this time, I still viewed everything from the 80s as precariously fragile–salvaged blips of culture from the days of paradise that only existed now in childhood memories, grainy VHS tapes, CRT pixels, and the warm sounds of vintage synths. All of it was in the past, loosely tied together by strands of fleeting nostalgia and whatever physical objects I could pull through time with me.
We made the call to still take our trip in the late spring/early summer of 2020, however it had changed from a vacation to a personal escape from the weight of the impending cancellation of NEON 2020 in Rhode Island. What we didn't know at the time was that we were taking a trip to find out where the event truly wanted to be, and as we bounced around the state in cheap neon-clad, glass block-adorned beach motels, a realization crept over me that not only would change my life but would also result in the resurrection of NEON Retrofest as not just a cool event to host, but as something more. Florida unfolded to me with abundant Deco architecture, Memphis Group-inspired art and design, quirky small businesses, palm tree-lined beaches and causeways, and neon-colored sunsets, and it shattered the precious glass case I had previously placed over my nostalgia. Before that trip I had never been to Florida, and the fact that so much retro design still existed here–and had people who deeply appreciated it–blew my mind. It was all still here, still alive, still standing, still thriving. One Gulf Coast night, as I watched the sun slip below the sea in turquoise and magenta fire, I knew without a doubt that we had not only found a place for NEON, but also a place for us. As Kenny Loggins said, "This is it."
Two and a half years have passed since that trip, and now this tiny piece of paradise on the gulf is my home, and the home of what I think will be the best event we've ever put together. It has little to do with me and everything to do with the place, the people, and the aesthetic that has welcomed NEON to the vibrant home that it's always been destined to find itself in. Whether you're from here or will be visiting for NEON 2023, be sure to take it all in next year when you attend, as the vibe we wanted to convey isn't going to be limited to just our venue. If you're like me and believe that the look and feel of the past is gone forever, I think you'll find that you were as mistaken as I was. Trust me when I say that nothing is stopping us from bringing these vibes into the present.
We've also created a casual Instagram account where we post aesthetic photos of our Florida travels from time to time. Follow at www.instagram.com/neonflorida if you're into that sort of thing.
