COVIDCON Superspreader

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Seth Meyers  told the thousands who had packed Radio City Music Hall for NBCUniversal’s presentation, at the Upfronts, “What a historic room to be able to tell people you got Covid in.”

The NBCUniversal upfront, which kicked off proceedings at Radio City Music Hall with elaborate production numbers involving dozens of performers, was a largely mask-free affairs

Ten days later, Covid cases were sweeping through the ranks of those who attended the marathon of events in New York. Top-level executives at virtually all of the major networks and studios were impacted, along with support staff that worked on the presentations as well as media buyers and reporters who attended the string of events.

It is likely the largest Covid superspreader event in the senior ranks of the TV industry since the start of the pandemic.

The majority of attendees did not wear masks most of the time. None of the non-affiliated guests were required to take a Covid test throughout the week. Vax cards were mandated at all venues. On May 16, 2022 New York City health officials strongly recommended that people wear masks when they were in densely populated indoor spaces. But they didn’t go as far as mandating this, and for the next couple of days, there were not a lot of masks seen at the events targeting ad buyers.

So inviting senior studio executives, talent and ad buyers was a great way to spread the virus. How might you infect as many of the worlds billionaires as possible? You invite them to Davos, Sweden for the World Economic Forum. Davos returned to an in-person meeting format this year. Videos I saw showed mask less crowds huddled together gleefully spreading deals and the virus. They might be rich but that doesn’t mean they are smart.

Corsets and Cuties ICONIC at Fringe

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After sketching Bullock and the Bandits at the Abbey, Pam wanted to extent the evening by going to the Stardust Lounge (431 E Central Blvd, Orlando, FL) to see the Corsets and Cuties show ICONIC. Stardust is a very small basement space. The main room is perhaps 10 feet wide by 20 feet deep. The venue was jam packed for this performance with standing room only.

Pam her niece and I were perhaps the only people wearing masks that evening. Rather then press into the crowd, I sat off to the side in the aisle that leads back to the dressing room for the performers. At one point the stage threatened to collapse and I was front and center to watch as several stage hands or bar tenders tried to re-assemble a microphone stand using their iPhone flashlight to see what they were doing.

Who’s your favorite iconic star? Troupe co-founder Lady Jaimz warmed up the crowd and also took part in many of the performances.  The one performance that had me laughing out loud was Barbi Rhinestone who dressed as Dolly Parton using two huge pink balloons as her boobs. She had to enter the staging area with her back to the audience for the big unveiling. I could only see a fraction of the performance but when the balloons started popping the audience roared.

I got to sketch the 27 May 2022 performance and it looks like the final performance was 28 May 2022 at 07:00 pm – 08:00 pm.

Bullock and the Bandits

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Kangagirl Productions presented Bullock and the Bandits at the Orlando International Fringe Festival. A $10, reusable button is required to enter each performance. You may purchase online or in person at the box office. This show is at the Abbey, 100 S. Eola Drive
Orlando, FL.

Step inside the haunted saloon at the World Famous Bullock Hotel for a rhythm and blues, country, and rock fueled ghost rider romp across the Wild West! Orlando Fringe Festival Lifetime Achievement Award recipient David Lee’s new band performs with special guest stars Tymisha Harris and Eddie Cooper.

“I’ve always been fascinated with Deadwood, South Dakota, which is a world-famous destination for ghost hunters. Sheriff Bullock built a hotel there in 1894. It still stands and is known to be haunted with all types of bandits and heroes of the Wild West”, explained David Lee. The talented Bandits band: David Lee, Eddie Cooper, Tymisha Harris, Tanner Kasier, Bryce Hayes, Matt Lyinx, Tom O’Hern, and Randall Scandal.

Tickets are $15. The remaining show dates are today, Saturday 28 May 2022 at 4:15PM and Sunday 29 May 2022 at Noon.

Complacency Waves

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Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla warned Wednesday of “constant waves” of COVID-19 caused by complacency around the virus, politicization of the pandemic, and waning immunity.

Cases are rising in the U.S., and the rate at which people are getting vaccinated is falling. In the week that ended May 22, 2022, the US reported 790,000 new cases, more than three times as many as were reported in the last week of March. Of course these numbers are a fraction of how many are becoming infected since testing sites are closed and people test at home if at all.

People are also growing tired of COVID-19 safety regulations, said Bourla, who was speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where world leaders and members of the business elite are gathered for an annual summit.

“What worries me is the complacency,” Bourla said in Davos, adding that fewer people were wearing masks and that even people who have already been vaccinated were less likely to get booster shots. The consequences will likely be seen in three to six months, he said.

Bourla said Pfizer believed that antiviral drugs would replace vaccines as the key weapon in fighting the coronavirus, at least until shots providing a longer period of immunity are developed. Pfizer is “doubling down” on producing its antiviral pill Paxlovid, he added.

COVID-19 Dating Game

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Your COVID-19 vaccination status is now a deal breaker for many singles. Your vaccination status can determine moral compatibility.

If you are dating a shlub who hadn’t gotten around to making a vaccination appointment, then that person cares only for themselves and isn’t very empathetic to the  health risks to people around them. It is a sure sign of moral ineptitude.

Across the country, about 41% of daters say they would not consider dating someone who is unvaccinated, while just over half say it wouldn’t matter to them, according to a Pew Research poll released in early April 2022. Only 2% report that they would only date an unvaccinated person.

About half of singles in their 20s and 30s are vaccinated, with some requiring that of potential partners and others having a more laissez-faire attitude. On the other hand most singles above 40 have gotten their shots, and they definitely want that in a match, too. OK Cupid, Bumble, and Tinder have added functionality where you can put your vaccination status onto your dating profile. The sites will even boost your exposure as a perk of getting the shot. Dating.com said 86% of its users list the vaccine as a deal breaker – no shot, no date. If someone is unvaccinated, then swipe left.

 

Swan Boats

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On Sunday I met an advanced Urban Sketching student at Lake Eola. Out mission was to sketch the swan boats.

Fencing has been added to this area making it impossible to sketch from nearby benches. Grass areas around the swan boats were also blocked of with yellow tape probably because new seed was added.

We settled on this view down a ramp to the water. I did this sketch as a demo to explain what I include in a sketch and why.

The first five minutes of a sketch are often the most important because the entire scene will be blocked in on the page and the rest is all about detail. I did the preliminary work in pencil and then let my student get to work as well.

The excitement of working on location is that different actors keep entering the scene while the sketch is in progress. At first a guy stood with his cell phone. Then a couple came by with a bag of seed and they fed the swans. Three Italian men held up a cell phone and spoke to relatives back home. I finally settled on this mother swan and her offspring. Dog owners kept walking by and the mother swan would lunge forward and hiss at the dogs. People are clueless. These swans have to be on the defensive every minute of their lives. Swan boats were loaded and returned in quick order as we sketched. Only one swan boat had a canopy, so I bet it got hot out there on the water.

A pug owner was walking his dog and the pup lay down next to my student and refused to move. She is a pug owner and he must have sniffed out his new friend. The pug leaned into all the pets and pretty much had to be dragged off to continue huffing along on his walk. We got to learn all about the owners history with pets. Sadly his last dog did not live long since it got cancer. These sorts of exchanges are what makes sketching on location such a pleasure.

Students Working

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At Crealde I almost always sketch while my students are working on their sketches. I am fascinated by the gestures artists take as they create. One class of each of my 6 classes is held in the classroom and sometimes it is impossible to keep students 6 feet apart.

The more students I have, the harder it is to keep them safe. I always leave the classroom door open hoping to get a cross breeze.

I am certain this class would have been about perspective and fitting several fellow students into a sketch. As students sketch I pay attention to how much they look at the world around them as opposed to looking at the page. Part of my challenge to get them to accept what they produce without judgement. I am always delighted by the variety of work produced.

My next series of Crealde Urban Sketching classes starts up June 19, 2022.

Required Supplies include but are not limited to…

#2 pencil with an eraser, 05 and 08 micron pens, Stillman and Birn 9 x 12 inch spiral bound sketchbook (Alpha or Epsion series), Travel sized watercolor pallet (mine is a Windsor Newton with 14 color pans), Pentel water brush (water goes in the handle), Black Prismacolor pencil, Compact artist stool

North Korea Superspreader

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North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un held a huge North Korean military parade April 25, 2022 to showcase his military and nuclear might. That event has been identified as a Covid-19 super-spreader event. More than 20,000 soldiers marked in the parade and were part of the  a weapons display. Soldiers who marched in the event tested positive for Covid-19, Radio Free Asia reported.

The country has now topped 1.2 million cases of “fever,” state media KCNA reported May 16, 2022.

State media-released photos showed huge crowds at Pyongyang‘s Kim Il Sung Square unmasked and not socially distanced.

At the time, North Korea still had yet to report a single Covid-19 case since the pandemic began, although experts have expressed doubt over the accuracy of its Covid reporting.

After reporting its first-ever Covid case on May 12, 2022 the country is now experiencing a massive outbreak of a “fever” with at least 1.2 million cases, state media KCNA said on May 16, 2022. The country has not clarified how many of the “fever” cases tested positive for COVID-19. At least 50 people have died and more than half a million people are receiving medical treatment, the outlet added.

The current outbreak is “closely linked to the April 25, parade,” said Hong Min, a researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification in Seoul.

Crealde 2 Point

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At my Crealde Urban Sketching class I worked hard to socially distance my students when we worked in the classroom. I would carry a six foot long staff with me to class to be sure students were more than six feet apart. I would leave the classroom door open to get some cross breeze and I organized the table into a large square positioning each student at a corner.

Masks were required at Crealde at the time but that mandate has been dropped. Thankfully I haven’t been back in the classroom since the masking has been dropped.

This sketch was done as a demo after I introduced students to the idea of using two point perspective in a sketch. They were tasked with including as many other students as they could in their sketch.

As I worked on my sketch I walked around at each phase to show the students how much work was involved with the pencil rough, the inking and the final watercolor. I also offered each student individualized sketch suggestions to incorporate into their sketch.

Most of our work was done outside, but for one class I wanted to convey how to sketch people and place them inside a room.  Much of the challenge comes in getting students to understand how to use horizontal, vertical, parallel and diagonal lines. I am convinced that basic geometry should be a requirement for any student of art. I work my students hard but those who are up to the task start producing some amazing work.

50 Oldest Churches of NYC: Serbian Orthodox Cathedral of St. Sava

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The church building was constructed in 1850-55 and was designed by architect Richard Upjohn in English Gothic Revival style. At the time it was known as Trinity Chapel which was one of several uptown chapels of the Trinity Church parish.

Celebrated American writer Edith Wharton (Jones) married socialite Edward Wharton in 1885 in Trinity Chapel; she was later to immortalize the church in her famous novel of Victorian New York, The Age of Innocence. Trinity Chapel was an active Episcopal Church community for a number of decades until 1915, when the area became commercial and parishioners began to relocate farther north.

The chapel was sold to the Serbian Eastern Orthodox parish in 1942, re-opening as the Cathedral of St. Sava in 1944. The entire church complex with furnishings was purchased in 1942 for $30,000. The Deed, signed on March 15, 1943, did not include a park on the southwest side of the church (present-day parking lot), speculated to have been sold at a later date.

Following the end of World War II, the Cathedral reached out to huge waves of refugees and immigrants from Yugoslavia. It was the only place where Serbs could meet, where they could preserve their faith and national identity, simultaneously a place to learn English and enter into their new, alien society and culture.

In the 1960’s, a powerful explosion from across 26th Street destroyed the original stained glass altar windows, which were subsequently replaced with stained glass windows in a Byzantine style motif. The Serbian Orthodox Cathedral of St. Sava was declared a national landmark building by the National Register of Historic Places, U.S. Department of the Interior, and the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. On April 18, 1968, the New York Landmarks Preservation Commission stated that the Cathedral’s “striking appearance commands special attention,” and that “its special character, historic significance, and aesthetic interest and value of the development, heritage, and cultural characteristics of New York make it irreplaceable”.