Artist Arctic Plague Ship

Posted on by Thor

In August of 2024, which was the height of the 5th wave of the COVID pandemic, 100 artists, writers and musicians set sail from Longyearbyen, the world’s northernmost town. The Arctic Circle Cruise  sailed around Svalbard, a group of islands in the Arctic circle. This 15 cruise dubbed an artist residency has been sailing each year since 2009. There were many acclaimed artists and writers on the ship. Artists rely on their brains for creative inspiration. Despite this the cruise set out with no protocols inn place for COVID. The doctor on board had no COVID tests, masks or anti virals like Paxlovid. More than half the artists on board became infected with COVID-19.

A very accomplished author developed long COVID which causes brain fog, and it could completely disable the artist’s career. The cruise organizers chose to pretend that COVID was a thing of the past. Any mention of the virus would go against the feel good vibes that they were promoting for the cruise. Testing passengers on such a small cruise should have been an easy task, but instead the health of the passengers was ignored. If one artist is infected in such a tight space the infections would spread quickly which is what happened. People with symptoms weren’t encouraged to wear a mask or avoid contact. Instead they were encouraged to mix and mingle even if infected.

One passenger found out that another passenger tested positive the day before the ship set sail. The passenger that tested positive decided not to go on the cruise, but everyone was encouraged to board without any testing. The “You do you” attitude doesn’t work to contain the ongoing pandemic. The Arctic Cruise organizers were negligent and they put every passenger at risk for long term disability due to long COVID. Each repeat infection increases the chance of developing long COVID.

20 Big Cats Die from H5N1

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H5N1 or Bird Flu is spreading from California to surrounding states. A wildlife sanctuary in Shelton, Washington State has been hit hard. Twenty big cats which is half the population at the sanctuary have died from the infections.

The cats were in 30 by forty foot habitat enclosures. Those habitats are spread put across 5 acres. In other words the big cats were not extremely close together. The first death happened around Thanksgiving. The sanctuary has been put under quarantine and the public had been denied access. They don’t not yet know how the cats were infected. Could it be bird droppings, or perhaps the meat they were fed? Could the virus be airborne? No one is certain yet. Among the cats that dies were, five African servals, four bobcats, four cougars, two Canada Lynxes, one Amur-Bengal tiger.

H5N1 has had a mortality rate of about 50% while COVID has a much smaller mortality rate of about 0.28% which resulted in over a million American deaths. If H5N1 starts human to human transmission, a 50% mortality rate would be devastating.

Cabaret Final Poster

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This was the final version of the Orlando Shakes Cabaret Poster. The title was moved down covering the dancers. I suspect a decision was made the the poses of the dancers was too suggestive. The Joe Masterhoff credit then took top billing.

This poster probably went through more changes than any other I have done. This is actually quite an interesting solution and not one I would have considered on my own. The title became a form of censors stamp which makes perfect sense considering the political climate post WWII in Germany.

The Orlando Shakes will take you back to Berlin in the late 1920 where, inside the Kit Kat Club, a spotlight shines on the colorful, gritty, and hedonistic lives found inside. Don’t miss this landmark musical that is filled with iconic songs and electrifying dance, including Wilkommen, Don’t Tell Mama, Maybe This Time, Money and the title number Cabaret. It’s an astonishing and eye-popping tale that has renewed resonance in today’s political climate. Tickets are available online.

Cabaret: Third Pass

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With this pass at the Cabaret poster for the Orlando Shakes, the MC, or puppet master was added. The title was also changed to distress it as you might see in  run down seaside signage with illuminated bulbs. We considered the same image without the strings.

The revised title treatment was rejected and we went back to the brighter colors which popped more. The odd this about this version is that the title was moved down to cover the heads of the dancers. This was an unexpected change but I ran with it.

Notes I got on this version resulted in the final poster image.

The Orlando Shakes will take you back to Berlin in the late 1920’s where, inside the Kit Kat Club, a spotlight shines on the colorful, gritty, and hedonistic lives found inside. Don’t miss this landmark musical that is filled with iconic songs and electrifying dance, including Wilkommen, Don’t Tell Mama, Maybe This Time, Money and the title number Cabaret. It’s an astonishing and eye-popping tale that has renewed resonance in today’s political climate. Tickets are online.

Cabaret: Second Pass

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A request was made to have the central dancer look out at the viewer.It feels awkward. It could be made to work if I adjuster her entire gesture. This breaking of the 4th wall was rejected.

At this point a decision was made to incorporate the MC as a puppet master. The title would have to be lowered to make room for him. I embrace big changes and assume they will improve the final result.

The Orlando Shakes will take you back to Berlin in the late 1920’s inside the Kit Kat Club, where a spotlight shines on the colorful, gritty, and hedonistic lives found inside. Don’t miss this landmark musical that is filled with iconic songs and electrifying dance, including Wilkommen, Don’t Tell Mama, Maybe This Time, Money and the title number Cabaret. The show runs from February 5 to March 2, 2025. Tickets are online.

Cabaret: First Pass

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This was the first pass at the Orlando Shakes, Cabaret poster. Actually the broken bulbs came a bit later when there was a request to distress the title. With this first pass I also had a layer that showed a swastika in the shadow of the spotlight. The adverse reaction to that was so strong that I threw out the layer.

The paint application on this sketch is rather sloppy. I was working fast to get the idea down.

What mattered most was the title which closely followed the example of the title used for the movie.

Orlando Shakes will take you back to Berlin in the late 1920’s where, inside the Kit Kat Club, a spotlight shines on the colorful, gritty, and hedonistic lives found inside. Don’t miss this landmark musical that is filled with iconic songs and electrifying dance, including Wilkommen, Don’t Tell Mama, Maybe This Time, Money and the title number Cabaret. It’s an astonishing and eye-popping tale that has renewed resonance in today’s political climate. Tickets are online.

Cabaret: First Ad Seen

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Cabaret was the most challenging poster designed for the 2025 season. That is because it was too brazenly sensual. The splits leg poses shown in this ad were part of the initial design, but after several passes the Cabaret title came down to try and cover the hips of the dancers.

I am rather sad to see that the chair legs were lifted upwards in this add making it seem like the dancers are floating. That might be an interesting effect if that was my intention. I am sure most people don’t notice that the chair legs to don touch the stage.

The Orlando Shakes will take you back to Berlin in the late 1920’s Kit Kat Club, where a spotlight shines on the colorful, gritty, and hedonistic lives found inside. Don’t miss this landmark musical that is filled with iconic songs and electrifying dance, including Wilkommen, Don’t Tell Mama, Maybe This Time, Money and the title number Cabaret. It’s an astonishing and eye-popping tale that has renewed resonance in today’s political climate.

The show runs between February 5, and March 2, 2025. Tickets online.

Henry VI Part 2: She Wolf of France, Final Poster

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The final painting for Henry VI Part 2: She Wolf of France involved painting actress Roberta Emerson to replace the generalized woman I had painted.Head shots are rather bland so we searched for reference of her looking much more angry.

Some brush stroked were cleaned up but otherwise I kept the bold look of the sketches.

The play runs from January 8 -19, 2025. Tickets are $35.

Orlando Shakes continues the exciting saga of Shakespeare’s Henry VI trilogy! A love triangle, a plot to murder, and a rebellion are all part of this thrilling tale – centered on the Wars of the Roses! In this raw, “Bare Bard / Original Practices” production, Orlando Shakes’ actors will perform the play with less than 40 hours of rehearsal, no designers, and no director – just like the acting companies of Shakespeare’s time! Don’t miss this exciting next chapter in Orlando Shakes’ popular Fire & Reign Series.

 

Henry VI Part 2: She Wolf of France 2nd Pass

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This pass at the Henry VI Part 2: She Wolf of France poster was done to rethink the armor and lighting. It is a very rough sketch of the idea and was for my eyes only at the time. It helped me come up with a more cubist and chiseled look to the poster. The painting is very unrefined. This was just my way of searching for a desired look.

The helmet came off to allow more hair to flow. With a bit more work this could have been refined to a final poster. However the actress who would play The She Wolf of France had just been cast.

My new goal became to paint actress, Roberta Emerson, into the poster. From this point forward I would be thinking of pushing the painting to a finish while still keeping some roughness. The show runs between January 8  19, 2025. Tickets are Pay What You Will, between $15 and $50.

Henry VI Part 2: She Wolf of France: First Pass

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The first sketch for Henry VI featured Margaret of Anjou. My depiction had her head largely covered in a metal mesh with her hair disheveled.

Most elements of this design would progress towards the final painting. However The She Wolf of France needed work. I wanted something more angular and cubist to the armor. I sought inspiration in classic sculptures.

Margaret was known as the she wolf of France because of her fierce and determined nature during the Battle of the Roses.

The play involves a love triangle, a plot to murder, and a rebellion which are all part of this thrilling tale – centered on the Wars of the Roses! In this raw, “Bare Bard / Original Practices” production, Orlando Shakes’ actors will perform the play with less than 40 hours of rehearsal, no designers, and no director – just like the acting companies of Shakespeare’s time! Don’t miss this exciting next chapter in Orlando Shakes’ popular Fire & Reign Series. The show runs through January 19, 2025. Tickets are Pay what you will, between $15 and $50.