Cornell Fine Arts Museum

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I don’t always have time to finish a sketch.This sketch was done with a student of the Cornell Fine Arts Museum on the Rollin’s College campus. The goal of the lesson was to fit as much of the building on the page as possible along with the much smaller jeep and motorcycle parked out front. We didn’t go in so I am not sure what is on exhibit. I haven’t been inside the museum since long before the start of the pandemic.

My student lost interest in the building long before the sketch was complete. Since my idea of a complete sketch included color and value, it tends to take longer that a student just using a pencil. I got enough of the sketch done of that there are 3 values, namely black, mid tones and the white of the paper. Since time was limited much more of the paper is left white to save time.

After this sketch was “complete” we wandered behind the museum where a crowd of maskless woman were having an animated conversation, I assume about art. We set up on the lawn lakeside and sketch a gazebo across the way. That sketch was also incomplete but a good lesson on how to quickly block in elements of a scene.

Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill: Poster Evolution

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This was my favorite painted version of the poster for the Orlando Shakespeare Center. Lady Day stood in a strong spotlight that broke her into an abstraction of lights and darks. Pinks and blues work together like bold puzzle pieces. The bottle on the table stands as erect and proud as the singer herself.

For the final poster however I needed to move in closer to the singer. Tymisha Harris was likely to be cast in the roll but that had not been established yet. I danced a line between making the singer look like Lady Day and Tymisha. I did like the chance to rework the microphone adding it metallic sheen.

Performances continue through March 5, 2023. I will be sketching a performance next week and I can’t wait.

Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill: Poster Evolution First Pass

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The first pass of the Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill poster featured the ban high up on a stage and Lady Day down on the floor at the audience level. The title treatment seemed to work right off the bat so I kept it in each variation of the poster design. I was playing with the idea of a very smoky lounge and how that might affect the lighting and even ghostly wisps of smoke rising from the floor.

My favorite detail is of the cello player and yet his cello is hidden behind the piano. The piano player himself is off screen. Even the hands of the drummer are not visible. Clearly I needed to make the musicians more visible and make the act of playing the instruments more clearly visible.

I liked the warm lighting, but wanted to incorporate more cool blues and purples into the painting. As a first pass I was mostly pleased that the title was working.

Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill: Poster Evolution, Final

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This is the final version of the Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill Poster for the Shakes. I am working on the next season’s posters right now so it helps to look back at how each show concept developed. As you can see by the dates on the poster you still have over a week to see the show. I did extensive research about this show prior to painting the poster so I am excited to finally see it in person. I will be in the audience sketching next week. I know going in the emotional roller coaster I will likely experience and I have seen the actress Tymisha Harris perform before so I know the performance will be overwhelming.

It took me four other renditions of this poster to get to this final image and I will share that progression over the next couple of days. The most devastating song in the show is Strange Fruit.

Let it Burn!

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Since the start of the pandemic three years ago the United States had embraced a policy of allowing widespread infection to occur in low-risk groups, like young people. This has resulted in the highest death toll of any country in the world with well over one million deaths. The hope in all this mass infection was that the country might develop herd immunity. However herd immunity is impossible since the virus keeps mutating into variants that break through past waning immunity from past infection and vaccination.

The vast trouble with this mass infection strategy is that children are getting very sick and repeat infections are resulting in worst outcomes. Over 96% of children have been infected in our country so far and those kids then infect their parents and grand parents. Children are the primary way the virus is burning through society.

The United States is riding on a plateau of about 500 deaths a day due to COVID-19. That has become the new normal. At the start of the pandemic 500 deaths a day would have been unheard of, but after experiencing spikes or deaths in the thousands, 500 deaths a day seems low in comparison. Americans want to wish the virus away while taking no basic safety precautions. Wishful thinking and ignorance is not a public health solution.

Pandemic fatigue has become pandemic burn out and most people have given up all hope. The only way they can cope is to pretend that the pandemic is over. All evidence to the contrary will be ignored for the sake of imagining that life has returned to normal.

The 45th president knew the virus was airborne and highly infectious. Despite this he downplayed the potential dangers. The 46th president isn’t much better, in that he publicly proclaimed the pandemic is over while thousands or people needlessly die every week. Gaslighting the public and convincing them that mass infection is in their best interest seems to be the one thing that straddles party lines.

Henry V Poster Evolution

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The Henry V poster for the Orlando Shakes (812 E Rollins Street, Orlando, FL 32803) was a rare case where one of my first concepts made it to the final draft. The crossed swords forming a V was my first impulse when designing the art. I did another poser design focusing more on the crown with wooden pikes forming a V pattern.

I decided to try adding some handwriting that was an account of the battle in the light area of the poster. I couldn’t read the handwriting so I assumed it would work as an abstract pattern. Should a scholar actually know how to read it at least it would be an accurate historical record of the battle.

The next design I did was right on point. The only thing I had to do was move the king much closer to the audience. Thankfully I had painted the king separately so he could easily be scaled. These tweaks and adjustments are part of the fun of watching the concept evolve.

 

Henry V by William Shakespeare ran from January 18 – February 5, 2023. I did get to sketch a performance. The show was riveting, but it is hard to portray just how horrifically devastating the battle was. The king was a brute on the battlefield and knew how to inspire his troops. When it came to winning the heart of a woman however he could not use the same battle tactics.

The Prom

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The Prom, at Theater South Playhouse was such an unexpected delight. Theater South is a tiny gem of a theater near Isleworth. The play is based on the book by Bob Martin, with book and lyrics by Chad Beguelin and music by Mathew Sylar. The show was directed by Tara Kromer.

It had a huge cast that barely fit on the stage when they were all on stage together at the curtain call. The theater’s web site encouraged masks, but they are not required. I was delighted to see two huge air purifiers purring away in the theater. Pam and I were two of the 4 people in the audience wearing masks.

The show is about Emma (Jana Denning) who wants to go to the Prom with Alyssa (Gia Milazzo). Their love is secret but Emma wants the night to be their chance to shine. The small Illinois tow cancels the Prom to squelch the controversy of forbidden love. This heavy handed solution however blows up in their face since it garners the attention of some famous actors who decide that Emma is their new cause.

New York City stars visited the town and made Emma’s story their own. At first they had a narcissistic need to be in the spotlight but over time they truly learned to help.

I have such a deep respect for the talent of this mostly teen cast. Following local news I recently saw a video of a teen who took the bus to go to a town meeting and beg for the government officials to allow her the right to exist. Another trans teen was asked by an official if she had a dick. I have to wonder if he has any morality.

Emma had hoped that the Prom would be her chance to celebrate her love. But on the night of her prom she walked into a completely empty gym. The PTA had moved the prom to a different venue without telling her.  This play is a celebration of inclusivity in a town that has ancient undercurrents of racism and homophobia. The hope lies in the younger generation who can see the light when they know they are being persuaded to be vicious and mean.

Janna Demming really hits the ball out of the park with her solos. When she performed a facetime guitar solo about her desire to just be herself, I have to admit I shed a tear. That performance went viral and suddenly kids from all around the country were online sharing their similar stories of being excluded and unable to be themselves. A second prom was planned to include everyone and new friends came in from out of town. This prom was a blow out celebration. The rainbow waving joyous celebration seemed to be perfectly suited for Orlando which is a beautiful inclusive gem in the sea of hate that is Florida.

The show continues through February 26th and I highly recommend it. Prepare to be dazzled.

 

We have to learn to live with catching fire every few months!

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Immunity against coronavirus infection wanes quickly and reinfections are common. Protection against severe illness and death was the original goal of vaccines. Vaccines against respiratory viruses rarely protect against full infection. Any notion of herd immunity is out of reach. Too many people are not vaccinated. The coronavirus continues to find ways to evade immunity.

This virus is always going to be with us.  COVID detonates an immune response that can be deadly or debilitating.

The hope is that people will start to take all respiratory viruses more seriously, leading to lasting changes in mask wearing and ventilation.This does not seem to be the case.

This is the exit wildfire!

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Since Omicron surged, many countries have been scrapping COVID-19 restrictions in a shortsighted anticipation of entering an endemic phase. In a post-Omicron world, lockdowns will likely be phased out, and simple safety precautions against the airborne COVID virus, like masking and ventilation are being ignored. The virus is not endemic. No one knows what will happen next.

If the world becomes complacent, the virus will continue to spread in its own enthusiastic fashion. Humanity is simply not intelligent enough to keep safety measures in place until the pandemic is over. Across the country,  people have wishfully returned back to normal in a carefree and ignorant way. An estimated 3 billion people are unvaccinated by choice or lack access to vaccines.

The fire will continue to rage sing there is so much wood left to burn.

It was just a little spark, sparks don’t have any after effects!

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Many don’t think it is their responsibility to self isolate when they are sick. They seem to think that a “mild” infection can not spread.

Typical symptoms of a mild case of COVID include…

fever cough, fatigue, loss of smell or taste, body aches and pains, headache, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, digestive symptoms, including nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea.

A case is considered mild if there is no shortness of breath or difficulty breathing. Research has found that about 81 percent of people with COVID-19 have a mild or moderate illness. Some people are asymptomatic, not even aware that they are sick and spreading the virus. Research found that people with a mild or moderate illness had at least one symptom for an average of 9.82 days.

So how long are people infectious? The amount of virus detected in the upper respiratory tract (nose and throat) peaked early on, generally in the first 3 to 5 days of illness. People with more severe illness seem to shed virus for a longer time. Individuals over the age of 60 appear to shed the virus longer than younger individuals. The virus is most contagious shortly after symptoms begin. However, some individuals may shed the virus for longer periods of time.

A study of 57 people with mild symptoms found, that the majority are not infectious before symptoms develop, but two-thirds of cases are still infectious five days after their symptoms begin. Lateral flow (at home) tests do not detect the start of infectiousness well, they more accurately identify when someone is no longer infectious and can safely leave isolation.