Jon Batiste’S Life in Motion
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THE CREATORS From Photography to Food, New York is Buzzing Living High in Lower Manhattan in Lower High Living Jon Batiste’s Timeless designs, Built for a lifetime life in photos: Joshua McHugh arch: Ike, Kligerman, & Barkley motion Issue 31 The Creators 31Issue Creators The 2020 GIFTS SalutingGeneral Contractors our FOR THE SEASON Construction Managers Marcus Samuelsson, 1st412 WResponders 127 St. NY, NY 10027 Warming Cocktails, (212) 316-2400 DuceCC.com Ethical Diamonds for a Great Cause, Central Park, and Luscious Looks DDuce.indduce.indd 1 88/12/2020/12/2020 77:32:16:32:16 PPMM “Never bet against New York. This town always comes back—stronger than ever.” LARRY A. SILVERSTEIN CHAIRMAN, SILVERSTEIN PROPERTIES silversteinproperties.com/homecoming All the charm of Upstate No further than downtown This season, warm up and dine in your own rooftop cabin. Savor your favorite winter dishes and signature cocktails by award-winning bar, Dante. Each Cabin Includes: - Spacious & heated floor plan - On-site contactless food & beverage purchasing - Comfy banquette seating - Molekule air purifier - Virtual fireplace - Floor-to-ceiling views of NYC - And more! BOOK YOUR RESERVATION AT PIER17NY.COM NEW DATES RELEASED EVERY MONDAY MORNING. OPEN DAILY TIL 10PM. The Rooftop at Pier 17 89 South St, New York NY 07 From the Editor in Chief CULTURE DOWNTOWN 08 From the Founder 22 Viewfinder: Central Park 10 From the Advisory Board Chair 25 Street Level: MacDougal Street THE CREATORS 11 Contributors 28 Artfull: Graphic Design 30 Savoir Fare: Bake Sale 34 Urbanity: See Your City ON THE COVER AND HUMANS 38 Chef’s Table: Together We Rise THIS PAGE: Jon Batiste Photographed 12 Photographer: Freeze Frame 39 Imbibe: Cheers! by Andrew Matusik; Hair by 14 Collective: Representation Matters Jenna Robinson; Makeup by Jesse Lindholm; Manager, 15 Multi-Hyphenate: Global Perspective David Patterson; Chris 16 Entrepreneur: River of Dreams Chambers, Lauren Woulard, LITTLE APPLE The Chambers Group; Piano 17 Miniature Artist: Smallville 40 Barclay’s Spot by Steinway & Sons; Location: 18 Designer: Shoe In 42 3 World Trade Center, 79th The Secret Language of Dogs floor, Silverstein Properties. 21 Virtual Medicine: Going the Distance FEATURES 44 Fascinating Rhythm 54 54 Romancing the Stone 58 The Artists of Turtle Island 62 Park Life 70 It’s a Gift EN VOGUE 82 Hair and Makeup: Luscious Looks 84 Timeless Beauty: Liquid Magic 87 Fitness: E-Fitness 88 LAST WORD: Ashlee Montague 34 70 44 58 THE YEAR THAT WASN’T IS THE YEAR THAT IS I HAD A LOT TO SAY IN THIS LETTER. Deep, pithy thoughts about Deborah L. Martin family, the holidays, who (and what) we have lost, and what we Editor in Chief have gained. As I thought about where to begin, and maybe more importantly where to end, the task of writing this note seemed a bit, Creative Team Glyph.NYC well, challenging. And then I read a story about a vote to name the Associate Editor Daniel Metz newest arrival at the National Zoo in Washington D.C., and suddenly I Fashion Editor Annaël Assouline realized that I don’t want to read—let alone write—another postmortem Food Editor Fernanda Mueller of this “annus horribilis.” I’m ready for 2021. I’m ready to leave behind the sorrow and the stress, the loss and the anxiety, and embrace joy. Fitness Editor Lala Duncan And what could be more joyful than a tiny, baby panda? Music Editor Alice Teeple Xiao Qi Ji was born in August of this year to mother Mei Xiang Editor at Large Mike Hammer and father Tian Tian. So many people tuned into the National Zoo’s Multimedia Director Andrew Matusik “PandaCam” that their servers shut down temporarily. That’s how much Contributing Family & Lifestyle Editor Jessica Rovira we needed good news this year. While record numbers of people in Pet Editor Sheila Laughery this country voted in our presidential election, another election was going on: 135,000 people voted on the little nugget’s name, which is Mandarin Chinese for “Little Miracle.” At this point, that’s the only kind of election news I want to hear. CONTRIBUTORS TECHNOLOGY We needed a little miracle this year, and we got one, in the form of a Noel Y. Calingasan Bradley Kirkland/ small, black and white ball of fluff, and a large, unwieldy, drama-filled David Cotteblanche Stone Soup Michael Fiedler Romeo Marra/Entirely national election. No matter where you fall on the political spectrum, Noemi Florea Digital the idea that over 160 million Americans successfully cast a ballot in a Nicole Haddad Ryan Liu presidential election should cheer you. As Representative John Lewis Andrew Matusik so eloquently put it, “Democracy is not a state. It is an act, and each Eric Piasecki/OTTO Antoine Verglas generation must do its part…” This year, during a global pandemic that has sickened over 14 million Americans at this writing, approximately 66% of eligible voters did their part, and percentagewise that is the highest voter turnout since 1900. We have a long way to go, but we’ve come a long way, baby. And so here we are, entering a holiday season like no other, unsure BUSINESS of what lies ahead and with many of us wondering how to pay rent, Grace A. Capobianco how to feed our children, or even whether it is safe to see our families. Chief Executive Officer/Publisher But in spite of everything we have been through, the little miracles are all around us. Music, poetry, art—all of these things continue to Executive Vice President John ‘Cap’ Capobianco delight, even through the fog of uncertainty. Broadway theaters may Executive Publisher, South Florida Will Candis be dark, but our most talented performers have found ways to carry Chief Financial Officer Jeff Fields on. Live performance is curtailed, but the music still plays and artists Chief Operations Officer Luigi Rosabianca like Jon Batiste, who graces our cover, are discovering new ways to Advisor To the Publisher Andy Wheatcroft communicate and spread love. As we prepare to tie a bow on 2020, we offer you our Creators Finance & Tax Consultant Meir Spear, CPA issue. It celebrates a world of creative people, from a miniature artist in Long Island City, to a Native American fine artist in California, from a renowned chef in Harlem to a photographer on the streets of New York. We are so grateful to each and every one for making this time and place a little more beautiful and a lot more interesting. Copyright 2020 by Downtown Media & Production Inc. All rights reserved. I wish you all a safe, healthy, and peaceful holiday season, and Downtown (ISSN2164-6198) is published four times per year in Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter for $39 per subscription by here’s to a 2021 filled with little miracles. Downtown Media & Production Inc., 380 Rector Place, Suite 15F, New York, NY 10280. Application to mail at periodical postage rates is pending at New York, NY, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Downtown, 380 Rector Place, Suite 15F, New York, NY 10280. Reproduction without permission of the publisher is prohibited. The publisher and editor are not responsible for unsolicited material. Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, photographs and drawings. To order a subscription, please visit downtownmagazinenyc.com. For customer service, please inquire at [email protected]. To distribute Downtown, please email [email protected] Deborah L. Martin Follow me on instagram Downtown Media & Production Inc. Editor in Chief @debmartinnyc and on downtownmagazinenyc.com PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANDREW MATUSIK (PORTRAIT0; STACEY TABELLARIO FOR SMITHSONIAN’S NATIONAL ZOO (PANDA). ZOO NATIONAL SMITHSONIAN’S FOR TABELLARIO STACEY (PORTRAIT0; MATUSIK ANDREW BY PHOTOGRAPHY downtownmagazinenyc.com PHOTOGRAPHY CALINGASANNOEL Y. BY 6 DOWNTOWNNYC THE CREATORS 2020 THE CREATORS 2020 DOWNTOWNNYC 7 T:9.5" A STEP FORWARD the strength to get on that plane. On September 7, 2020 at 4:22 am, my brother and I were by our mother’s side as she took her last breath. A year of pain, grief, loss, and an emotional roller coaster of fear, had come to its peak. Nothing that 2020 could throw at me would affect me this greatly. We each handle grief differently, and I poured myself back into my work. Getting lost in what I love to do is a blessing. I love Downtown, not only the community but working with our clients, board members, core team, and our editor in chief Deb Martin. We scrape the surface, and then dig deeper to create the beautiful, heartfelt pages of this magazine. You see we get to do what we love, tell stories about the people, places, and culture that only exists right here in our New York. Putting a magazine together is like peeling an onion, one layer at a time. You start with the whole, then you must make each page individually come to life. We are Creators, this is what we do each and every day. Talking with and meeting the Creators featured in this issue was just what I needed, a spiritual journey into their lives to take me away from my pain. We are all Creators in some way whether you create a dish, a painting, a song, a building, or use words to tell someone else’s story. Getting to meet our cover talent Jon Batiste was an experience I will never forget. He made me feel quiet and still, which are two words that anyone who knows me would never choose to describe me. He lives in his rhythm, everything he does is a rhythm, the way he walks, talks, and New York's leading hospital thinks, you can get inspired by just being in his presence.