Police Chief in the Garden by George Capsis Who Made the Wrong Decision When Asked to Get Off the Neck of the Subject of His Ar- “I Would Like to Come and See You, Mr

The Voice of the West Village WestView News VOLUME 17, NUMBER 5 MAY 2021 $2.00 Police Chief in the Garden By George Capsis who made the wrong decision when asked to get off the neck of the subject of his ar- “I would like to come and see you, Mr. Cap- rest. Just maybe, Silverstein thought, our sis” Alan Silverstein excitedly offered on the paper could become the voice of the police. phone. He came in ten minutes and parked Alan, as we have come to call him, con- in front of my Charles Street door with li- tinually juggles the names of top cops that cense plates that allow him to park at the are his buddies, so we asked him to arrange steps of City Hall. Holding a copy of West- for us to interview one. He not only got View News—that had the anti-graffiti pro- a top cop to agree, he brought him to our gram on its front cover—he was excited. garden at 69 Charles (amazing!). I learned later that Alan Silverstein is Chief Sal Comodo and Police Officer one of the most active volunteers of Com- (PO) Natasha DeLeon from NYPD head- munity Partners, a civilian organization quarters, both with relaxed soft smiles, ar- working with the police's Neighborhood rived to discuss the 4/10/21 anti-graffiti Coordination Officers (NCO) division— event and how we could keep the momen- which is, of course, now very much needed. tum moving, now that every precinct was no Here was WestView News, a communi- longer on “lockdown.” ty newspaper vigorously supporting a city- PO Natasha DeLeon, with a relaxed wide police effort that has the police and GEORGE CAPSIS MET WITH NYPD CHIEF SAL COMODO AND PO NATASHA DELEON, tone, told of rolling paint over graffiti with civilians side-by-side painting out graf- ARRANGED BY ALAN SILVERSTEIN (far right), with Bruce and Suzanne Poli, Dusty Berke children from a local school, feeling that fiti, and doing it as the whole country was and Brian Pape of WestView News, to discuss the 4/10/21 anti-graffiti event, and ways to this was all that was needed. But I stopped waiting for the verdict on a police officer continue the efforts. Photo by Suzanne Poli. continued on page 2 Police and Public Wield the Same (Anti-Graffiti) Brush By Brian J Pape, AIA and also coordinated the activities of a walls and frames, while pedestrians from the It was a perfect day for street activities, group of young high-school student vol- neighborhood streamed past the loft build- cloudy but mild with temperatures in the unteers who belong to a group called the ing. The donated paint of dark gunmetal 60’s. Just like dozens, perhaps hundreds, Explorers. The Explorers are a diverse eth- gray was a good match to the surrounding of others in precincts throughout the city’s nic and racial group, male and female, from paint, leaving a cleaned-up appearance as five boroughs, we saw the opening round throughout the city. we finished this project. in the next chapter of the on-going fight WVN participated in two of the Man- Within an hour, we had moved on to against urban blight and graffiti. hattan precincts, the 13th and 6th. Paul 6 East 17th Street, which was a parking The Police Commissioner Dermot Shea Vlachos and Alan Silverstein joined me as lot surrounded by building walls covered and City Police Chief of the Department we started at 11:00 a.m. in the 13th Pre- in multiple illegal tags. Once again, we Rodney Harrison organized a “Spring cinct at 19 East 19th Street. Nine Explorers scraped some loose chips of peeling paint Clean Up: Combating Graffiti” day for joined with police officers for the 13th Pre- and proceeded to cover the multi-hued all of NYC, with community input for cinct, Sgt. Nikishin, NCO PO Kevin Zorn, graphics with reddish paint mixes, similar designated cleanup sites. Assisting in the and PO Eddie Solarno. All police officers to adjacent colors (after the attendant had organization and coordination are: Alfred at all the sites volunteered their time, off- moved cars away from the wall). Baker, Director of Media in the Office of duty, and all were painting, some in police Then on to the third location at 7 West THE VOLUNTEER PAINTING CREW at 19 E. the Deputy Commissioner; and commu- jackets, some in street clothes. (The 13th 17th Street, another private parking lot with 19th Street included Explorers and police nity liaison Alan Silverstein, who arranged Precinct had four sites scheduled for the walls on all sides covered with illegal street for the “Spring Clean Up: Combating Graf- meetings with the NCOs (Neighborhood day.) We scraped loose paint from the roll- art. Once we got the paint supplies unloaded, fiti” event. Photo by Brian J. Pape. Coordination Officers) for each precinct, down metal shutter and all the surrounding continued on page 4 Primary Guide Ranked Choice Dive into Antiquity Lots of choice and For the first time in NYC What secrets lie in the depths of confusion surround the history we can make elec- the ocean, just waiting primary on June 22. tion outcomes represen- to be discovered? Learn more here. tative of what voters want.

SEE PAGE 3 SEE PAGE 7 SEE PAGE 25 2 WestView News May 2021 www.westviewnews.org WestView WestViews Published by WestView, Inc. by and for the residents of the West Village. Correspondence, Commentary, Corrections Publisher / Executive Editor Don’t Give Up? George Capsis Survey (SAS) which tabulates firearms held Hi George/Liza, by civilian populations around the world, Managing Editor / Art Director Save the Date Kim Plosia I am writing to tell you about my husband there are more guns than people in the U.S. Spring Planting Advertising Manager Richie. He still goes to the window every (The survey, published in June 2018, is a Saturday, May 15th Karen Rempel night at 7PM and drums on a pan cover. project of the Graduate Institute of Interna- from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Advertising Designer He ends his concert with “Don’t Give Up/ tional and Development Studies in Geneva, Stephanie Phelan Don’t Ever Give Up”. Switzerland.) Here are the absurd facts: Traffic Manager Once in a blue moon someone else on the Liza Whiting block will join in with him, but most eve- The estimated population of the U.S. as Photo Editor nings he is on his own. Occasionally some- of April 18th, 2021 is 330,212,480. The Darielle Smolian one walking on the street or passing in a car number was compiled by the U.S. Census Photographers will cheer him on. Bureau (www.census.gov/popclock). Maggie Berkvist, I am not sure if this is crazy or touch- Chris Manis, Bob Cooley ing. He believes that the first responders— Gun ownership in civilian hands in the Associate Editors medical staff & essential workers—still de- United States (as of the June 2018 SAS Justin Matthews, Anne Olshansky serve to be vocally appreciated. report) is estimated to be 393,347,000. Comptroller I would like to know what your readers The Small Arms Survey’s mission is to Jolanta Meckauskaite think. be “a global centre of excellence” which Architecture Editor —Carol Quigley, Bank Street “generates evidence-based, impartial, and Brian Pape policy-relevant knowledge and analysis on Business Editor small arms and armed violence issues for Caroline Benveniste Embrace the Absurd governments, policy-makers, and civil so- Fashion Director It’s statistically true: there are more fire- ciety.” Their report found that U.S. citizens Karilyn Prisco arms than people in America. alone account for 393 million (about 46 Music and Eldercare Editor Are there more guns in the hands of percent) of the worldwide total of civilian- Hannah Reimann American civilians than there are people held firearms. This amounts to “120.5 fire- Science and LGBTQ Editor living in America? That’s a question I’d arms for every 100 residents.” See: Kambiz Shekdar, PhD been asking myself for some time. It is uni- • smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/ Dear CSA Members and Neighbors, Regular Contributors versally agreed that it is hard to hit a mov- T-Briefing-Papers/SAS-BP-Civilian- Our annual Charles Street Associa- J. Taylor Basker, Barry Benepe, ing target. And so it is with counting the Firearms-Numbers.pdf tion Spring Planting is back! We will Caroline Benveniste, Mark. M. Green, number of people living in the U.S. or how • smallarmssurvey.org/fileadmin/docs/ be at our usual distribution location on Robert Heide, Anastasia Kaliabakos, many guns are in the hands of its civilian Weapons_and_Markets/Tools/Fire- Charles St and Bleecker St. (Southwest Bob Kroll, Thomas Lamia, population. arms_holdings/SAS-BP-Civilian- corner). Masks will be provided. Kieran Loughney, Keith Michael, Michael D. Minichiello, Penny Mintz, After some research I found two sources held-firearms-annexe.pdf Bringing the community back together, Brian J. Pape, Anthony Paradiso, which could provide me with the informa- Do we really need more guns than there one day at a time! Roger Paradiso, Bruce Poli, tion I was looking for. According to the are folks living in our country? Does this Marjorie Dienstag Alec Pruchnicki, Roberta Russell, Christina numbers compiled by the U.S. Census Bu- make us any safer? Charles St. Association President Raccuia, Hannah Reimann, Karen Rempel, reau and a survey called the Small Arms Catherine Revland, Ede Rothaus, —Siggy Raible Donna Schaper, Stanley Wlodyka We endeavor to publish all letters received, NYPD Community including those with which we disagree. Police Chief continued from page 1 would turn their talents to the commis- The opinions put forth by contributors her, to suggest that the verdict to sentence sioned work around the city that actually Graffiti Cleanup to WestView do not necessarily reflect the a police officer for murder was a critical na- pays to improve the streetscape. views of the publisher or editor. dir in police/civilian relations. When I was a kid, you had to be six feet WestView welcomes your correspondence, to join the force because you walked a beat comments, and corrections: I recalled, when I was a kid in the nine- all alone—now pairs of officers tour the www.westviewnews.org teen-thirties, the tall cop on the beat on precinct in patrol cars. Contact Us Hamilton Place, how we knew his name, and how he knew us. And now, I have to Now, just maybe, joining with our local (212) 924-5718 precinct to wipe out graffiti, we civilians [email protected] ask for permission to interview the new captain of my local precinct (he declined will learn their names again and they will to be interviewed). But now we had on the learn ours. front page of WestView News, two police officers rolling out graffiti at the request of Brian Pape contributed to this reporting. a civilian complaint. Chief Sal Comodo has been with the force since graduating from the police Is it Time to Renew academy, and is now a 38-year veteran of Your Subscription? the department. As a Spring shower of hail started and we rose to move inside, If we have your email address I grabbed his arm for balance and discov- WestView News will send you a reminder when your subscription ered a youthful muscle; he confessed he expires. Some subscribers have WEST 12TH STREET NEIGHBOR THEO joins still “worked out.” Chief Comodo em- not responded to this means of Morton Street resident Sloan along with lo- communication. Therefore, phasized, “We are committed to build- cal volunteers painting and removing graffiti we respectfully suggest that you ing better relations with the community, from private and public property on the first and making a positive impact on citizens’ check your spam folder for such MIA SAYS: Thinking is having a conversation notifications. day of the 2021 NYPD anti-graffiti cam- with yourself. Photo credit © Joel Gordon. lives.” He also wished that graffiti artists paign. Photo by Ede Rothaus. www.westviewnews.org May 2021 WestView News 3

June 22nd Primary: Lots of Just Listed! Choice…and Confusion 350 Bleecker Street, Unit 2D By Frank Quinn ogy (Maya Wiley, Dianne Morales), those A recent article in the NY Post said even who’ve run large government organizations at this late date 25% of NYC Democrats (Kathryn Garcia, Shaun Donovan) and are still undecided about who they want those from the private sector (Ray McGuire to be the next mayor. When the Publish- and Yang). The two Republican candidates er at WestView News admonished us that (Curtis Sliwa and Fernando Mateo) are not our readers didn’t know enough about the expected to present meaningful competition candidates, it was challenging even though in the general election but could provide an this writer tries to stay informed about lo- interesting debate this fall. cal elections. There are five major offices up for election in our neighborhood with MANHATTAN BOROUGH PRESIDENT numerous candidates seeking those offices. This office isn’t well understood by most First let’s address the elephant in the city— voters. Originally created in 1898 as part of Large Corner Studio Fully and Thoroughly Renovated with exposed brick, this election is effectively a one-party the consolidation of New York City, today spacious studio with recessed lighting, modern kitchen and spa shower. Sits in contest and the Democratic pri- this office is primarily advisory. It’s one of the premier West Village cooperatives with amazing amenities such as mary will decide who takes often seen as a stepping-stone an expansive planted roofdeck, full time doorman and staff, garage, and these offices. No citizen for career minded public of- renovated fitness center. who values democracy is ficials; indeed, two of the well served by this situ- leading mayoral candi- Scotty is a long time West Village resident, broker, and neighborhood ation. One party rule dates served as borough advocate and enthusiast. Go to www.westvillagebroker.com for detailed info breeds contempt, like presidents. There are sev- on buying/selling/renting and to support local. we saw last November en declared Democratic when longtime Demo- candidates—three are Let's keep our mom and pop businesses alive! cratic Assemblymember well known term-limited Scotty Elyanow Deborah Glick snubbed pols, while the remaining Licensed Associate Real Estate Broker her constituents by refusing four are lesser-known indi- Manhattan & Brooklyn Market Expert our offer to arrange a debate viduals. For more information [email protected] with her moderate well-qualified you can review the Wikipedia article M: 917.678.6010 Republican challenger. What a shame! “2021 New York City Borough President @villagescotty There’s a delicate balance reporting only Elections” but gathering information on what you know, being fair to all the com- these candidates requires some effort. petitors, and offering advice without ven- turing into unsolicited opinion. To develop COMPTROLLER trust with our readers we try to provide in- This office is the Chief Financial Officer and formation relevant to them as voters. What Chief Auditor for the City. The office has a Greenwich Village Tours follows should give some direction on the staff of 800 and a budget of over $100 Mil- major party candidates. lion. There are seven Democratic candidates who are considered the “major candidates” CITY COUNCIL DISTRICT 3 because they previously held a public office, This office provides citizens the most di- showed up in a poll or received some kind rect access to their local government, and of media coverage. This race also requires ef- WestView News has done a lot to help its fort to gather information for your choice, readers with this decision. The candidate but you can start with the Wikipedia article you choose will be your local representa- “2021 New York City Comptroller election.” tive in the municipal legislature, which is separate from the Mayor’s administra- DISTRICT ATTORNEY tion but an equal partner in how our City This race has proven the most difficult to Village Legends is run. There are six candidates running study. There are eight candidates running, and the Storied Life in District 3, and WestView News inter- but unlike the other municipal races this viewed all of them in short-format videos office is not term-limited and rank choice of American Culture designed to make it easy for voters to re- voting will not be used. Most of the de- Enjoy the great legends, stories, sights and history view. Please visit our YouTube channel or bate between the candidates has focused of the renowned New York neighborhood search “District 3” at westviewnews.org to on criminal justice reform with some can- which has helped shape our American culture. see the interviews. didates offering more progressive agendas See the Village homes of Woody Guthrie, Sinclair Lewis, than others. Another big issue for this Edie Windsor, Emma Lazarus, Berenice Abbott, Thomas Paine. MAYOR office is how it will take over the Trump Hear the theatre and music history of Edward Albee, Eugene O’Neill, As of this writing there are eight Demo- investigation currently underway by the Bob Dylan, John Belushi, James Baldwin, Bette Midler, cratic and two Republican candidates in this incumbent Cyrus Vance who is not seeking Allen Ginsberg, John Lennon and Yoko Ono and so many more. race. Most polls indicate Andrew Yang is re-election. Perhaps the best way to inform See the sights and hear the stories of Chumley’s, Magnolia Bakery, Sex and the City, the frontrunner, but his lead is considered yourself is to search the internet and take Provincetown Playhouse, Cherry Lane Theatre and more. fragile due to the large number of undecided time to watch one of the forums where A percentage of ticket sales will go to WestView News. voters. It’s also possible another candidate these candidates have appeared. could surge ahead if others drop out. There 2 hours are logical choices for almost every type of voter, including career politicians with po- Frank Quinn is a media executive, par- for info: [email protected] • 917 450-3323 litical experience (Scott Stringer, Eric Ad- ent and musician. Linkedin.com/in/ Above, left to right: Allen Ginsberg, Bob Dylan, Dustin Hoffman (Photos by Fred W. McDarrah) ams), those with strong progressive ideol- frankjquinn 4 WestView News May 2021 www.westviewnews.org

CLEAN UP CREW: The Explorers joined with police officers from the 13th Precinct. L-R four of the Explorers, Police Officer Ronal Phillip, Brian Pape of WestView News, Community Partner Alan Silverstein, Deputy Inspector Angel Figueroa and Police Officer Eddie Solarno. Photo by Paul Vlachos.

Graffiti Brush continued from page 1 [email protected] is monitored around the we left the police officers and Explorers to fin- clock by a dedicated officer How It Works ish up. In 1999, the City of New York implemented The WVN ‘crew’ then moved on to the 6th the first full-time free service for graffiti cleanup Precinct site at Hudson and West 11th Street, offered to business and residential properties. at the former Philip Marie Restaurant. The Under the Graffiti Free NYC program, com- 6th precinct had five sites scheduled, and this plaints of graffiti are filed with 311 and the was one of the most prominent and sensitive City’s crew schedules the appropriate cleanup, locations. One of the most active Community either by painting over, using paint remover, or Partners, Alan Silverstein had made arrange- by power-washing. The program is coordinated Photo by Paul Vlachos. ments to meet the officers in charge of graf- by the city Economic Development Commis- In response to my repeated calls Sergeant Daniel Houlahan (now fiti in the 6th, including Community Affairs sion, the Department of Sanitation, and the to the Police press department there is an old-fashioned police Officer Evrim Can, NCO Supervisor Sergeant Mayor’s Office. Unfortunately, it is currently not to discover who was in charge of name) and officer James Miller to Daniel Houlahan, NCO Jeff Maddrey, Officer functioning due to City budget reallocations. their very new anti-graffiti pro- visit WestView headquarters at 69 Pete Plessa, and Officer Pat Defonzo. Why is the Graffiti Free NYC program im- gram they sent me a video clip of Charles and talk very cautiously of For Hudson and West 11th Street, the side portant? Real estate is one of the greatest de- the new youngish Police Com- the then very recent guilty verdict wall paint had to be matched with the cover-up positories of wealth and assets for the city, and missioner, Dermot Shea, an- for a police officer. How, I specu- paint, and Police Officer Pete Plessa said they historic district real estate is vulnerable and nouncing the program in March lated inwardly, were our local po- used a paint matching scanning application on precious. Historic materials can be irrepara- while surrounded by a gaggle of lice taking it? (they had nothing to their phones to come up with an exact match bly damaged by graffiti and improper clean- nodding police officers and even a say and I felt they had not taken at the paint store. Indeed, when we left the site, ing. Graffiti on face brick, stone or terra cotta few youthful PAL members. sides) They were all friends and you couldn’t tell where the old paint stopped, cannot just be painted over without degrading Commissioner Shea was fresh were anxious to cooperate. and the new paint started; perfection! its character. The power-washing equipment and passionate on the subject—this I asked if they had a son of age As we’ve reported previously, this clean-up that the Graffiti Free NYC program pur- is a war on graffiti that depends would they want him to become a day was only the latest effort and an opening chased is a valuable tool in the proper clean- on us—the public—emailing in a policeman and both quickly said yes. round in the next chapter of the on-going fight ing of historic materials. photo of the graffiti and then us Now in the press release an- by the police department to work with the So, until our communities can convince the joining with the police to remove nouncing the program they of- community to get the graffiti cleaned up. The city to reactivate this essential equipment for it—wow this is new, joining with fer that this new NYPD strategy 6th precinct reported about 33 cleanups this the on-going fight to get the graffiti cleaned up, the police to erase a crime (a very "Builds upon the deeper human past year of various graffiti locations. When we are working with ‘one hand tied behind our nice elderly lady called me to stay links officers have created with resi- new graffiti appears in the neighborhood, backs’ as the saying goes. We need local dona- she reported a patch of offensive dents they serve through our neigh- one of their officers checks it out and contacts tions of supplies, and lending of ladders too, to graffiti to the sixth precinct and borhood Policing Philosophy." property owners. reach higher walls. before she could join them in the The press release also recog- Just as we reported the arrest of the painter PO Natasha DeLeon from Patrol Borough task they rolled paint over it—she nizes that with the iphone and of the “Magic Trick” tag, the painter of the Manhattan South mentioned that she can as- was disappointed!). computer, citizens can email the large “Texas” painted on the wall above the sist and arrange another such cleanup event, Ready, here is the offending graffiti right to a police shuttered Riviera Café at West 4th Street was working with the police commands that fall address to write to officer that is charged with doing tracked by the police, who were able to arrest under their jurisdiction. Stay tuned for that report graffiti... something about it (and please that person doing similar painting elsewhere, announcement soon. send a cc to WestView). according to NCO Sgt. Houlahan. [email protected] The Graffiti coordinator who There is a way for all of us to help: call Brian J. Pape is a LEED-AP “Green” ar- At the suggestion of our local gets all the images we send to 311 if you see something, and anyone can chitect consulting in private practice, serves Community Partner Alan Silver- him on our computers or phones donate paint and supplies by contacting 6th on the Manhattan District 2 Community stein (they support the local NCO then distributes them to local po- Precinct Police Officer Pete Plessa, who will Board Landmarks Committee and Quality of officers and act as a liaison with lice stations and civilian commu- coordinate your donation. Barrow-Bedford- Life Committee, is Co-chair of the American the local community), he invited nity partners who go out together Commerce Neighborhood Association, the Institute of Architects NY Design for Aging the local neighborhood coordina- and remove the graffiti—sounds 13th St. Alliance and the 14th Street BID, Committee, is a member of AIANY Historic tion officer from the 6th Precinct like fun. and other groups, have donated supplies for Buildings Committee, and is a journalist, cleanup projects. NYPD’s new email address especially on architecture subjects.

6 WestView News May 2021 www.westviewnews.org THE LAST NEWSPAPER Right now the Times is reporting that the Tribune is for watch 60 Minutes. The crazy thing about this elegant paper, printed on sale and every morning in the Times, despairing of finding Elderly people still like newspapers because the news- the most expensive newsprint there is so we have bril- normal type "Coca Cola" ads, offers a few strange full page paper is quietly passive. It waits on the kitchen table and liant color, is that we give it away free (that's nuts). It is ads for products and services I have never heard of. Every lets them select what they want to read and how much always my vague hope that the ads will pay for it but the morning Dusty selects her nice fresh conspiracy news right of it to read and it waits, again quietly, for them to get pandemic did not help advertising. off her iphone (don't take the vaccine it will kill you). another cup of coffee and read just a little more. My other hope is that one of our local billionaires will When I was a kid the delivering the Times to fellow Nobody, not even I, can take credit for WestView—it fund it, but it is very hard to get an email to a billionaire. students at PS 192 it was 3 cents on weekdays and 10 has just grown as you West Villagers contributed to it. The people who get a salary to prevent him seeing your cents on Sunday—now it is $3.00 on weekdays and Tim, who delivers it every month, tells me (when I ask email always win. $6.00 on Sunday. him) that people say nice things about it (this month a So we ask you, the reader, to take out a subscription I don't know how young people get the news—they young man displayed surprisingly animated enthusiasm or two and if you are a billionaire write out a check for certainly don't read the Times and probably don't even but I still think we older types can appreciate it more). $120,000 for a year of WestView.

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Arthur Schwartz Named Deputy Grand Marshall of the Village Halloween Parade! By Kyle Nash yer who could get them out of hot water While the Halloween Parade waits for fast; if donations didn’t begin to flow by Mayor de Blasio to approve its permit for May, the parade would be cooked. They a 2021 Parade (they had a virtual parade were sent to Arthur Schwartz, who agreed last year) parade organizers have made to take on the case pro bono. He gathered two announcements. what he needed, drafted papers, and filed First: the Grand Marshall for the Pa- a motion to dismiss the lawsuit and coun- rade will be Randy Rainbow, one of the tersued. It took a while, but in early April funniest comics in the US, whose “Sea- Judge Franc Perry held a hearing, and the sons of Trump” video has garnered over next day issued a decision dismissing the 2 million views. Go to youtube.com/ case. In order to resolve everything, the watch?v=UzXBVkWASI4. countersuit was dropped and an appeal The Second announcement: The pa- was waived. May arrived and the donors rade named a Deputy Grand Marshall. started writing checks! Who? None other than the Village’s own, Can you imagine the Village without and WestView’s own, Arthur Schwartz. a Halloween Parade? Unfortunately, due Arthur Schwartz you ask, why him? Is to the Pandemic, that did happen last he a performer on the side? year, and the Parade went virtual. But this Turns out that in 2019, the last year year Hope Springs Eternal. The Parade is the parade was held, the Village Hal- pushing, Arthur is pushing, and hopefully loween Parade, Inc. was sued by someone Mayor de Blasio will end his last Hallow- who called himself “SuperFrank” (seri- een as Mayor with a Parade. ously, that was how he described him- The theme this year? LET’S PLAY!!! self in court papers) who claimed to be a Honoring the Children of NYC and the member of the Parade Board and alleged Child in all of us who yearns to take to that the organizers had squandered lots of the streets and play again! money. Unfortunately, the baseless lawsuit Get your vaccine, so we can do Hal- was reported in the NY Post on Page Six loween! (And so Randy and Arthur can and all of the parade sponsors put their SAVING THE PARADE: Newly named Deputy Grand Marshall of the Village Halloween lead it!) donation pens on hold. The Parade Exec- Parade, Arthur Schwartz, helped the organization bring back its donors. Photo credit: “Imagination is the only weapon in the utive Committee asked around for a law- Jeanne Fleming. war against reality.” www.westviewnews.org May 2021 WestView News 7 Ranked Voting Will Change the Game your homework on their platforms (mine can be viewed at www.LeslieForNYC.com) and vote with your head AND your heart! New York City’s future hangs in the balance, and we need elected officials who are up for the challenge of revitalizing the greatest city in the world.

Leslie Boghosian Murphy has lived in the District for over 17years. As a third generation New Yorker, her career as an investigative journalist helped shaped her forward-thinking “get it done” mindset which our district needs as we anticipate the Post-Pandemic era. Boghosian Murphy is a mother and Executive Member of Community Board 4 who is running for City Council in District 3, which includes West Village, Chelsea and Hell’s Kitchen.

70 GREENWICH AVE. • WEST VILLAGE • NYC • •

A SAMPLE RANKED CHOICE VOTING BALLOT shows how to rank candidates in order of preference, which is the new Hourly Handyman Services method being introduced in the June 22, 2021 Primary election. Photo credit: NYC Campaign Finance Board. Professional Painting Projects Electrical & Carpentry Work By Leslie Boghosian Murphy, MICHAEL RUSSO, PROPRIETOR The process continues until there are only two candi- Candidate for City Council District 3 917.476.4146 • [email protected] dates left, and the person with the most votes WINS. Have you ever been forced to vote with your head, when Serving the West Village for 11 Years you really wanted to vote with your heart? WHY IS RANKED CHOICE VOTING BETTER? Perhaps you went to the polls and selected one candidate For starters, by ranking multiple candidates your vote can when you really wanted to choose another, but because you still impact who gets elected even if your top choice does believed your preferred person did not have a strong shot at not win. winning you selected the “popular” contender? Ranked Choice Voting provides a more civilized elec- This year for the first time in New York City history we tion. Because candidates will be seeking broad support have a new process to help make our election outcomes (even from voters who may not rank them first), their more representative of what voters truly want. Ranked campaigns are more likely to focus on appealing to voters Choice Voting (or “RCV” for short) received an over- rather than attacking other candidates. (And after the last whelming 74% of NYC voter support when proposed in two national elections, I believe we have experienced more a 2019 ballot measure, and 2021 is the first year that a than our fair share of “attack politics”). citywide election will introduce the new method. RCV has proven to be more equitable in electing wom- Having been implemented in 17 other cities across the en and people of color, which is critically important to a United States, including San Francisco, the results of an city as diverse as New York. RCV-style election allow for better representation of the This is of particular significance to me. There are 53 community’s preference in candidates, and less polariza- Council seats in New York City and currently only 13 of tion of the final outcome. those seats are held by women. That number does not re- The new process is simple—instead of choosing just flect balance, equality or our city’s demographics. With all ONE candidate, you have the opportunity to rank up to of the open seats in September that count could dwindle five candidates, in order of preference. This way if your to a mere five women in City Council! I do not want to first pick does not win, you still have a say in the final out- imagine our city’s future with only 10% female representa- A modern approach to real estate with come. No vote is “wasted.” tion. As a mother and proponent of diverse leadership, I old-fashioned professionalism and two Here’s how the results break down: want to set a strong example for my daughter and all of the decades of top-notch customer Candidates who receive more than 50% of the first- young ladies out there who are watching us. service to our community. choice votes automatically win. As with any change, there may be some confusion at the Call Charlie Summers, proud West Village resident since 1985.

If no candidate receives over 50%, then counting con- ballot box. However, the beauty of this new process is that Charles Summers tinues in rounds. YOU the voter now have more say in the final outcome for Licensed Associate Real Estate Broker [email protected] In each round, the candidate with the fewest votes is our next Mayor, Public Advocate, Comptroller, Borough 917.376.1648 eliminated. (If your top choice candidate is eliminated, President and City Council member. Learn more about Charles Summers is an individual real estate agent affiliated with Compass. Compass is a licensed real your vote then goes to your next highest ranked candidate Ranked Choice Voting here. estate broker and abides by equal housing opportunity laws. on the ballot). I urge you to carefully examine each of the candidates, do 8 WestView News May 2021 www.westviewnews.org A Tale of Three Small Businesses By Penny Mintz

We locals feel at home in our neighborhoods when we sit on a stoop and see a familiar face; when we connect through our children’s school; when we take the sun in a local park. The most significant contributor to our sense of community, though, is probably our connection to, and reliance on, the local restaurants and mom-and-pop businesses. These businesses have always been the heartbeat of our city. They made up 99% of all businesses and 50% of all jobs. They provided opportunities for hard-working people to enter the middle class and beyond. It is no secret that mom-and-pop businesses are in trouble. We all see the empty storefronts, held off the market by landlords waiting for the highest possible price. In the summer of 2019, I counted nine empty shops on Bleecker Street between Perry and Charles and eight more between Charles and West Tenth. Tiny shops were renting for thirty, forty, and fifty thousand a month. Gone were bicycle shops, produce vendors, bakeries, hardware stores, and old-fashioned variety stores. Times grew ever harder for small businesses once COV-

CHUCK CHU'S STORE, on Hudson between 11th and Bank streets, has been empty for two years. Like other small business owners, he likes to help out community members. These ads are displayed at no cost to a local PS 41 and LAB School graduate who started his own small business during the pandemic. Photo by Penny Mintz.

ID hit. Under the extraordinary circumstances of the pan- this neighborhood,” demic, one would think that the City government would On January 31, 2021, the owner of the discount store make a concerted effort to smooth the way for indepen- picked up and left Mamadou with an empty shop. Arthur dent entrepreneurs. The City has, indeed, helped restau- Schwartz became his “angel,” negotiating his lease and help- rants with the open-streets policy, which allows restaurants ing him set up the new business, which opened in March. to expand rent-free onto sidewalks and streets. But other Mamadou’s only regret about Arthur is that Arthur did not businesses have not seen such help. mention that he was running for city council, because Ma- I spoke with the owners of three struggling independent madou, who loves to talk to people, would have enthusiasti- businesses: a fruit vendor, a discount store owner, and the cally talked up the Schwartz candidacy with his many cus- landlord of a single commercial space. tomers. He is now doing his best to make up for lost time. Native Manhattanite and West Village resident Mamadou’s biggest problem is a lack of access to capital, for the past 42 years. BUREAUCRATIC SNAGS Licensed in Real Estate for the past 21. and the City “does nothing to help,” he says. Since he is a Board Certified New York Residential Specialist (NYRS®). Harry Alentar, the fruit vendor on Seventh Avenue be- new business and lacks a relationship with any bank, he can- Here to help you and yours find your next perch or move on tween Eleventh and Twelfth streets, has been selling fruit not apply for PPP funds. Those loans are processed through whether in New York or elsewhere, when the time comes again. on that spot since 2007, but even before COVID it wasn’t banks, and banks only provide that service for established Alexander de Bordes exactly smooth sailing. In 2018, despite being properly customers. But despite his cash flow problems, Mamadou 917-640-3707 licensed, he got $2,000 in tickets and had his cart and believes that he can hang in. [email protected] merchandise seized. Arthur Schwartz came to Harry’s aid and got those tickets dismissed. In 2019, the police again towed his cart due to a bureaucratic mixup over which de- REAL ESTATE TAXES ARE TOO DAMN HIGH partment was authorized to issue his permit. Once again, Finally, there is Chuck Chu, who is being crushed by real Schwartz resolved the issue. estate taxes. Chuck used to own Mama Buddha, a popu- Now, after completely shutting down for several months lar restaurant on the corner of Eleventh and Hudson. during the pandemic, he’s back in business. But “times are When he retired twelve years ago, the taxes were high but tough,” Harry says. During the hour that I sat with him, manageable. For ten years, he rented the space to HSPC, one customer purchased fruit, and Harry gave a banana and which paid rent plus the real-estate tax. Over that time, a mango to a homeless man. In addition, his truck contin- the taxes rose 600%. ues to be ticketed and he is harassed by ever-changing rules For the last two years, Chuck has been unable to rent and about the placement of his cart. Harry drives a car part-time unable to sell. “With those taxes, nobody wants the space,” to make ends meet because his profit goes to pay his assistant. Chuck says. He got a 25% tax rollback using an attorney He’s hanging in, he says, while he waits for better times. who specializes in real-estate tax challenges, but the taxes are still too damn high. Unlike the big landlords, Chuck NO HELP ACCESSING CAPITAL cannot write the taxes off as a loss against other rents be- Mamadou Diaman is the owner of Diaman Discounts cause he has no other rent. U.S.A (also known as 99 Cents Creations), a discount vari- Like Harry and Mamadou, Chuck, too, is hanging in, ety store located at 149 West 24th Street between Seventh waiting for better times. He thinks that things will im- and Sixth avenues. He got into the business by managing prove over the next few months. If it takes much longer a similar store on West 23rd Street and then on West 24th than that, he will be wiped out. Street for 20 years. During those years he became part of These three small-business owners are New York he- the community, going to Community Board meetings to roes. They are all hanging by a thread while they watch find out what was going on, and talking to people to find their neighboring businesses topple like dominos. Rather out what they wanted him to carry. than helping them survive, the City continues to set road- “I know everybody,” says Mamadou. “I want to light up blocks in their way. www.westviewnews.org May 2021 WestView News 9 Ramsey Clark (1927-2021): America’s Gandhi Recruited into power by the Kennedy for the entire last year of the Great Society tening” was his reply. brothers, who sent him to the South in the and Clark was excluded from all cabinet Not only was he right then, but his views early ‘60s to help develop their civil rights meetings. are still true today. His death was not men- agenda, Ramsey was chosen for his intel- An increasingly radicalized liberal, tioned on many television news reports ligence, wit, legal acumen, sense of justice, Ramsey Clark is one of the most quoted even though the John Lewis Voting Rights and, not least of all, because he was from the public officials in government history: “A Act of our future was his creation, and John South...Texas...and would blend into south- right is not what someone gives you; it’s Lewis was his great friend whom he ac- ern racist culture easily whereby he could what no one can take from you.” companied for years in the South, includ- witness racial injustice and then help develop “U.S. foreign policy is the greatest crime ing on Bloody Sunday and the crossing of future solutions to it by the federal govern- since World War II...American aggression the Edmund Pettis Bridge in Selma. ment. He toured prisons across the South has already created incalculable levels of Despite his radical legal support for ex- and found the incarceration programs and misery for the world.” tremist figures like Saddam Hussein, Slo- systems horrendous and degrading. This set “The world is the most dangerous place bodan Milosevic, and Mohammar Ghad- him on a path to principled civil rights re- it’s ever been now because of what our haffi, I cannot fall short of praising Ramsey Photo by Bruce Poli. form, from which the Kennedy administra- country has done, and is doing, and we Clark for his unparalleled courage, dignity, tion flourished despite great opposition. have to take it back.” and standing up for what is right for Amer- By Bruce Poli Ramsey Clark’s father Thomas Clark “Our overriding purpose, from the be- ica and humankind. He loved peace and he was a Supreme Court justice who resigned ginning right through to the present day, loved people and justice. We will never see Ramsey Clark, U.S. Attorney General for his post June, 1967, citing conflict of in- has been world domination—that is, to another figure like him. LBJ’s Great Society (1967-69), author terest when his son was appointed attor- build and maintain the capacity to coerce This brings me to one of my favorite Bob and supervisor of the Voting Rights Act ney general. LBJ anticipated replacing him everybody else on the planet: nonviolently, Dylan quotes and a statement about the of 1965 and the Civil Rights Act of 1968, with Thurgood Marshall, the country’s first if possible; and violently, if necessary.” state of civil rights in America today: “He and one of the largest and most prominent African American justice on the Court. Ramsey also vigorously opposed the not busy being born is busy dying.” figures in the development of civil rights Ramsey was one of Johnson’s popular death penalty and the War on Terror. Thank you Ramsey Clark for keeping it legislation in America, died at age 93 on and successful cabinet appointments, being I could go on with dramatic episodes real. Your life was a testament to America’s Friday, April 9th at his West Village home. described as “able, independent…and soft- during Ramsey Clark’s life, with which he forward-moving destiny, and you are an ex- I have published three interviews with spoken,” and representative of the New helped shape the America that is now un- ample for all of us. Ramsey Clark in WestView News before… Frontier liberals. As a devout anti-Vietnam dergoing a serious self-reflection of its civil And, as Ramsey so often said to me, “We so much has been shared. War member of the Johnson cabinet while rights practices. Shall Overcome.” It is so difficult to state and measure his the war escalated, however, he was a thorn According to his assistant, he was “catatonic extraordinary effect and vast accomplish- in the president’s side, so much so that he for a month” when Donald Trump was elected. I recommend “Defending the Public’s En- ments that I refer you to his obituaries, bios was accused by the hawkish LBJ of helping When I met him on the street, shortly emy: The Life and Legacy of Ramsey Clark” and Wikipedia page. I hope you will read Richard Nixon beat Hubert Humphrey in after Trump’s victory, I went up to him and by Prof. Lonnie Brown, published by Yale and enjoy them! 1968. The two didn’t speak to each other said “We need your voice.” “No one’s lis- University. 10 WestView News May 2021 www.westviewnews.org

Gansevoort Peninsula Progress By Brian J Pape, AIA

THE DAVID HAMMONS SCULPTURE “DAY’S END” has finally been assembled after a long year of preparation. The concrete pilings had to be precisely set in the water to receive the tubular stainless steel framing that exactly duplicates the outer shape of the original pier house at this Pier 52. The Whitney Museum of American Art commissioned the sculpture from Mr. Hammons and has donated it to the Hudson River Park, which will be responsible for its upkeep. At the same time, the parkland that is planned for the peninsula also progresses. Barges are being shuttled in, off-loaded of their engineered-fill cargo, while front-loaders transfer the fill and compact it at strategic locations. Passing by on the pedestrian and bike paths west of West Street, one can see the grade being built up, inch by inch, several feet above the surrounding street level, between Horatio Street to Little West 12th Street. This won’t completely protect it from strong storm surges, but it will make it readily recoverable once the storm passes. Photos credit: Brian J Pape, AIA.

JUST A FEW FEET NORTH OF THE PENINSULA IS THE NEW LITTLE ISLAND, where Pier 54 and 55 used to be, opposite West 13th Street. Finishing touches are being applied in preparation for a grand opening yet this Spring. The undulating landscape has many trees growing around the spacious lawns and winding pathways and amphitheaters. It is reportedly going to be free and open to the public except for special events, yet to be announced. Photo credit: Bob Cooley.

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512 HUDSON STREET • NYC 10014 WWW.SEAGRAPEWINES.COM • 212-463-7688 www.westviewnews.org May 2021 WestView News 11 The Perils of Indifference

Dina Andriotis, Chris Tsiamis, and Nikitas Andriotis (from left to right). 77 Christopher Street Between Seventh Avenue and Bleecker Street CALLING FOR THE POLICE TO BE REFORMED, OR "REIMAGINED": We need to make sure that there are no more senseless killings of Black men in NYC. Photo by Chivana Newsome. Pharmacy Hours: Monday - Friday: 9:00 AM - 7:00 PM By Arthur Z. Schwartz “indifferent” I felt a need to step up even more. We have so far to go. Maybe I can Saturday: 11:00 AM - 5:00 PM I was born in the 1950s, part of a fam- get us a few inches closer. Closed Sunday ily tree which had escaped Czarist Russia Derek Chauvin has been convicted, and even before World War I. But we had fam- we all breathed a sigh of relief. But after Telephone: 212-255-2525 • Fax: 212-255-2524 ily members who were not so lucky. I was the jury went to deliberate, another young email: [email protected] a child when the full details of the Holo- Black man was shot 10 miles away, when www.newyorkchemists.com caust were coming into focus, as the book an officer, doing a routine traffic stop, “Night” by the late Elie Wiesel saw the ulled out what she “thought” was a Taser light of day, and slowly the world learned and shot him dead. In the 24 hours after about the horrors of the Nazi concentra- the Chauvin verdict other Black men were tion camps, and the efforts to extinguish victims—one was Isaiah Brown, 32, who all European Jews in the most brutal, was making a 911 call to police when he heartless and cruel ways imaginable. It is was shot—10 times—because the North “Third Reef” Beachfront home in Harbour Island, The Bahamas easy now for the world to move on, 76 Carolina cop who had responded thought years after World War Two ended, but the the phone was a gun. Holocaust must always be remembered, These shootings are not a coincidence. And in part because of how it demonstrates they reflect an attitude and climate which ex- the extent to which human beings in our ists in the NYPD as well. It must stop. society can commit atrocities, and in part But the answer is not to “defund” the po- because while the death camps killed 6 lice. We need public safety. I had someone million, much of the world was indifferent. present a phony check, with my signature, When I was in college one of the most at my bank last week, and I called the police profound books that I read drew a paral- who met me there as the guy ran out the lel between American slavery and the door. Ironically the cop remembered that Holocaust. American slavery was, like the I had sued another officer in his precinct Holocaust, one of most profoundly hor- eight years ago for injuring George Capsis’ rific chapters in the history of the world. eye socket. But he also knew that I repre- I bring this up, because one of the reasons sent people in law enforcement, and go to why racism, and the effects of slavery, re- precinct community council meetings. main so profound, is widespread indiffer- The police need to be reformed—I like ence, the same indifference which allowed the words “reimagine the NYPD.” Yes, it the Nazi’s to do what they did. will take a lot of creativity, and a lot of hard Holocaust Remembrance Day occurred work. But we have to try. We need to make this year in the midst of the trial of the po- sure that there are no more senseless kill- lice officer who inhumanely killed George ings of Black men in NYC. For bookings and additional information contact: Floyd. As I watched the video, and saw the Spencer Laidley at LX Bahamas inhumane expression on the officer’s face as Arthur Schwartz is the Democratic District [email protected] +1 (242) 702 8788 he choked the life out of George, I flashed Leader in Greenwich Village and is a can- Tell him you saw the ad in WestView News! to images of the Nazi’s killing Jews. And on didate for City Council in the district which January 6, as the Trump hordes invaded the includes the Village, Chelsea and Hell’s Capital, one of the leaders was a man wearing Kitchen. He has been endorsed by Black https://www.lxbahamas.com/view/Harbour+Island/Third+Reef/4080/ a shirt with the words “Camp Auschwitz.” Lives Matter of Greater NY, the Black I decided to run for City Council as a Leadership Action Caucus, the NYC Court Pictures on Facebook: Third Reef – Harbour Island Bahamas result of George Floyd’s death. While few Officers Association, and the Bridge and For more info and pictures: VRBO #1968167 would ever call my 50 years of activism Tunnel Officers Association. 12 WestView News May 2021 www.westviewnews.org

Pyazza.com Epigenetics: Same Day Delivery Inheritance of Acquired in Less Than 2 Hours Characteristics Abstracted from “A Scientists View of Lamarck’s theory saw evolutionary Raining? Snowing? Or just wanna stay cozy in bed? Almost Everything” by Mark M Green changes arising from use and disuse (a gi- raffe’s neck, a farmer’s muscles, the eyes of Pyazza can shop for you! I’ve often wondered if my compunction to an animal living in pitch black cave) lead- lock doors and to be thinking of the dire ing to changes in the individual that were possibilities of my actions came from some than passed on to their offspring and so on Get fast delivery from a friendly neighbor for just $8.00. experience of my childhood. Did huddling to their descendants, an idea expressed in under the school classroom desks to protect the title of Kemmerer’s book. Kemmerer our selves from an atomic bomb set me up was what is called, a Lamarckian. But the for a lifetime of fear? Hard to believe that I scientific establishment has long cast La- Visit Pyazza.com to have items from Union Square could bear some kind of imprinted memory marck’s ideas aside. Greenmarket delivered to you during market hours. of my ancestors, two thousand years of the But in fact many scientists today see a cor- Jewish people subject to living as “others” respondence between Lamarckian and Dar- The list of vendors selling at the market under constant threat and worse? After all, winian ideas. After all, both theories call for my grandfather being forced to leave Belar- response of the species to their environment is updated daily. us by resistance to a violent pogrom is just as critical to the evolutionary changes even one example of likely others in my family if Darwin’s theory, up to recently, was bet- history, the history of the Jews. ter supported by modern biology: random “What is the fate of personally acquired char- changes in the genome, that is, mutations, acteristics? Do they die with individuals or do sometimes lead to improvement in the they extend—at times at least—beyond the ability to survive and prosper, which gives boundaries of the individual’s life into the life advantage to the changed individuals. But (917) 924-2495 [email protected] of succeeding generations?” This question times are changing for Lamarck and even Kemmerer. Kemmerer may have discovered At this time we only deliver in our West Village, SoHo and TriBeCa communities. appears in “The Inheritance of Acquired Characteristics,” written by Paul Kammerer what is now called epigenetics. of the Institute of Experimental Biology of What is epigenetics? It is long known the University of Vienna, and translated into that genes are turned on and off by mecha- English and published in New York in 1924. nisms that are internal to the species. How Dr. Kammerer died of a gunshot to the else could every cell in the body contain the head under mysterious circumstances at same DNA and yet take the different forms the age of 46 in 1926 two years after his cells must adopt—muscles, brain, skin, hair work was discredited by finding that the etc. How could the fertilized egg become the biological samples apparently proving his fetus without different chromosomes taking theory, that acquired characteristics could their turn at control? Epigenetics describes be inherited, were altered to fit the theory. the chemical changes to DNA and the He was called a fraud and his death was way that DNA is stored as controlling the called a suicide. But there is reason to be- evolution of the fetus into the fully formed lieve that Nazi agents tampered with the baby. But now scientists are finding that the samples. Kammerer was hated by the Na- external environment and the behavior of zi’s for his socialist communist views. He many forms of life, including humans, are was planning to move to the Soviet Union also capable of causing chemical changes to to head an important laboratory in Mos- DNA without changing the basic sequence cow where his ideas were greatly accepted of the DNA, which is identical in every cell since they supported what was called the and unchanged since conception. Lamarkian theory of evolution. The Soviet All of this is surprising enough but sci- leaders saw in Kammerer’s work and in the ence has now taken the next step in re- ideas of Lamarck, a scientific basis for their search that demonstrated that several of actions: newly acquired characteristics of these epigenetic changes in DNA can be the Russian proletariat, allowed by the rev- passed on, that is, inherited. There is every olution, would be inherited by generations reason to believe that many more epigen- to come and lead to a new world order. etic changes will be discovered that will Jean-Baptiste Lamarck was born in be passed on to progeny DNA. Biologists 1744 in northern France to a family of increasingly realize that evolutionary pro- soldiers and won distinction as one before cesses are controlled not only by changes he became a naturalist. His ideas were well in the sequence of bases in DNA (Darwin- known to Charles Darwin, who in fact, ian) but also by chemical changes within at one time, held similar ideas under the that sequence by the changes arising from name of pangenesis. Darwin wrote about experience during one’s life. (Lamarckian). Lamarck: “he first did the eminent service Welcome back Monsieur Lamarck of arousing attention to the probability of all and watch out you young folks still bear- changes in the organic, as well as the inorganic ing children—what you do and where you world, being the result of law, and not mirac- tread may affect the genetic inheritance of ulous interposition.” your descendants. VOTE DEMOCRAT JUNE 22nd FOR NYC MAYOR

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PAID FOR BY KATHRYN GARCIA 2021 14 WestView News May 2021 www.westviewnews.org Notes From Away Loyalists and Patriots By Tom Lamia the Crown. Patriots could not accept governance that left them out of deliberations over In a review of 1774: The Long Year of Revolu- their future, regardless of putative benevolent tion by historian and former Cornell profes- intentions and their unlikely inclusion in sor Mary Beth Norton (New York Review royal grace. of Books, March 11, 2021) the statement Ordinary Americans in all thirteen col- that harsh measures against American colo- onies wanted a voice in any deliberations nists came because British officials “sus- to address their grievances. A surprisingly pected that the Americans had absorbed a simple solution proved to be elected com- spirit of democracy,” caught my eye. What mittees in towns, cities and counties. These similarities might there be between that committees adopted guides for boycotts CHAPMAN HALL HOUSE in Damariscotta, Maine was built in 1754 and restored in 1990. sentiment and Republican efforts to restrict of British goods and published news of This was the first house in Damariscotta. Photo by Tom Lamia. voting rights at the state and local level? Do infractions reported to them, making the Republicans suspect now that voters have boycotts effective. Loyalists did not wel- norant men bred to the lowest occupations,” African Americans and a malleable range of absorbed a spirit of democracy and harsh come this sort of voluntary pan-colonial were “qualified for the direction of political low status persons goes too far. It is irrelevant measures are needed to restore order? action. Joint action among colonies of dis- affairs, or ought to be trusted with it.” The whether Republican efforts at voter suppres- A Republican fear of democracy in an ex- parate interests was a risk and a threat to expected answer was “no,” of course, but the sion come from fear of being “replaced,” as panding electorate does seem to be at the core the British. Communication through these fight for independence, carried forth by all the fringe among them have been saying, of our voting rights issues. It was also at the local committees had the effect of unifying levels of colonial Americans, proved other- or simply reflects an elitist (and unconstitu- core of differences between Loyalists and Pa- colonial action and making it transparent. wise as democratic participation did not lead tional) view of who is entitled to have a voice triots in 1774; the failure to bridge that differ- In remote Gorham, a small town in back- to chaos or failed government. in our governance. That train left the station ence was the essential cause of our revolution. water Maine, then part of Massachusetts, Loyalists did not give up their views easily. in the 19th Century on the enactment of Before the Tea Party, Paul Revere’s ride, and the townspeople resolved that they had Some stayed in America, some decamped the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments to the the Intolerable Acts there were a multitude of “such a high relish for Liberty, that we all, for British Canada, some joined their pre- Constitution. Attempts to derail it through irritations flowing from the ordinary Ameri- with one heart, stand ready, sword in hand... ferred society in London or in British colo- voter suppression measures are contrary to can’s lack of a voice in his government. This to defend and maintain our rights against all nies elsewhere in the empire. There was no those amendments. Legislation is needed to discontent was known to the British admin- attempts to enslave us, and joyn our breth- sudden or even gradual recognition among identify and prevent those measures. The Su- istration and small but inadequate steps were ren, opposing force to force, if drove to the Loyalists that a republican form of govern- preme Court, in its 2013 decision in Shelby taken from time to time to address it. The last extremity, which God forbid.” ment based on democratic principles, was a County v. Holder, ruled unconstitutional failure to include the concerns of ordinary Contrast these sentiments of Patriot welcome result of the American Revolution. the requirement of the Voting Rights Act of Americans in the British effort to deal with farmers with those of high ranking Loyalist It seems now that Republicans have adopted 1965 that certain election districts continue its American problem was a critical failure. clergymen: a New Jersey Episcopal minis- the Loyalist fear of democracy. to submit proposed election law changes for Loyalists (Americans of wealth and stand- ter [Chandler] asked, rhetorically, whether Republicans are comfortable in a society federal review. The basis for the decision was ing), while acknowledging the more egregious it was not the proper duty of “every Ameri- in which a limited group is running the that conditions in those districts had changed improprieties of British colonial rule, drew a can, to fear the Lord and the King and to show. To some extent our Constitutional and federal review was no longer justified. line between modest, accommodating reform meddle not with them that are GIVEN TO framework allows a rural and small state Now they are. A new Voting Rights Act is and revolution. Patriots (farmers, merchants, CHANGE?” Or, paraphrased, “stay out of advantage. We do not have a pure democ- needed. tradesmen and the landless laboring class) things that are above your pay grade!” racy. Republicans have the right to that ad- Loyalists did not trust ordinary Ameri- had no say in the debate over the pre-revolu- A second Episcopal clergyman, this one vantage and I do not contest it. cans to govern themselves in 1774. Repub- tionary governance of their country and they in South Carolina [Bullman] expressed his However, attempts to expand this advan- licans have adopted a similar position today. were not happy about that. Loyalists, on the adamant view that ordinary men were not tage by seeking to limit voting by non-Euro- Democracy can survive if all are included. other hand, were accepting of subordination capable of judging their betters, asking, pean immigrants, Native Americans, felons, It was so in 1774 and it remains so today. to British rule. Favored appointments to po- rhetorically, whether a person “who cannot sitions in colonial government and eligibility perhaps govern his own household, or pay for colonial titles, together with the social and the Debts of his own contracting, [should] commercial benefits of calm and good order, dictate how the State should be governed?” were sufficient for their continuing loyalty to Rev. Chandler, then asked whether any “ig- www.westviewnews.org May 2021 WestView News 15

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A Church Named Graffiti—What’s That?

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THE EAST 7TH STREET BAPTIST CHURCH was given a strange name, Graffiti Church, when their original location got tagged repeatedly. This current brick front location at 250 E 7th Street sports their proud name, but no graffiti. Contact them at https://graffitichurch.org. Credit: Brian J Pape, AIA. Where Healing Continues... A licensed home care agency providing By Brian J Pape, AIA health care services, both professional graffiti. In the beginning, they would and paraprofessional, for individuals Friends of mine living near Tompkins paint over it, which only served to cre- living at home since 1996. Square Park gave me a tour of promi- ate a fresh canvas for the next person nent graffiti in their area, pointing out to leave their tag of graffiti. Deciding better-known artists’ signatures or tags, to not fight it, they accepted being sur- as opposed to recent, unidentifiable rounded by a form of art that repre- works. Many of the wall murals were sented the people and struggles of that Call Tim Ferguson at (212) 625-2547 sanctioned and related to the business- community, and they chose what they es there. A set of murals on a former think may be one of the best names for or drop in to 198 Avenue of The Americas school on East 3rd Street, that were a church they could think of. originally sanctioned, have recently Graffiti Church began with serving We accept most private been re-tagged with new images; fair children in the drug-controlled culture game, I guess. of Alphabet City, and they continue insurances In the midst of this atmosphere is the to serve as a safe haven for children, and private pay. East 7th Street Baptist Church, given a youth, and adults who want something strange name, Graffiti Church. When more. [email protected] it was first started in 1974, the small In the last 15 years they have started storefront church was constantly used five Graffiti sites in the metropolitan for personal expression in the form of area and two affiliates in other cities. 16 WestView News May 2021 www.westviewnews.org

SUPERHERO X: Life or Death in Apartment Buildings By Robert Kroll

Life in an apartment building is tough; it’s treacherous, death-defying. Apartment residents are literally at the mercy of all the other people who live, sublet, and visit in their building. If one person leaves a burn- ing cigarette or a candle alight, you could become a crispy critter. If one person leaves the front door ajar, everybody is at risk. Stoves, ovens, toasters, and blenders are all potential weapons of mass destruction. In other words, we co-op, condo and rental apartment tenants are all dependent on the good sense, care, and responsibility of everyone else in the building. The back- stop for those people, when they drop the ball and put us at risk, is the Superinten- dent. The Super is the town cop, the ref- eree, and the shortstop picking off runners at 2nd and 3rd. Fortunately for many of us, there are those apartment occupants at the far end of the OCD spectrum, the obsessors, who see things and say things. Their eyeballs, ears, and noses save lives. Here are some recent samples: “Hey, the cellar window is open…that could allow our water pipes to freeze.” “I’m getting hot water coming out of my cold HANDY MAN: Bob Kroll is a man who loves working with his hands. An artisan furniture maker, he loves to solve problems whether it's in water tap in the kitchen.” crafting from raw materials or fixing problems for tenants in his building where he is also the Superintendent. Photo by Bob Cooley. “I heard the steam boiler firing constantly…that can’t be good.” “I smell gas!” multi-unit residential building. It is one dents were either freezing or uncomfort- “There’s a tree in the neighbor’s yard that These are not problems that the occupants, of the reasons why the Super’s job will not ably warm and much fuel was wasted. is leaning on our building.” generally, are expected to handle personally. soon be taken over by a robot. It is easier —Electricians installed an exterior light “My chimney flue is not drafting prop- These issues get passed on to the Super, who to teach a robot to answer a question than timer that fell apart within a month. Resi- erly, and it fills my apartment with smoke. either is skilled enough to make some of to figure out the right question to ask, and dents were left fumbling for their keys in Does anyone else have this problem?” these repairs or knows people who are. then know when you are getting a snow the dark. Knowing people who are skilled in job. That is human intelligence. —Roofers left a vent hole into a chim- residential building repair is a skill in it- Quality control, that wondrous process ney flue open to the elements causing in- self. It is not enough to know someone that catches and minimizes errors, inef- terior water leak that ruined plaster. The who knows something. As a co-op Super, ficiencies, and embarrassments, needs to occupants wound up paying $1,100 to a I have discovered that you must cultivate be employed in the property management plasterer to patch the bulging plaster. people with skills. You must nurture them; and caretaker field to ensure positive results Some of these are relatively trivial, but make them feel special and appreciated. from the efforts of the Super. Licensed all of them required further efforts to The good repair and maintenance people plumbers, electricians, carpenters, and complete the repairs effectively. All these are always busy and are not often looking boiler makers are expert at what they do, examples could have been caught prior to for work. Work comes to them. You want but they are not infallible. the departure of the appropriate trades- them to want you. You want them to feel A few examples of failures to QC a proj- man and dealt with. Instead, completion good coming to your building. The ones ect, and the waste and disappointment that of these projects was delayed for weeks or who feel appreciated will show up much, ensues: months and in some cases required find- much sooner. They will send over their best —On a $100,000 chimney maintenance ing a second tradesperson to complete the and most efficient people. project, two of ten chimney flue liners were job. This is not necessarily slumlordism. It But the Super’s job does not end with not installed as contracted for and most of is sloppy or unsupervised work. Quality his or her bringing in a chimney sweep, an the liners that were installed did not pen- control at a relevant time can save a great electrician, or the fire department to the etrate as deeply as they were supposed to deal of aggravation for residents and the building. The Super must aggressively fol- and resulted in fireplace smoke problems. Superintendent. low through, and oversee what is done and No one can use their fireplace until this is If you live on the fourth floor of a 100 unit left undone by these repairmen. The Su- resolved. building at Christopher and Gay Streets, or per must ask questions and get complete, —Replacement window installers in- the third floor of a MacDougal Street walk- checkable answers. Supers must know the stalled a defective window that slammed up, your life can depend on whether your right questions to ask and understand the shut and shattered. The window was not Super is able to apply quality control to his answers and if they don’t understand, they fully repaired. The window does not stay or her work or not. Otherwise, you are liv- need to work on that until they do. open when it should and may close on peo- ing under a regime of squalid-y control and What I am describing is the application ple’s hands, or head. are very much at risk. Take care, tenement of a process used for decades in commerce —The steam boiler heat controller was dwellers and I wish you well until my next and industry: the notion of applying “qual- reset and put on settings that turned the installment of Superhero arrives on your ity control” or “QC” to the running of a boiler on at inappropriate times. The resi- quaint little West Village doorstep. www.westviewnews.org May 2021 WestView News 17 Joan’s Shanghai By Joan Klyhn glass clear eyes, a sincere, open face, big crippled by polio, for instance. That’s re- Joan’s Shanghai is a memoir of a childhood in teeth, a hopeful smile. Why couldn’t I ally a problem.” Then he tried again “Or Shanghai in the ‘30’s and ’40s of the 20th centu- make it to that inner circle, that group of they are retarded. Being tall is really not ry. I am primarily writing it for myself, extend- good girls, close to the holy family? My that bad.” My mother added, “Just try not ing it to my friends, and now to the many people mother was short and dark, so was my to slouch. It just makes it worse.” To give who have shown themselves fascinated with this Dad. In family photos, a phantom bubble her credit, she hired a physical therapist to period in the past. came out of my mouth, asking, “Will my work with me for over a year on my pos- real parents claim me?” ture, which really did help. How I tried! Yes, sometimes I would At the age of seventeen I left my parents Falling Over in the lunge. Sometimes I would slurp. My moth- definitively to go to college in the USA. er’s mahjong girlfriends would ask “How lThis was my introduction to secular edu- Middle of the Night do you find shoes her size?” or comment: cation. For the first time, I recognized Thirty days before the Christmas holidays, “well, she certainly didn’t last long in ballet my peers and they recognized me, as we a crèche was set up at one end of the en- school.” stood eye to eye. I could begin to make my trance hallway at the Convent of the Sacred My mother winced at reports of my own rules; sometimes moving slowly and Heart, where I was an elementary school school behavior. “She’s just naturally clum- sometimes sprinting, but no one had the student. In winter, the hallway was dark, sy! Ballet school should help.” My Dad right to decide to knock me over in the the stone floor cold, and the mustard col- tried. “Lots of children in the world are middle of the night. ored walls beaded with humidity. Above, low wattage bulbs were set in the ceiling at prudent intervals. They lit one’s way with- VIEWS BY SUZE out cheer. What little color passed through Suzanne McAndrews 50 + years in Greenwich Village this hall turned sepia in the process. The crèche was not large and was faded See Views by Suze from many years of use. But what was im- at portant was the cast and the props. Beyond Bonsignour Café the family in the shed, I sought and recog- Jane Street JOAN AND HER DOLL’S FIRST COMMU- nized each shepherd, kneeling or standing, NION. Photo courtesy of Joan Klyhn. and Eighth Avenue his arms outstretched in wonder; the wise men, the star, each palm tree, the turfy car- were standing. Good behavior the next 646-689-3475 pet surrounding the whole. Each worship- day meant standing back up and moving [email protected] per was placed at a proper distance from ahead. In thirty days, each sheep COULD the sacred center, where the parents bent theoretically pass into the turfy enclosure over the haloed child and the star beamed for the righteous. I knew I belonged in the down gilded wooden rays. center; I knew I wanted to be with God. WE’RE OPEN—FREE ON DEMAND DELIVERY I would crouch, as close as allowed by My love was a warm comforter that would the boundary, gazing at, trying to penetrate puff around the pallid child and bring the mysterious perfection of this scene. My his color back to him. I was a very loving VILLAGE heart brimmed with love and good inten- child, perplexed by the rules of the grown tions. Each year I prayed “Jesus, Mary and up world. Moving towards God each day Joseph, let me be close to you. Please let me seemed right; yet, falling over on my side come close to you.” and thereby falling behind became inevi- Stretching away from the crèche, a long table as the years passed. I fell over; that APOTHECARY strip of carpet reached some distance along is, my symbolic self, God’s wayward lamb, the hallway. At the end was a group of fell over when I spoke impulsively to my THE COMMUNITY PHARMACY THAT CARES wooden sheep. Each one had a name tag neighbor during catechism class, when I on it for a child in the school. There would mislaid one white glove, when I slurped my be about seventy five little sheep standing soup in the awful silence of the refectory, together on that first day, standing way out when I broke into a trot to get to an im- Come in in dim, lonely space. portant destination in time, when I burst for your fREE There I was, Joan K. There was another out laughing in the hallway, when I raised Joan, Joan deM. The sheep had once been my voice in passion for any reason at all. identical. Now it was easy to tell them apart, Two petite sisters, Mignon and Mignon- by chips, blobs of repair paint, a gimpy leg ette, made it every year. They performed WELCOmE giving a tilt to the stance, a painted eye sleight of hand with white gloves. I could replacing a glass one. A new sheep, sub- never make one look like two. I can’t even stituting for one irreparably damaged, re- do that today, but I suppose M. and M. are KIT! ally stood out, shone, demanded a place in still fooling the world with sly grace. front. Being one of these would be a good After falling over on its side a few times, omen, I felt. But I never was. one’s sheep just fell too far behind to ever BRInG THIs CARd In And RECEIVE $10 off Each day a bevy of sheep moved for- make it. M. and M. took part in the trans- O n A n Y P u RCHAs E O f $25 OR m ORE ward a specified distance towards the portation of the crèche and the winner sheep crèche. Our teachers monitored this prog- to the chapel where an annual in-group cel- ress, noting our behavior moment by mo- ebration was held. The rest of the sheep were Store HourS: Mon - Fri 8aM - 8pM • Sat 9aM - 6pM • Sun 10aM - 5pM ment throughout the day. Decisions were scooped up and boxed till next year. made, and in the middle of the night (or I can see myself, tall and stocky. A fair 346 Bleecker St • Greenwich VillaGe, nY 10014 • VillaGeapothecarY.com so I guessed) sheep either moved forward skinned child, with straight brown hair or fell over on their sides right where they fastened at one side with a plain barrette, 212.807.7566 18 WestView News May 2021 www.westviewnews.org The First Time By Keith Michael

Spoiler alert: This is not a cheerful tale. On Friday, March 26th, while I looked for migrating spring birds in the Willow Oaks across Perry Street, Millie, my iras- cible corgi muse through more than nine years of monthly articles here in WestView, took her morning walk with me for the last time. You may recall that my April article, already written and submitted by that Friday, while shielding her from the excessive cuteness of a pair of Screech Owls in northern Manhattan, celebrated her twelfth birthday. That morning, with Millie backtracking at the end of her leash, I was already contemplating whether to cast the screaming pair of Blue Jays above us dive-bombing a Common Crow out of their airspace as the subject for my May article. Millie trotted inside from the street and side- stepped up the two front stairs as always, ever impatient that I wasn’t opening the doors fast enough. Unbeknownst as I left for work, I wouldn’t meet her accusatory, worried, “Where are you going?” gaze again. In the early afternoon, my phone buzzed with a text from Millie’s dog walker friend Kirk: “Something is not right. She is lying down in the bathroom and her breathing seems heavy. She is awake but wouldn’t even respond to a treat.” I got home. Fast. David returned shortly afterward. Get- ting Millie to a vet had always been a battle. A regime of tranquilizers preceded every appointment while a muzzle smeared with cream cheese was prepared for when she got there. For most of her life, we hadn’t been able to pick her up or get her into a cab. She always walked. Grumpily. That Friday was different. Donning raptor-friendly protective gloves dug from a drawer, there was no response as I fearfully eased on her muzzle. There was no complaint as I wrapped a towel, then my arms, around her. Feeling Millie’s wet breath on my neck for the first time, there was no struggle as David and I rode silently with her to the vet. And now what? By the time we arrived, Millie was no longer “in there.” Apparently, her spleen had ruptured and there was massive internal bleeding. Her eyes were not seeing us. There was no conflict in our decision to “help her along.” Exhale.That airless euphemism offers no softening for what comes next—the unexpected, unwanted, relentless JUST MILLIE, THOROUGHLY MODERN. Photo by Keith Michael. litany of first times: - Walking out of the vet and onto the sidewalk carrying sleep-running from bad dreams ing and her NOT barking only her collar and leash - Not taking her out the next morning to inspect every - The neighbor’s dog passing by the door and her NOT - Walking home and passing everyone with DOGS at cobblestone for who passed by during the night (or for an barking the end of their leashes errant French fry or chicken bone) and realizing that time - Anyone passing by the door and her NOT barking- - Turning the key in the lock and she was not pattering on the street with her was MY time to watch and listen Coming home and her NOT barking—the clanging si- by the door for birds lence - Not filling her water bowl (emptying it, washing it, - Starting to rush, then not needing to rush home to - Reading (okay, napping) on the couch and her not putting it on the shelf) take her out for her dinner walk walking over for a chin scratch (to take her out) - Not measuring her kibble into a dish, not placing it - Sitting through a rainy Sunday that she would have - Finishing up my monthly article and her not asking for on the floor, and not saying an upbeat, “Okay!” before she balked all day at getting wet a chest rub while I typed only with my left hand (probably would eat it - Picking up a tuft of fur from the carpet knowing, wry- she was just wanting to go out) - Not leaving an extra bit on my dinner plate and put- ly, that we won’t be able to complain about that anymore I can still go out. I can still go out to look for birds. But ting it down by my chair for her to lick clean - The sudden “oh.” How will I write about West Village if Millie’s not there to ignore them, do the birds still sing? - Not taking her out for an evening walk to stand si- birds without her? lently in the street while the night rumbled around us - Not seeing her napping in the middle of the floor, and - Waking up at 2am from the stillness of her not being involuntarily checking her spot by the door Visit keithmichaelnyc.com or follow pressed against the bed—not breathing, not snoring, not - Vacuuming and her NOT barking- The doorbell ring- @newyorkcitywild on Instagram.

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sible. The Cubby Hole (281 West 12th Street at West 4th in its place a restaurant serving French inspired Ameri- Street) re-opened in early April, after shutting down in can food will be opening. The owner and chef, Christian December. It is currently the only open lesbian bar in New Rowan, has worked at Bouley, Le Bernardin, Eleven IN York City. For more on this story, see Karen Rempel's ar- Madison Park, as well as at a number of Michelin starred ticle in next month's Pride issue of WestView News. restaurants in France. Ninano Restaurant & Bar will open and at 61 Grove Street (at 7th Avenue South) where Hakata OUT Closed/Closing Tonton used to be. The restaurant will serve Asian fusion Planted (361 6th Avenue at Washington Place), which tapas. The owner runs hair salons in midtown, and his best by Caroline Benveniste served many vegetarian dishes, but also some fish offer- friend is a chef who has studied in Hong Kong and Japan ings has closed. The location of Xi’an Famous Foods at in the past few years and will bring his cooking expertise Spring has always been a time when new places start to open, 313 6th Avenue (between West 4th and Carmine Streets) to the new restaurant. Signage is up for Beer Garage at but this month we have heard of an usually large number of is no more, although their webpage floats the idea that 117 Christopher Street (between Bleecker and Hudson anticipated openings. Some restaurants that had closed have they may re-open. While Xi’an Famous Foods is a popu- Streets). A Beer Garage (with the same logo) opened in reached an agreement with their landlords, allowing them to lar mini-chainlet, best known for their hand-pulled lamb Park Slope, Brooklyn last year. The concept there is a bar re-open. Others have taken advantage of lower rents to quickly noodles, that outpost always seemed undersubscribed. modeled after a vintage garage, with locally sourced beer take over business that had recently shuttered. Unfortunately, the Sullivan Street Bakery Pop-up (249 and bar food. Hungry Ghost Coffee, another Brooklyn Bleecker Street between Cornelia and Carmine Streets) outfit, is opening at 315 Bleecker Street (at Grove Street) Openings is closing at the end of April. The staff told me that not where Caudalie, the French spa which uses wine-based products, used to be. A Northern Italian restaurant called Osteria Carlina (455 Hudson Street between Barrow and Morton Streets) is opening where Einat Admony’s couscous restaurant Kish Kash used to be. The Bar Sar- dine location (183 West 10th Street at West 4th Street) will turn into St. Jardim which, according to a sign on the door, should appeal to those who like “cafes, coffee, newspapers, all-day menus, wine, beer, design, fun snacks, adventures, fruits, music, people, this neighborhood, us, freshness, funky, the world, etc.” An as-of-yet unnamed restaurant will open in The Black Derby location at 310 West 4th Street (between Bank and West 12th Streets). It will be a farm to table restaurant, with a menu focused on sustainable produce. The same owners run a fast casual farm to table vegan restaurant in Nolita called October. A sandwich shop will take over the space that was previously the Hudson Café at 638 Hudson Street (between Jane and Horatio Streets). Other Café Clover at 10 Downing Street (at the corner of 6th Avenue) closed in October of last year when their lease ran out. Since then, their landlord has become more real- istic, so the owners are hoping to open a restaurant there Photo by Caroline Benveniste. again. One issue is that they need to re-apply for a liquor license, since once a liquor license has been surrendered Lucky Louie’s – 535 Hudson Street at Charles Street enough people seemed to know about it. The company there is no way to get it back except to apply again. This is Two readers alerted us to the fact that a fried chicken res- has opened pop-ups in the East Village and on Sullivan an issue that is likely to come up more often as these situ- taurant called Lucky Louie’s opened where Sweet Sun- Street, and they may try a West Village location again in ations occur. They are also taking over the Jack’s Coffee shine Bakery used to be. The menu features fried chicken the future. The Rite Aid location at 501 6th Avenue (13th space next door and will turn it into a private dining room sandwiches, fried chicken tenders, chicken wings, mac and Street) closed at the end of April. For a while we would and expand their sidewalk café. When the restaurant re- cheese and salads. Early reviews are uniformly positive. only see pharmacy openings, but in the last few years some opens, it won’t be Café Clover, but rather, a new concept. locations have closed. Still, there are plenty of pharmacies Grey Dog, which has had a store at 49 Carmine Street NY 99¢ Fresh Pizza - 167 7th Avenue South between remaining in the neighborhood so that you’re never more (between Bedford and Bleecker Streets) since 2015 was Perry Street and Waverly Place than a few blocks from one. planning to move to MacDougal Street (where the Mer- A 99¢ pizza joint has opened in the space recently vacated maid Inn used to be), but instead they were able to negoti- by Fiaschetteria Pistoia (the Christopher Street and East Coming Soon ate with their current landlord, and so will remain there Village locations are still in business). Robert Sietsema of Otto’s (1 Fifth Avenue at West 8th Street) closed in No- but change their name to Moose Goose, and morph into Eater recently wrote a piece entitled “Two New West Vil- vember, and now the space is being taken over by well- more of a restaurant than a coffee spot, with (they hope) a lage Pizzerias and an Old Favorite Vie for Cheese Slice known restaurateur Marc Forgione who will be opening full liquor license. I wondered if Amos on Bleecker (340 Supremacy” where he compared neighborhood mainstay a full service Italian restaurant there. Venetian cicchetti Bleecker between Christopher and West 10th Streets) was Rivoli Pizza to its two recent pizza neighbors. Surpris- (Italian tapas-like appetizers) will be on offer, along with still planning to open in the old Manatus space since over ingly, he concluded that NY 99¢ had the best slice, but pizzas, and entrees priced between $24 and $42. The a year had gone by with no word on when it might de- to be fair, at Zazzy’s he had a plant-based pizza with fake owners anticipate a fall opening. Nat’s on Bank will be but. But the project is still very much alive, and in fact cheese which just can’t be good. (Zazzy’s also carries regu- opening at 51 Bank Street (at West 4th Street) where the that owners presented their case to CB2 to add French lar pizzas with real cheese.) short-live champagne bar The Riddler used to be. Nat is doors to the façade. The rationale was that with COVID, Natalie Freihon, who was a co-owner of the Fat Radish, restaurants would be better off if they were able to open Re-Openings a British vegetable-forward restaurant on the Lower East windows. Neighbors, worried about excessive noise, were BOBO (181 West 10th at 7th Avenue South), which is part Side which closed in August due to the pandemic. In a predictably opposed to the plan. When the restaurant does of the same restaurant group that operates Rosemary’s, Facebook post, Freihon says of the new restaurant: “Think open, it will also occupy the adjacent storefront. Upright Roey’s and Claudette, is planning to re-open soon. The Art Deco raw bar but also low key. You know, your neigh- Brew House (547 Hudson Street between Charles and other restaurants have corner locations with lots of room borhood joint. So pumped!” Southwestern restaurant The Perry Streets) has transformed into Leitao, a Portuguese for outdoor seating, while Bobo is semi-subterranean with Banty Rooster (24 Greenwich Avenue between West restaurant with wine, beer and craft cocktails, modeled on a very narrow storefront, making outdoor dining impos- 10th and Charles Streets) closed a few months ago, and the cervejarias of Porto. www.westviewnews.org May 2021 WestView News 21 A View From the Kitchen By Isa Covo until the butter has melted completely, and Here comes the Merry Month of May! We the cream begins to bubble on the sides of look forward to warmer temperatures, long the saucepan. walks or hikes, and hope that the last long Add the chocolates, chopped coarsely, months are (almost) behind us. and stir until the chocolate has melted and May is a month where we celebrate is well combined with the cream-butter mothers, but actually, I believe that parents mixture. This operation should take no should be celebrated every day, not only on more than 2 to 4 minutes. the days set aside for them. Call them often Remove from heat and add the whisky when you do not live at home. or the flavoring of your choice, beating Traditionally flowers and chocolates are briskly with a fork until the whisky is well the offerings of the day. This year abso- combined with the chocolate mixture. lutely offer store-bought flowers, unless Cover the pan and place in the refrigera- you can bring some from your garden. As tor and beat it with the fork every twenty for chocolates, do something different and minutes for a minute or so. When the mix- make them yourself. The recipe for these ture is cool and to thicken, stir it briskly, truffles has always been a great success. If until it turns a lighter color. This opera- you prefer them without alcohol, you may tion should take about 3 to 5 minutes, but replace it with any flavoring of your choice watch carefully and do not overbeat as the (e.g. vanilla extract, almond extract, etc.). ganache could turn grainy. In this case use sparingly, not more than Return to the refrigerator until the ga- one-half teaspoon. nache is thick enough to hold its shape but So enjoy the company, and have a great day. has not hardened. Line a cookie sheet with wax paper, Whisky Flavored parchment paper, or foil. With a table- Chocolate Truffles spoon sized scoop (one used to scoop sher- bet), scoop out balls of ganache and deposit In this recipe, using high quality ingredients is them on the lined cookie sheet. When fin- essential. I prefer using Belgian or Swiss choc- ished, place the truffles in the refrigerator olate and the Scotch should be premium. You for about 10 minutes to harden a little, and may also flavor the truffles with Grand Mar- then roll them lightly between your palms nier, fine brandy, or Kirschwasser. Kirschwas- to smooth them. Cover with an additional ser-flavored truffles are traditionally coated sheet of paper and return to the refrigerator with confectioner’s sugar. for several hours, or overnight. Pour the cocoa powder in a large plastic 6 oz bittersweet chocolate food bag and drop in the truffles. Close and 3 oz semi-sweet chocolate shake the bag gently from side to side in 6 tablespoons heavy cream order to coat them evenly with cocoa. 2 tablespoons unsalted butter The truffles will keep up to a month re- 4 tablespoons Scotch whisky frigerated in a sealed container. It is bet- 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, ter to remove them from the refrigerator preferably Dutch process about 15 to 30 minutes before serving, but they are also good eaten straight from the In a small heavy bottomed saucepan, over refrigerator. very low heat, heat the butter and cream Yield: 24 candies

MONDAY THRU SATURDAY 10 AM-7 PM SUNDAY 11 AM-5 PM Maximum of four people allowed in the store at one time Masks Required 212-242-5351

Photo by Isa Covo. 22 WestView News May 2021 www.westviewnews.org The Farm Supply Missing My West Village By Gordon Hughes

Well, it’s been just over a year since I left my co-op in the West Village and since writing my column for WestView News. Boy, do I miss New York, especially the Theatre District where I worked. I miss the Village where I played. I miss George Capsis, who brought me into the WestView News family, and so many other people. It has been an emotional and complex time for me. I miss sitting with George and Dusty, in his backyard, discussing all things Village. Friends have run hither and yon to escape COVID—it’s been difficult to keep up with so many of them. My pal Frank has moved into my co-op, so it is being well-taken care of. But there is nothing to replace Panino Mucho Gusto and that wacky morning THE FARM SUPPLY: There was a lot more to the Farm Supply store than fertilizer. Photo crowd that I loved so much. DATE NIGHT AT THE FARM: Gordon by Mike Troy. All the fiery political discussions. The Hughes, above, at his home outside of the conversations about the arts. What new city, dressed up and having a cocktail by By Jeff Hodges show was coming to the Whitney, our local the fireplace. Photo by Barbara Hughes. osprey in his freezer and that they would museum. The new super hip restaurant with In 1990, when my daughter was four, we come get it. Five years later it was still in some new trendy menu that included Brus- our farm. Date night, yes date night every started frequenting the Carmel Farm Sup- his freezer, and his wife threw it out. sels sprouts combined with candy sprinkles Saturday. Barb and I get dressed up. I don ply on our weekends away from Green- Red often lent us chicks or ducklings to or something outrageous like that. my coat and tie, we have a cocktail in front wich Village. The proprietor, Red, was a take home for the weekend. Sometimes All this said, along with so many others of the great room fireplace followed by a tall, striking figure with red hair, red beard, we’d be late returning them and the Farm I have developed a new lifestyle. No more yummy dinner in front of a second roaring cowboy hat, and a necklace made from Supply would be closed and we’d have to coat and tie, but rather an array of sweat fire in our dining room. I really recommend raccoon penis bones. We soon discovered bring them back to New York. There’s suits are now what’s in vogue at my home. this as something to look forward to, to that he had an avuncular nature and a nothing like having a brood of noisy duck- That is, with the exception of Saturday break up our week, and remind us of what heart of gold. lings in your apartment for a week, escap- Night. We have started a new tradition at Saturday Nights used to be in the Village. There was a lot more to the Farm Supply ing into the hallway and annoying the than fertilizer. You could buy fishing gear, neighbors. bait, guns, ammo, and live chickens, ducks, At one point, my daughter and her best and rabbits. In season, Red would butcher friend fell in love with a couple of rabbits and package your deer or wild turkey. And and started pestering us to buy them. I ap- ADVERTISE IN in the back, there was an extraordinary proached Red, who said, “You don’t want menagerie of stuffed mammals ranging these rabbits—these are meat rabbits.” from a Kodiak bear to a chipmunk. When I relayed this to the girls they be- WESTVIEW NEWS Red was a taxidermist of great skill and came adamant—there was no way Bonnie widespread renown. If you asked why he and Bella were going into a stewpot. had so many stuffed dogs in his collec- Red shrugged and sold them to us as Imagine your ad on these pages, tion, he’d explain it this way: “When your meat rabbits. We kept them in a hutch dog dies, the kiddies want him stuffed, so and were soon surprised to find that we reaching residents throughout the you bring him here. Then by the time the had a newborn litter of six kits, blind and job is done, you’ve gotten a new dog. The hairless. The next day we were even more West Village. kiddies don’t care about the dead dog any- surprised to find that Clyde—formally more, so he stays here.” Bella—had eaten all six of them, proving The best deal in town: One morning my daughter and I found my maxim that if you want children to be- a dead osprey floating in our pond. I said come familiar with death at an early age, Your first ad free! to her, “We’re not going to make the same buy them small animals and fish. mistake with this osprey that we made When my daughter got a little older, she Then 3 months at 10% off! with that screech owl. We’re gonna get this and her friend were put in charge of the one stuffed.” worms in the live bait department. They Contact our advertising manager: So we headed to the Farm Supply. The had to extract night crawlers from a barrel, minute we walked in, everybody rushed count and package them, and keep track of Karen Rempel out. Red steered us out the door and ex- the inventory. They received a small com- plained that anyone caught with a dead mission and considered themselves spe- (347) 362-5677 osprey was liable for a $10,000 fine. We cialists in a vital part of the Farm Supply stood outside: father, daughter and bird, operation. [email protected] outcasts on the margins of society. I’ll always credit Red—along with the The Outdoor Sports columnist in the chickens, ducks, rabbits, worms, and the local newspaper came to our rescue. He Kodiak bear at the Farm Supply—for put- called the Department of Environmen- ting some “country” into my street-wise See westviewnews.org/rates for details. tal Conservation and was told to put the New York City girl. www.westviewnews.org May 2021 WestView News 23 Keep Your Local Favorites Alive by Ordering Takeout Enter your email at PleaseOrderTakeout.com and receive a daily notice for a special item from one of these Village restaurants

232 Bleecker Street 570 Hudson Street 643 Hudson St Vegetable Forward Seasonal European-American Cuisine Great Food, Great Coffee 232bleecker.com AntonsNYC.com BanterNYC.com

117 Perry Street 112 Greenwich Avenue 228 West 10th Street Celebrating a decade of service to the Organic Espresso & Wine Bar Italian Small Plates West Village CaffeAronne.com Lartusi.com LeftBankNewYork.com

21 West 8th Street 375 Hudson Street 117 Perry Street Upscale Casual-American French Café and Bakery Your Neighborhood Rotisserie LoringPlaceNYC.com MamanNYC.com PouletSansTete.com

27 East 20th Street 796 Greenwich Street 144 2nd Avenue Handmade Pasta and Local Vegetables Greek-Inspired Cafe & Wine Bar Classic Ukranian rezdora.nyc stafiliwinecafe.com Veselka.com

21 West 8th Street Grandma Style Pizza WashingtonSquaresPizza.com

The best way that you can help support our neighbors is to order takeout directly from their websites Have a favorite Village Restaurant that’s not listed? Have them contact [email protected] 24 WestView News May 2021 www.westviewnews.org What Makes HIV+ Gay Men Open or Private About Their Status? By Kambiz Shekdar, Ph.D. to gear a survey dedicated to experiences of Black women living with HIV/AIDS. Each person’s medical history is personal and The link to my survey for HIV+ gay men private. At the same time, it’s always patients is here; please help me share it among your who charge the leading edge of medical in- friends via email and social media: https:// novation. What factors are at play when a www.surveymonkey.com/r/RFTcureaids. person decides how public or private they By answering the questionnaire, you will be about the medical challenges they consent to our use of the responses you face? My goal is to try to understand some of provide, but you do not consent to any this when it comes to HIV/AIDS. use of your name or any other personal- I’ve created a personal and probing survey identifying information. Your individual for HIV+ gay men. As a gay man myself, I responses will not be disclosed, but the feel comfortable knowing I’m asking some information gathered from your responses relevant questions here. I’m also interested will be used to inform our insights and in investigating experiences of straight Black conclusions, which will be published. women, another group hard-hit by HIV/ AIDS. In this case, I’m working with a col- league whose church is comprised predomi- Rockefeller University alumnus and biotech nantly of people from many parts of the Af- inventor Kambiz Shekdar, Ph.D., is the rican diaspora and has an active HIV/AIDS founder and president of Research Foun- ministry that supports and educates people dation to Cure AIDS. Contact Kambiz living with the disease. Together, we intend at [email protected]. Will We Ever See the End of Hunger in America? By Kieran Loughney tered in my work, even those with functional kitchens, lacked basic knowledge of nutrition The smell of my mom’s apple pie baking in and cooking skills and fed their children pro- the oven. Many of us have that one child- cessed or fast foods—quick fixes—instead hood encounter with food that lodges itself of fresh fruits and vegetables. In 2009 First in our consciousness, and when recalled, Lady Michele Obama, motivated by concern snaps us back to home and family. Some for her own children’s nutrition, planted the unfortunate children among us never have White House vegetable garden, knowing it that pleasurable experience. For such kids, would be an easier way to get fruits and veg- there exists only a constant awareness of etables into her daughters’ diets. The garden their rumbling bellies. became a tool for informing America’s kids The hot, dimly lit motel hallway with about healthy food choices. Mrs. Obama paint peeling and matted, greasy carpet- stated at the time (as reported in The New ing reeked of cigarette smoke. Children’s York Times on June 1, 2009) that by teach- laughter and a baby’s cry burst from inside ing the children of this generation, “they will room 214. I set down the overstuffed gro- begin to educate their families and that will, cery bags and knocked. Jenny, a mother in turn, begin to educate our communities.” in her mid-20s, greeted me, her toddler Jenny’s kids and all kids should participate in twins Tara and Sara (not their real names), the process of cooking food from fresh ingre- peeking from between her legs, an infant dients chosen from a market with a parent cradled in her arms. Sara, spotting the VOLUNTEERS AT THE CHURCH OF THE VILLAGE FOOD BANK PROGRAM hand out bags of or caregiver. The ceremonial carving of the groceries, squealed, “Mommy, the man fresh produce and groceries to families and Village residents in need. Photo by Bob Cooley. holiday turkey, bowls of steaming stuffing got us food!” Jenny, a single mom, sought and vegetables shared around a dining table help from my employer, the county child ingly new crisis. Yet, a positive effect of provided in the December 2020 relief pack- help create a strong family bond. Such fam- welfare agency. The young mother, home- the pandemic is that a spotlight is finally age and earmarks $880 million for Special ily traditions preserve a culture, passing it less after being abandoned by her husband, trained on a problem I witnessed daily in Supplemental Nutrition for Women, In- on through grandma’s recipe for sauce and qualified for temporary shelter in a run- my work in child welfare. fants and Children, known as WIC. A child meatballs simmering on the stove (or my down motel. In a room equipped with only For single moms with few job prospects, tax credit expansion, slated to begin in July, mom’s apple pie). Treasured memories of a mini-fridge and microwave, a family meal underpaid workers, for the homeless, the ensures a $300 monthly payment for eligible those early experiences can feed children on a would be limited to canned Beefaroni, ra- elderly, the disabled and those living in the families which will, according to a Colum- deeper level throughout their lives. men noodles or sandwiches. I was tasked many “food deserts” in the United States, bia University study, reduce the rate of chil- If you need food assistance or know with delivering processed food, diapers and the struggle for nutritious, adequate food dren living in poverty by half. Democratic someone who does, help is available baby wipes to the room, as I had for other has long persisted. Children suffer most leaders will promote efforts to make the through these charitable organizations. families, countless times during my years since when undernourished, according benefit permanent. Additionally, the United • Feed America (feedamerica.org) working in child welfare. to the World Health Organization; their Nations has set a goal signed onto by 179 • Salvation Army 132 West 14th St. Throughout the pandemic we’ve seen growth falters, brain development delays countries to end hunger globally by 2030. (212) 337-7467 images of an exhausted father sitting in a and their immune systems are suppressed. This ambitious agenda will require unprec- • God’s Love We Deliver (glwd.org) line of cars to receive a box of groceries, The recently-enacted COVID relief bill edented cooperation among governments, (212)294-8102 a newly unemployed tearful mother, sud- promises a positive step toward food secu- business and individuals worldwide. • The Church of the Village denly unable to feed her kids, people once rity in the United States. Ironically, it took For children living in hunger, a meal pro- churchofthevillage.org/hunger-relief living well now shocked to find themselves a plague for the clients I served to receive vided by a food bank or a government pro- These organizations depend on com- dependent upon donated food. These more substantive help, possibly finally less- gram can ensure that basic nutrition is met. munity support. If you are able, please con- heartbreaking scenes on nightly broadcasts ening the cycle of poverty. The bill extends But Jenny and her kids merely subsisted in sider donating or volunteering to be a part give a sense of the magnitude of this seem- a 15% increase in food stamp benefits first their motel room. Many parents I encoun- of their vital work. www.westviewnews.org May 2021 WestView News 25 A Modern Dive into Antiquity By Anastasia Kaliabakos and friendly people. It is fitting that its offerings will be expanded to its waters as The Titanic. The RMS Lusitania. The well. Even before its opening, officially set USS Arizona. All of these are famous ships for June 2021, there has been much inter- tragically destroyed, their debris and broken est in the museum from across the globe. parts submerged at the bottom of the ocean. Divers who have already gone down to see Shipwrecks, although devastating, serve the shipwreck have described it as awe- as a sort of time capsule through which inspiring and a real-life example of time we, benefitted by modern technology and travel. And there are various options for equipment, are able to gain insight into the people who do not want to partake in the past. What secrets lie in the depths of the actual diving as well; underwater cameras ocean, so vast and expansive, just waiting to stream real-time video of the ship to tour- be discovered? ists, and non-divers can even use specially- In the National Marine Park of Alonis- designed 3D glasses to take a virtual tour of sos and the Northern Sporades, located in the shipwreck. the Aegean Sea, lies an ancient shipwreck. An underwater museum of a shipwreck The so-called “Peristera” wreck dates back seems very fitting to the atmosphere and to about 425 B.C. Back in 1985, a Greek culture Greece possesses. In Greek my- fisherman named Dimitris Mavrakis dis- thology, there are many stories of heroes covered the shipwreck off the coast of traveling to unknown and unfamiliar lands Peristera. Nearly a decade afterwards, ar- via ship on grand, tumultuous, and wild chaeologist Elipda Hatzidaki led an expe- adventures. Popular myths include the de- rienced team to excavate the detritus and cade-long traversing of the seas by the fa- uncover the mysteries of the shipwreck. As JUST OFF THE COAST of Alonissos, Greece, this underwater museum of an ancient wreck- mous Greek warrior, Odysseus; another is it turns out, the ship lying in the depths age will allow divers to be transported back in time, admiring beautiful amphoras and ruins that of Jason, who sailed to find the Gold- was one of the largest merchant vessels from the 5th century B.C. Photo courtesy of Timo Dersch Photography. en Fleece with his band of Argonauts; the from the classical period of ancient Greece. god Dionysus, aboard a ship on his way to Its cargo was also fittingly huge: it con- leading to the end of the Golden Age of on top of one another carefully in the hold. Asia, turned a hoard of pirates trying to sell sisted of thousands of amphorae, which Greece. The Peristera ship is thought to be The layering also tells us how the ships him into slavery into dolphins. Sea travel are big two-handled jars designed to carry of Athenian origin, and its wreckage paral- would have been structured. It was previ- and ships have been woven into the fabric and hold wine, from the cities Mende and lels the outcome of the war: just as Athe- ously thought that such humongous ves- of Greek history, and the Peristera wreck is Peparethus; various bowls, cups, and plates nian values of democracy and philosophy sels meant for transport of amphorae and a lasting testament to this legacy. meant for banquets or symposia; and fish have endured over the past several millen- similar objects came much later in history, Due to the coronavirus pandemic, tour- and sponges that have found a home in the nia despite defeat, the Peristera shipwreck probably during the age of the Romans, ism has significantly dropped globally. This wreckage ever since the 5th century B.C. has been incredibly well preserved at the around the 1st century B.C. However, the has been particularly unfortunate for coun- It is postulated that the ship sank due bottom of the Aegean. Peristera disproves this theory, as the ship tries such as Greece, whose economy relies to the Peloponnesian War. The Pelopon- As for the Peristera itself, archaeologists was built before that time. heavily on money made from vacationers. nesian War (431 - 405 B.C.) was a long, have managed to recover only singed sec- One of the most captivating parts of all Alonissos was particularly affected, with its bloody battle between the two prominent tions of the hull, which is a ship’s main of this is that the Peristera shipwreck will tourism falling about 85% in 2020. Hope- superpowers of ancient Greece, Athens body. However, the piles and piles of am- be opening to the public and recreational fully the Peristera, along with Alonissos’ and Sparta. Athens was previously the phorae were of great value to historians and divers as an underwater museum. Alonis- other distinctive attractions, will help bring dominant city-state in the region, but after archaeologists alike. It has shown us how sos is already a popular tourist destination some of that tourism back in a more sus- the war, Sparta came to wield more power, the cargo was placed in the vessel—layered and is known for its beautiful landscapes tainable way. How to Register for Next Spring’s Greenwich Village Little League By Anthony Paradiso number of registrants as we would have in The Greenwich Village Little League’s a normal year.” Spring season runs every year from April to Parents can register if they live in these mid-June. The President of the Greenwich four neighborhoods: Greenwich Village, Village Little League is Peter Marino, who Chelsea, Midtown West or Soho. GVLL told me by e-mail that the league started uses fields at different locations in New registration “a little later than usual” in late- York City including Pier 40 and James December instead of December 1 this year Walker field in the Village and even Cen- because the league wanted assurance that tral Park. According to the league’s website, the COVID infection rate had decreased in “800 boys and girls, ages 4 to 16, played on New York City and to secure field permits. over 60 teams” in 2020 and that “girls are Here is what the League President de- allowed to play either baseball or softball.” scribed what it was like to set up the 2021 Parents are asked to review the “Divi- Spring season. “It has certainly been chal- sions and Play Opportunities” section on lenging getting everything organized and the GVLL website before signing up their set up with new covid protocols,” Marino child, by clicking on “Registration Info.” said. “We had gotten a lot of the processes Registration for the Spring baseball or down already as we had reopened with softball season begins in late November small seasons last Summer and Fall. We and ends on March 1. President Marino were able to launch the Spring season on added that registration for Summer ball LITTLE LEAGUERS playing at James L. Walker Field on Hudson Street and St. Luke's Place time, at perhaps around two-thirds of the should start in June. in the Village on a beautiful Spring afternoon. Photo by Anthony Paradiso. 26 WestView News May 2021 www.westviewnews.org

chased nail-studded Flamenco shoes and this flouncy Flamenco skirt. Karen’s The quirky top I’m wearing is made of ghost beads, which I learned about when I was on a vision fast in the Quirky Style Eastern Sierras. Ghost beads are actually dried juniper berries. Ants find the berries on the ground and nibble By Karen Rempel off one end to eat the inside of the berry. The berry is This month’s look veers into very quirky territory, bring- then hollow and dry. Artisans make a hole in the other ing a confluence of three distinct elements into a unique end to shape the berry into a bead. This top is a Donna look that combines disparate sources into a true Rempel Karan original sample and there might not be another original. But before I tell you about the fashion, let me like it in the world. I found it while foraging on Green- set the scene. We shot this month’s column in the sto- wich Street. No nibbling required. ried Minetta Lane, in a Spanish-influenced doorway. The The roots of this look are the boots, of course. I spotted Algonquin peoples called the brook that runs under this these at Bergdorf ’s while shoe shopping with my designer street Manette, meaning Spirit Water or Demon Water, friend Andrea on my birthday last October. I first fell in and there was a time in history when Minetta Lane and love with Dries Van Noten shoes while writing an article the perpendicular, curving Minetta Street were known about Edon Manor on Bleecker Street (sadly now closed), for speakeasies, brothels, and “black and tan” bars. Refer- and love the whimsy of this designer. These boots are so ring to this period, author Stephen Crane called Minetta seventies, and give me the commanding height I love that Street and Minetta Lane, “Two of the most enthusiasti- raises me above the crowd. They fit perfectly when I tried cally murderous thoroughfares in New York.” No doubt them on, but on my birthday I decided to be practical and due to the influence of said Demon Water driving people get my first pair of Manolos instead. Five months later, crazy with drink at the locals. Andrea saw that the boots had been marked down 60% Prior to this riotous period in its history, Minetta was on the Bergdorf website and she sent me a note. Within home to a large African American population, after slav- days, they had arrived on my doorstep. Magic! Soon I was ery was abolished in New York in 1827. By the mid 19th striding all over the city in them, garnering looks of aston- century, the area was known as “Little Africa.” It was a ishment and admiration. peaceful haven at this time, and today’s Minettas have These are the origins of a quirky look—world travels, regained this peace. soul-searching in the desert, and shopping with my bes- If you’ve been following my Catch and Release story, tie in the big city. you might remember that I planned to take a side trip to Barcelona after my pre-Christmas rendezvous with Keith in London. I did indeed go to Barcelona, where I STYLE NOTES saw a Flamenco performance at the stunning Palau de la Música, a magical music box of sculpture, mosaics, and DONNA KARAN TANK TOP of pale yellow polished ghost WEST VILLAGE MODEL KAREN REMPEL flounces Fla- beads. Once-in-a-lifetime Donna Karan storage sale, next stained glass that is now a designated UNESCO world menco style in Minetta Lane. Photo by Philip Maier. to Urban Zen, 701 Greenwich Street. heritage site. I was so stirred by the passionate dancing BLACK FLAMENCO SKIRT WITH LILAC UNDERSKIRT. floor, where I met with an odd assortment of beginners and music that when I returned to New York I imme- Menkes Flamenco. 250 W. 54th Street. (Temporarily closed.) diately signed up for Flamenco dance lessons at Fla- to learn to strike my feet in golpe, planta, and tacón. We menco Vivo Carlota Santana, just off Fifth Avenue on had a live Flamenco guitarist for accompaniment for DRIES VAN NOTEN SNAKESKIN-EMBOSSED LEATHER PLAT- FORM BOOTS. Bergdorf Goodman. 754 Fifth Avenue. West 43rd Street. I shivered with excitement each time part of the class. A hidden world in New York! I felt like I entered this Renaissance Revival building and climbed an insider in this world at Menkes, the highly regarded GOLD HOOP EARRINGS WITH ORANGE AND GOLD the increasingly narrower marble staircase to the eighth Manhattan source for all things Flamenco, where I pur- BEADS. Gift from a friend.

Catch and Release: Chapter 5 | The Christmas Date Part 2 By Karen Rempel women. If you have different criteria, write out thinking twice. I’m not the kind of gal gig one more time and floated up Seventh a comment on the website under this story, who wants “a diamond ring for Christmas, Avenue. I snuggled up against him, and This Catch and Release thing is really pick- and let George know what’s most important furs, a Cadillac car, and everything.” But tried to ignore Prudence, my inner judge, ing up momentum. Not only is George to you in a man. Father, friend, or lover? probably the guy will own his home and jury, and prosecuting DA. She was poking giving me advice on my love life, but now Karen’s list: have a decent monthly income. at my right shoulder. “He’s wearing hearing readers are writing to give George advice to Good looking—tallish (at least 5’11” Good listener—this is a point that I aids, not kitchen implements.” “Hush!” give to me! Last month, George suggested I since I am usually 6’ or taller in heels); Roll- wouldn’t have thought of when I was “This is my first time seeing the Rock- marry someone rich and then bump him off. ing Stone hair is a bonus (as you know from younger, but this is an easy way to encap- ettes. I’m so excited!” I said to Keith, mak- In response, Arthur wrote, “George should reading this story!); interesting face wrinkles sulate the idea of a man who believes he is ing sure he could see my lips as I spoke. We probably point out—as do all those ladies not a problem; a wide range of body shapes equal to women. Willing to share air time, rounded the corner at West 51st Street. who give lessons on how to catch someone okay as I like a huggable bear, as well as a tall and interested in what I have to say. A one There was a huge line of people waiting to rich—take up golf. Go to polo games. You cool drink of water. This bullet point might way street is not my idea of fun. And being enter Radio City Music Hall. We strode down have to go where the inventory is.” make me seem very superficial. If so, I own able to actually hear me. Ouch. the sidewalk, feeling the excited pre-show Hilarious! I love this concept of inven- it. This is the bottom line. Dresses well, inner confidence, self- buzz, and took our place in the shorter line tory. I’ll take one in black, one in brown, Funny—if we’re spending time, I want awareness, consideration for others… I of people who already had their tickets. The one in tan… to enjoy your company, and if you make me once wrote a list of 100 items, so this could woman ahead of us with her husband turned This month, George’s advice to me is laugh, that’s the best feeling on Earth (almost). go on for quite a while. But it boils down around and smiled. “You look like a Rolling along the same line—treat men like inven- Smart—yup. Kind of goes with the pre- to the click. Intangible but unmistakable. Stone!” she said to Keith. “And you look like tory. Write my shopping list of what I’m vious point. To be entertaining, interesting, You might be wondering how Keith mea- someone famous too,” she added, looking at looking for in a man. George said, “I don’t fun to be with—a quirky intelligence and sures up on this list. Aiyee. Let’s find out. my sparkly black gown and faux Astrakhan. think men know what women really want. interest in life is going to make my day. After Keith and I descended from the That would be fascinating.” So here goes. Financially comfortable—you can afford heights of Cloud SixtyNine, oops, I mean For the rest of this month’s chapter of Catch Though of course I do not speak for all a taxi, and dinners out, and concerts, with- Bar SixtyFive, we spun through the whirli- and Release, go to westviewnews.org. www.westviewnews.org May 2021 WestView News 27 Style on the Street: April Plaid Brings May FAB!!

SYDNEY ELIAS KATELYN

LAUREN BRIDGET ALLIE Follow us on Instagram @styleonthestreet_WestViewNews Submit your favorite neighborhood fashion looks for a chance to be featured. Photos by Dusty Berke and Karilyn Prisco. Local Finds. Local Love. Support some of our favorite West Village shops and designers.

Curated by Karilyn Prisco TRANSIENCE “Hammock Bag” MILA BRAZIL Adjustable shoulder to crossbody “Woman Tee” strap in Deep Rose Full-print dye sublimation thetransience.com Street Market on Bleecker IG @thetransience & Carmine / Fri, Sat, Sun 10am-6pm IG @milanybrazil

PURE SOL. “Perk Up Gold Eye Mask” HENRIETTA HUDSON Nano gold, under eye hydro- 438 Hudson gel mask “Hen’s Trucker Hat” puresolbeauty.com Six-panel trucker cap IG @puresolbeauty w/mesh back in Navy henriettahudson.com 28 WestView News May 2021 www.westviewnews.org

LIFETALK WITH ROBERTA RUSSELL Healing Through Alliance Maggie B’s Quick Clicks By Roberta Russell

SPRING SPRANG! I devoted much of the ‘80s to writing, and simultaneously living, a book about how to have a mutually therapeutic alliance—RD Laing & Me: Lessons in Love—with the late famed Scottish psychiatrist R.D. La- ing, MD. Partly in the service of that goal we took MDMA, also known as Ecstasy. It was a legal drug then, used by some professional therapists to eliminate fear and enhance the alliance between patient and doctor. The prevailing claim by enthusiasts was that it was often the equivalent of 100 therapy sessions. Indeed, that sentiment re- ROBERTA RUSSELL. Photo: Cheryl Eisen. flected my experience of it, both with Ron- peutic powers and safety, being revealed at nie Laing and with other close friends. prestigious research centers such as Johns My interest piqued, I contracted to write Hopkins, New York University, and Impe- a book reporting on the effects of MDMA. rial College in London. Psychedelic drugs Accordingly, in 1985 I interviewed pro- administered in an appropriate setting have fessional psychiatrists, psychologists, and been shown to generate mystical, mind- psychotherapists who reported on the opening, unifying experiences that are ef- then-legal treatment they offered patients— fective remedies for treatment-resistant unadulterated MDMA—as opposed to addictions, depression, and post-traumatic dangerously impure street Ecstasy. My stress disorder (PTSD). With an acceler- (admittedly, biased) sample demonstrated ating body of research accumulating, it is mostly extraordinarily successful results. likely that psychedelics will become legal A sensitive therapist friend, Barry Flint, by prescription in the foreseeable future. the founding director of the Institute for My purpose, formalized by my novel verité the Advancement of Health, initiated in partnership with Laing, RD Laing & Me: 1983 by Eileen Rockefeller Growald to Lessons in Love, has evolved. Now, even in further scientific understanding of mind/ this time of our own COVID-induced vale body interactions in health and disease, told of tears, I am still prepared to encourage and me of substantial breakthroughs with his engender the powerful force of a goal-direct- patients while they experienced MDMA ed therapeutic alliance with a friend. Maybe at sessions. He reported that they had a you or someone you know or will meet will more direct sense of the issues they were find this prospect engaging? The constructive struggling with. Both members of a couple, bond that I am proposing enhances the prob- depressed because they had been fighting ability of forming a therapeutic alliance by constantly, digging themselves into a deep- fostering a mutual commitment to be trust- er hole, were able to say why they were up- worthy, to band together, to create a time, a set in each other’s presences. “It was lovely plan, and an intention to do what it takes to to watch,” Barry said. “They were clearly in achieve goals. Money will not change hands love… They could hear each other. It was a in this endeavor, but mutual motivation and marvel. They did it for six hours.” intention may touch your heart. Professionals agreed that MDMA added [email protected] an element of depth, lowered anxiety, and mutualalliancetherapy.org decreased defensiveness. Nevertheless, in rdlaing.org 1986 MDMA became a Schedule 1 drug, a effectivepsychotherapy.org felony. Research stopped. Just in time, I lived through what felt Roberta Russell is the author of R.D. Laing was like a divine state, sharing Ecstasy with & Me: Lessons in Love with R.D. Laing, the late psychiatrist, my co-author (not (Hillgarth Press, 1992), Report on Effec- my doctor) Ronnie Laing, a man who was tive Psychotherapy: Legislative Testimony known for his searing insights and com- (Hillgarth Press, 1981, 1994), and Report on passion. Eventually, under the influence of Permanent Weight Loss (Columbia Academic psychedelic medicines, our boundaries dis- Commons, 2017). She has also been a contrib- appeared. As a woman alone, I found my- utor to various international magazines and self ensconced and intertwined with him in journals including: Psychologie Heute (Ger- my penthouse in New York City, my fanta- many), Japan Times (Japan), The Psychologist sies lived out. Never this close to another, (U.K.), Human Potential Magazine (U.K.), inside or out, time stopped. The censor that Changes (U.K.), Clinical Psychology Forum watches for danger was gone. (U.K.), Psychoanalytic Studies (U.K.), and My sense of bonding remained in the af- Bottom Line (USA). Occasionally, Roberta terglow. There were reverberations. hosts a New York City cable television show, Now, after decades, the fear of the per- called Lifetalk, which has featured interviews ils of psychedelic and psychoactive drugs with movers and shakers in controversial areas All photos by Maggie Berkvist. is giving way to growing confidence in the of psychology, weight loss, nutrition, medicine, emerging evidence of remarkable thera- the environment, and population growth. www.westviewnews.org May 2021 WestView News 29 Your Guide to the Ballet Barre Practice By Dana Jean Costantino wait to get back on a stage very soon! Ballet Barre has quickly become one of the most sought after and popular forms Q - Are you accepting new private cli- of working out, both body and mind. As ents and are you currently teaching group a former Ballerina and as someone cur- classes? rently practicing Yoga, I wanted to dive A - I am currently managing and teach- deeper into learning more about what this ing for Pure Barre Jersey City, and teaching particular workout has to offer and bring for Pure Barre Union Square. While pri- that information to the WestView News vate Pure Barre classes are booked through reader, as so many people in our commu- the studios, I am accepting my own private nity have begun to take Ballet Barre classes clients who are looking for at-home or or have expressed interest in them. In fact, in-person conditioning, strength-training, several members of the WestView team are and dance experience. devotees to the practice. If you have also wondered about Ballet Barre, I hope you Q - How many times a week do you rec- find this Q and A with Ashley McQueen ommend taking Barre for the best results? as informative as I did. A - I usually recommend 3-5 times a week to see the quickest results. Q - Is it necessary to have a background in Ballet to get the most out of a Barre class? Q - How long is an average Barre class and A - Absolutely not! What’s so great about what does the flow look like? Barre fitness is that it’s accessible to anyone A - Each Barre technique class is different, at any level. Simple modifications keep it but overall they are about 45-50 minutes. low-impact and safe, and it’s less of a dance Most classes include sections that focus on class and more of a strengthening class. particular muscle groups (arms, abs, thighs, seat). Pure Barre in particular is great be- Q - What brought you to teaching Barre? AIRBORNE: Barre instructor Ashley McQueen. Photo by Christian Weymann. cause it’s fast-paced and musical, and A - I actually got into Barre when I was works out every part of the body! rehabbing a bad foot injury. I was 24 and moving is doing it with others! Over the We’ve also been teaching virtual dance fresh out of college with a degree in Dance, last year, I’ve taught a lot of Zoom classes classes for Troop 6000, a Girl Scouts pro- Please reach out with any of your health and faced with the possibility of never and had virtual rehearsals. I found ways gram for girls experiencing homelessness and wellness inquiries and thoughts, dana- dancing again. I was attempting to rehab to reinvent my (small NYC apartment) in the New York area. I also dance with [email protected] or Instagram and cross-train at a gym, but it felt over- space, and tried to keep a consistent rou- Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre. We can’t @citydoorways whelming and nearly impossible. A friend tine. My good friends and I would work- of mine was opening Pure Barre St. Louis, out via Zoom every day, which gave us and invited me to take a class. I was hooked! both a sense of community and structure. The low-impact movements allowed me to My company Smashworks Dance has al- strengthen without aggravating my injury, ways done performances in unconventional and the mental focus helped me get over spaces (hallways, windows, on lawnmow- my fears about returning to high-impact ers), so for us our creative process wasn’t dancing. I was a client for a year before impacted as much while rehearsing from being cleared to dance again and moving home. The biggest challenge was giving to New York. I’ve been a Pure Barre in- myself time and space to actually rest, and structor ever since! Pure Barre brought me recognizing the importance of that balance confidence, strength, and a sense of com- in my life. munity. I love teaching because I’ve seen how much it’s changed my personal life, Q - Do you currently dance as well? In a self-esteem, and strength as a performer; company? I am grateful for the chance to share that A - I direct, perform, and choreograph with others. Also I’ve met some of my best for Smashworks Dance, a nonprofit dance friends at the studio! company dedicated to women’s empower- ment and human rights advocacy through Q - How have you adapted your personal performance, education, and community practice and your teaching during these outreach. We are currently creating two times of COVID? dance films - one set in a giant indoor A – It’s definitely been a challenge, because shower (DRENCHED) and another for for me the best part about working out and the London Climate Change Festival.

IF THIS PAPER MAKES YOU THINK We will print your thoughts in the next issue Send your letter to [email protected] 30 WestView News May 2021 www.westviewnews.org Ray Johnson, Pop-Culture Collagist, Master of ‘The Happening’ and the Mysterious World of Zen Emptiness By Robert Heide At another point down the road, Ray invited me to his art studio/apartment on the A new fantastic exhibition of Ray Johnson Lower East Side on Ludlow Street. When artworks, collages and memorabilia at David I arrived in the late afternoon Ray was there Zwirner Gallery, 525 West 19th Street will with an art dealer who had come to view his be on view until May 22. The exhibit curat- latest 8 x 10 collage works. Ray was serving ed by Jarrett Earnest is called ‘Ray Johnson: straight gin this time, from a cocktail tum- What A Dump.’ The presentation offers bler on a lone table. I found it odd that all of many never-before-exhibited collages and the other furniture had been removed from drawings from the 1950s through the 1990s the small space. The dealer asked “Where’s and focuses on Johnson’s obsessions—from the art work?” Ray replied, “Oh! I’ll open Arthur Rimbaud, Yoko Ono, James Dean the closet doors and show you.” As he did, and, as the curator says, “his queerness” and we saw that the shelves had been removed how he shared with friends and collabora- and no collage works were to be seen. All tors like David Wojnarowicz, John Giorno, that was there, tightly scrunched in a cor- Peter Hujar, Andy Warhol, Sari Dienes as ner, was Dorothy grinning from ear to ear. well as the untold numbers who were part It was another unforgettable Ray ‘Happen- of the New York Correspondence School ing’ of which there would be many more. A which he founded. The exhibit has inspired master collagist, Ray was also the master of me to tell about some personal experiences the Happening and the world of Zen emp- I had with Ray whom I regarded as a good tiness. friend, and who was a brilliant pop-culture Of course Ray’s greatest, and final, hap- collage artist who lived life as if it was it- JULY 1ST, 1963 NEW YORK CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL COLLAGE for Bob Heide from pening occurred January 13, 1995, just a self an art ‘Happening.’ The word for me Ray Johnson. Photo booth pictures: Left, Robert Heide. Right, Ray Johnson. Collage cour- short time before a major retrospective of regarding Ray is unforgettable. Who can tesy of Robert Heide. his work was due to open at the Upper forget meeting and hanging out with a real visited me downstairs. A master of the Tar- opened the box letting loose one-hundred East Side Feigen gallery. After putting his ‘Funny Bunny!’ ot Deck, Baldwin could predict the future white mice before he ran down the stairs house in order, all of his in-progress and I first met the wild brilliant Ray Johnson and what was to come. He said we were all laughing while Dick screamed after him all completed collages carefully wrapped in in the early 1960s with his then steady girl- here by ‘chance’ and that nothing mattered. the way down. Later, the Daily News led a cellophane, his work supplies, books, files friend, the petite and strangely attractive I discussed reading Jean Paul Sartre’s Being campaign to rid New York of the scourge of and letters all boxed, inventoried and num- Dorothy Podber, in the lobby of the Living and Nothingness with him and we were rats, offering five dollars a catch. Ray and bered, Ray checked into a motel in Sag Theatre, which was run by director Julian both in agreement with the great Existen- Dorothy happily joined in this catch-a-rat Harbor. The number of his room was 247, Beck and his wife Judith Malina. The two tialist philosopher and author of the ‘noth- movement, which also for them turned into which adds up to 13. His age was 67, which were at a table and were putting stickers on ingness bible’ that existence was a sense- collecting dead animals like pet dogs that adds up to 13. He was seen that day, Janu- a stack of pamphlets. Working with great less flux. Higgin’s, of course, was primarily died and once they even found an oversized ary 13, by two teenaged girls who testified intensity and gleeful malice they pasted obsessed with his own Fluxus Happenings. dead turtle. that he had jumped from the Sagaponack ‘Boy’s Town’ over the word ‘Living’ to read At one point Baldwin disappeared and I One day Ray called to invite me to a Bridge and backstroking like Esther Wil- ‘Boys Town Theatre.’ At one point Judith later heard he was living and preaching in birthday party for Dorothy that was tak- liams, all the while smiling and laughing, ran over and screamed at them telling them the South Seas on Easter Island. ing place at the outdoor patio of O’Henry’s disappeared out to sea. His body was found to stop what they were doing or to get out. A few people referred to Ray as ‘Gay Ray’ Restaurant/Bar on Sixth Avenue. When I washed up nearby the next day. The Fei- The mischievous pair simply stood there due to his tendency to hang out at a gay bar arrived, Ray and Dorothy were sipping their gen Gallery show, following the newspaper giggling like two bad children. Dorothy in Queens called ‘What a Dump’, a place he bone-dry martinis. Ray ordered one for me headlines, was packed to the gills and was a ‘Over the Rainbow’ Podber, as she was discovered in a gay bar guide. He thought it and one for another guest, a strange Village huge success. Ray, who was born in Detroit called by many, offered me a glass of wine was a hoot and stopped there frequently on character who called himself Albert M. Fine. and who graduated from Black Mountain in a plastic cup; and so began a friendship the drive from Manhattan to his pink house At one point Ray pulled out a big brightly College in North Carolina has had major with the fun twosome that lasted for years. in Locust Valley. The bar was so named after wrapped box topped by a super-sized blue museum exhibits at the Whitney Museum My upstairs neighbor on Christopher Bette Davis’s line in a histrionic film from bow. He handed the box over to Dorothy of American Art and many other institu- Street Dick Higgins—one of the found- 1949 entitled Beyond the Forest and in later with what she called a ‘funny bunny’ look tions, and his works are owned by major ers of the Fluxus Art Movement—was a years had become a campy phrase uttered on his face. Carefully opening this ‘birthday’ collectors and museums around the world. character to be reckoned with. Dick, who by many a drag queen. The line was used package she was amazed as she pulled out a A documentary about Ray’s life and work came from a wealthy New England family, by Edward Albee and was the first phrase dead Siamese cat; and Ray said, “We went How to Draw a Bunny was released in introduced me to the work of John Cage uttered by Elizabeth Taylor as Martha in to a great deal of trouble to find this.” Doro- 2002 and there are many Ray Johnson art who sometimes visited him upstairs. A col- the filmed version of his play Who’s Afraid thy smiled knowingly. This was one more books available. Zwirner Gallery spokes- orful young street tramp, a hustler named of Virginia Woolf? Ray took to wearing event that had to do with the ‘dead animal’ person Erin Pinover told me the price Igor, stayed with Dick at different times. black leather motorcycle outfits and nightly happening phase they were then into. Once range of Ray’s collages is from $15,000 to Dressed all in what he called ‘Bohemian prowled the streets of the Village on his own at Christmastime Ray and girlfriend Doro- $60,000. If you miss the show, go West— Black,’ Igor wore a kind of raincoat cape looking, as many did, for fun and games at thy presented me with a fancifully wrapped the Art Institute of Chicago will present and claimed he could use it to fly out the late night sexual hangouts like the notori- gift box. I opened it cautiously and found Ray Johson c/o, on view from November window which he never did; but once Dick ous Anvil on West 14th Street which stayed it contained a ‘Big Ben’ alarm clock. As I 26, 2021 to March 21, 2022 who had a hot temper threw a screaming open well past 4 AM into the morning sun- stared at it, Ray said mysteriously, “Open Igor down a flight of stairs. An old time rise. Once, back in those halcyon days and the face of the clock Bob!” which I did hesi- Playwright Robert Heide’s latest book Rob- Village guru named Baldwin Stegman was nights, Ray showed up at Dick Higgins tantly. Inside was a dead rat sprayed gold. ert Heide 25 Plays which also includes essays often at the Higgins apartment and also apartment carrying a big cardboard box. He The terrifying joke, of course, was on me. and over 50 photos is available on Amazon. www.westviewnews.org May 2021 WestView News 31 Raising Up Womens’ Artistry, From the West Village Across the Global Stage, a Virtual World Premier International Stretto Piano Festival Uniting the West Village with Narrow Keys…Broad Minds…No Boundaries Global Collaborators tion are excellent. Russell founded International Women Artists Salon (IWAS) in 2008 to provide opportunities for women to do things they haven’t done before, to “change the system within the system,” promote events and service that create equal opportunity, equal pay, diversity and global connection via local, grass-roots collaboration. A fine art photographer living in the Village, she invited AXR to invite half of the artists, some of whom live or come from abroad. She also invited local Village artists, creating a broad demographic of women and widely varied work. AXR had similar dreams of elevating other artists while pushing her career forward by moving to New York in 2017. She brought on a designer from her MEMORABILIA PHOTO of Hannah Reimann in 1997 shows that a tiny person can comfort- native Mexico City, Mar Nieves, to create ably fit inside a grand piano! “A musician on a mission,” ~ Wall Street Journal. Photo by Boz high-quality graphics for the show. This is Swope. a collaboration for which everyone worked By Heidi E. Russell quickly, industriously and to dazzling ef- for the festival. fect. WestView News’ own Dusty Berke put HEIDI RUSSELL AND AXR with a photograph Long time West Village resident Hannah “This festival is all about playing the by Maria Fernanda Hubeaut and a sculpture Russell in touch with St. John’s and the Reimann joins forces with fellow pianists piano with freedom, changing attitudes, by Maria Dusamp at the Spring Forward Spring Forward team organized its forces. Carol Leone of Texas and Rhonda Boyle of treating people fairly and honestly, ulti- exhibit. Photo credit: Linda Morales. The virtual exhibit of these fifty pieces Australia, bringing together a talented roster mately promoting music’s beauty and ex- accompanied by a paragraph about each of of pianists from around the globe to celebrate pression to the world”, notes Reimann. By Hannah Reimann the artists remains online for your viewing and perform concerts on pianos with keys The festival aims to raise awareness One of the most striking silver linings of pleasure and can be found at the link below. that are narrower than conventional ones. and promote the idea of alternate piano our pandemic time is the power of women There is also a beautiful video portrait of Stretto is Italian for “narrow” and these key sizes, promote and elevate the careers taking on everything from essential city all 50 artists speaking about their work. exceptional pianos allow pianists with of the performers on these keyboards, and work, childcare, fatal and near-fatal ill- In addition to the remarkable outpour- smaller hands to cover a wider range of keys assist in energizing a community of those ness, nurturing those suffering from racial ing of love and enthusiasm for this exhibit, to master complex compositions, equalizing who are proponents of this technology. injustice, providing domestic balance and sales were made throughout the month, opportunity. During earlier eras, musicians Experience this exquisite festival May the ability to create new artistic expression benefiting both St. John’s and the artists. such as Mozart and Chopin played and 15-23, 2021 from stages, universities, when it appeared all had been lost or, at VIDEO: youtube.com/watch?v=Kgt4zOym composed on pianos that encompassed dif- homes, and a West Village gallery over very least, put on hold in 2020 and 2021. Afc&feature=youtu.be ferent sizes based on local units of measure- three continents on their online viewing A vivid and memorable example of this ONLINE EXHIBIT: ment. This provided a vast range of options platform partner, Musae.me. power, Spring Forward, the March 2021 • indd.adobe.com/view/74d9cec6-e4e7- that included narrower keys than today’s Steinway & Sons is now offering these exhibit in Revelation Gallery at St. John’s 40a1-826d-49c88d51148f conventional size. Modern-era pianos have custom built pianos—Hannah is the liai- in the Village, burst forth just as winter be- • internationalwomenartistssalon.com/ evolved into the streamlined supply of the son. To acquire a Steinway grand piano gan to thaw, providing hope and promise. axr-artist.com standard larger-sized pianos with wider keys with narrower keys or have your Steinway Featuring 50 international women artists • Instagram: @womanartsalon @axr_artist that make it harder for smaller-sized hands grand rebuilt to have narrower keys, reach who create in all media—painting, draw- to circumvent the wider octave+ stretches her at: [email protected] ing, pastel, photography, sculpture, video many compositions demand. In the 1920s, Bravissima, Hannah, the global village installation, hand made Japanese manga The artists represented in this exhibit are: upon pianist, composer and inventor Jo- is proud of you! masks and pottery—the exhibit has some- Amada Cartoons, Amanda Smith, Andrea seph Hoffman’s request, Steinway & Sons Play on, Stretto Piano musicians, play on! thing for everyone to appreciate. Young, Annie Yan, Araceli de la Parra, built several pianos for him all of which had WEB: info.musae.me/stretto The brain—and lovechild—of curators, Asta Roth, Barbara Clark, Caitlin Lynch, narrower keys to accommodate his diminu- Performer Roster Includes: Heidi E. Russell and Arantxa X. Rodriguez Carla Maldonado, Caroline Villard, Collette tive stature. “Hoffman is my most impor- Anna Arazi (Boston, USA) (AXR), Spring Forward drew in-person Tompkins, Daria Zhest, Divine Williams, tant inspiration and guiding light,” beams Amos Kurniadi (Australia) crowds of 20 people every hour at its open- Dorothy Krakauer, Dulce Lamarca, Elaina Reimann, “He was a virtuoso, friends with Erica Booker Studio (Australia) ing and closing nights, doors wide open for Delehant, Elisa Salas, Eliza Boyer, Em- Rachmaninoff, who was a huge man.” Kathy Caruana (Australia) air circulation, everyone in masks as per ily Toder, Eva Mueller, Evelin Stermitz, Reimann advocated for 30 years to have Peter Fancovic (NYC, USA) COVID-19 protocols. On the walls hung Francesca Dalla Benetta, Heidi Russell, “stretto” pianos available to the public and Jessica Johnson (Wisconsin, USA) images of BLM, a team of nurses walking Janet Restino, Jennie Yip, Jennifer Weber, has worked closely with Steinway & Sons Carol Leone (Texas, USA) triumphantly towards an eager camera, sur- LaTonia Shanee Allen, Laura Sala, Linda to inform the company about their useful- Barbara Lister-Sink (USA) real and nude women in masks, the tender Morales, Lisa McCleary, Maria Elena ness. She says this festival project is one of Artina McCain (USA) face of Breonna Taylor, abstract works re- Valdes, Maria Dusamp, Maria Fernanda the most important of her long career of Hannah Reimann & Rick-Hip Flores flecting strength, vulnerability, the release Hubeaut, Maria Taveras, Marianna Pera- performing, writing and teaching to help (NYC, USA) of pain, the re-emergence of camaraderie gallo, Michelle Girardello, Myra Kooy, Orly educate the public and promote this much Gjermund Sivertsen (Norway) and connection. A large tongue perched on Benun, Oxana Kovalchuk, Paola Estrella, needed instrumental option in the world of Ulrike Wohlwender Studio (Germany) a pedestal. Some works are deeply personal, Rica Takashima, Sadia Fakih, Tina Kin- music performing, educating, and compos- Sophia Wiedeman, Annette Seiler, Sil- some hauntingly symbolic, some playful dermann, Vanessa Alvarez Diaz, Vera Tse, ing. Her circa 1900 antique Steinway 7’4” via Carvalho Molan and provocative. The quality and presenta- and Yanin Ruibal. piano has narrower keys and will be used Eliana Yi (Texas, USA) r

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