Creative Courant: Newsletter #5

 

I’m back after a week’s hiatus due to, yup, COVID19. After feeling much better on day 7 of symptoms, I took a nosedive on day 13.  Luckily I got my hands on a pulse oximeter (or my index finger on, rather) and with the permission of my primary care physician could avoid the ER and monitor things from home. I’m feeling human again and my family and I are self-quarantining for 14 days. Luckily they are all well and we are mystified at how I contracted it since we only ventured out a few times for groceries.

Consider this week’s edition as a special bonus. We’ve combined the best of the last two weeks to provide a little creative distraction and offer you some activities to do while staying home.  My locality is still on lockdown until May 18, and with parts of the country opening up, I hope you’ll exercise caution and stay safe and healthy.

Enjoy!

Suzanne

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A New Kind of Grunge?

  • A vaguely round hedge scores googly eyes and a mask, earning 15 seconds of Twitter fame as the Shrub in Scrubs, interactive chalk games, and art-bombed neighborhoods; read how the local Seattle government is encouraging creativity during the pandemic.

I’ve Got Pabst Blue Ribbon on My Mind

  • Los Angeles-based Pabst Blue Ribbon is commissioning 1,000 works from creative professionals who may be suffering economically during the pandemic. “Every commission counts, and the talent we work with will get the added benefit of some exposure.”

Animators Unite!

  • Flatten The Curve is a new compilation of over 90 animated clips that look at the small pleasures and unusual habits that come with life under lockdown.

Table for Two?

  • The future of fine dining may involve your very own biome for and your date.

P.S. I Love You

  • A fifth grader who loves hand-writing letters recently wrote a thank you note to her mailperson for delivering her messages to her friends. Now she is receiving hundreds of letters and stamps in response from across the country- click here for more.

Adventures from the Armchair

  • Armchair Adventures is a new app to share short travel stories, combining aspects of blogs and Instagram to create a forum for travelers to describe their favorite experiences from their adventures. The prototype was created by an Australian travel start-up called Travis, which is adapting its travel projects to make them applicable to users during COVID-19.

Strike a Pose

  • Due to the cancellation of the 2020 Met Gala, Vogue Magazine started the #MetGalaChallenge, a social media challenge for celebrities and fans to design recreations of iconic Met Gala red carpet outfits. Click here for a virtual performance by the Met Orchestra and Chorus on this year’s live streamed event, and click here for a Vogue video on the history of the Met Gala.

Send a Message With Flowers

  • Because tourists cannot visit Dutch tulip fields this spring, farmers from Dutch Daffodils farm used their flowers to spell out “See you next year”. This design was accomplished by five people over the span of five hours. Click here for a virtual tour of a similar tulip park!  

DIY Kitchens, Baths and….Fashion?

  • Read about the popularity of DIY clothing, particularly with Gen Z. There are many benefits stemming from this latest burst of creativity and reuse of textiles, particularly from an environmental standpoint.  Brands can work with these creators and collaborate in order to solve some of the problems in the fashion industry caused by COVID.


A WORLD OF CREATIVITY: Some activities you can do at home from around the globe.

  • Click here for a tour through Pharoah Ramesses VI’s tomb, or here for a tour of Queen Meresankh III’s tomb. The 3D real-estate touring website Matterport has virtual walk-through tours of both tombs, with facts and descriptions of objects throughout the tour. Make sure to check out both floors!

  • For another chance to travel without leaving your house, try WithLocals for virtual experiences from around the world. Take virtual cooking classes from chefs in Marrakech and Bologna, or learn about Greek mythology live from Athens! Most experiences allow multiple users to participate in the experiences together, so it’s a great way to “travel” with friends during quarantine.

  • A 2016 performance by the original cast of Hamilton at the Richard Rodgers Theatre will be available on the Disney+ streaming platform starting July 3. 

  • This clip from NPR’s Life Kit podcast features the character Grover from Sesame Street, who answers a series of questions children have about the pandemic. “Grover” provides answers to questions kids might have about the changes in their lives, and gives a sweet perspective on what these situations might look like on Sesame Street.

 
Suzanne Miller Farrell