Art Department Weekly | Issue 102 Vol. 12

ADW AD ART DEPARTMENT WEEKLY ISSUE 102 VOL. 12

COMMENTS

SOCIAL MEDIA KEPT US ENTERTAINED

THERE IS ONLY ONE

CHARTTHROB WISH LISTS

BEYOND HOLIDAY GIFTS, WE HAVE THE FIRST 100 DAYS TO THINK ABOUT

DISTRACTING OURSELVES AS

Fabric Country THE

OF OUR

SEEMS TO UNWIND

MINI BOARD

HOLIDAY GAME WORTH WINNING The last week of October, I saw this bingo board on my phone and it was a tiny beacon of relief. You turned off the news?

You get a point. You made something? (I made so many things...) You get a point.

You watched something funny? You get a

point. The real world is never going away, but I thought I’d share this validation for doing some of the things that don’t always feel easy or like they might be worth points. From the ADW family to yours, take care this season.

—MV

2020 CLEARANCE Walmart had Halloween costumes 75% off, so I looked to see if there were any $5 costumes Betty could turn into future spirit day wardrobe. She doesn’t care about this version of Harley Quinn, but I pulled it off the rack. I was not expecting Birds of Prey to become “Glam Girl.” It’s been a rough year for female supers. —MV

I clicked it. Luis clicked it a lot. Then he told me that was completely insensitive. He says he’s made peace with not getting one until March, but he also says Kohl’s has them.

Art Department Weekly is published by Dinosaur Girly Productions, 184 Bay 26th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11214. The entire contents of ADW are protected by copyright and may not be reproduced without expressed written consent of the publisher. ADW accepts no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts and/or photographs and assumes no liability for products or services advertised herein. ADW reserves the right to edit, rewrite, refuse or reuse material, is not responsible for errors or omissions, and may feature same in other mediums for any and all purposes.

D R A HE

T R NA

R E V O

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SO YOU SAY Nerdist alerted me to the translator’s existence, and I had to download it. Set up separate profiles for each cat (or select “neighborhood cat”) and tap the cat icon when your cat is yelling at you.

The new version allows you to delete the history of recordings and edit the suggested translation. The first take was “Mommy,” then “I’m in love.” Now most translations are “Hello there.” Percy sounds like a balloon leaking air when it’s time to be fed, so “I’m in pain.”

—MV

“We all came on different ships, but we’re in the same boat now” -Bishop Curry

“Elmo’s a perve” -Madeline

“ʻCalm your tits’ is the quote of the Election” -Luis

“So, not a speed run” -Madeline

“They’re so deep cable” -Madeline

MINOR STAR

“When am I not super witty?”

When a Brooklyn Cyclones hat appeared in MLB The Show, I was called over to see.

It’s funny to hear Kal talk about Nimmo because I remember the Cyclones playing Finding Nemo clips for him at MCU Park, but I know nothing about McIlraith. I only know I found a bunch of BC hats when I was cleaning out closets last month.—MV

-Madeline

HOW HE SHOPS NOW Going grocery shopping has to include a stop in the toy aisle to show Luis over FaceTime what’s on the shelves. (Obviously, I don’t shop at real grocery stores.) Target has plenty of toys, hence the look on Luis’ face.

—MV

“If they beat the Redskins on Thanksgiving, they’ll be in first place, 4-7”

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-Luis

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ARTISTS WE LOVE: PHIL NOTO Luis has raved about this artist so often, it was obvious who was next for us alphabetically

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One of my favorite artists to visit with at either the Marvel booth or Artist Alley every year at NYCC is the great Phil Noto. Phil studied illustration at Ringling School of Art and Design. He then went on to work 10 years at Walt Disney Animation working on iconic films such as Lion King, Pocahontas, Mulan, and Lilo & Stitch. With the industry moving away from 2D hand drawn animation, he then entered the world of comic book art.

I first noticed Phil’s work doing covers for the Birds of Prey series at DC Comics in 2003. This led to consistent work over the next decade for some of the most iconic characters in comics—Batgirl, Superman, Danger Girl, Beautiful Killer (an underappreciated creator-owned gem), Hellboy, Buffy, The Infinite Horizon, Avengers, X-23, Wolverine and Jubilee, X-Force and Thunderbolts. His work is a blend of photorealism with a touch of pop art. Phil has a unique style that is instantly recognizable. His covers are lushly painted and very reminiscent of the classic compositions of Drew Struzan. It’s in his coloring that you can see his animation influences most. His work literally jumps off the page with an energy that is hard to capture in a flat page.

For the better part of the last six years, Phil has become the artist most synonymous with Star Wars. Everything from Marvel Comics Star Wars line (his cover for the Rogue One comic adaptation is simply gorgeous), to hard cover novels and toy packaging, to signage at Disney’s Galaxy’s Edge. If it’s from a galaxy far, far away, his pencil has had a hand in influencing it.

Phil is one of the nicest creators you could ever meet. He is always ready to talk about his creative process, what he’s currently working on or simply nerding out over how this lifelong Star Wars fan is now living the dream drawing characters he’s loved his whole life.

Luis inked a version for himself in 2007 4

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SHOPPING WISH LIST Toys that caught our eyes this season A GAME OF CAT & MOUTH

A magnet-powered pinball style board game will have the family playing for hours.

SPIDER-MAN MILES MORALES

Graphics and gameplay look amazing for this sequel. Available on all platforms, I expect this to be the best selling game of the holiday season.

SQUEAKEE THE BALLOON DOG It feels like Jeffrey Koons

balloon dog comes to life with this interactive robot pet.

BEACHHEAD Hit hard by shipping delays, this Target exclusive

G.I. Joe Classified figure was one of the hardest to find this year.

LEGO STAR WARS RAZOR CREST The

most sought after Lego set of the holiday season includes the first official Baby Yoda!

DC SUPERHERO GIRLS The

L.O.L. SURPRISE! CLUBHOUSE PLAYSET L.O.L. are

redesigned take on the DC comics heroines have been a huge hit in 2020.

The launch line is more diverse and inclusive with multiple characters of color.

incredibly popular and collectible.

The Clubhouse comes with 40+ surprises and two exclusive dolls.

PICTIONARY AIR The new iteration

eschews a sketch pad entirely as you draw blindly in the air. In a modern twist to a classic, download the app to project finished drawings on your TV.

PS5 The next generation of gaming is here. Stunning

new graphics. Faster processors. More importantly your system won’t sound like a plane taking off.

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PATCHWORK

BY MADELINE STRUM PHOTOGRAPHY

AFTER USING THE NEW THROW AS A BACKGROUND FOR A QUICK STORY PIC, MADELINE DECIDED IT OUGHT TO BE IN A WHOLE PORTRAIT SHOOT— ALL AMERICANA AND HOW WE’RE BOUND TOGETHER. She had never used Lightroom before, but thought presets sounded easy. Too many hours later she had gone back and forth between trying presets and doing her own editing to end up with no real improvements. It wasn’t like the transformation that the pile of old jeans saw when she shredded and wove them. And not as satisfying.

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PUTTING EVERYONE IN BLUE SHIRTS MEANT A LOT OF STAR WARS SHIRTS

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“MAKE A DERP FACE” IS A DIRECTION BETTY TAKES WELL

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THE ORIGINAL IDEA was to make a blanket heavy enough to help Kal fall asleep easily back in 2017. Kal had been weaving in school, but our creation was so loose there were big gaps when Kal laid down with it like a blanket. The goal for the 2020 versions was to be way tighter.

03 04 05 INSPIRED BY THE SCRAPS piling up on the floor as I shredded pairs, Kal asked if he could make a mushroom from Hollow Knight.

When I snapped an Instagram story of his creation on top of my weave, I realized I needed to use this as a background for real.

I kept the original waistbands from 2017 even though it didn’t really help the shape 10

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DO OVER seemed to be the only option when I started shifting rows on the first version. The 2017 version started with the waistbands of jeans trying to give it an edge on one side. For the revision, I added dozens of strips and hung it up so I could actually braid everything more tightly. We still had dozens of pairs of old jeans, so I made a second weave.

PROCESS PHOTOS A dozen pairs of old jeans and a really green pumpkin turned into something else Las year we roasted a bunch of the seeds from the pumpkins we turned into jack o’lanterns, but also set aside a bunch to maybe plant one day. This year, the seedlings quickly took over the garden, blocking out sunlight the cucumbers and tomatoes needed. I thought we would get a bunch of pumpkins. I only found three hard green tomatoes late in the summer after

weeks of snipping back pumpkin leaves. The cucumbers gave up long before that. Despite all the blossoms and bees, I found one pumpkin close to the ground that disappeared and one up on the fence that never looked ready to pick. I took it off the vine Nov. 1. After a week on the counter, it was half orange. Nov. 11 it was mostly orange. Nov. 15 Betty posed with it.

—MV

When I cleared the garden, I was surprised to find two red tomatoes.

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Oct. 23 Betty makes butter in class by shaking cream in a jar until it turned solid. It was kind of magical.

TOO BUSY TO BE ANXIOUS Distraction was the name of the game around the election. Focusing on kid stuff made it more fun.

“Sounds like I won an award” Oct. 29 Madeline took bulletin board material and an old dress shirt and turned them into a Patriot coat for Kal’s Halloween costume. Almost a month later, he found out he was named one of the best costumes.

Oct. 30 Betty needed pink hair to complete her costume before school.

Realizing she could not wait for Halloween to do a shoot, Madeline popped up a studio and did a shoot before school started that Friday.

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MAKE A DIFFERENCE Other people are creating things worth purchasing. Shop small businesses and support the community

SUPPORT MARGINALIZED PEOPLE Shop owner Chris Z makes beautiful soaps with natural ingredients inspired by beauty regimens of bygone eras, but also donates 20% of her profits every month to charities and organizations doing good work. Many of her soaps are named after notable women in history, such as Annie Dodge Wauneka and Maude Kegg, with descriptions in the store to educate shoppers. —MV

Some of the holiday soaps available at etsy.com/shop/duchessofsoapshire

TRÈS CHIC Not only are the masks in the Clover 718 shop fashionable, but they’ve also kept Kristen Welker safe at the White House—and that place seems covered in Covid. Shop owner Tracie King has always been creating art. ADW first knew her as a graphic designer and followed her shop when the focus was more about her passion for handcrafted jewelry. Shoppers can find an assortment of accessories from masks to cuffs to earrings.

Some of the selection available at etsy.com/shop/clover718

Medium updated their list we shared in June of

more than 100 things white people can do for racial justice: https://medium.com/equality-includes-you/what-white-people-can-do-for-racial-justice-f2d18b0e0234

VERY REWARDING

WHERE TO SEARCH

ADW has always been a fan of Pandemic Patches’ way of celebrating our small achievements during this pandemic, but now you can place a customized a version for clients or staff. Jodi Miller even posted an offer to create ornaments in a modified version of the patch materials.

Check them out at pandemicpatches.com.

Right on Etsy’s homepage there was a round up of Black-owned shops. From our June 2 issue, WeBuyBlack, The Black Wallet, and Black Wall Street were all recommended as places to find more places to shop. Yelp has a new search function. New York has a list from Sept. 8: https://nymag.com/strategist/article/black-ownedbusinesses-support-shop.html?fbclid=IwAR2lkf5c mXFmOXDQDEAZpQUtVqnTRW7xqxkxHMaIKbODoBdBv-LNupc0Z8

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ELECTION YEAR This cycle started four years ago, but the end feels like forever After seeing how many hours some voters spent in line during the primaries when poll workers didn’t show up to work, I volunteered to become a poll worker. My site seemed to be full of people with the same idea—they wanted to do something to help this go well. Having been trained on all the rules in place to be sure the process was bipartisan and fair helped me ignore the uproar after Nov. 3. The days before the election, I was listening to people who were saying we needed to keep up this energy post election.

So much work needs to be done to end the pandemic, protect voter rights, and undo damages to people and the environment. I don’t want to hear that I should go check on people waving “Fuck Your Feelings” flags. I want to hear about supporting small businesses and independent artists. I want to know how to get ready for the next round of elections in New York City.

Even if you didn’t vote for them, your representatives still work for you.

Tell them how to do their jobs better.

In July, following John Lewis’ death, public figures called for more action and fewer good thoughts.

Interactive map scenarios at 270toWin.com

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Tim Eagan’s cartoon from March 5, 2019, illustrates what makes some of us so anxious about the future (politicalcartoons.com).

CHANGE ON DAY 1

EXECUTIVE ORDERS CAN BE SIGNED AFTER INAUGURATION The Trump administration started with a clear mission to undo everything the Obama administration ever did. Knowing how much damage the idea of “super predators” did in the ’90s, it seems the Biden administration should be doing everything possible to undo policies President-elect Biden himself might have had a hand in creating.

The Grassroots Law Project is collecting signatures for its petition on BidenJusticeDemands.com. As their site explains, “Instead of oversimplifying our policy demands of the incoming Biden-Harris administration, we have opted to lay out a robust federal plan that we believe will actually bring about deep, measurable, lasting change.” The focus is on executive action and decisions that will not require a democratic majority in Congress. “While we, too, are working for that majority, we refuse to accept it as an excuse for inaction.” This is part of the demands listed on their site:

Keep the energy up. Research. Ask for change.

The President can set agency policy.

End the 1033 agreements that give military-grade equipment to local police departments.

End the policy of separating children from families at the border.

Immediately prioritize reuniting all families that have been separated.

Dismantle U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Fully repeal the Muslim ban.

Close and demolish the prison at Guantanamo Bay and bring everyone back to the mainland to be tried in federal court, not military tribunals.

Establish a fully funded Conviction Integrity and Sentencing Review Unit within the Department of Justice to help to advise the President on the use of his commutation power.

End the use of not only all federal private prisons but also the profiteering off of public or private prisons.

Prioritize CDCR and Health and Human Service grants to researchers examining the public health causes, and solutions, to gun violence through a non-carceral lens.

Drastically overhaul and improve the DOJ’s investigations into law enforcement and prosecutor misconduct Make an immediate public commitment to reopen every police brutality case that was not properly completed by the time the Obama administration left office, including the deaths of Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, and more.

Make an immediate public commitment to bring justice to every police brutality case that came before the DOJ during the Trump administration, including the cases of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and so many more.

Immediately rescind the “Sessions-memo” that made it difficult for the Department of Justice to obtain and enforce consent decrees with local police departments entered into after investigations revealed patterns of misconduct, violence, and/or racism.

Make deep shifts in hiring practices, culture, and philosophy Appoint current and former public defenders as United States Attorneys.

Appoint current and former public defenders, and civil rights attorneys, as federal judges.

Prioritize change to the criminal legal system in the budget Provide grants to local jurisdictions and states to invest in alternatives to policing, including unarmed first responders, treatment facilities for substance use and mental health crisis centers.

Grassroots Law Project proposed more: BidenJusticeDemands.com

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“This is how I like my reporters to look:

disheveled and concerned.”

-Leslie Jones

Steve Kornaki at the big board was everything

Election HQ on DirecTV would have been better if it were even more like their football app, giving alerts for individual outcomes

Don Jr. said Biden needed more boats, but instead Biden ended up with more votes in Minnesota, Michigan, Wisconsin, and California.

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RECENT HISTORY

Before John Ashcroft became the Attorney General in the W. Bush administration, he lost his Senate seat in an election that included its own voter suppression. Before becoming a senator, Ashcroft had been governor of Missouri. His successor, Gov. Mel Carnahan, died in a plane crash on his way to a campaign event three weeks before the election. His wife Jean would take his spot. Republicans circulated an email that “on November 7th Mel Carnahan is no longer a ‘person’ nor is he a citizen of Missouri,” therefore Carnahan would not meet the Constitutional qualifications set for a senator.

When that didn’t work, St. Louis area polls closed with voters still in line. Late in the day, polls were ordered by a state circuit judge to be left open for an extra three hours but then closed approximately one hour after the original closing time when a state appellate court ordered the balloting to be halted immediately, introducing the idea of “legal votes.”

Carnahan won by 50,000 votes—an unlikely amount of invalid votes to be cast in the extra hour, but the outcome was expected to be challenged in court. But then Ashcroft became Attorney General and Jean Carnahan was appointed to the Senate by the governor.

—MV

A majority of white voters haven’t elected a Democrat since Lyndon Johnson—and then he signed the Civil Rights Act in 1964 and “everyone” decided change was coming too fast.

Barack Obama did not win the white vote in 2008. He did not even win as much of the white vote as Bill Clinton or Jimmy Carter, two Southern white men.

Credits: Ed Wefler, Ann Telnaes (Washington Post), Ward Sutton (Boston Globe), Michael Ramirez (michaelramirez.com), Christopher Weyant (Boston Globe), Adam Zyglis (Buffalo News)

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After Vogue unveiled its shoot with Harry Styles in skirts, Candace Owens whined. TikTok came back with examples of “manly men”— starting with Jesus in a tunic.

Signe Wilkinson (Washington Post)

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Watching others offer support was a bright spot this week

(VP Charles Curtis was a member of the Osage and Kaw tribes)

WHEN REGULAR PEOPLE GO TO WASHINGTON

Representation matters, but so does the funding to cover the costs of becoming a Representative “We’ve got to make Congress more accessible to regular people,” Representative-elect Cori Bush tweeted after winning in November, but getting set up in Washington is not designed for regular people. As she explained in an AJ+ video, you have to find a place to live and put down deposits, build a wardrobe, and travel to training sessions, but you won’t see your first paycheck until the end of January. If you’re living paycheck to paycheck when you run, you have to find a way to make it months without income because you can’t work while you’re in training in November.

Nicholas Carnes wrote a whole book about the lack of regular people (White Collar Government), and then New York Times tracked “How Every Member Got to Congress” after the 2018 midterms. The online version lets you select individual threads or search for House members to see their trajectory. Using Carnes’ and other researchers’ findings, the chart is paired with an analysis of who we’re electing and why. In the U.S., 70 percent of House members are lawyers while less than 1 percent of the voting-age population are lawyers. Only about 15

members elected in 2018 were scientists or engineers. Nearly one in five House members have military experience, but 19 new veterans were elected in 2018. NYT suggested many candidates with no political experience were emboldened to run based on Trump’s example.

Want to know how much the House looks like you? TheGuardian.com has an interactive map to show “How diverse is the 2018 U.S. Congress?” Spoiler alert: If you are a white cis male of any age, How determined are we to see change? religion, or ethnicity, 335 members of the House and Senate look like you.

Bush’s post election tweets have been so down to earth compared to everything else I’m seeing. When I first heard she won her race in Missouri, I had her confused with the candidate Shaun King implored fans to support—the St. Louis circuit attorney receiving death threats.

Kim Gardner had filed charges against the St. Louis couple who pointed guns at Black Lives Matter marchers and appeared at the Republican National

Convention. Trump and the KKK were not happy with her, but Gardner won her primary and general election.

Bush is a community activist, ordained pastor, single mother, and nurse. While nurses worked to secure women’s right to vote and took office at local and state levels in 1920, a nurse wasn’t elected to Congress until 1992. Bush will join fellow nurses Eddie Bernice Johnson (30th District of Texas), Karen Bass (37th District of California), and Lauren Underwood (14th District of Illinois (first elected by Madeline’s hometown in ’18)).

Underwood’s race was a nail biter. The AP didn’t call it until Nov. 12 with Underwood 1 percent ahead of Jim Oberweis, “a common sense conservative” known

by ADW for his ice cream company.

The road to better representation seems paved with determination.

Johnson grew up in segregated Texas.

She had to leave the state to study nursing. She was the first African American nominated by Dallas for state and then federal seats. She has authored and co-authored more than 120 bills that were signed into law. We hope the junior members can be as productive.

—MV

Lisa Benson (Washington Post)

WINS IN MISSOURI Shaun King started endorsing more candidates in a number of states, but Kim Gardner was the first one I noticed because he was imploring people to help her campaign in July. She won her primary in August and then the election in November.

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FIVE*THINGS YOU COULD WRAP ANYTHING IN BACON AND LUIS WOULD EAT IT HERE ARE FIVE SIDE DISHES DELISH RECOMMENDED THAT INCLUDE BACON All pictures from the Delish.com recipes Brussels Sprouts in a Blanket, Loaded Mashed Potatoes Brussels Sprouts Skewers, Beer Cheese Stuffing Green Bean Casserole Bites, Maple Bacon Wrapped Carrots

Loaded Green Bean Casserole, Sweet Potato Fries, Parmesan Bacon Bites (club crackers fried with bacon)

5 THINGS TO ARGUE ABOUT THAT ARE NOT POLITICS How to pronounce “pecan” Why make “vegan stuffing” Who likes pickles What to put on TV What did Betty draw

NOT ABOUT BACON There were a lot of recipes that use cauliflower rather than

bread or potatoes, but I’d rather share these suggestions from Delish.com. Boom loves big pretzels, so soft pretzel stuffing sounds right up his alley. The arugula salad and pumpkin soup are pretty, but I’m most likely not making these.

—MV

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