Tag: Diego

Categories
Business

San Diego Comedian-Con faces backlash over Thanksgiving weekend dates

San Diego Comic-Con faces backlash over Thanksgiving weekend dates

A sign photographed from outside the annual San Diego Comic-Con International at the San Diego Convention Center on Sunday July 15, 2012 in San Diego, California.

stevezmina1

The coronavirus pandemic has paralyzed the live events business, especially the lucrative comic convention industry. In order to raise much-needed funds, San Diego Comic-Con postponed its show to fall in July 2021.

However, the decision to hold the personal international meeting on Thanksgiving weekend, an announcement made late Saturday night, has been heavily criticized by fans, talent and the press.

“So they planned #SDCC for the same weekend as the first chance most families can (hopefully) celebrate Thanksgiving in two years. See you in 2022!” wrote Charles Soule, author of the comics “Light of the Jedi” and Daredevil, after the announcement on Twitter.

As with Soule, the majority of the votes against asked why the organization would host this event during a major US holiday. Especially one that many people couldn’t celebrate with their families over the past year due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

These voices range from fans who travel a lot to attend the show to talent who perform on panels or at signings. Not to mention journalists and other industry professionals hired to cover the event.

While past conventions coincided with holidays – WonderCon was held on the Easter weekend and Anime Expo usually takes place on July 4th – hosting San Diego Comic-Con raised eyebrows during this special Thanksgiving holiday.

“My family missed Thanksgiving last year because of the pandemic,” wrote Dan Slott, an Eisner award-winning comic book writer, on Twitter. “This year we will all be vaccinated. There is no way I would go to an event instead of spending that time with them. Even if everything were magically back to normal. I can’t imagine anyone else feeling any different.”

It appears that much of the organization’s decision to hold a face-to-face meeting in 2021 was due to the cancellation of previous events, which resulted in significant financial success.

“While we have been able to move from face-to-face meetings to limited online events, like many small businesses, the loss of revenue has had an acute impact on the company, including shorter hours and lower wages for employees.” other issues, “said David Glanzer, spokesman for the nonprofit, in a statement on Saturday.” Hopefully this event will sustain our financial reserves and mark a slow return to larger face-to-face gatherings in 2022. “

San Diego Comic-Con officials did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.

San Diego Comic-Con has become a huge event for the entertainment industry. It’s a place where the studios add excitement for upcoming blockbuster projects and serve as a platform for disseminating new details to the most passionate fans.

It is also a major sales driver, not only for the organization that operates it, but also for the local economy. The San Diego Tourism Group estimates that $ 88 million will be spent directly by attendees during the convention and $ 149 million will go to the region’s economy.

Hundreds of thousands of people from all over the world come to this event every year, and that does not apply to the on-site staff, security guards and supervisory staff who walk through the halls over the four-day weekend.

The November conference only lasts three days and takes place on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The number of participants is likely to be limited due to local guidelines. The organization plans to offer more information on ticket prices, capacity constraints and other details closer to the show date.

“Of course, I can see the #SDCC telling thousands of fans to skip the first post-pandemic Thanksgiving Day in order to stand in line in Hall H, but they are also asking great Hollywood actors and directors to do the same to do.” “Rus McLaughlin, Senior Content Strategist at Oculus, wrote on Twitter.” I suspect there might be a pushback there. “

Categories
Health

San Diego Zoo Apes Get an Experimental Covid Vaccine

San Diego Zoo Apes Get an Experimental Covid Vaccine

The San Diego Zoo gave nine monkeys an experimental coronavirus vaccine developed by Zoetis, a large veterinary drug company.

In January, a group of gorillas in the zoo’s Safari Park tested positive for the virus. Everyone is recovering, but the Zoo asked Zoetis for help vaccinating other monkeys. The company provided an experimental vaccine that was originally developed for pets and is now being tested in mink.

Nadine Lamberski, conservation officer and animal health officer at San Diego Zoo Global, said the zoo vaccinated four orangutans and five bonobos with the experimental vaccine, which is not intended for use in humans. Among the orangutans vaccinated was a monkey named Karen, who made history when she became the first orangutan to undergo open heart surgery in 1994.

Dr. Lamberski said a gorilla in the zoo should also be vaccinated, but the gorillas in the wildlife park had a lower priority because they had already tested positive for infections and had recovered. She said she would vaccinate the gorillas in the wildlife park when the zoo received more doses of the vaccine.

Mahesh Kumar, senior vice president of global biologics at Zoetis, said the company is increasing production, largely due to the pursuit of a license for a mink vaccine, and will provide more doses to San Diego and other zoos if possible. “We have already received a number of inquiries,” he said.

Infection in monkeys is a major concern for zoos and conservationists. They are easily susceptible to human respiratory infections and the common cold virus has caused fatal outbreaks in chimpanzees in Africa. Genomic research has shown chimpanzees, gorillas and other monkeys are susceptible to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that caused the pandemic. Laboratory researchers use some monkeys, like macaques, to test drugs and vaccines and develop new therapies for the virus.

Updated

March 5, 2021, 8:37 a.m. ET

Scientists are concerned not only about the threat the virus poses to great apes and other animals, but also about the potential of the virus to enter a wildlife population that could become a permanent reservoir and emerge at a later date around the world Re-infecting people.

Infections with mink farms have caused the greatest horror so far. When Danish mink farms were destroyed by the virus, which can kill mink as well as humans, a mutated form of the virus emerged from the mink and re-infected people. This variant has shown resistance to some antibodies in laboratory studies, suggesting that vaccines may be less effective against them.

According to the World Health Organization, this virus variant has not been found in humans since November. However, other variants have emerged in people in several countries, proving that the virus can become more contagious and, in some cases, affect the effectiveness of some vaccines.

Denmark killed up to 17 million minks, wiping out its mink farming industry. Thousands of minks have died in the United States, and one wild mink tested positive for the virus.

Although many animals, including dogs, domestic cats, and big cats in zoos, have been infected with the virus through natural spread and others have been infected in laboratory experiments, scientists say widespread testing has found the virus in no animal in any animal other than the one mink .

National Geographic first reported on vaccinating the monkeys at the San Diego Zoo.

Categories
Business

Diego Rivera Mural to Get Landmark Standing, Blocking Potential Sale

Diego Rivera Mural to Get Landmark Status, Blocking Potential Sale

On Tuesday, the San Francisco Board of Trustees voted 11-0 to begin the process of designating a popular Diego Rivera mural as a landmark after the San Francisco Art Institute, which owns the $ 50 million painting, said that the sale would help pay off $ 19.7 million in debt.

Designating the mural as a landmark would severely limit the leverage of the 150-year-old institution, and officials behind the measure say the sale will likely be off the table for now. Removing the landmark mural would require approval from the city’s Historic Preservation Commission, which has extensive powers.

“There’s a lot of money in this city,” said Andrew Peskin, a board member from the district in which the institute is located and sponsor of the proposal. “There are better ways to get out of your mess than a mind-bending scheme to sell the mural.”

During a public hearing on the resolution Monday, Art Institute officials objected to the idea. Pam Rorke Levy, chairman of the art institute’s board of directors, said: “If the mural is milestone now, when there is no significant risk of sale, without taking sufficient account of the SFAI’s position, it would deprive the SFAI of its primary and most valuable asset . “

The 1931 work entitled “The Making of a Fresco Showing the Building of a City” is a fresco within a fresco. The tableau shows the creation of a city and a mural – with architects, engineers, craftsmen, sculptors and painters who work hard. Rivera himself can be seen from behind, holding a palette and a paintbrush with his assistants. It is one of three frescoes by the Mexican muralist in San Francisco that had a tremendous impact on other artists in the city.

Years of costly expansions and declining enrollments have placed the SFAI in a difficult financial position made worse by the pandemic and loan default. In July last year, a private bank announced it would sell the school’s collateral – including the Chestnut Street campus, the Rivera mural, and 18 other works of art – before the University of California’s Board of Regents bought the debt in October. A new agreement gives the institute six years to buy back the property. Otherwise, the University of California would take possession of the campus.

Faced with the threat of foreclosure, the school administrators have been looking for a suitable buyer, although Ms. Levy has said the school’s “first choice is to loan the mural on the spot and attract patrons or a partner institution who can raise substantial funds for it would allow us to preserve, protect and present the mural to the public. “

Last month, Ms. Levy discussed two options with board members and employees. For one, filmmaker George Lucas bought the mural for the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Los Angeles. (The museum said it wouldn’t comment on speculation about acquisitions.) Another would have seen the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art take possession of the mural but leave it as an adjoining room on campus.

However, a museum spokeswoman said nothing came from early discussions. “We have no plans to acquire or rent the SFAI mural,” said Jill Lynch, communications officer for SFMOMA, to the New York Times.

The school’s Chestnut Street campus has been a landmark since 1977, but it was possible that the mural could be sold as part of the interior or removed.

In recent days, former students and faculty members have organized to oppose a sale of the mural. This included the famous artist Catherine Opie, who published an open letter condemning the actions of the school board and announcing the withdrawal of a photo she was planning to sell in a fundraiser for the institute.

“I can no longer be part of a legacy that sells an essential unique piece of history,” she wrote.

After hearing that the mural would likely receive landmark status, Ms. Opie breathed a sigh of relief.

“I’m thrilled and relieved,” she told the Times. “I’m tired of seeing art being used as a first line of defense asset for institutions.”

Categories
Business

San Francisco’s Prime Artwork Faculty Says Future Hinges on a Diego Rivera Mural

San Francisco’s Top Art School Says Future Hinges on a Diego Rivera Mural

The San Francisco Art Institute was on the verge of losing its campus and art collection to a public sale last fall when the University of California’s Board of Regents bought its $ 19.7 million debt from a private bank, to save the 150-year old institution from collapse.

The deal provides a lifeline, but the future of a beloved work of art – a $ 50 million mural by Diego Rivera that official figures could help balance the budget – is still in the air, and faculty and alumni are outraged.

The work from 1931 entitled “Making a Fresco Showing the Building of a City” is a fresco within a fresco. The tableau shows the creation of a city and a mural – with architects, engineers, craftsmen, sculptors and painters who work hard. Rivera himself can be seen from behind, holding a palette and a paintbrush with his assistants. It is one of three frescoes by the Mexican muralist in San Francisco that had a tremendous impact on other artists in the city.

Years of costly expansions and declining enrollments at the institute put it at risk, a situation that worsened during the pandemic.

The school has stressed that no final decision has been made to sell the mural. Behind the scenes, however, the institute’s administrators and directors are strongly pushing for it as it would pay off the debt and allow them to make ends meet on an annual operating budget of around $ 19 million.

In a December 23 email to employees in the New York Times, Jennifer Rissler, vice president and dean of academic affairs, admitted that a number of people had raised concerns about the possible sale of the mural. She added that “As part of its fiduciary duty, the board has voted to review all options to save the SFAI and continue to explore avenues and offers to furnish or sell the mural.”

At a board meeting on December 17, SFAI chair Pam Rorke Levy stated that filmmaker George Lucas was interested in buying the mural for the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Los Angeles. Details of this discussion were provided by a participant who asked for anonymity as the participant was not authorized to discuss internal matters.

Speaking to faculty members on Dec. 17, Ms. Levy outlined another plan that would see the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art take possession of the mural but leave it on campus as an adjoining room, said Dewey Crumpler, associate professor at the school .

A spokeswoman for the institute, Sara Fitzmaurice, the founder of the PR firm Fitz & Co., declined to discuss ongoing negotiations about the possible sale. “A number of discussions were held with several institutions about the possibility of renting or purchasing the mural in order to secure the future of the school,” she said in a statement.

In an interview last March, Ms. Levy said she would be receptive to selling the painting. “When you have an asset that is this valuable, there is always a discussion,” she said. “As a small college in an expensive city, we feel the pain.”

Faculty and staff have repeatedly raised objections. The final counter-argument came in a December 30 letter to the school community from a union representing their additional teachers, nearly 70 of whom were fired during the pandemic but who previously made up the majority of the faculty.

“The Diego Rivera mural is not a commodity whose identity and value is solely based on market valuation,” the letter said, “while selling it would resolve immediate financial bottlenecks,” it would represent a limited lifeline and would not appeal to samples Misconduct and mismanagement by the board and senior executives of the SFAI. “

In a statement, the institute described the allegations of bad leadership as “gross misrepresentation” and said that almost all board members joined the school after the debt arose.

The Rivera mural is intertwined with the legacy of the SFAI, which claims to be the oldest art school west of the Mississippi and has former students such as Annie Leibovitz, Catherine Opie and Kehinde Wiley. Selling the mural, having become such an important part of the institute’s identity over the past 90 years, may alienate the students, alumni, and faculties who value it.

“It’s insulting and heartbreaking,” said Kate Laster, an alumna of the institute who produced student exhibits in a gallery featuring the mural before graduating in 2019. “Selling the mural is an impractical option given the school’s duty to protect its own historical heritage.”

Aaron Peskin, an elected official in the district where the institute is located, also opposes the sale. “The idea of ​​anyone, let alone the University of California, selling this is heresy,” he recently told Mission Local’s news site, which first covered the deal with the regents on December 30th. “It would be a crime against the arts and the city’s heritage. Educational institutions should teach art, not sell it.”

The money for the institute comes from a 2016 loan that was used to finance the construction of the new campus in Fort Mason. Collateral for the loan included the school’s older campus on Chestnut Street and 19 works of art. Last year, the financial burden led school principals to consider permanent closure. It remained open in limited capacity after receiving $ 4 million in donations.

But it wasn’t enough. In July, Boston Private Bank & Trust Co. notified the institution that it had violated the loan terms by failing to repay a $ 3 million annual credit line required to extend the loan. The bank issued a public sale notice in October listing the collateral, including the Rivera mural and frescoes, including those by Victor Arnautoff, whose paintings are threatened with destruction elsewhere in San Francisco.

The Board of Regents blocked the sale by buying the institute’s debt earlier that month. With the new agreement, the public university system acquired the institute’s charter and became its landlord. The SFAI administrators have six years to buy back the property. Otherwise, the University of California would take possession of the campus.

And if the institute lost its home, school administrators would have to make more difficult decisions about the future of the mural. “If the SFAI gets out of the Chestnut Street campus for good, we may have to move the Diego Rivera mural,” said Ms. Fitzmaurice. “We were informed that such a potential move could be a multi-year process, so we started to investigate what is possible in this case.”