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Andrew Cuomo Ascends to the Mountaintop With His Pandemic Poster Andrew Cuomo Ascends to the Mountaintop With His Pandemic Poster
(32 minutes later)
Mao Zedong wrote poetry. Bill Clinton played saxophone. Winston Churchill and George W. Bush both turned to painting. For some politicians, only art can calm the passions after a long day — and Gov. Andrew Cuomo, now steering New York to a cautious reopening after the deaths of 32,000 citizens, has lately taken solace in the discipline of graphic design.Mao Zedong wrote poetry. Bill Clinton played saxophone. Winston Churchill and George W. Bush both turned to painting. For some politicians, only art can calm the passions after a long day — and Gov. Andrew Cuomo, now steering New York to a cautious reopening after the deaths of 32,000 citizens, has lately taken solace in the discipline of graphic design.
“What if somebody said, ‘OK, no words? Paint me a picture that tells the story of what you’re trying to say,’ ” Mr. Cuomo asked himself Monday. Depicting his response to the coronavirus outbreak in images was “like a relief valve,” he went on; “I could go and just use a different side of my brain.”“What if somebody said, ‘OK, no words? Paint me a picture that tells the story of what you’re trying to say,’ ” Mr. Cuomo asked himself Monday. Depicting his response to the coronavirus outbreak in images was “like a relief valve,” he went on; “I could go and just use a different side of my brain.”
Do bear in mind the governor’s admission that he relied on a less exercised lobe when you examine his new poster — his second this year — bearing the slogan “New York Tough.” This synthesis of the state’s coronavirus ordeal, on whose themes the governor expatiated during a New York City news conference, appears like a lysergic imitation of a Victorian public reform campaign — translating the nightmare of the pandemic into an equally nightmarish vision of an island mountain, festooned with icons of death and decline, overlaid with text flying in every direction.Do bear in mind the governor’s admission that he relied on a less exercised lobe when you examine his new poster — his second this year — bearing the slogan “New York Tough.” This synthesis of the state’s coronavirus ordeal, on whose themes the governor expatiated during a New York City news conference, appears like a lysergic imitation of a Victorian public reform campaign — translating the nightmare of the pandemic into an equally nightmarish vision of an island mountain, festooned with icons of death and decline, overlaid with text flying in every direction.
The virus arrives via a propeller plane, its wings scrawled with “EUROPEANS” and “COVID-19,” soaring to the mountain of death through clouds labeled “WH TASK FORCE” and “FED CLOUDS OF CONFUSION.”The virus arrives via a propeller plane, its wings scrawled with “EUROPEANS” and “COVID-19,” soaring to the mountain of death through clouds labeled “WH TASK FORCE” and “FED CLOUDS OF CONFUSION.”
The president, identified by his overlength red tie, sits idle on a crescent moon, under the label “It’s just the flu.”The president, identified by his overlength red tie, sits idle on a crescent moon, under the label “It’s just the flu.”
A disembodied nose gets a swab, a surgical mask floats near the summit, prisoner-bottled hand sanitizer stands at the ready.A disembodied nose gets a swab, a surgical mask floats near the summit, prisoner-bottled hand sanitizer stands at the ready.
To the poster’s right (a little strange, this), a crew of rappellers hold a rope to slow the rate of infection, though they do not dam up the cascading waterfall on which dollar signs plunge to the sea. (Mr. Cuomo, at his news conference: “Get it? Economy Falls, like Niagara Falls?”)To the poster’s right (a little strange, this), a crew of rappellers hold a rope to slow the rate of infection, though they do not dam up the cascading waterfall on which dollar signs plunge to the sea. (Mr. Cuomo, at his news conference: “Get it? Economy Falls, like Niagara Falls?”)
Upon Death Mountain appear various telltale emblems of the health emergency: New Rochelle, site of the state’s first infection cluster, has been rendered as a generic flame, next to a little “Sorry We’re Closed” clip art.Upon Death Mountain appear various telltale emblems of the health emergency: New Rochelle, site of the state’s first infection cluster, has been rendered as a generic flame, next to a little “Sorry We’re Closed” clip art.
Up at the peak, at what is meant to signify the moment of maximum fatality in the State of New York, is a breezy rainbow, topped by a ribbon emblazoned with the motto “Love Wins.” Mr. Cuomo is fond of this L.G.B.T. rights bumper-sticker slogan, but perhaps it should not adorn a summit denoting the acme of New York’s suffering.Up at the peak, at what is meant to signify the moment of maximum fatality in the State of New York, is a breezy rainbow, topped by a ribbon emblazoned with the motto “Love Wins.” Mr. Cuomo is fond of this L.G.B.T. rights bumper-sticker slogan, but perhaps it should not adorn a summit denoting the acme of New York’s suffering.
There are strange typographical outbursts, mostly in an old-time variation of Cheltenham (incidentally the typeface of headlines in The New York Times), variously sized, variously capitalized, variously colored, variously angled. And there is a strange outcropping called “Boyfriend Cliff,” from which a young man, presumably the partner of one of Mr. Cuomo’s daughters, holds on for dear life.There are strange typographical outbursts, mostly in an old-time variation of Cheltenham (incidentally the typeface of headlines in The New York Times), variously sized, variously capitalized, variously colored, variously angled. And there is a strange outcropping called “Boyfriend Cliff,” from which a young man, presumably the partner of one of Mr. Cuomo’s daughters, holds on for dear life.
Your average TikTok video displays more careful graphic execution than this, though I suppose the poster’s designer means with these many captions to echo the dense information of a 19th-century political campaign advertisement. Also seemingly borrowed from the late 19th century is a gross Orientalist stereotype: a zephyr at the poster’s left, labeled “Winds of Fear,” has outrageously been given the horns and flamelike eyebrows of a Chinese demon.Your average TikTok video displays more careful graphic execution than this, though I suppose the poster’s designer means with these many captions to echo the dense information of a 19th-century political campaign advertisement. Also seemingly borrowed from the late 19th century is a gross Orientalist stereotype: a zephyr at the poster’s left, labeled “Winds of Fear,” has outrageously been given the horns and flamelike eyebrows of a Chinese demon.
As a work of political propaganda, this poster gets at least one job done: the federal government bears all the blame, the State of New York is diligent and triumphant. As a work of graphic design, well, it certainly stands apart from either the high-contrast progressivism that Shepard Fairey masterminded for Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign or the all-over-the-shop digital effluvia of Donald J. Trump’s Twitter account. It scores very high on curiosity, and rather lower on legibility. You might think of those illustrated old-timey History of the World charts that once adorned schoolrooms, or perhaps an old promotion for a dinner-theater production of “The Sound of Music.”As a work of political propaganda, this poster gets at least one job done: the federal government bears all the blame, the State of New York is diligent and triumphant. As a work of graphic design, well, it certainly stands apart from either the high-contrast progressivism that Shepard Fairey masterminded for Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign or the all-over-the-shop digital effluvia of Donald J. Trump’s Twitter account. It scores very high on curiosity, and rather lower on legibility. You might think of those illustrated old-timey History of the World charts that once adorned schoolrooms, or perhaps an old promotion for a dinner-theater production of “The Sound of Music.”
Really, the poster’s nostalgic style is belated even so far as retro trends go — hasn’t it been a decade since bars in Brooklyn were flooded with “heritage hipsters,” drinking moonshine while wearing vintage tweeds and waxed mustaches? Yet Mr. Cuomo has an abiding taste for circa-1900 political imagery: at his news conference he shouted out William Jennings Bryan’s campaign posters as a particular inspiration.Really, the poster’s nostalgic style is belated even so far as retro trends go — hasn’t it been a decade since bars in Brooklyn were flooded with “heritage hipsters,” drinking moonshine while wearing vintage tweeds and waxed mustaches? Yet Mr. Cuomo has an abiding taste for circa-1900 political imagery: at his news conference he shouted out William Jennings Bryan’s campaign posters as a particular inspiration.
In the past Mr. Cuomo has collaborated with a designer named Rusty Zimmerman, who earlier this year drew a far superior poster for the governor that pictured New York as a trusty schooner plowing through “the sea of division” and “the squalls of hate.”In the past Mr. Cuomo has collaborated with a designer named Rusty Zimmerman, who earlier this year drew a far superior poster for the governor that pictured New York as a trusty schooner plowing through “the sea of division” and “the squalls of hate.”
This time the governor sketched out a design that was executed by another artist, whose name the governor’s spokespeople were unable to provide. At this point we ought to name the designer of this poster as Andrew Cuomo himself, directing production like Rubens in his studio, or Jeff Koons in his factory.This time the governor sketched out a design that was executed by another artist, whose name the governor’s spokespeople were unable to provide. At this point we ought to name the designer of this poster as Andrew Cuomo himself, directing production like Rubens in his studio, or Jeff Koons in his factory.
Updated July 7, 2020
The coronavirus can stay aloft for hours in tiny droplets in stagnant air, infecting people as they inhale, mounting scientific evidence suggests. This risk is highest in crowded indoor spaces with poor ventilation, and may help explain super-spreading events reported in meatpacking plants, churches and restaurants. It’s unclear how often the virus is spread via these tiny droplets, or aerosols, compared with larger droplets that are expelled when a sick person coughs or sneezes, or transmitted through contact with contaminated surfaces, said Linsey Marr, an aerosol expert at Virginia Tech. Aerosols are released even when a person without symptoms exhales, talks or sings, according to Dr. Marr and more than 200 other experts, who have outlined the evidence in an open letter to the World Health Organization.
Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days.
Scientists around the country have tried to identify everyday materials that do a good job of filtering microscopic particles. In recent tests, HEPA furnace filters scored high, as did vacuum cleaner bags, fabric similar to flannel pajamas and those of 600-count pillowcases. Other materials tested included layered coffee filters and scarves and bandannas. These scored lower, but still captured a small percentage of particles.
A commentary published this month on the website of the British Journal of Sports Medicine points out that covering your face during exercise “comes with issues of potential breathing restriction and discomfort” and requires “balancing benefits versus possible adverse events.” Masks do alter exercise, says Cedric X. Bryant, the president and chief science officer of the American Council on Exercise, a nonprofit organization that funds exercise research and certifies fitness professionals. “In my personal experience,” he says, “heart rates are higher at the same relative intensity when you wear a mask.” Some people also could experience lightheadedness during familiar workouts while masked, says Len Kravitz, a professor of exercise science at the University of New Mexico.
The steroid, dexamethasone, is the first treatment shown to reduce mortality in severely ill patients, according to scientists in Britain. The drug appears to reduce inflammation caused by the immune system, protecting the tissues. In the study, dexamethasone reduced deaths of patients on ventilators by one-third, and deaths of patients on oxygen by one-fifth.
The coronavirus emergency relief package gives many American workers paid leave if they need to take time off because of the virus. It gives qualified workers two weeks of paid sick leave if they are ill, quarantined or seeking diagnosis or preventive care for coronavirus, or if they are caring for sick family members. It gives 12 weeks of paid leave to people caring for children whose schools are closed or whose child care provider is unavailable because of the coronavirus. It is the first time the United States has had widespread federally mandated paid leave, and includes people who don’t typically get such benefits, like part-time and gig economy workers. But the measure excludes at least half of private-sector workers, including those at the country’s largest employers, and gives small employers significant leeway to deny leave.
So far, the evidence seems to show it does. A widely cited paper published in April suggests that people are most infectious about two days before the onset of coronavirus symptoms and estimated that 44 percent of new infections were a result of transmission from people who were not yet showing symptoms. Recently, a top expert at the World Health Organization stated that transmission of the coronavirus by people who did not have symptoms was “very rare,” but she later walked back that statement.
Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks.
A study by European scientists is the first to document a strong statistical link between genetic variations and Covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. Having Type A blood was linked to a 50 percent increase in the likelihood that a patient would need to get oxygen or to go on a ventilator, according to the new study.
If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.)
If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others.
Indeed, amid the most severe state crisis in decades, the governor has nourished his deep-running creative streak, whether in his graphically inventive PowerPoint presentations, where word and image jostle against one another as discordantly as in a W.G. Sebald novel, or else in his unexpected display, during the mortal month of April, of a quilt made of hundreds of cloth face masks.Indeed, amid the most severe state crisis in decades, the governor has nourished his deep-running creative streak, whether in his graphically inventive PowerPoint presentations, where word and image jostle against one another as discordantly as in a W.G. Sebald novel, or else in his unexpected display, during the mortal month of April, of a quilt made of hundreds of cloth face masks.
“I am an artist,” the governor announced last month when he unveiled another surreal artwork: a human-scale mountain that aimed to depict the quick climb and gradual fall in Covid-19 cases across New York. Like a high school science project, this three-dimensional precipice of infection had a certain bizarre power, with its transubstantiation of public misery into Styrofoam. (I do hope the sculptor Rachel Harrison, whose astute conjunctions of lumpish forms and out-there imagery filled the Whitney Museum last year, has been watching.)“I am an artist,” the governor announced last month when he unveiled another surreal artwork: a human-scale mountain that aimed to depict the quick climb and gradual fall in Covid-19 cases across New York. Like a high school science project, this three-dimensional precipice of infection had a certain bizarre power, with its transubstantiation of public misery into Styrofoam. (I do hope the sculptor Rachel Harrison, whose astute conjunctions of lumpish forms and out-there imagery filled the Whitney Museum last year, has been watching.)
If you know your Renaissance painting, you won’t need long to identify the symbol of the giant mountain rising from the sea in this week’s poster. The mountain is Purgatory, and it is a place of suffering and maturation, where the pilgrim must pass through successive trials on the way to paradise — here known as “The Sun on the Other Side.”If you know your Renaissance painting, you won’t need long to identify the symbol of the giant mountain rising from the sea in this week’s poster. The mountain is Purgatory, and it is a place of suffering and maturation, where the pilgrim must pass through successive trials on the way to paradise — here known as “The Sun on the Other Side.”
Even if the health crisis is not over (a sign at the mountain’s foot reads “Caution Ahead"), our pilgrim has been purified by his agony on the mount, guided through his ordeals by fellow New Yorkers, health care workers, and his equally prominent daughters and Siberian-shepherd dog.Even if the health crisis is not over (a sign at the mountain’s foot reads “Caution Ahead"), our pilgrim has been purified by his agony on the mount, guided through his ordeals by fellow New Yorkers, health care workers, and his equally prominent daughters and Siberian-shepherd dog.
The mountain in the sea is a place where, as Dante had it, “the human spirit is purged, and becomes fit to climb to Heaven.” Perhaps that is how Mr. Cuomo, as artist rather than public official, sees our ongoing ordeal: a political purgatory whose tests have molded him into a public-health paladin. But even if your pride is as big as the Adirondack Mountains, you don’t need to exult with kitsch like this.The mountain in the sea is a place where, as Dante had it, “the human spirit is purged, and becomes fit to climb to Heaven.” Perhaps that is how Mr. Cuomo, as artist rather than public official, sees our ongoing ordeal: a political purgatory whose tests have molded him into a public-health paladin. But even if your pride is as big as the Adirondack Mountains, you don’t need to exult with kitsch like this.