This Year in Review we would like to revisit some of the articles featured on the pages of The Standard Magazine, highlighting excerpts from particular articles from each month that we think deserve a second gander. You can read the complete article by simply clicking on the link after each excerpt. Have fun reminiscing.
January 2020
Slay Model Management Announces First
Worldwide Transgender Model Search
By Len Evans
Slay Model Management, the world’s first Transgender exclusive model agency, has announced it will host its first ever Model Search on February 15, 2020 at One Culver in Los Angeles. “We are looking for star quality,” says Cecilio Asuncion, the founder and director of Slay Model Management. “It takes more than beauty to be a top model. It takes determination, a healthy outlook, and a visceral understanding that she is a model first, and a Trans woman second.”
Asuncion is careful to clarify: “Slay is not about selling Transness. We are selling a young woman’s capability to represent a brand or a designer. Sure, it’s great to be booked during June for Pride month, but what we want is sustainability and opportunities year-round.”
February 2020
Take Five – Five questions with Travis Smith & Chris Bale of Modern Bear
By Josh Furnell
How has the Modernism Movement influenced you personally?
Chris: Growing up visiting my grandmother’s Midcentury home here in Palm Springs was formative, and influenced my eventual studying of architecture in College. The masters of the 20th century design really spoke to me. I didn’t finish Architecture school, but I eventually became a realtor and when I moved back to Palm Springs full time in 2011, I discovered the joys of being immersed in selling Midcentury homes.
Travis: I sort of live and breath it LOL. I got hooked on vintage before it was called “Mid Century Modern” in the early 80’s. A lot of people called it junk back then. But there was also a retro scene starting to happen in L.A. and the bigger cities. I was living in Phoenix, Arizona and like any good, young gay, was shopping the thrifts. It was there I discovered my passion for vintage 50’s and 60’s, both the clothing and the furniture! I soon became a “picker” for retro stores in L.A., and was driving stuff over in my 1967 Dodge Van and selling it to them. Yup, officially hooked. I’d eventually open my own vintage MCM store in Washington, D.C. called “Good Eye” which I owned for 10 years.
March 2020
Delicious Trends
By Chef Andre Carthen
Today’s food trends are more inline with a fashion jungle profile. What was hot yesterday, might kill you today. Not so long ago, everyone was pushing ORGANIC. What was supposingly better for you, could kill your bank account. Then came SUPERFOODS and KALE, the new end all, be all. Kale Cesar Salads, kale chips, kale lasagna, kale smoothies, and kale pesto are just a few kale concoctions that were the craze. Fast forward, it’s as if the culinary world was on a mad treasure hunt for finding the most under used, bland, non-discript vegetable we could be found…. Spotlight – ‘CAULIFLOWER’. What was once counted among the left-over sad veggies on the crudités platter, has now become the DIVA of the garden, with celebrities and chefs applauding its versitability and nutritious benefits. I recall surprising guest by substituting mashed garlic cauliflower for mashed garlic potatoes for many a Thanksgiving Dinner, now seem so passé with the introduction of cauliflower rice, cauliflower steaks and get this, cauliflower pizza crust wowing the tastebuds of unsuspecting dinner guest. Today’s trend less subtle, went right for the jugular; Plant-based Proteins! No sneaky introductions it went full-out commercial, the no-meat ‘Whooper’. If you haven’t tasted it yet , you certainly have seen the ads for it and the plant-based breakfast sandwiches. When we think about it, there really should be no surprise, our diets in resent years have been plant focus with gluten, peanuts and sugar being major concerns.
Enter ‘Flour Power’ with flavor profiles ranging from almond, spelt, buckwheat, oat and rice to soy, chickpea, cauliflower and potato. I will admit, the flour profiles can be fun if you enjoy baking and have a whim for trying new flavor combinations.
April 2020
Hello World. How are you?
Did you test positive? Man, is this History Repeating itself?
By Jill Langham
As of this moment, I haven’t been tested but I just spent the last 9 days in bed. I am finally up, showered and dressed, many firsts I might add, since I contracted whatever it was I had. Do I think I had COVID-19? I have no idea, but I did have the following symptoms:
It started with the chills, then an achy body, followed by a short lasting fever of 100.6, then, ear aches; sinus congestion; sneezing; coughing; spitting up white to yellowish colored phlegm; no appetite; a 5-pound weight loss and listlessness, to name a few.
I was in my own world of isolation and quarantine.
When it first started, I was very naïve and had no understanding of the differences between a human-to-human virus and an animal-to-human virus. I know a lot more now, that’s for sure. I’m embarrassed to admit that one of my clients told me about this “pandemic” in January, but I was too happy in my own little bubble that I did not heed his warnings. Shame on me! I let it pass right through my brain and even talked myself out of contacting my broker to get me out of the market. (Yep, and its not the first time either) Shame on me, again.
So being naïve, I wrote a long post on Facebook about how critical it was for us to re-think unsafe practices in general and especially in the gym, which are known to be ‘dirty or unclean’, by nature of what they are.
May 2020
MIT Scientists Translate Coronavirus Protein Structure Into Music
“It tricks our ear in the same way the virus tricks our cells.”
MIT’s Markus Buehler specializes in developing AI models to design new proteins and is perhaps best known for using sonification to illuminate structural details that might otherwise prove elusive. Now his lab has applied that approach to model the vibrational properties of the spike protein responsible for the high contagion rate of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). What they learn could one day help scientists figure out how best to stop the virus in its tracks, leading to potential therapies and hopefully preventing future deadly outbreaks.
The hierarchical elements of music composition (pitch, range, dynamics, tempo) are analogous to the hierarchical elements of protein structure, according to Buehler. Much like how music has a limited number of notes and chords and uses different combinations to compose music, proteins have a limited number of building blocks (its 20 amino acids) that can combine in any number of ways to create novel protein structures with unique properties. Each amino acid has a particular sound signature, akin to a fingerprint.
Any genre of music has patterns,” Buehler told Ars last year. “You’ll see universality in terms of sound, the tones, but you also see repetitive patterns, like motifs and movements in classical music. These kinds of patterns are also found in proteins.”
June 2020
Pride Movement Stands up to COVID
By Steven Taylor
Pride movement stands up to COVID with ambitious Global Pride event featuring music artists and world leaders.
When Los Angeles Pride announced on March 12th that they were postponing their planned events for June, it confirmed what many Pride organizers across the world were fearing – that the COVID19 pandemic was going to wreak havoc on the Pride movement in 2020.
By the end of March, barely two weeks after Los Angeles’ postponement, 190 more Prides had cancelled or postponed their in-person events including Toronto, Washington DC and Madrid. The impact was being felt the world over, including in Australia, South Africa, the Philippines and across the whole of Europe and North America.
The national and international Pride networks led by InterPride and the European Pride Organisers Association were already stepping up, helping our members craft their communications, think about contingency planning, and consider the long-term impact of COVID19 on their organization.
But then we went an ambitious step further. We announced a huge, online Global Pride to take place on Saturday June 27th, the Stonewall anniversary weekend. Within weeks, news of Global Pride had reached 200 million people and social media was abuzz.
July 2020
Travel and the New “Normal”
By Adam Martindale
How we travel has definitely changed in the short term, this is fluid and being improved day by day and best practices are being shared by different companies. Many of the changes are for the best and will create a safer environment for everyone. I believe that some of these changes should have been in place already, some will be annoying to some and many of the changes will be accepted and the way we navigate the new “normal” in travel. “Touchless” check-in as much as possible (preferably by the airline app on your phone) middle seats blocked off, masks mandatory, no alcohol service, no magazines but a sparkling clean plane which has been fogged before boarding. Flying will be a much cleaner and healthier because of these new protocols as well as the fact that most people do not realize that, on average, cabin air is completely refreshed 20 times per hour, compared with just 12 times per hour in an office building. On most aircraft, air is also circulated through hospital-grade HEPA filters, which remove 99.97 percent of bacteria, as well as the airborne particles that viruses use for transport.
August 2020
The Future of Sports
By John Stanford
A month or more of staying inside your house with restrictions on your movements, and no live sporting action to follow on the TV or on the Internet. No scores to check, no adrenalin surge in anticipation of a much-awaited match, no spending hours post matches to discuss what went right or wrong in your friends group or listening to experts discussing the game. No expression of joy or agony on social media. It’s been a world without any sports
With the world going into lockdown to fight the spread of COVID 19, sports, too, came to a standstill. Not used to being indoors for long, deprived of their normal training facilities and change in training schedules—it has been a challenging time for sports persons, too.
Dealing with the long-term impact of coronavirus in midst of competitions involving several competitors is yet another challenge. Experts across sports disciplines believe it is bound to be different for each sport—from individual sports like golf or shooting to team games like basketball, soccer and football to contact sports like wrestling.
September 2020
The Show Must Go on…Or Can It?
By Jim R. Delfino
Theatre is about human connection … that once in a lifetime moment of exchange between actor and audience. Simply, that’s what makes the COVID-19 pandemic so very difficult, particularly for the industry, because it has deprived this exchange that inspires performances. What will the post-pandemic stage look like?
No one knows when the theaters will reopen, when actors will be able to rehearse in safety or when audiences will feel confident that attending a show won’t kill them. It could be months away. It could be more than a year. One thing that’s certain is that theater & live performances will return.
Live Music & Theatre
Live musical performances in indoor spaces have all been cancelled. Club, wedding, birthday, and numerous corporate events that have been cancelled or postponed till 2021 affect millions of musicians
Dance
Most dance companies have cancelled their remainders of the 2019–2020 season, and several companies have cancelled the entire spring season. For example, The New York City Ballet announced the remaining performances in 2020 are canceled, including the annual George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker performances in December, the first time since the ballet premiered in 1954
October 2020
15th Anniversary of LGBT History Month
The month of October we commemorate LGBT History Month, which celebrates the achievements of 31 lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender Icons.
LGBT History Is American History
LGBT History Month sends an important message to our nation’s teachers, school boards, community leaders, and youth about the vital importance of recognizing and exploring the role of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people in American history.
Background
In 1994, Rodney Wilson, a Missouri high school teacher, believed a month should be dedicated to the celebration and teaching of gay and lesbian history, and gathered other teachers and community leaders. They selected October because public schools are in session and existing traditions, such as Coming Out Day (October 11), occur that month.
Gay and Lesbian History Month was endorsed by GLAAD, the Human Rights Campaign, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the National Education Association and other national organizations. In 2006 Equality Forum assumed responsibility for providing content, promotion and resources for LGBT History Month.
Celebrate Our Heritage
The LGBT community is the only community worldwide that is not taught its history at home, in public schools or in religious institutions. LGBT History Month provides role models, builds community and makes the civil rights statement about our extraordinary national and international contributions.
November 2020
Transcanwork.Org And The City Of West Hollywood
Launch The First-Ever Anti-Transphobia Campaign
By Mona Elyafi
As the founder of TransCanWork.org – a program promoting trans inclusivity in the workplace that both provides resources to transgender job seekers and trains the businesses that hire them – CEO Michaela Mendelsohn has leveraged her success and know-how as a seasoned entrepreneur to help the trans community succeed and thrive in today’s ever-evolving business world.
She also serves as the CEO of Pollo West Corp, one of the largest franchises for El Pollo Loco restaurants in the U.S. Western Region.
Her unwavering dedication to diversity and inclusion in the workplace awarded her the 2018 Face of Diversity Award at the National Restaurant Association Public Affairs Conference.
Beyond shaking things up in her industry, Mendelsohn, Drïan Juarez and the entire Trans Can Work team are changing the game too. There’s so much talk about diversity and inclusion, but Trans Can Work is actually doing something about it and challenging the status quo.
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