Seeking Community Panelists

Do you want to get involved in the NYC budget process? TranspareNYC is looking for community panelists to help decide where 1 million dollars in community grants will go. Last year, $907,798 was awarded to 167 organizations, including 36 new programs. The Manhattan Borough President’s office is specifically looking for people who display knowledge in Senior Services, Education, Urban Health Initiatives,

Re-entry and Correctional Systems, and Parks and Recreation. Those interested can visit TranspareNYC.org, and the recruitment drive for prospective panelists ends on March 29th. Questions about the program can be directed to Linda Felstein at (212) 669-4814 or LFelstein@manhattanbp.org.

Salvador Dali Watercolor Thief   

A man has been indicted and charged with Grand Larceny to the Second Degree, after stealing a 1949 Salvador Dali Watercolor from a Manhattan art gallery. On June 19th, 2012, Phivos Istavrioglou stole the drawing (with an estimated worth of $150,000) by placing it in a shopping bag. After surveillance images of the suspect were broadcast to the public worldwide, the NYPD recovered the stolen artwork in a shipping tube at Kennedy Airport less than 2 weeks later. They lifted fingerprints from the shipment and matched them with those from a juice bottle Istavrioglou stole at a Whole Foods last year. On February 16th, 2013, an undercover cop posing as a business manager of an art gallery lured Istavrioglou to NYC. He was taken into custody upon arrival at Kennedy.

 New York-Presbyterian Cancer Study

The American Cancer society is soon to begin its Cancer Prevention Study-3, which will help researchers better understand the factors that cause or prevent cancer. These studies have confirmed the link between cigarette smoking and lung cancer, and also the impact of air pollution on the heart and lungs. For residents of East Midtown that would like to get involved, New York-Presbyterian is available as a local registration site.

MOUNT SINAI AND CONTINUUM HEALTH PARTNERS TO MERGE

The Board of Trustees from The Mount Sinai Medical Center and Continuum Health Partners have voted to approve a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for a possible merger.

The MOU outlines steps toward creating a new integrated health care system that combines operations of two entities.

“Our goal as an integrated health care system is to provide exceptional medical care to New Yorkers,” said Kenneth L. Davis, MD, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Mount Sinai Medical Center. “The combination will create more economies of scale, increase efficiencies, and expand access to advanced primary and specialty care throughout this citywide network.”

Stanley Brezenoff, President and Chief Executive Officer of Continuum, said, “This collaboration makes available an extraordinary range of resources for the provision of compassionate, state-of-the-art care for patients. In joining with Mount Sinai, we will further enhance our ability to provide the full spectrum of outstanding care to the populations we serve.”

Dennis S. Charney, MD, Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz Dean of Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs of The Mount Sinai Medical Center, sees the opportunity for increased research collaboration with physicians and scientists affiliated with Continuum, who would become part of the medical school’s academic faculty. “Mount Sinai has a legacy of groundbreaking clinical and translational research that has led to improved methods of diagnosing and treating human disease,” said Dr. Charney. “The synergy between Mount Sinai and Continuum would widen our research base and accelerate the pace of breakthrough treatments and protocols.”

The chairmen of both boards of trustees, Peter W. May for Mount Sinai and Steven Hochberg for Continuum, said they are pleased that their respective boards unanimously approved the MOU.

The Mount Sinai Medical Center encompasses both The Mount Sinai Hospital and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Established in 1968, the Icahn School of Medicine is one of the leading medical schools in the United States, and is noted for innovation in education, biomedical research, clinical care delivery, and local and global community service.

Continuum Health Partners was created in January 1997 as the parent company for the partnership between four distinguished voluntary hospitals: Beth Israel Medical Center-Milton and Carroll Petrie Division, Beth Israel Brooklyn, St. Luke’s Hospital and Roosevelt Hospital.

Young artists will get the chance to work in studios such as these at the National Academy.

The National Academy Museum & School of the Upper East Side, located at 5 E. 89th St. off 5th Avenue, is celebrating 20 years of children’s summer programs. The school itself has been instilling the intricacies of fine and classical arts into fledgling artists since 1826.

“Our young people’s program is one of the best-kept secrets in the Upper East Side,” said Lotus do Brooks, one of the instructors in the program.

This summer, the school will continue its tradition of offering a full day art camp for youngsters and intensive art workshops for high school students who wish to live their summer through the artistic eye.

“This is a small environment,” said Maurizio Pellegrin, the director and one of the instructors of the Academy. “It is very well organized, with a dynamic structure that offers classes to professionals and to people who come for the love and passion.”

The program is separated into three classes that are available for six weeks starting June 11, though the students have the choice to stay for one week or all six, according to Brooks. Tuition for the summer camps is $450 per week, and the workshop will run for $250 per week.

The National Academy will host Martha Bloom, a professional who has over 30 years’ art experience under her belt. She will preside over the Art and Drama program, which is open to kids ages 6 to 10 and prompts them to explore the multiple avenues of creativity housed within their developing minds as painters and performers. This class serves as an introduction to several art styles such as drawing, painting, collage, printmaking and drama. The students will have an opportunity to work outside and they will also host miniature exhibitions of their work. The classes run June 11–29 and July 9–27 from 9 a.m. through 4 p.m.

The second class being offered is suited for children 9 to 13 years old and discusses the finer points of painting and drawing, such as lighting, shading and perspective. Hannah Frassinelli, an established teacher and award-winning printmaker, will guide her students through the Painting and Drawing camp with self portraits and a clothed model to give the fledgling artists an introduction to the human figure.  The students will also work in printmaking and study the concept of the still life and landscape painting. This set of classes will begin June 18 and continue until the 29th. The second set of classes begins July 9 and ends on the 20th.

The final class to be offered for the summer will be a Watercolors Workshop taught by Brooks, who is part of the teaching staff at the Dalton School and has been training and teaching the fine arts for well over 20 years. This class acts as a foundation for high school students to build their portfolios, which will prepare them for college, when they must submit samples of their current work. Students will delve into watercolors to create landscapes of nature and the city. The students will also be given the chance to visit several art galleries and museums in the area. The class will be begin July 30 and continue through Aug. 3 from 3 p.m. until 6 p.m. Tuition for this class will be $250 per week.

The school is surrounded by museums and art galleries, such as the Guggenheim, which is but a stroke of a paintbrush from the school. The teachers utilize this to the fullest extent, taking its students out of the studios and into the galleries to marvel at the works of great artists.

“We are in the center of New York City, one of the major art cities of the world,” said Pellegrin.