Here’s What’s Happening (in order of appearance):

Democratic Candidate Forum / Cosmic Con NY / Manhattan Community Board Applicationn/ Art Exhibitsat Hudson Guild / Music, Art, & More at Verdi Cannabis / 

Democratic Candidate Forum for NYC Mayor; Online & In-Person at 6:30pm on Tuesday, February 11 | A series of Candidate Forums has been taking place, giving voters the chance to see how the skills and experience of candidates compares to the duties of the elected position they have in mind. To view a recording of the Jan. 29 forum, CLICK HERE. (It featured candidates for Comptroller and Manhattan Borough President.) To view the Feb. 4 Forum, CLICK HERE (it heard  from candidates for NYC Council District 3, Manhattan District Attorney, and Public Advocate).   Those Forums were co-sponsored and moderated by the CRDC (Chelsea Reform Democratic Club) and the HK Dems (Hell’s Kitchen Democrats). The Tuesday, Feb. 11, 6:30pn Candidate Forum is for NYC Mayor. Attend via Zoom or at the Manny Cantor Community Center & Educational Alliance (197 East Broadway). This event is co-sponsored by the Downtown Democratic Club Coalition, whose press material notes, “This forum will allow each candidate to present their vision for the city’s future, discuss their policy priorities, and engage with the community through an interactive question-and-answer session.” Participating candidates are Michael Blake, Brad Lander, Zohran K. Mamdani, Zellnor Myrie, Jessica Ramos, Scott M. Stringer, and Whitney R. Tilson.  Space is Limited. To attend in person, click here to register. To attend via Zoom, click here to register.

Cosmic Con NY: Saturday, February 15 & Sunday, February 16 at Metropolitan Pavilion (125 West 18th St.) | The fourth iteration of this annual comic book, sci-fi, and fantasy convention packs its two days with panels, cosplay, comics, collectibles, creators, celebrities, photo ops, and more. Programmed with hardcore fans and young families in mind, the schedule, say the creators, celebrates “comics as tools of communication and empathy, the new film Captain America: New World Order, and the New York-based indie comics scene.” Feb. 15’s 11am Character Design 101: Calling Kid of All Ages reveals the techniques and principles that make the movement of illustrated characters convincing. On Feb. 15, the 12:30pm Keynote Panel, titled Battling Hate, considers comics as “tools of personal expression and social reform.” Panelists include Ann Nocenti, Alisa Kwitney, Keith Williama, and Roy Schwartz. Schwartz also moderates Feb. 16’s 12:30pm’s Duel of the Spider-Editors: Tales from the Marvel Bullpen—a behind-the-scenes look at the “real-life secret wars” among Marvel creators. Panelists include Stan Lee biographer Danny Fingeroth, and Spider-Man editor Jim Salicrup. An all-ages Cosplay Contest takes place at 1:30pm, while 2pm’s The Year of Superman! adds to the anticipation of the new Superman movie set for theatrical release on July 11 by taking a deep dive into the character’s past, present, and future. Panelists include Superman artists Rags Morales, Keith Williams, and Jamal Igle. For info on additional programming, and to purchase tickets (single day tix, $22; two-day tix, $36), click here to visit the Cosmic Con NY website.

Manhattan Community Board Applications Accepted Through Friday, February 28 | Community Boards, notes text found on the website of Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, “are the independent and representative voices of their communities—the most grass-roots form of local government…The boards are pivotal in shaping their communities and work to enhance and preserve the character of the city’s many unique neighborhoods.”  Serving on a Community Board affords you the rare distinction of influencing policy and protocol, regarding things like the distribution of liquor licenses, land use and zoning regulations, and proposals from City agencies. To see what it really takes to serve, click here and click here to visit, respectively, the YouTube channels of Manhattan Community Board 4 and Manhattan Community Board 5. There, you’ll find recordings of past committee and full board meetings, where the months-long (sometimes years-long) process of bringing a topic from first discussion to hard-won fruition has been preserved in Internet amber, accessible 24/7/365. To visit, respectively, the CB4 and CB5 websites, click here and click here. To apply, click here.

Water’s Voice and Our Fragile Moment: Climate Crisis-Themed Exhibits at Hudson Guild | Free to the public, these exhibits are the latest in Hudson Guild’s Art in Response series in which “artists  examine issues of social and political importance to our community.” Water’s Voice considers the powerful presence of water in nature—and ourselves. (“We are mostly water,” the exhibit’s promo material notes.) The work of artists Patricia Espinosa, Eleanor Goldstein, Ellie  Irons, Susan Knight, Michelle Lougee, and Camille Seaman celebrate and champion water, working in a variety of formats and mediums. Free to view at Guild Gallery II (119 Ninth Ave.) through April 22; Tues. through Fri., 10am to 5pm, and by appointment (call 212-760-9837 to schedule a visit).

Opening on February 13 at Hudson Guild Gallery (441 W. 26th St.) with a free reception from 5:30pm to 7pm, the exhibit Our Fragile Moment highlights environmental issues, including sea level rise. “The  combined voices of these artists allow beauty to blend with sadness, fear to be overlaid with hope and optimism, and  apathy to be turned to action,” notes artist/educator Fran Beallor, who curated this exhibit as well as Water’s Voice. As for the talent featured in Our Fragile Moment, Beallor’s hand-picked roster includes Rachel Aisenson, M. Annenberg, Nicole Betancourt,  Lois Bender, Pam Brown, Pamela Casper, Jesica Clark, Simona Clausnitzer, Nora Chavooshian, January Yoon Cho, Nicole Cooper, Cailyn  Dawson, Noreen Dean Dresser, Anke Frohlich, Nancy Gesimondo, Pearl Rosen Golden, Deborah Kruger, Sally Linder,  Christina Massey, Mars Miller, Eleni Mylonas, Beryl Perron-Feller, Grace Graupe Pillard, Jeffrey Allen Price, Kristin  Reed, Yvonne Lamar Rogers, Ann R. Shapiro, Amrita Singh, Molly Tenzer, Tammy West, Jane Whitten, and Lucy Wilner.

After February 13’s opening reception, “Our Fragile Moment” is free to view through April 22; Tues. through Fri., 10am to 6pm, Sat., 12pm to 3pm, and by appointment (call 212-760-9837to schedule a visit). Monday, March 24, 76pm to 8:30pm, artists from both exhibits come together for a virtual event: “Artists on the Climate Crisis An Artists Talk on Art.”  This online discussion is held via Zoom. Click here for the link and when prompted, use 737066 as the password.

Events at Verdi Cannabis (158 W. 23rd St. btw. 6th & 7th Aves.) | Having recently celebrated its first full year since setting up shop on West 23rd Street, legal cannabis distributor Verdi Cannabis offers free arts programming via the for-sale work of artists hanging on their walls, and a Thursday night music series. The February schedule for that series is as follows: Feb. 6 saw Winter Strum in performance. Feb. 13, Chill Billies is on board. Feb. 20, Roberos are the musical guests–and Feb. 27,  The Constituency wraps up the Feb. schedule.

As for special events happeninng in-store: Feb. 12, it’s Gron’s Valentine’s Day “Chocolate Fountain” event. On Feb. 14 and 15,  respectively, Soft Power Sweets and Toke Folks sponsor Valentine’s Day event. On Feb. 16, Verdi celebrates its recent first anniversary with a 4pm-8pm celebration offering free food (BBQ!) and live music. Feb. 23, Lobo Swag has a giveaway event–and Feb. 28, Kiki Kramer takes over. As for the featured artists whose work can be found on Verdi’s walls: Photographer Scott Harris presents a series of images from Phish concerts, available for purchase at $55 each. Also on view and available for purchase is the work of painter Pat Gallagher (aka G Funk). To keep up with what else is up with Verdi, click here to visit their website. To visit the EVENTS page of their website, click here.

—Listings compiled by Scott Stiffler

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