TERROR OF CONFORMITY
“Eat salami before bedtime to ensure nightmares. Bonjour! Bonjour!”
STEVEN ARNOLD
KAISIK WONG AS “MONKEY”
A still from the incomplete film project Monkey, which was to be a collaboration between Steven Arnold and wearable-art pioneer Kaisik Wong. Kaisik Wong is pictured here in make-up and costume as the story’s protagonist, Monkey.
UNTITLED, OIL ON CANVAS, 1974
Steven Arnold painted a series of over 70 surreal 8×10 canvases starting in 1968, continuing until shortly before his death in 1994. You can see other examples of Arnold’s paintings by clicking HERE and HERE.
TIK TOK MAN
Steven Arnold kept a thorough record of his dreams and visions which he would consult when creating his photographic works. These never-before-seen drawings were done pen to pad, with no preliminary sketches, probably at 1 in the afternoon over a “morning” cup of coffee and a cigarette, which was Arnold’s custom.
You can see another example of Steven Arnold’s drawings by clicking HERE.
We will be adding more drawings, B&W Tableaux vivant photographs, paintings, and videos, along with candid photos of Steven, his salons, Salvador Dali, Kaisik Wong, and more. You can receive these updates by e-mail by subscribing to our list using the SUBSCRIBE FOR UPDATES link on the right hand side of the website’s home page.
ADVANTAGES OF A NEWER SOCIAL STRUCTURE
“Someones got to come out, be outrageous, and break the rules. God save us from the normal, PLEASE! Be silly. Make it fun! The world needs madness and creativity so badly. Gardening, cooking, dressing, the way we entertain our friends, the grace we exude – it’s all art. It’s what makes us deep, rich, astonishing and miraculous creatures. I’m talking about love here. Bliss. Joy. Having a ball. To lose touch with this is tragic.”
STEVEN ARNOLD
New Steven Arnold Galleries
http://pinterest.com/stevenarnoldart/
Click on the photo or link above to visit the new Steven Arnold Galleries featuring video, B&W photography, paintings, etchings, psychedelic rock handbills and more, now up on Pinterest! We will be continuing our usual updates on stevenarnoldarchive.com, Twitter, and Facebook as well. Thank you for joining us in reawakening and celebrating Steven Arnold’s life and work!
ZANZIBAR STUDIO FROM THE OUTSIDE IN
The old pretzel factory in Los Angeles as seen from the outside.
Steven created a large part of his body of work from the late 70s to the early 90s in an old pretzel factory in Los Angeles, which he dubbed Zanzibar Studio after a large papier-mache clown head which became the studio’s mascot.
Scores of people attended Steven’s elaborate salons which were held every evening of the week at Zanzibar. A melange of artists, intellectuals, strippers, musicians, counter-culture icons, activists, actors and actresses, models and comedians gathered representing every facet of the social scene of Los Angeles. People like Blondie’s Debbie Harry, Simon Doonan, Timothy Leary, James Leo Herlihy, Holly Woodlawn, Ellen Burstyn, Tony Ward, Jay Leno, The Cars, and many other notable individuals of the time were known to have crossed Zanzibar’s threshold . The growing salons led some to refer to Steven as the “left-coast Andy Warhol.” Warhol superstar Holly Woodlawn recollects, “Andy’s [salons] were like Sing-Sing, except you could go in and out, Steven’s were more like Versailles, before the guillotine, please.”
From the outside the studio appeared as it was, a dilapidated old pretzel factory, but inside was a liberating theatre of illusion. Steven’s magical world acknowledged the artistic eccentricities all of world history’s Golden Eras and lavish traditions, yet remained remarkably fresh and modern. It was truly unlike anything most of it’s visitors had ever seen.
Please click the links below for more information and interior photographs.
MUNDO MEZA
A tableaux-vivant of Chicano performance artist Mundo Meza. For more information on Meza and the art movement of which he was a part, click HERE. You can see a photograph by Mundo Meza, which was included as a part of the west coast retrospective Pacific Standard Time by clicking HERE.
MECHANICAL THEATRE
“I live in my own dreamworld. That’s the message of my work: regard your dreams, pay attention to them, really look at them, and allow them to manifest! Give yourself time to be quiet and listen to the ancient messages beyond worldly success. [These messages] form the depths of our souls, make us solid, align us with the nature of compassion, and unveil our true place in the cosmos.”
STEVEN ARNOLD
STEVEN ARNOLD’S SERIES OF PSYCHEDELIC ROCK HANDBILLS
Another in Steven’s exquisite series of rock handbills created for the celebrated Matrix nightclub, San Francisco throughout 1967. This handbill features the legendary Steve Miller Blues Band (later to become Steve Miller Band).
LINKS TO OTHER POSTS IN THIS SERIES:
The Charlatans/Frumious Bandersnatch Matrix handbill
Quicksilver Messenger Service/Congress of Wonders Matrix handbill
The Colours/Blue Cheer Matrix Handbill
ELASTIC OPERA
“Nowadays, in our vast cities of steel, we still haven’t lost our need for ancient ritual. Dances with masks and drum are alive in our bones. We are witchdoctors in designer jeans. Ancient sexual impulses rule our buying powers and claw at our self illusions. We get high on whatever, and tune in to our instinctual selves. We seek guides and desire teachings. As we accumulate, we share, and thus we grow – the more evolved our sharing, the richer our growth. Oh, beautiful evenings when we we can truly share!”
STEVEN ARNOLD
THE OPENING OF TEATRO-MUSEO DALI
This never-before-seen photograph was taken when Steven’s entourage was invited by Salvador Dali to help him open his Teatro-Museo Dali in Figueres Spain. From left to right: Dali biographer Carlos Lozano, Salvador Dali, Merle Bulatao (wearing Kaisik Wong designs), Steven Arnold, and Kaisik Wong as Monkey kneeling in front. You can see another previously unseen photograph with Dali and Kaisik HERE.
ANOTHER PHOTOGRAPH FROM AFTER DARK MAGAZINE
This rarely seen photograph is part of a set, viewable HERE. These photographs, largely influenced by Giuseppe Arcimboldo. were created for After Dark magazine April, 1979.
DIG IN YOUR GARDEN
“Fantasy is a universal human trait – art is the principal means of expressing it.”
STEVEN ARNOLD
STEVEN’S PORTRAIT OF SALVADOR DALI, KAISIK WONG, MERLE AND MARILYN
Steven took this rare photograph in the early 70s when visiting Dalí to assist in the opening of his Teatro-Museo Dalí in Spain. From left to right: Merle Bulateo, model and muse of Kaisik Wong, Kaisik Wong, pioneer of wearable art, Salvador Dalí, and Marilyn Monroe look-alike Denise Bella, in front of Dalí's Pirelli Tire art.
60s POSTER ART FOR THE CHARLATANS AT S.F. MATRIX
Throughout 1967, Steven created a sizable body of surrealist, psychedelic poster art for the Matrix, a renowned San Fransisco nightclub, which featured regular performances by the likes of The Charlatans, Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks, The Jefferson Airplane, Big Brother and the Holding Company w/ Janis Joplin, Grateful Dead, The Doors, Steve Miller Blues Band w/ Boz Scaggs, Santana, and The Velvet Underground. We will be revealing more regularly.
