Interview by Brett Schwaner
Punk rock is a freakshow, just ask L. Steve Williams. Known for his 504 What Style art and design label, Williams is also the mastermind behind the Big Top’s third annual Rock Art Circus, a free exhibition set to open on the evening of September 6th. While the opening is meant to shine the spotlight on works by local rock-oriented visual artists, Williams’ event is more of a sideshow spectacle than a typical run-of-the-mill wine glass art opening. Set to feature the works of several dozen artists and designers, including members of local rock bands Hawg Jaw, Big Baby, the Pallbearers, Spickle, Hazard County Girls, Manwitch and Die Rotzz, the Rock Art Circus will also feature video presentations, burlesque dancers and performances by Suplecs and the Bills. And, of course, circus freaks—lots and lots of circus freaks. To top it all off, Exene Cervenka, popularly known as the lead singer of the long-running Los Angeles punk band X, will serve as the guest of honor at this year’s event. ANTIGRAVITY got in touch with Williams for a brief chat about bringing together art and rock n’ roll.
ANTIGRAVITY: How did your idea for the Rock Art Circus first come together?
LSW: My original plan was actually to have the first Rock Art Circus in 2005. It was going to be at TwiRopa, but then Katrina came along and we weren’t able to go through with it. We picked up the idea again in 2006 and brought it to the Big Top. Since then, we’ve tried to make it bigger and better every year, but our idea has always been to feature art, music, videos, and burlesque performance together at one show. The Rock Art Circus itself revolves around individuals who do artwork around the local music scene, whether they’re in bands or draw their influences from rock music.
AG: You’ve been involved with rock-oriented art and design for quite awhile now. What were your earlier openings like, as compared to the Rock Art Circus?
LSW: For me, it’s always been about bringing music and art together. 2000 was really the peak of doing my own art shows. I’d been doing small rock art festivals here and there, showcasing local bands and artists. In the beginning, I did a lot of openings at hair salons on Magazine Street. In the early days, I really enjoyed doing shows with the guys in Black Belt, who had previously been in a ska-punk band called the Supaflies in the late ’90s. Earlier on in my art career, my biggest influences were KISS album covers and Derek Riggs, who did artwork for Iron Maiden’s albums. Seeing Pink Floyd’s The Wall kind of changed the way that I looked at the way visual presentation could be used in the rock genre.
AG: How did Exene Cervenka come to be involved with the event?
LSW: It started to take shape last year. I kept running into Exene at shows around town and random places here and there. Our friendship started when we accused each other of stalking the other. After we had a laugh about it, I talked to her about some of the projects that I was doing. She’d also been doing some spoken word and collage art in recent years, aside from being in X. She was pretty interested in the Rock Art Circus idea.
AG: You’ve got a pretty impressive roster of local artists scheduled for this year. How did this lineup come together?
LSW: Most of them are in bands themselves, with a couple of exceptions. I look for very unique artwork—the kind of stuff that most galleries aren’t into. This isn’t an opening for the usual Julia Street art crowd. Most of us are lowbrow renegades working on our own styles; most of us were born and raised here. The influence of having lived in this city for so long kind of shows through on our work. For a lot of them, this will be their first opening. Mike from Hawg Jaw showed me his work at last year’s show and I liked it a great deal, so that’s how his involvement started. I try to fit everyone in who has an interest in rock-related artwork. I always try to encourage people to get in touch with me and get involved.
AG: What current local artists do you draw inspiration from these days?
LSW: If you’re into female rock, check out Manwitch. There’s also a new band called Terranova that I think is worth checking out. I also really like what the guys in Grisley are doing. It’s sort of along the lines of Snapcase or Hot Water Music-type of punk rock. I’m a huge fan of anything that King Louie is into. Also, anyone who likes Sonic Youth should check out Big Baby. I’ve worked with most of these bands a little bit here and there, either doing artwork for them or sometimes just behind the scenes.
AG: How will this year’s exhibition differ from previous years?
LSW: We’re definitely more organized now. We’ve got Randy Perez from Time Code: NOLA running the video elements of the presentation this time. In past years I tried doing it myself, but I ended up running around like a madman trying to coordinate everything. We’re going to be showing some risqué music videos and clips of local artists performing. We’ve got two of the top burlesque dancers in the city, Bella Blue and Roxie Le Rouge, set to appear. Suplecs is always our main musical attraction and I think that having the Bills playing surf rock adds another dimension to the overall presentation. We’re also going to have the Skeleton Krewe on-hand, with guys running around in monster costumes, fire-dancers, and stilt-walkers. We’re really trying to make it as much of an interactive experience as possible. The first year we held the opening, we broke the Big Top’s attendance record. The second year, we broke that record again. I’m optimistic that we’ll have another positive turnout this year.
The 504 What Style Rock Art Circus f/ the Bills, Suplecs and Exene Cervenka is rescheduled for Saturday, September 13th at the Big Top. Admission is free. For more info, go to 504whatstyle.com or 3ringcircusproductions.com.
