No matter what happened in the life of Jim Phillips — the graphic artist known for his bold and eye popping imagery that left an unforgettable mark on the world of rock posters, surf, and skateboard art — he never stopped drawing.
Phillips says it all began by doodling characters from his imagination while he was a boy in school, and even though some of his teachers told him that he would never make a living with art, he persisted as an artist throughout the decades of his career.
‘Art and Life: The Story of Jim Phillips,’ a documentary of Phillip’s dynamic life and career showcasing his iconic work that has not only defined an era, but has also secured his place in modern art history, will be showing at the Nevada Theater on Sunday, June 23, at 4 p.m. as part of the Nevada City Film Festival held this weekend.
Individual tickets for ‘Art and Life: A story of Jim Phillips,’ created and directed by John Makens over the past 12 years, are available for purchase online for $9 — $11 before the show or at the door.
The screaming blue hand created as a brand image for the skateboarding enterprise Speed Wheels line, depicts a blue and blood-stained fractured hand, flapping tendons, and misplaced mouth expressing pain that those in the skateboarding world are all too familiar with.
Other iconic playful creatures with red rimmed eyeballs ripping on skateboards, and other psychedelic designs that appear to have evolved out of the surrealistic landscapes of Salvador Dali have appeared on skateboards and rock posters created by Phillips.
Makens found his passions for skateboarding, surfing, and art intertwined with Phillips’ experiences, so he reached out to Phillips to create the documentary that focuses on Phillip’s life in Santa Cruz, and his joy for the art that helped shape the world of skateboarding.
“The theme of the movie is that no matter what happened, Jim just continued to draw and continued doing what he loves doing,” Makens said. “To travel through all the decades and eras, through all the ups and downs, he would just dive into drawing and that was his happy place.”
The film shows the Santa Cruz surf scene which morphed into the music scene, striping and art on motorcycles, and the coolest designs for skateboards.
Phillips agreed that people need to keep doing what excites them, and if they do so long enough it just might pay off.
“A lot of people give up before it really clicks with them, you know, and it will click, if you keep at it,” Phillips said.
As a child, Phillips was first inspired by newspaper comic strips, and drawing was his preferred form of entertainment as a child in a military family who moved around a lot.
“Great artists used cartoons. They start off drawing the cartoon with just a pencil… All I’ve done is kept cartooning. Creativity gets lost in rendering full color photo realism when you know that this is infinite, and there’s nothing derivative from that,” Phillips said.
The film touches on how there were times Phillips lost his way, and how deliberate choices, including his relationship with his wife Dolly, shaped his outcomes.
“I never ever advertised, but I got to be known through some of my posters… I put a little Philips signature on it, and so I just waited by the phone. There’s no phone call? I had a free day or we would go down to the beach or whatever,” Phillips said. “So it was a nice life and then sooner or later someone would call…I never pushed it, but it came to me.”
A handful of talented animators bring the colorful creatures, psychedelic scenes, and even a parody of The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci to life making the documentary playful and entertaining.
The director, Makens, also combines old photographs, home movie video clips, and music from the 1960s and 1970s to tell Phillips’ story including how he and his wife, Dolly, met and raised a family in the foothills of Santa Cruz.
“A few years before we started the film, I reached out to Jim. I have this other company and I reached out to Jim for a logo,” Makens said. “I grew up as a skateboarder, and as a child I was always a huge fan of Jim’s art. Then we became friends and then a few years later, I approached him about the movie projects. I was working in the film industry for a while as well.”
Along with movie directing, Makens owns a company that sells skateboarding apparel and insoles for skaters shoes to absorb the impact of jumps and falls, called Remind Insoles.
Each stage of Phillip’s electrifying art is a feast for the eyes; Phillips narrates and reflects on the pitfalls and turning points in his life which will fascinate audiences—especially those who share an interest in skateboarding, music, and art.
The musician Neil Young, the talented skater Steve Alba, professional skateboarder, musician and entrepreneur Chad Muska also appear in the ‘Art and Life’ commenting on their connections to Phillips.
Life in Santa Cruz has changed a bit, Phillips said, but he and Dolly have been married for 36 years, and live near their family.
“It’s nothing like the town I grew up in, but we’re kind of away from all that in the foothills here. We’re a mile from my son and his family, Jimbo Phillips, and two grandchildren, Chastity and Kobe,” Phillips said. “Jimbo’s taking up the torch…I’m really proud of him.”
For the past 12 years, Phillips has battled cancer, however recently he has made a great breakthrough.
“I’ve been cured of cancer. I had cancer for 12 years. I was going to chemotherapy for 12 years, and I took experimental drugs at the University of San Francisco. And it failed. Then they said, ‘Well, we have another drug. Do you want to try it?’” Phillips said. “I said yeah, you know, otherwise I’m at the end of my road, and it worked. It’s amazing. It worked fast, and now I’m cancer free.”
Phillips praised Makens and the careful process he used to create this impactful documentary; he said he had a good time throughout the 12 years.
“I have always had a good time with John and his crew. They came up one time and camped in my yard for two weeks. I showed him everything, all my friends, business associates, and just had a good time. He’s very meticulous, and that’s why it took 12 years because he went over it with a fine tooth comb over and over.”
Makens admitted that he was pleased that the film is completed and showing around the country.
“There’s a lot of time spent just preparing everything, digitizing, uploading everything for the movie quality, and then also the animations all took like a ton of time,” Makens said.
