Neon Park
Encyclopedia
Neon Park was an American
artist
and illustrator
, best known for the images that have strongly defined covers for nearly every Little Feat
album
except for the band's self-titled first album. He also created the cover of Weasels Ripped My Flesh
for Frank Zappa
, as well as covers and graphics for David Bowie
, Dr. John
, and the Beach Boys. Illustrations for Playboy
, National Lampoon, Glass Eye, and Dreamworks
are also among his claims to fame.
Neon met his second wife, filmmaker and painter Chick Strand
, during the early sixties Berkeley
scene. They were collaborators in art
and life for over 30 years, dividing their time between Los Angeles
and a small town in Mexico
, an influence seen in his later works.
In 1983, Neon began to notice numbness in his hands. His physical condition worsened over several years. After many tests and operations, he was diagnosed in 1992 with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
(ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. His response to the doctor who told him he had the disease was, "I never even played baseball." ALS is a degenerative disease with no treatment available, and doctors estimated a two year survival time. He continued to work, but as his illness advanced he could no longer paint, so he concentrated on writing poetry, typing with one finger when he could no longer hold a pen.
He died in 1993. Neon is survived by his daughter from his first marriage to Judith Muller. His daughter, Maya Muller, owns a graphic design studio in Vancouver, Washington
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
and illustrator
Illustrator
An Illustrator is a narrative artist who specializes in enhancing writing by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text...
, best known for the images that have strongly defined covers for nearly every Little Feat
Little Feat
Little Feat is an American rock band formed by singer-songwriter, lead vocalist and guitarist Lowell George and keyboardist Bill Payne in 1969 in Los Angeles....
album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
except for the band's self-titled first album. He also created the cover of Weasels Ripped My Flesh
Weasels Ripped My Flesh
Weasels Ripped My Flesh is an album by Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention, released in 1970.Given Zappa's already stated penchant for expressing his music in "phases"—We're Only in It for the Money was written up as "phase one of Lumpy Gravy"—conceptually, Zappa fans occasionally label this...
for Frank Zappa
Frank Zappa
Frank Vincent Zappa was an American composer, singer-songwriter, electric guitarist, record producer and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa wrote rock, jazz, orchestral and musique concrète works. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed...
, as well as covers and graphics for David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
, Dr. John
Dr. John
Malcolm John "Mac" Rebennack, Jr. , better known by the stage name Dr. John , is an American singer-songwriter, pianist and guitarist, whose music combines blues, pop, jazz as well as Zydeco, boogie woogie and rock and roll.Active as a session musician since the late 1950s, he came to wider...
, and the Beach Boys. Illustrations for Playboy
Playboy
Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...
, National Lampoon, Glass Eye, and Dreamworks
DreamWorks
DreamWorks Pictures, also known as DreamWorks, LLC, DreamWorks SKG, DreamWorks II Distribution Co., LLC, DreamWorks Studios or DW Studios, LLC, is an American film studio which develops, produces, and distributes films, video games and television programming...
are also among his claims to fame.
Neon met his second wife, filmmaker and painter Chick Strand
Chick Strand
Chick Strand was an experimental filmmaker, "a pioneer in blending avant-garde techniques with documentary".-Life:...
, during the early sixties Berkeley
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
scene. They were collaborators in art
Art
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
and life for over 30 years, dividing their time between Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
and a small town in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, an influence seen in his later works.
In 1983, Neon began to notice numbness in his hands. His physical condition worsened over several years. After many tests and operations, he was diagnosed in 1992 with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis , also referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease, is a form of motor neuron disease caused by the degeneration of upper and lower neurons, located in the ventral horn of the spinal cord and the cortical neurons that provide their efferent input...
(ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. His response to the doctor who told him he had the disease was, "I never even played baseball." ALS is a degenerative disease with no treatment available, and doctors estimated a two year survival time. He continued to work, but as his illness advanced he could no longer paint, so he concentrated on writing poetry, typing with one finger when he could no longer hold a pen.
He died in 1993. Neon is survived by his daughter from his first marriage to Judith Muller. His daughter, Maya Muller, owns a graphic design studio in Vancouver, Washington
Vancouver, Washington
Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington. Incorporated in 1857, it is the fourth largest city in the state with a 2010 census population of 161,791 as of April 1, 2010...
.
External links
- Neon Park at united-mutations.com
- Neon Park "Zen Voodoo" at laluzdejesus.com
- Neon Park Web Pages Since September 1995 on the web