Visual artists and art is what has always drawn me into the metal scene, there are chances taken in that aren’t taken anywhere else, kind of like the porno industry except that this refers to lyrical content, as much as it does refer to video content and artistry. It’s that really artistic fucked up video you watched and that stays stuck in your head and keep’s you coming back to that artist to see if they will “push the envelope , watch it bend” as Maynard so immortalized in TOOL’s Lateralus. I can say in all honesty that this is certainly how I felt and still feel when it comes to the work of artist Chet Zar. In my professional opinion, artists are inspired by music and vice versa, both art forms nowadays fuse and mix mediums to add these multidimensional layers to the end product.

For a lot of metal heads and prog rock music fans when you mention the band name TOOL there are likely to be lots of responses, but mention the name of someone involved in the making of the video or artwork behind the album and you’re likely only to recognize the name in the liner notes of the album. This is why artists like Chet Zar are so important to know about since they are the meeting ground of where paintbrush meets the music sheet.

Before we get into the interview some quick Bio info:

• Chet was born Nov 12th 1967 in San Pedro, California.
• His interest in the “darker” aspects of art began as a young child, described as a “natural fascination with all things strange fostered within himself a deep connection to horror movies and dark imagery.”
• After years of being unimpressed with politics in the film industry, Chet took the advice of horror author Clive Barker, and decided to pursue his passion of producing original works and oil-painting.
• His interest in art and horror movies led to a career in the motion-picture industry.
• His contributions to the industry have been in the form of sculpture and make-up effects. Chet has designed and created prosthetic effects for movies such as The Ring, Planet of the Apes, Hellboy 1 and 2 and Darkman.

So without any further waiting here is my interview with Chet Zar!

Your artwork tends to treat darker scenes and images, what about the darker side of life inspires you?

I have always been interested in dark things or weird things, even when I was a little kid. I was very shy and shyness is a form of fear so perhaps art was a creative way for me to come to terms with that fear. Once I drew the monsters I felt I had some kind of control over them. And they were no longer scary to me. Then they became cool.

As an adult I see so much darkness in the world around me that I can’t see painting anything else. I think one of the purposes of art is to hold a mirror up to society. Honestly, I don’t understand how all art isn’t dark these days.

How has having a stepfather like James Zar influenced your work?

It was great. Just growing up around a working art studio had a huge impression on me. I think I picked up a lot through osmosis. Also, he is a super cool guy and his positive attitude had a big influence on my life in general.

How much of your art is created based on your love of horror movies?

Horror movies are just one of the things that influenced me as a kid and helped me develop a sense of identity. I think I really related to the feelings of fear and watching that in films was a safe way to experience it. So while my art is not specifically based on horror films, the feelings and symbolism of horror films, even bad ones, resonates with me still and that aesthetic finds its way into every painting I do.

Are you autodidactic? Or did you take art classes?

I’m pretty much self-taught other than some High School art classes and a few community college life drawing classes. I took a colored pencil class once also.

I’m sure you get asked this question regularly and if I wasn’t such a fan I’d never ask it for fear of sounding like some redundant journalist, but what was it like working with TOOL?

It’s always challenging and creatively super fun. Adam and I click really well creatively and when we get into a room together and start throwing ideas around, it’s always a blast. It’s also nice knowing you are working on a project that will be good, which is something I can’t say about a lot of the films I have worked on. And the TOOL videos are always great.

How did you guys meet? And who did you meet first?

I met Adam (Jones)in a Makeup Effects studio. We were both working in the FX industry at the time and the two of us hit it off really well. We even jammed together a couple of times! He was very into starting a band. He went off to another shop and a bit after that went on to form TOOL. We kind of lost touch until he was shooting the Stinkfist video. He called me up to help out on some last minute effects (the back tumor gag at the end of the video as well as some body painting on set) and we have worked together ever since.

Your blog says you like to paint monsters, have you painted something so scary that you were even creeped out by it? Or the opposite have you painted something more light in content?

No. I know my paintings are creepy and I strive for that, but they don’t actually creep me out or scare me in the slightest bit. My sensibilities are so warped at this point in my life that I just see them as beautiful and cool. I have painted a few ‘normal’ pieces, specifically one of my dog sleeping. But, generally speaking, ‘normal’ things don’t really inspire me to paint so I don’t do them too often. Painting to me is all about having fun and if it’s not fun, I tend not to do it.

What has been your favorite series that you’ve created to date? I know that this is a tough question to ask any artist using any medium, but every painter I’ve met has always had a period or series that spoke to them more heavily.

Yeah, that’s a hard one to choose. Paintings are like your kids, you can find something to love about each one, even the bad ones! My show “We Are The Shadows” comes to mind as well as the “Lilith” show. But I love em all!

In an interview I read you talk about only painting the number 5, and this is due to a psychedelic experience you had as a young man – was this on acid or mushrooms? They say that 5 suggests that you entered this plane with a highly progressive mindset, with the attitude and skills to make the world a better place. Is this true to who you are as an artist and a person?

Both! It was a period of great spiritual growth for me. I never took drugs to party. I like to say that I took them for all the right reasons- spiritual insight. In fact, I never took any drugs, alcohol or even cigarettes until I was 18 years old. That was because I had long hair and everybody assumes I was a stoner in school, so I vowed to prove them wrong. Once I hit 18 I though, OK, I’ve proven it to myself. I had been reading a lot about the spiritual aspect of psychedelics through the books of Carlos Casteneda and others, so I was really hot to try them out for myself.

Funny that you say that about the meaning of the number 5 because that was basically the message of my trips – be good and do your best to make the world a better place. After that period I got a triangle with the number 5 in it tattooed on my shoulder (you can see it in a painting of mine called “Shamanic Tendencies”) so that I would never forget. It was really a magical time for me.

Has the instructional DVD come out yet?

I did a Photoshop DVD for the The Gnomon Workshop. They do lots of tutorial DVD’s from a ton of great artists. I haven’t done a painting DVD yet although I hope to in the next year or two.

As a parent are your kids artistically inclined? As a future father myself I’m curious to know what you’ve done to let their creativity run free.

I have two kids but neither of them are visual artists. My younger son is a really excellent drummer, though. He is obsessed with the drums the way I am with painting. They both had some natural drawing ability at an early age and I tried to encourage it with them but it never really took. I don’t think it makes sense to push things onto kids that they are not into, so I never made an issue of it. The life of an artist is not an easy one so the only people who should pursue it as a career are the ones that have a real passion for it.

What projects are you currently working on?

I just finished some miniature paintings for my last solo show of the year called “Le Petite Mort” at Stranger Factory gallery in Albuquerque, NM. I needed to take time of from the solo shows. I have been doing 2-3 a year for quite a few years now, and last year nearly killed me! So I decided to clear my schedule for the rest of the year to focus on some projects I have really been wanting to do but have not have the time for. One is a comic book series I am working with based on my Black Magick character from one of my paintings. In fact, most of the characters in the comic will be based on characters from my paintings. I am working on this with Steve Niles (30 Days of Night) on it and I am really excited about it.

When you come home after a hard day, how do you like to unwind?

You know, my studio is in my home and all I ever really do is work. My work is fully integrated into my life so I don’t really do much else. I enjoy working. I feel antsy and weird if I am not creating something. But I’m a homebody anyway. It’s weird because I used to paint to unwind but now it’s my job. So in a sense I get to unwind most of the time!

In an interview you said you liked rediscovering older music you grew up to. Is there anything now that is an ear worm for you?

Probably the newest thing I have gotten into a bit is Mastadon (even though they aren’t new). As far as older music, which I mostly listen to, I have been rediscovering Devo again. They were geniuses with an important message about de evolution that turned out to be true.

Have you collaborated with bands other than TOOL? Are there any you’d like to collaborate with?

I did an album cover for a couple of friends band’s that I really like. One is an LA band called Ninja Academy. They are mainly just bass and drums with no vocals but damn, they are amazing players. Phenomenal. The other is a band from the UK that I met at a tattoo convention called Frowser. They are a great bunch of guys and I love their music.

As far as bands I would like to work with? Nomeansno.

I have a few random questions that I’m curious about, you’re free to not answer them if you wish but this is something new I’m adding to my interviews since everyone these days seems to be talking about sex, porn and celebrity sex tapes. What’s your take on Porn?

I think most of it is creepy and kind of gross. Modern porn is too graphic for me and usually not very erotic. I think it’s kind of twisting kid’s perception of sexuality a bit. They grow up seeing weird shit on the internet, people pissing on each other, spitting in each other’s faces, men choking women – it’s kind of like the last days of the Roman empire! But I think it’s the result of repressed sexuality. America has never had a healthy relationship to sex, which is just idiotic since it’s the reason any of us are here on this planet. It manifests in strange ways. And what’s up with all the cum shots? Why would I want to see another man’s semen? I don’t understand it.

Do you remember what the first adult movie you watched was? You can say no, by I’m likely to not believe you! (laughs)

I do, actually. It was quite disturbing. There were some older kids down the block and I was just a little kid – maybe 8 or 9? They thought it would be funny to show me this porno movie. This was in the early/mid 70’s when videotapes weren’t even the mainstream. They were playing it on a Super 8 movie projector projected onto the wall of one of these kids’ filthy bedrooms. It was dark, there was junk all over the room and this movie playing of these two ugly 70’s people fucking, the kids were laughing and I was just like, “…umm, this feels weird to me.” So I just left!

Chet thanks so much for this interview and for your time! I hope to be able to buy a piece of your work soon.

Check out his work on his website http://www.chetzar.com

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