Underground Art Union associate Kenneth Boe recently had the opportunity to pick the mind of Chet Zar— native Californian artist—who with his beautifully macabre character portraits has gained the loyalty of legions of art lovers.

What some may view as dark, grotesque, and alien, others may take for a reflection of one's innerself, a glimpse into the human condition. Chet's paintings capture this essence of human nature in all it's glory.

—UGAU

Chet Zar: Totally Committed
by Ken Boe

Ken Boe: You title your DVD "Disturb The Normal", a title I happen to like, as I do a number of your titles to actual paintings. Disturb The Normal seems to me to be an active philosophy of art in itself, especially as cliche and idiom define so much of what we see in the modern world; a constant regurgitation of the familiar. Do you have any ideas you could share with us about that?

Chet Zar: I think titles are really important. Sometimes it makes the difference between a good piece and a so-so piece. I have a lot of fun coming up with them. I often come up with titles from hearing things on the radio or TV or something, or overhearing people talk.

That was how "Disturb the Normal" came about. I was working at Warner Brothers animation doing designs for some ridiculous movie that got shelved. Anyway, I overheard a computer animator discussing ways to get a certain effect they were looking for. He was describing the technical process to another computer guy, and he said, "...you take your polygons and apply this blah blah operation to it blah blah and then you disturb the normal." You see, a 'normal' is a vector that is perpendicular to a surface. it's a very technical computer animation term, probably derived from physics or mathematics or some other scientific thing that most people don't understand. But when I heard that—it just hit me! It was perfect—a cryptic computer term that also sounded like what I am trying to do with my artwork, and specifically so at the time—with the computer animation on my DVD.

I like my artwork to shake people up, maybe make them see things in a different way. The average person seems so numb and zombified, art is like waving your hands in their face and saying, "Hey! wake up!" It's like Jello Biafra said, "When people are asleep, we must all become alarm clocks." Art, punk rock and other underground counter culture stuff is all about that philosophy—stirring things up, disturbing the status quo, etc. On the surface it seems simply like shock value, but I think it goes much deeper. Like in Zen philosophy, you know, "What is the sound of one hand clapping?" Those Zen koans were designed to short circuit the rational mind, to utterly confuse the brain to the point where it can't really think about something, to still the mind for at least a moment—it's only when the inner noise stops that true understanding and real change can occur.

KB: You have done a lot of work with the band Tool, a collaboration which I am sure you are often asked about. I often listen to music when I work, and I was wondering if particular lyrics, sound energies, or particular songs ever help drive your work? Do you ever put a particular track on repeat and listen to it for the entire duration of making a painting?

CZ: If I am doing something for a specific song I will play the song to try and get a feel for what I am doing. But there is not really any specific song or music that inspires me over and over again. It depends what I am into at the time. But I do like to have music on when I create. It really inspires me a lot.

I have a TV next to my easel and I sometimes throw movies on as well. With the kind of crazy stuff I do, I find that having something going on in the background kind of helps distract me from over-thinking what I am doing. It's all about following my intuition, and I try to use whatever tools i can to put me in touch with that. Music is a big one.

KB: Though up front your paintings appear representational in what may be called a surrealist mode, skin and surface textures become so involved and imaginatively adventurous that other genre's seem to take place there, opening up new symbolisms, abstractions, and possibilities.

Could you share with us some of your ideas about surface, or the window of surface, and what it means to you?

CZ: Well, on a technical level, I have a lot of experience with skin textures and skin tones from my years in makeup effects. It has definitely made an imprint on my mind, how to make things appear translucent, etc. I talk a lot of crap about my years working on films I actually did learn a lot from it. In my paintings, I like to play with patterns and wrinkles on the surface of the skin or even the landscape.

It's fun because I can let go and get really creative—and it does add another layer of mystery to a piece. It's the part of the painting where i can take more of an abstract approach.

I have always been detail oriented when it comes too art. As a matter of fact, in my painting and sculpting as well, I had to discipline myself to not move into the detail stage too early.

KB: There appears to be a great concern with suffering in your work. Though the figurative elements are usually "alien", they are heavily personified, making them still about the human experience. What are some of your thoughts about portraying the human experience, and earthly emotion, in what only appears to be either alien or object?

CZ: I think it is interesting to use monsters or aliens as representations of people because I think that is how we often feel in the backs of our minds; ugly, different and alienated from each other. I feel that's why the work has an audience. People can relate to it in that way. Everybody feels that way at some time or another.

Another reason I use these strange creatures to represent ourselves is because I think that life is so utterly bizarre. We have become accustomed to it in our everyday life—but if you take a moment to step outside of yourself and look at how strange everything is, it's kinda scary. I am not just talking about the weirdness or chaos of modern life (serial killers, reality shows, ultra dumb leaders), just the idea of how we reproduce, that people have sex and then this thing grows in the body and the woman gives birth in a bloody and messy way—it's just too weird, like something from a sci-fi movie.

Dreams are another crazy thing that we take for granted. How crazy is it that our minds reorganize our thoughts and experiences into new, mental thoughts and experiences while we sleep? And all of life is so much like that—just plain strange.

KB: Your path as a painter has taken you into both the movie and music performance business, as well as other areas. What is your advice to other painters. Should they specialize on their painting, or should they embrace many mediums and media? And where do you get the time to do that?

CZ: I think it depends on the artist. I have always dabbled in lots of different areas. It was a conscious decision on my part to focus on painting.

I have a tendency to be too scattered in different interests, but I think it is good to get as much experience in as many areas as possible when you are young.

There does eventually come a time where you have to pick one area and focus on it if you want to get serious about it. You get the time by making the time. You have to allow yourself to become immersed in it. You need to be committed to it.

I don't have much of a social life outside of my home and studio. Painting is what I do for fun and it is pretty much all I do these days apart from going to art shows. If you decide to be an artist, it's a heavy commitment. But if you are truly an artist then you really don't have a choice.

—KB

"Chet's art is beautiful & scary. His style has a modern twist crashing into a classical approach. I think Chet is a master painter on his way to making a great mark in our little world. Wanna do something smart with your money? Invest in a Chet Zar painting." — Adam Jones (TOOL)

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Article by Kenneth Boe. Click here for Ken's bio and contact information.