In March 1966, years before Banksy was born, but THE year Star Trek was born, Olsen created the new concept of Street Art when he staged his “Stop Art” protest atop one of San Francisco's steepest hills. The world's media took notice; the wire services sent the Chronicle front-page photo around the world and a new art movement was born. Olsen immediately followed this with painting fire hydrants psychedelic colors after midnight, and performing his popular "Pop Art" explosion paintings on Gypsy Rose Lee's TV show.
alt="Brief description of the image"“STOP ART” WAS JUST THE BEGINNING
Sixty years later, Olsen is revealing how 'Stop Art' opened doors spanning six decades of music, film, literature, and famous images that has now come full circle. He was there, IN the 60's Haight/Ashbury with Funky Features, IN the 70's British rock scene, AT the launch of Robin Trower's solo rock career designing his first seven album covers earning Olsen 4 Gold and 1 Platinum Record, IN the depths of the first Star Trek movie, giving the Starship Enterprise her famous pearlescent "Aztec" surface (a word he coined), also designing special effects for that film--- and documenting it all through his five books.
alt="Brief description of the image"Light My Fire ---described as the best-selling poster in history
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When Olsen finished Trower's In City Dreams cover in 1977, he immediately created another possible album concept for Robin in the future that he kept in his archives.
Trower's unique album covers would unexpectedly lead to THE most extraordinary phone call Olsen ever received: "Paul, it's Ed, how would you like to paint the Starship Enterprise for the first Star Trek movie?"
"Paul gave the Queen of the Galaxy a pearlescent ball gown to knock the spots off anything in the galaxy!"---Nichelle Nichols.
alt="Brief description of the image"In creating some of Star Trek's V'Ger
entrance effects for Douglas Trumbull, Olsen developed his own "painting with light" system that enabled him to create The Abyss and Terminator 2 Judgment Day main titles for James Cameron, and blockbuster titles for Ridley Scott, Francis Ford Coppola, Philip Noyce, George Lucas, Universal Studios, Cannon films and many others, eight years before computers could replicate his technique.
alt="Brief description of the image"TWO REMARKABLE CIRCLES COMPLETE SIXTY YEARS LATER...
In this Star Trek's 60th anniversary year---and 60 years after 'Stop Art,' Robin Trower has chosen that same "future" album design Olsen created in 1977--out of eight presented to him--for Robin Trower Live in Chicago 1977, being released next year--- completing another extraordinary circle.
alt="Brief description of the image"Robin is uncanny that way.
But the Star Trek circle doesn't stop there, Olsen's journey with the Enterprise has continued. After meeting Nichelle Nichols in 2014, together they developed Project Enterprise to recreate the original Starship Enterprise which will be discussed with Paramount this year, who now own Star Trek IP. The rebuild by the original team will be a major Star Trek event with full video coverage and interviews during the build....and dedicated to Nichelle.
alt="Brief description of the image"Olsen's 5 books document his journey:
The Book of Haight (title by Gary Brooker)
Swinging London Rocks
The Film Biz
Creating the Enterprise
Gauze on 51! (title by Rod Stewart & Kenney Jones)
Plus The Book of Love, three children's books, and his work-in-progress, Nichelle
Olsen's current projects include Dormouse--that Hasbro said "would eclipse Monopoly."
https://relivemagictimes.com
alt="Brief description of the image"Paul Olsen is available for interview in-person or online. Paul Olsen 07392467126 [email protected] or American contact: Matt Ridge, [email protected] (510) 600-2614
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Additional Contact(s):
American contact: Matt Ridge, [email protected] (510) 600-2614