Bye-bye Dolly, hello, Internet!
A friend had extra tickets to see Dolly Parton tonight at the Hollywood Bowl, and I had to decline, too caught up in last minute fixes and posts for steffienelson.com, which is LIVE as of this evening! That’s right, working 9-5 and then some… I have to say, this picture of Dolly and Mick from... More
My kind of rock stars
“Other bands wanted to wreck hotel rooms. Roxy Music wanted to redecorate them.” — Bryan Ferry... More
Zoe Crosher: On the Edge
Artist Zoe Crosher and I bonded over our obsession with the mythology of Los Angeles, something we both explore in our work. Last Friday I went to the opening of her latest show, a selection from her LA-Like series called “Transgressing the Pacific, which asks what comes after the West? This group of large-scale photographs,... More
Happy Mermaid Parade, New York!
Today my heart is in Coney Island. I hope my New York peeps have been enjoying gorgeous summer weather for this year’s Mermaid Parade, the best event of the year in all of New York City! Wish I could be at Ruby’s on the boardwalk, toasting you all with a cold one!... More
Authenticity Before Glamour
W hen Ann Roth was designing the costumes for 1975’s “The Day of the Locust,” set in the late 1930s, her commitment to historical accuracy made her an anomaly. “Hollywood made dream costumes” then, says Roth, now 79. “They didn’t do what I do.” Today the industry has caught up with Roth, and this year... More
Brian Butler’s Magick Act
For the Los Angeles artist Brian Butler, magic (or “magick,” as the case may be) is as modern as technology. Certain teachings may be ancient, he notes, but that doesn’t make them any less relevant. “In the modern world of computers, the same energies are still operating,” he says.Butler was premiering his film, “The Dove... More
Gregory Parkinson’s Winning Style
In 2008, at the peak of the financial crisis and with the disappointing sales figures of his last collection hanging over him, Los Angeles-based fashion designer Gregory Parkinson went for broke, using rare fabrics from his archive to create his most spectacular collection to date. Presented in actress Shiva Rose’s garden one spring afternoon, the... More
The Untrained Eye
In 1951, Charles Brittin, a mailman and amateur photographer, moved to Venice, Calif., and began to photograph his surroundings: the desolate streets and misty midways, the oil derricks erected by the beach and the vibrant Beat community, with the artist Wallace Berman at its core, that gathered regularly at Brittin’s apartment for impromptu parties. He... More
Shareen Mitchell’s Rags to Riches Tale
Anyone who has set foot in Shareen Vintage, a vast downtown warehouse space lined with endless racks of sparkly cocktail frocks, gauzy, ankle-grazing hippie robes and everything in between, will hardly be surprised to learn that the shop’s owner, Shareen Mitchell, is starring in a new reality show, “Dresscue Me,” premiering Tuesday on Discovery’s Planet... More
Just Don’t Call Them Communes
Today we’ve got reality TV stars and struggling actors in superhero costumes, but in the early ‘70s even stranger, more exotic creatures roamed the boulevards of Hollywood: the 100+ members of The Source Family, a spiritual commune led by a man named Father Yod, that made its home in a mansion in the Hills. Dressed... More
L.A.’s Art Scene Goes Hollywood
In the week leading up to the Oscars, when lavish parties are as common as movie pitches, some of this year’s most coveted invitations are being extended not by film studios but L.A.’s museums and galleries. In fact, one could skip the industry shindigs altogether and still hang with some of Hollywood’s biggest power players.... More
Honoring Photographer Douglas Kirkland
This week, photographer Douglas Kirkland will receive the American Society of Cinematographers’ highest honor, the Presidents Award. In the 25 years that the ASC has been honoring outstanding contributions to the art form at its annual ceremony, it’s the first time the award is being given to a still photographer. “I still haven’t quite recovered... More