Phi (digital artist)

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Phi (digital artist)

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Born|  (1955-05-04) May 4, 1955 (age 70)

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Nationality| American
Occupation| Digital Artist

PHI (born Paul Donald Roberts on May 4, 1955) is an American Digital Artist known for creating modern color art with photographs using digital applications.

## Contents

* 1 Early life
* 2 Career
* 2.1 Punk rock era
* 2.2 Transition to digital art
* 2.3 MODA Hollywood
* 3 Recent work
* 4 Name changes
* 5 References
* 6 External links

### Early life[edit]

Paul Roberts was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Richard J. Roberts and Barbara Keltz. He has five siblings. The family moved frequently, living in Indianapolis, Huntington, Kansas City, and Fort Lauderdale. Roberts attended the University of Wisconsin for one year before transferring to UCLA in 1975.

### Career[edit]

#### Punk rock era[edit]

In 1977, Paul met Rick Wilder,[1] singer of "The Berlin Brats[2]". Paul became manager of Rick's new band "The Mau Maus[1]". They shared rehearsal space with The Go-Gos[3] at "The Masque" in Hollywood. The Mau Maus were Los Angeles's Sex Pistols. The Punk movement was exciting but not widely accepted. Paul became a publisher, promoter, producer, manager, and writer. Paul and Rick started a Youth Party collective to promote punk bands and events. They published Youth Party Magazine, introducing the Paul Picasso alias as publisher. Paul found venues for punk performances in Hollywood, promoting shows at Kings Palace, The Grandia Room,[4][5][6] and Leonardo's Ballroom. In 1980, he opened "WAR", a punk store, which closed after a month due to neighbors' petition. In 1983, Paul co-produced Mau Maus songs with Robby Krieger[7] of THE DOORS.[8] After The Masque's closure in 1978, Paul suggested private parties to owner Brendan Mullen.[9][10][11] The Masque closed permanently after a Youth Party event in 1979. By 1980, The Mau Maus changed lineup, and the punk scene shifted. Orange County's adoption of skinhead culture brought violence. Paul entered the Film Business in 1980, working various entertainment jobs until 2000. Paul contributed significantly with art and design to the book 'Live at the Masque - Nightmare in Punk Alley' by Brendan Mullen andRoger Gatsman.

#### Transition to digital art[edit]

Roberts began exploring digital art in 1995. He enrolled in a computer graphics program at UCLA Extension and developed a style of randomly altering colors in photographs. In 2010, he organized his first digital art exhibit, "Shooting Stars", at the Hollywood Cabaret.

#### MODA Hollywood[edit]

Paul established "MODA Hollywood" (Museum Of Digital Art) in 2013 as a gallery and creative space. He organized events called "Artys" and projected art on backlit screens. MODA operated until June 2016.

### Recent work[edit]

Roberts has been cataloging his digital photographs and developing a system to sell digital art files. He has worked on a West Hollywood Public Access show called Tequila TV[12] and plans to create a public art project featuring an oversized digital billboard.

### Name changes[edit]

* 1977: Adopted the pseudonym "Paul Picasso"
* 2012: Added "Hollywood" to his name
* 2023: Changed name to "PHI", derived from the Greek letter φ and an acronym of Paul, Picasso, and Hollywood

## References[edit]

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "You searched for Rick Wilder". The Mau Maus. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
2. ↑ "BERLIN Brats". www.berlinbrats.org. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
3. ↑ "The Go-Go's – The most successful all female rock band of all time!". Retrieved 2024-09-04.
4. ↑ Dosti, Rose (1989-03-16). "At Grandia, Dinner Is Worth the Wait". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
5. ↑ Leonard, Gary, Grandia Room Restaurant, retrieved 2024-09-05
6. ↑ Dosti, Rose (1986-08-21). "A Greek Revival on Melrose That Would Please the Gods". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
7. ↑ "Robby Krieger of The Doors | Robby Krieger of The Doors". robbykrieger.com. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
8. ↑ "The Doors – Official Website Of The Doors". thedoors.com. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
9. ↑ Flea (2009-10-14). "Brendan Mullen". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
10. ↑ Savage, Jon (2009-11-02). "Brendan Mullen obituary". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
11. ↑ "Brendan Mullen, Club Promoter, Author, Musician, and Visionary Bids Us Adieu". LAist. 2009-10-13. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
12. ↑ "TEQUILA TV". YouTube. Retrieved 2024-09-05.

## External links[edit]

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