We caught up with Artica co-founder Hap Phillips at the Artica grounds on October 9, 2022. We apologize for the delay in posting but are thankful for Hap’s singular and unique take on the beginnings of Artica, the arrival several other “firsts” for the festival and his thoughts on the general vibe and spirit of the event, which he began in 2002 with Nita Turnage.
The impetus for this. Do you remember the exact, “aha” moment?
Mmm-hmm. Nita and I lived up there at 1406 North Broadway. And we would look out our window on the weekends and there’d be the Rams fans tailgating down here. Making bonfires and cooking and doing all of their Rams rituals. And they’d be all over this area, being crazy. Leaving beer cans everywhere. And this is where we’d walk our dogs every morning, from North Broadway down to the river and through all of these buildings. And we saw the Rams fans and thought, “apparently you can do whatever you want in this neighborhood. You can do anything down here, no one cares.” So one Memorial Day weekend, we invited a bunch of our friends down here and my sister gave us dozens of disposable black-and-white cameras. It was a long time ago, before digital. We gave them to all of our friends, said “just walk around and take pictures.” They walked all around, took pictures. And they came back and said, “we should probably come down and make art here.” So we said “okay, we’ll come down here and make art. Whatever you want. We’re not providing food or beverages. You gotta bring your own. We’re not cleaning up. You gotta take all your trash with you. Come down and make whatever you want.” Everybody had a lot of fun and we thought, “we oughta do this again next year.” And so we did.
So was that experience the first Artica?
‘02 was the first official one. The Regional Arts Commission said “you should apply for funding for what you’re doing after 2002. In 2003, we applied for funding and became Artica. It was a baby step to what we are now. And we always need more funding!
When did the naming of each one begin? Was that with the second year?
The first year.
The first year?
Ah, okay. And that one I understand right away. Were some of these more fun to create?
The name?
The name, yeah.
Yes. And no. ‘03 was “Axis of Humanity.” 2004 was “& Sacajawea Makes 3.” It was a play on Lewis and Clark. Nita said “fuck those guys, we’re naming this one ‘& Sacajawea Makes Three.’” And I believe that man right there made a cardboard canoe that would fit on a bicycle. {Points to passerby.} And we had a bunch of mermaid figures leading the parade. We paraded down to the Lewis and Clark statue, saying “and Sacajawea makes three!”
The burn and the parade: when did they come in?
The parade was from day one. Every year the parade starts up everything. The burn happened in 2002, no 2003. Lohr came down here before we ever knew Lohr. Came down in a golf cart from Soulard with a polo shirt on. He had a watermelon cut in half and turned into a pirate’s ship for the Boat of Dreams Parade. And he came down with his pirate ship and he said, “can I come down and burn something next year?” And we’re like “yeah, that’d be great. We might have to get a permit from the fire department, but we’re cool with it.” That was the beginning of a long, beautiful relationship with the fire department down here.
How many years did it take place twice?
One or two. Sometimes we’d do an August and a December. It was a December one – we were just talking about this up on the hill – that was one of our favorite ones. It was brutally cold, six inches of snow. It was when when Spencer Musselman was making chicken and waffles in the Cotton Belt Building. He let them run around, free-ranging in the Cotton Belt for a few months and come December you got to choose your method of slaughtering the chickens. He would clean it and make chicken and waffles. Best damned chicken and waffles I ever had.
When did the board become established and how did you go about constructing a board?
I think 2002. We started getting funding. And they said “you need to get a board.” “Okay.” It was comprised primarily of artists here and old friends. I wasn’t on the board. I don’t think I’ve ever been on the board. I’ve always been the technical director. Nita was always on the board.
Is there a year that was a cut… well, I shouldn’t say “above,” necessarily but that was completely magical in some way, shape or form?
They’re all pretty magical. 2008’s “Come Hell or High Water...” This property was sold and I was introduced to people who controlled the riverfront and under the Arch, which is actually Metro. Is it still Metro, the bus/train people? We asked if we could do an arts festival down on the levee, under the Arch and they said “oh, yeah. We’ll give you electricity. Every pole has electricity coming off of it.” A lot of the artists liked to camp out at night in their installations because they just wanted to protect them. “Oh, yeah, that’s fine. You can camp out here all weekend?” What about parking? “Well, we’ll give you free parking here all weekend.” We thought that was awesome. When we first started doing Artica down here, I always thought we should do it across from the Arch sometime. And we did and it was brutal. There was no shade, it was hot as hell. The traffic on the Poplar Street Bridge is deafening and you’re walking on cobblestones at a 45-degree angle. By the end of the week, you’ve gotta keep walking back’n’forth to straighten your ankles out. But it was great. They gave us the main stage under the Arch. Free electricity.
And then you came back here.
Because we could.
It seems like the Rams stadium concerns were there for a couple of years.
And where are they now? But Artica’s still here. Artica, 1; Rams, zero.
Awesome. The Cotton Belt Building and your relationship to that? You have extended that beyond Artica with your painting. So if you can talk about that building and how’s it’s been part of the landscape and spirit of the thing…?
When Nita and I lived just west of the Cotton Belt Building, she already knew Tim Tucker. He was on top of the Laclede Power building one day when we were walking our dogs going “come up here! Come on up here!” We got in and crawled around and climbed up and met Tim on the roof and he said “yeah, this is my building, too.” “Can we use it?” “Yeah, you can do whatever you want.” He owned everything up to Mullanphy. He was a generous supporter of Artica. Him and his partner Mark Schulte. They’ve both been totally supportive of Artica from day one. It wouldn’t have happened without their support.
I find a core of people that expect to see here every year. Then a whole bunch of new faces. I assume that that’s your experience, too, knowing that you’re going to see some people?
I am delighted that there’re so many people here. I know a lot of people have been here through the years, since year one. There’re so many people here that I have no idea who they are. But I’m so happy they’re here. Even the volunteers at the gate, it’s like “who are you and what’re you doing here?” “I thought I’d volunteer.” “Well, thank you so much for participating above and beyond the call of duty.”
And the last thing for now…
Thank you for your participation throughout the years and for the various fundraisers you’ve done. I hope you bring the crow back down.
My uniform all broke apart over the last year. It’s been moved here and there and I tore it wide open yesterday. Next year, full dress. Oh, yeah! The last thing I wanted to ask: in addition to the fest, there’ve been things like Blastoff Bang!, the Tiny Totem Parades and the like. Do you anticipate those smaller, side things coming back into being…?
I have always been pushing for more events a year. Like we did the Spring Freaquinox and the Dragonfly. The Tiny Totem Parades to the Tick Tock Tavern. They’re just as good as this! We did a Tiny Totem Parade to the Tick Tock in December in the snow. Nita and I we went up to Tower Grove that morning, there was snow and we thought “this is going to be a bust.” We’re standing there at the corner and people started coming from every direction, dragging their Tiny Totem Parade floats and we thought “this is going to be okay.” We know how to do it good. And it was good. People always surprise me, how wonderful they can be and how adventurous they can be, how bizarre they can be, how beautiful they can be. If you give ‘em a chance or a reason. During the first Freaquinox Parade on Cherokee Street, a little pop-up parade, we just posted something like “meet us on Cherokee and Texas at 7:30.” And it was just like “holy crap!” A whole lot of people came; we were pulling a giant ox down the road. And the police kept asking me “What’s going on?” “I dunno, I’m just walking down the street. I don’t know where this giant ox came from.”
That’s awesome.
It was a great event.
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Of related interest…
An essay by Nita Turnage on Artica’s first year.
An Artica Timeline and Table of Contents of other interviews.
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