Mike Frankel began taking photographs of rock bands in 1964, shooting The Beatles on their first tour of the USA. After that he bore witness to some of the most famous moments in the history of rock and roll in venues like The Fillmore, Winterland, and WOODSTOCK. His work with Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna in the late 1960’s, allowed him to photograph virtually all of the major artists of the era including Eric Clapton, Pink Floyd, Jeff Beck, Led Zeppelin, Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young, The Who, The Grateful Dead, Alice Cooper, Joe Cocker, Frank Zappa, David Bowie and countless others in a totally original art style partially inspired by the work of Marcel Duchamp, Man Ray, the Rayonist and Futurist art movements, and the photographer Weegee.
In 1970, the first HOT TUNA LP was released with the cover and interior photographs done by Frankel, followed in 1971 by his work appearing in the gate-fold interior of the second HOT TUNA LP. His live concert photographs were featured in the Box Sets “Jefferson Airplane Loves You” and “Hot Tuna in a Can” and numerous covers and interiors of original and reissue Jefferson Airplane CD’s. Over the decades Frankel has also done work for Emerson, Lake, and Palmer, Humble Pie, and an exclusive photograph of Alice Cooper can be found in over 500 rooms at the Lake Tahoe Hard Rock Hotel. His work has also appeared internationally in books, magazines and T-Shirts. Frankel’s work is in many private collections and has been shown at galleries worldwide, including The Robert Berman Gallery in Santa Monica California, The Psychedelic Solution in New York City, The Beat Museum in San Francisco, and the Ace Gallery in London. After retiring from the Rock scene, Frankel began pioneer work in the field of the artistic and commercial application of lasers and holography including creating and marketing the first Marvel Superhero Holograms in the 1970’s and the first use of abstract laser images orchestrated to original music. He has worked in Collage and Assemblage for decades using elements of Steampunk long before the movement even had a name.
Mike Frankel continues to experiment and try to stretch the limits of photography, multimedia, and push the limits of his creativity. In 2013, he co-created an interactive sculpture, inspired by Mars and the Hubbell Space telescope, and installed at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff. Frankel, with his partner, filmmaker DARREN RUDY, is currently working on the first feature length film documentary on the life and work of the filmmaker Fritz Lang, a project he first envisioned over 30 years ago. “FRITZ LANG: CINEMATIC ORACLE” is in the early stages of production and more information about the project can be had at fritz-lang-cinematic-oracle.com.
Mike Frankel lives in Flagstaff Arizona with his cats, Mira, Max, and Madeline, is frequently seen with stunning blonde companion and partner, Kathleen Leatherwood, and has been the President and/or Executive Director of the ARTISTS’ COALITION OF FLAGSTAFF, the largest non-profit art group in Northern Arizona, for over 15 years.
Mike Frankel can be reached for high quality, archival, limited editions of all his work at (928) 522-6969 or mike@mikefrankel.com