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Ed. note: This article, by Kevin Costello, will appear in next week’s Creative Loafing. A previous version of this post incorrectly referred to San Francisco city supervisor Harvey Milk as the mayor of San Francisco. We regret the error.

In 1983, Jill Hoffman-Kowal moved to Sarasota because the San Francisco punk scene was getting in the way of her art. She never left. Her life trajectory, however, is hardly that simple.

Along with Joe Rees — a video documentarian — Hoffman-Kowal photographed some of the seminal moments of the punk rock era, with a grasp on capturing in video and print the pulse of the chaotic late ’70s and early ’80s. Partnering with Rees, she established Target Video, whose mission was to chronicle those early raw days of punk rock. These performance tapes lie in a vault somewhere in California, no doubt bound one day for the Smithsonian.

Since settling in Sarasota, Hoffman-Kowl has pursued everything from photorealist paintings and drawings to found-object collages made from twigs and bird feathers. These latter objects will be on display at State of the Arts Gallery starting next week, as part of Eco Chic.

Hoffman-Kowal’s journey from punk impresario — dancing to the sound of stacked speakers, surrounded by brilliant crazies powered by sacramental drugs and booze — to an intensely personal woman at peace with herself and her art in a bamboo garden sounds drastic. CL wanted to know more.

CL: Tell me about your work photographing Punk in the ’70s.

JH-K: I was in the habit of carrying my Pentax, then my Nikon, everywhere I went. I took slides with Tri-X B/W. I took slides through my first trip to Europe which was a five-month sojourn of cross-country and western Europe. We went to Dokumenta and the Biennial in Bologna, Italy. I first heard conceptual performance artist Laurie Anderson there.  She played a white violin with audiotape on the bow and an audio head attached to the violin. Brilliant. Anyway, we went from Amsterdam to Positano, Italy, in 1974. I photographed conceptual and performance art pieces, Terry Fox and events at LaMamelle or Site which were alternative art spaces in San Francisco. The Sex Pistols were my first punk band to photograph.

CL: What are the circumstances for you taking shots of the Sex Pistols?

JH-K: Joe and I were somehow lucky to get into that historic show, which turned out to be their final performance. We were in the balcony and Joe snuck his 8mm film camera in and I had my Nikon, no flash, but a telephoto lens. I took two rolls that night.

CL: What Kind of person was Johnny Rotten?

JH-K: I was his tour guide in NYC while working for Richard Branson’s Virgin Records. No one else wanted that job, but I sure did. I was so impressed with his work. He was cute, articulate, smart, spoiled. He was easy to please and liked all the lowlife clubs I took him to.

CL: What is the lasting influence of punk music?

JH-K: The lasting influence of punk is mostly fashion. But it cannot be duplicated since it was all do-it-yourself, doing everything from writing the songs, making clothes … recording. The effort and creativity didn’t carry on as strong as the fashion did. In fact, you can now buy punk rock clothes at Kmart.

CL: Tell me about the importance of Target Video in your life?

JH-K: Target Video had foresight. It was such a unique, energized, creative movement that was freeing and fun. It was also a reaction to the times, making it a very relevant movement. We had a weekly cable TV show taped on reel-to-reel b/w tape, way before MTV. I was on the cutting edge of technology and could use my skills, talents, and made a lot of stuff happen, like getting Iggy Pop to sign a contract. 

Punk is not about skinheads; that morphed out of it. That is the negative influence of punk. punk also emerged in SF during an upheaval from the assassination of gay city supervisor Harvey Milk, the Jonestown massacre, and the abduction of newspaper heiress Patty Hearst. Keep in mind that Jim Jones had a temple in SF.

CL: What will Joe Rees be remembered for?

JH-K: Joe will be remembered for his foresight, for his having that huge warehouse loft hosting after-hour parties, shooting bands and making the largest punk rock video library in the world. It was sort of the Warhol Factory of the punk scene in San Francisco.

CL: Tell me about your present work for Eco Chic.

JH-K: Eco-Chic at SotA is about ecological sensitivity. I was working in my yard, and I’m always amazed by my environment. I appreciate all the bamboo growing and the shoots that fall. So, I had a vision and experimented with using nature as my medium but sticking to my conceptual philosophy and grid style.

CL: From punk videos to Eco Chic is quite a transition; what do think when you reflect on that?

JH-K: It all makes sense. It is about individuality, being turned on, unafraid, and keeping with your beliefs. Wanting to stand out, be unique or at least be yourself. Use whatever you can to be creative. … If you can only use the leaves in your yard, go ahead. If you have technological equipment or printing presses, or lots of money, use it to your creative advantage.

To see more of Hoffman-Kowal’s work, visit jillhoffman.net.

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