This guitar was inspired by the Pantages Theater in Hollywood, California. I have been amazed by the incredible design elements of this and other Art Deco Theaters for all of my adult life. For years, I have envisioned bringing the architectural elements of those theaters inside the workings of an electric guitar… my canvas of choice.

In 2015 I was contacted by an old friend of mine who, in an effort to support my artistic career, asked if I would be interested in creating something for him and his family. He didn’t have anything in mind, but basically asked me if there was anything I had wanted to create that I hadn’t yet. Why, yes, in fact, there is! I described my idea to him, which he admitted that he had absolutely no idea what I was talking about, but it was okay with him if that’s what I wanted to do. Damn, talk about a license to create!

Over the course of seven years I worked on this creation; for the first six weaving it in between all of my other guitar commissions. During these first years, the design direction changed multiple times… always keeping the Art Deco theme in mind, but juggling how to incorporate all of the ideas I had in my head into such a small space, and to keep in mind that it still had to be a playable instrument. It became a fine balance of artistry, engineering, and fabrication. It was the most challenging and exciting project of my life thus far.

During the final year of creation, I spent 6-7 days per week, countless hours per day, working exclusively on The Pantages. This exclusively focused time was what the project needed to come to full fruition. Every tiny component affected the next, as did every decision. But it inched along until that final assembly and the first strum on August 1st, 2022.

The Pantages Art Guitar is a hand built electric guitar whose primary focus is its artistry, while still being a fully functional instrument. The body is one-piece Spanish Cedar, and the neck is Genuine Mahogany with an African Ebony fretboard. The neck’s fretboard is inlaid in a geometric Art Deco motif with Mother of Pearl and Honey Jasper Trustone, its peghead overlaid with African Ebony, recess routed with my signature and gilded in 24K Gold leaf. It is fitted with 22 Gold EVO frets and 24K Gold plated strings. Both the body and neck are finished with multiple coats of Osmo Polyx-Oil, a satin hard wax finish made in Germany.

The artwork within the body is crafted with multiple species of wood, shell, and metal. Starting with the background plate, made of finely quilted Western Big Leaf Maple, and inlaid with multiple guitar purfling strips made of Walnut, Maple, Mahogany, and Black fibre.

The Octagonal centerpiece structure, inspired by the Pantages Theater ceiling, is made up of several components. The actual octagon is Poplar, veneered with Walnut, Maple, and Black fiber purfling. The “curly décor plates” are carved from figured Eastern Sugar Maple, adorned with crests and splines made of Mahogany and inlaid with Mother of Pearl accents. The interior “rays” are carved from highly flamed Eastern Sugar Maple and inlaid with Mother of Pearl. The exterior “rays” are carved from highly figured Claro Walnut, gilded with 24K Gold leaf, inlaid with Mother of Pearl and adorned with African Ebony Chevrons.

The statuette centerpiece, “Lily” (Gild the Lily… get it?), is hand-carved from Cocobolo wood and gilded with 24K Gold leaf. This piece is the third one hand carved for this guitar. I was searching for not only the correct strength, but also the density necessary to produce the proper tone and allow me to carve the greatest detail I could for the facial features. She also has a solid copper conduit passing through her body which carry the wiring for the pickup (microphone) to the other electronic components in the tailpiece.

The tailpiece and bridge are original designs that I crafted out of 6061 Aluminum. They are Gold plated and Black anodized, and house the volume and tone controls for the pickup, actuated via custom-machined and Gold plated thumbwheels mounted in the tailpiece. The cable connection to the amplifier is made possible through the endpin jack. The tailpiece is inlaid with African Ebony, and the bridge utilizes a Black Tusq saddle. The bridge attaches to the body via 2 adjustable brass pins mounted in hollowed columns made of Mahogany, Ebony, Mother of Pearl, and Gold plated steel. The bridge also tonally activates the statuette via a small adjustable brass pin lodged in her mid section.

The entire sculptural assembly cavity is covered by a .118” sheet of non-glare Acrylic, and held in place via a rabbet in the side walls of the body by a custom-made solid brass, Gold plated trim ring, and 28 Gold #2 flat-head screws. The tuning keys are Gotoh M-6 Minis, Gold plated, and modified to use the Art Deco inspired Pearloid buttons usually associated with Grover Imperial Tuning Keys.

The Pantages Art Guitar also has its very own custom crafted wall hanger that utilizes a Hercules locking guitar hanging mechanism, housed in a sculptured, highly figured Western Big Leaf Maple plate, and laminated with African Ebony. It is topped by a hand-carved Mahogany bust of the Falcon-headed Egyptian God, Horus, gilded in 24K Gold leaf, over-looking the guitar for protection.

This entire project took in excess of 2,000 hours to complete, over the course of seven years. Not only do I consider the Pantages Art Guitar to be my master-work to date, but it is made even more special to me because its completion comes during my 50th year building guitars. I can think of no greater piece to represent that half century of effort than this instrument… this art.

The Pantages Art Guitar
Serial Number JP-107
Completed August 1, 2022