Elements of Surf

Living near the ocean is a blessing that can become so ordinary that we run the risk of taking it as a mundane and unacknowledged miracle. Having daily contact with the sight, smell and feel of the Pacific is cleansing, renewing and enlightening. Among the various modalities of interface that exist between us and the water surfing, (along with the various permutations thereof; body-boards, mats, kayaks, etc), is one of the most intimate. California surf culture embodies a tradition of design, innovation, aesthetics, lifestyle and fun that informs aspects of life for surfers and non-surfers alike. While I am by no means a skilled participant, I am proud to participate at the level I do. In recent years I have been drawn to surf mats and body boarding and for much of the year I have at least weekly contact with that wonderful water. A friend once described surfing as being not so much about riding water as riding an energy wavelength THROUGH the water. I like and respond to this description. There are few more visceral kicks as when you feel the lift and push of the wave taking over. We experience fleeting moments of dolphin grace beyond what our clumsy land dwelling bodies normally allow for. Of course there is the whole territorial/violent aspect of surfing which is a drag no matter how you slice it. Pushing that aside I find that the history, characters and pure elements of design are engrossing and enriching. I was recently up in San Clemente and Dana Point and found the the Noll family (Greg Noll being one of the seminal and most influential figures in surf history) have a new shop/gallery. They graciously let me take some shots of the beautifully wrought wooden boards they make and some of what has come to be one of the newest aspects of customization and artistic expression in board making, the fin. If you are interested in our shared California life and mythology and want to develop a richer understanding of the elements that we interact with and are surrounded by,  surfing is a great place to begin. There are many layers of depth to the phrase, "Catch a wave and you're sitting on top of the world". 

Customization is crucial

The fin has become a mini-canvas open to creative expression

"Stained-Glass" cathedral 

Wood

Wood

Surf Icon Greg Noll is a pioneer 

MIXING OF THE ELEMENTS

A shattered dome of air moves towards the light. We may live in the above world but our true home is below. The oceanic womb of us all calls to the salt in our blood. I never feel quite as much connection, wholeness and peace as when I'm moving through the water.

It's a colorful world

Glowing Buddha-Head Glory

Ray of Light

Everything is Illuminated 

Charles Dickens is my Home-Boy!

My favorite author. He wrote some of the bravest and deepest explorations into all matters human that have ever been committed to paper. A champion of the under-dog. Always skeptical of the rich and powerful. A deep reserve of kindness for the oppressed and mountains of scorn to heap on the oppressors. I can revisit his books time and time again only to find new insights, laughs and wonder. A huge imagination of the first order. Charles Dickens is my Home-Boy!

Slings and Arrows...

In this life there are blows so deep and strong they can send one reeling. This cold, iron world isn't always easy for anyone. Ultimately we are all brothers and sisters under the sky so it behooves us to show some compassion and kindness.

New Style

It's amazing to me what switching materials can do to art. Sometimes just changing what we normally use can unlock different elements or aspects of one's approach.

And the HITS just keep on comin'!!!

"Luchador Mascara"

"Peering into the Heart of the Matter"

"Watcher at the Threshold"

Lately this world has seemed so flimsy and crumble-prone. Polarization and sectarian chest thumping seem to be the order of the day. Maybe it's the gathering energies leading to some 2012, Mayan-Epoch shift. Maybe it's the End-Times. I won't lay a claim to any specific diagnosis but a glance in almost any direction (political, economic, environmental, social) puts me in the mind of the William Butler Yeats poem...

The Second Coming

Turning and turning in the widening gyre

The falcon cannot hear the falconer;

Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;

Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,

The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere

The ceremony of innocence is drowned;

The best lack all conviction, while the worst

Are full of passionate intensity.

Surely some revelation is at hand;

Surely the Second Coming is at hand.

The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out

When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi

Troubles my sight: a waste of desert sand;

A shape with lion body and the head of a man,

A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,

Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it

Wind shadows of the indignant desert birds.

The darkness drops again but now I know

That twenty centuries of stony sleep

Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,

And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,

Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

I guess what I'm feeling lately is this same overriding sense of widespread entropy. It seems as though the vital winds and energies that churn up new ideas and melt others down have been depleted. We're left like isolated primates adrift on ice floes, gnashing our teeth at an empty and unfeeling sky. In the face of this I haven't given up. I try to meet people in the middle when I can. To listen more than rant and I'll assume I'm not the only one. Still, the loosened threads of this world are sticking out everywhere and the merest tug seems to make the whole fabric fall apart.

Late Summer Art Frenzy

"Rituals of the Hand and Heart"

"Sacred Geometry"

"Sunburst"

"Leering into Infinity"

ART IS SOUL FOOD!

RED FACED IMPRESSION

A sly one

Reaching for the sky

A History of The Blues in America pt.2 or something like that

The God of Ambergris

When it rains, it pours!

MORE POURINGS FROM THE PEN!!

Finding fleeting joys amidst the tumult

Quietly

A History of The Blues in America or Just a Feeling.

From the Dream Time

Non-Specific Archetypes from the Universal Image Bank

SUMMERART 2011

People from the mind

Watchers, waiting

Old Demons and New Gods

Mugshots of the lesser deities

Ink and Pen Blessings.

So, I've been drawing like a madman this summer. Maybe it's the combination of the AWESOME Tim Burton show at the LACMA or the Art In The Streets show at MOCA. Maybe it's an accumulation of psychic energy. Maybe it's just that it is good old summer time and the "living's easy"? Whatever it is I'm thankful to the Pearly Blue Muse of Inspiration!

Offerings

High Mountain Tempel played our first show!

We had no intention to simply get up and play. We wanted magick, ritual, strangeness and color!

We were joined by a live painter, an incredible Kenneth Anger/Ira Cohen video collage, Deep and blissful throat singing by Toni Pope and there was lots of glitter!

It felt really great to get up and let the energy flow.

My friend Kristin took these incredible photos. She is an amazing artist with a great eye. Her pictures added another layer to the whole experience.

Here's hoping that everyone watching came away moved and refreshed.

On to the next adventure!

Real Food

HOT BREAD...

CARLSBAD OYSTERS @ BULL TACO

REAL EGGS

So I guess it comes down to real food basically. Diet trends and fads come and go. Nutrition gurus cycle through waves of favor. Tastes change. But real food is always just REAL. The fewer steps away things are from their original form the better. The fewer the ingredients the better. Growing it yourself is incredible and satisfying. Here are a few real foods I have known.

Strange Life

All of the small details of our days enlarge, grow distinct and become symbolic when we pay attention. We find that minute textures and miniature transitions become glorious and holy simply by SEEING them.

Somethings

Gods of Commerce and Industry

Everyone is a Star

Radiant Hum