Hi Robb, now everybody wants to know how you started painting…
My beginning with art is quite unique. I started painting my boards when I was around 17-18 years old, though art was not part of a big part of my life…I used to draw, although there never was a continuous effort from my part to pursue on it. I did not take any art classes in High School or College, but I began painting my surfboards when I was 17. I would just get 1 or 2 boards every year, painted them and surfed them. That is pretty much all the art I did back then. In my mid 20’s I started modeling to support my college, so I began traveling a lot to Europe, NY and working with all these crazy designers and photographers, and I started shooting a lot of photos. Right around that time I got an art kit from a friend of mine. That was the one catalyst that got me started on painting. I was 26 years old and I do not know why they gave it to me, but they did. One thing led to another and I realized I wanted to paint, that I could actually do it, and I realized that I had a lot of reasons to paint. I started doing a lot of little paintings and figures and I would take the paintings with me while traveling and modeling. I would use a lot of water colors on my first paintings. Then I started using pastels and painting girls and waves. On my late 20’s everything started to blossom and they started to show my work locally in Newport. People were really interested in a lot of different pieces that I was doing. I started using a lot of color, and started using flowing lines, which is a great way of painting waves and landscapes.
For a long time the boards where your canvas…what medium have you being painting on lately
I’ve painted on everything. Right now I recycle materials that I come across and just paint on them. I also started sculpting on clay and stone during the past year. I paint on oil, acrylics, ink, charcoal. I use natural items like a branch on a piece of wood and paint around that. My art is pretty much like intermission art. As an artist I have picked and adopted any way that allows me to express my art. A lot of artists have one style, however I use everything. That’s the one thing that I’m known for.
What have you been riding lately?
I’ve been using my own Havassy signature model surf board, developed in collaboration with legendary surfer and shaper Robert August. It’s a little hybrid 5’8’’ fish. Real similar to what is happening right now with Slater riding a 5’6’’, redesigning his surfboard and trying to find the one board that you can ride on everything. I designed this Robert board, so we have this 5´8´´ board with my art on it, including my signature red sun. It is just a beautiful board, everybody loves it and you can even ride bigger waves on it too! Additionally, Surftech is making a Havassy Surftech model that will be available in early January and we’re talking about making it for a couple of years. You can order it as a thruster or 4 four fin.
The board is very interesting; it’s got a pink resin and mahogany tale block. It’s an expensive board that you can even put in your wall. But it’s such a good board that it does not stay on the wall for too long. It’s a piece of art that you ride! The Surftech one will be a little more affordable. We’re planning on releasing the hand shaped model and the Surtech model at around the same time. And you do not have to worry about dinging it, since Surftech is making it on EPS foam and epoxy resin. You can travel with it and you don’t have to worry about anything. I’m excited!
Are you planning on any exhibit soon?
I’m always having shows here and there in Newport. Recently I painted surfboards at the Sacred Craft Surf Expo 2009 (www.surfboardshow.com) in San Diego. I have plenty of little shows going on at the moment; everything is kind of leading to the release of my book around the December holidays, on an event supported by Nike and Hurley. The first book release event will be on December 9th at the Cafe Haleiwa (official poster below)
Sales from the Surf Story Project will benefit our friends at Surfrider Foundation.
Talk about your book…It’s called The Surf Story Book. I came out with the idea while I was on a surf trip on main land Mexico. I wanted to put up a collection of surf stories and surf art. It started out as an exhibition that would include as many surf artists as possible, since there really isn’t a collection of surf art culture. There are so many artists out there which nobody knows about. It’s all about surf stories, surf stories that you write, surf stories that you paint. I wanted to show their stories and their art. That is basically what it has become. The book is coming out at the end of the year. It has 444 pages of surf stories and surf art by 88 of the most creative and inspirational icons and artists from the surf culture for the last 60 years basically. It includes world famous photos from Art Brewer and Tom Servais, to mention a few, and we feature their stories and thoughts. The book also features the pro surfers who also make art. It’s a really meaningful and fun collection of surf culture focusing on the creative people. It’s what surfing is all about, creating an idea of who surfers really are and what’s meaningful to them. It’s difficult to put it in a few words, I guess you’re gonna have to take a look at it!
