‘… Something with a positive drive and a sprinkle of activism.’
I had used kiteboards before as a canvas but never a surfboard. Anything of a tactile nature is always a welcome break from endless hours in-front of a computer screen. Additionally, the boards often come to me in quite a sad state, so the time and effort required to get them to the painting stage creates a subtle connection to the piece. When I practiced as a fine artist I would build canvasses by hand. Building the stretchers from wood and applying the canvas was an art in itself and it makes you think twice about what to put on it.
The first of my Less to Landfill series came at a time when I was searching for something. Something physical, something with a positive drive and a sprinkle of activism. I was so emotionally moved after watching the film A Plastic Ocean, I felt an obligation to put something into the world that might, at the very least, help raise awarness. It wasn’t until I had began the board design that I realised the potential in the piece. Like most artistic processes, the work often comes first and then the concept.
Degrease
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Sand
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Clean
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Sand
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Degrease
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Prime coat
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Paint
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Begin Design
Getting the surface correct for the paint pens and brushes is really just a procedural requirement. I create the design by hand on either the ipad or paper and bounce it back and forth between the client and myself. Making sure everything is perfect, only then do I begin sketching the design onto the board. All of this is done freehand, no projector or other. Just a pen and bits of tape to work out proportions. It is a more fluid process and creates room for random things to happen. Often there is a prolonged stage of ‘mapping’ the design onto the surface but once this is done I delve into an almost meditative state of drawing, painting and enhancing.
The main love of these projects comes from the personal, ethical and moral stand point. Not only do I custom design the imagery for the client but theres the fact that this entire ethos is keeping toxic plastics from landfill or even worse, the ocean. Let’s explore this for a moment….
‘Just let that sink in for a moment… Less than 6%.’
It’s becoming common knowledge now that plastics in our environment are causing catastrophic harm. The plastics that we ‘recycle’ in the UK are just shipped out to third world countries and ultimately make their way into our oceans through streams and rivers. Less than 6% of all plastic waste in the UK is in a closed loop. Just let that sink in for a moment… Less than 6%.
Approx 12 million metric tonnes of plastic enters our oceans…. Every…. Single…. Year. Toxicity from plastics is believed to cause fish stocks to produce same sex offspring and the plastic in those at the top of the food chain get consumed by us. If you are in the UK and eat seafood, you consume around 150,000 pieces of micro-plastics every year and is though to be the main contributing factor to decreased fertility rates in men. Its a mess. So, what are we going to do?
‘With knowledge comes power and it is this power that is the source of all positive solutions.’
Now, I’m not going to pretend that painting artwork onto surfboards is a revolutionary act. It’s really not. However, during crisis the last thing that we want is for people to become marginalised and feel powerless by the shear scale of a problem. Creating opportunities to talk and spread ideas is the foundation of real, positive change. With knowledge comes power and it is this power that is the source of all positive solutions. We don’t need to be the next Greta Thunberg, we just need to do what we can when we can. Positive change is so much more fun when it comes from positivity.
I have a genuine love for the seas through my love of Kitesurfing but there is not one facet of this earth that is un-effected by plastic pollution. You don’t have to be a waterman or live on the coast of St.Ives. Plastic pollution is in the food we eat, it is in the bodies of our children, it is in the ground that we fill with waste. It effects each and every one of us. We must keep pushing to spread the word and inspire others to act.
Each of my board projects are custom designed.
Bespoke artwork and a board of your choice.