The Vic

The Victoria Skim contest is this weekend, saturday and sunday, at Aliso in Laguna Beach. Unfortunately, I will not be able to make this years contest, but have seen many good ones in the past. Victoria Skimboards is also claiming to be increasing the bandwidth on it's "Aliso Cam", so perhaps you can see some skimming from there.

Aliso Cam HERE

Check out the Heats HERE

Big Peace

Tony Labat's "Big Peace IV", part of the San Francisco Public Arts Commission.

More HERE

Flutes Offer Clues to Stone-Age Music

Music and sculpture — expressions of artistic creativity, it seems — were emerging in tandem among some of the first modern humans when they began spreading through Europe or soon thereafter.

Read the full NY Times Article HERE

The Portable February

David Berman's book of drawings available 6/23 from Drag City HERE

Progress

Two pieces of fabric gifted to NMc from Sharona during her Peace Corp days in Senegal. If you enlarge the blue image, you can see a woven print, sort of looks like a water mark.

Project Triangle

Project Triangle will be launched in the Summer of 2009 and encompasses a collection of hard work and research over the past thirty (30) years. With each board that is cut out of a piece of Wood or Foam, there is waste. The wasted pieces are normally placed in the dumpster and delivered to our local landfill, contributing to the overall pollution of the Earth. Using a method long practiced by the boating and aerospace industries (building a whole from multiple parts), Victoria Skimboards is now piecing together boards using the once wasted material.

Taking foam pieces that were normally headed for the dumpster and using them in production, Victoria Skimboards has decreased our overall landfill contribution by about thirty percent (30%) says owner Tex Haines. The boards are guaranteed not to break along any seem in the foam for the life of the board.

Having tested this theory in the early years of the business and throughout the thirty (30) plus years has proven the method to work for skimboarding. We have had years of experience building boards which occasionally had an extra piece glued on to make the most of a blank that was too short and none ever came back broken anywhere near those seams states Tex Haines.

It is one step in a refining process but one we are proud of and ready to share with all of you.

Victoria Skimboards HERE

Broccoli

Although it has been a slow season thus far in the garden, things are starting to happen. Last nights greens included broccoli, parsley, arugula, and a lot of cilantro.

Raku/ Traditional

Traditionally used in Tea Ceremonies in Japan, Raku was introduced in the 16th century. It was hand built, never thrown at the wheel, for a more hand made feel. The ware was taken from the kiln when red hot, and left out to cool or put directly in water. Usually in a deep red or black, Raku played an important role in the development of Japanese ceramics. Tile maker Chōjirō was the first citizen charged with creating Raku ware during the construction of the Jurakudai in Kyoto. He was soon given the family name "Raku", which has continued in the family pottery.

Raku Family Pottery HERE

There are a few examples of Raku Ware on display currently at the Asian Art Museum exhibition, "Lords of the Samurai" HERE

Paul Soldner/ Western Style Raku

Paul Soldner was one of, if not the pioneer of western style Raku, introducing the combustible reduction chamber in the 1960's. Traditionally as mentioned, Raku ware was taken from the hot kiln and left out to cool, or put in water. With western style Raku, a chamber such as a trash can, would be filled with sawdust, seaweed etc, to encourage combustion. The lid of the trash can would be put on once the red hot ware was put in the can to create an intense reduction or carbonized atmosphere, turning the clay body black. 

Paul Soldner HERE

In House Raku

western style/ianiswas

The neighbors bottling the Sangiovese and the Chardonnay. Also had a chance to taste the Biodynamic Zinfandel and the Cabernet from the barrell, and am looking forward to the release later this summer. Can't get more local then just across the street. Talk about a garage wine. Good work Matthew!

Wine-Thieves HERE

Jerry Rothman

Jerry Rothman was faculty at Cal State Fullerton for over 25 years, and Laguna Beach resident for equally as long. Rothman is also credited with inventing what is now called Ferro-ceramic, a mixture of ceramic and inorganic materials, that allowed for clay and steel to be fired together, in order to create large scale cantilevered structures. The clay itself would not shrink dramatically against the steel during firing preventing cracks. Most of the images here are from the "Sky Pot" series from the 1960's, during his Otis days working with Voulkos.

Into the mainstream

In 1987 skimboard pioneer Tom Trager made the cover of Sports Illustrated, and the skimming world, which was pretty much Laguna Beach then, thought the sport was ready for it's close up. 22 years later...........

Arms

It was only a matter of time. It is after all, connected to the hand.

from the top:

Picasso 

Paul Thek

Ricky Swallow

Anno Dijkstra

Natalie McDonald

Corkage

Four corked bottles employing old world pottery ethics: One glaze, thick and thin for variation.

Burning Spear 1977

Dry and Heavy from 1977, still one of the great Reggae records.

Burning Spear HERE