This stunning board which Yater describes as a “stiletto gun” is the result of a collaboration between the renowned surfboard shaper and internationally celebrated artist and surfer Kevin Ancell. The two first met at upscale Santa Monica art gallery, Track 16, where Ancell was overseeing the re-installation of his now world-famous animatronic sculptural exhibit, Aloha Ao, the so-called Hula Girl collection. Yater was there to see a pair of balsa surfboards on display that featured Ancell’s abalone shell inlays.
That chance meeting blossomed into an active collaboration between the artist and shaper that is creating the most stunning “art boards” so far produced for the growing market in such collectibles. The luminous effect of the shaper’s neo-classic lines and Ancell’s meticulous application of exotic New Zealand paua abalone, scallop shell mother-of-pearl and metal foils, along with hand-drawn illustrations and lifelike “faux wood” painting techniques is breathtaking, astounding and fascinating.
This board was shaped from a balsa wood blank by Yater in late 2007. The artwork tableau is a quirky illustrated timeline history of surfing from ancient times in Hawaii to contemporary tow-in big-wave riding where a surfer speeds from the impending grasp of God’s hand.
For someone like Ancell, who grew up being inspired by the Santa Monica-Venice surf and art milieu that fomented fine artists like Robert Irwin and Billy Al Bengston and the surf and skate art of Z-Boys and Santa Monica Airlines, the Yater connection is the fulfillment of a natural progression of interests and ideas. “The cool thing is he’s a pretty conservative old-world California type and I’m a complete maniac,” explains Ancell. “So he keeps me from doing stuff that’s completely nuts and makes sure we get a clean look.” For Yater it is equally rewarding. “We’re just having fun combining our talents, combining the old and the new,” says the master shaper.
Click Below for a description of the images
02. Early renderings of surfing from first Hawaiian explorations - Olo surfboard featured - with quote from Jack London dated 1907:
He is a Mercury
His heels are winged
And in them, is the
Swiftness of the sea
03. Early Hawaiian exploration, Redwood Plank surfboard and Tom Blake Hawaiian Hollows - examples of both of these boards grace the Museum collection.
04. Pacific Systems "Pua" board stands alongside an image of a surf shack in the bullseye of the scope of a Japanese sub. This illustrates the intrusion of WWII into the idyllic lives of the few who had discovered surfing by the early 1940’s. The weird chemistry of fiberglass would also provide mad scientists with a means to wrap balsawood with a waterproof, petroleum seal against the elements.
05. Waikiki and the "Hot Curl" fiberglass board with tandem Waikiki surfers. The Malibu Chip surfboard, and the hotdogging Dale Velzy "Pig".
06. Hotrodding surf cowboy Dale Velzy, the first heavy explorations of the North Shore and the pioneering surfing of Phil Edwards.
07. Early experimentation with polyurethane foam sometimes led to unintended consequences - like a shaper being chased out of his hut by expanding foam. The heavenly revelation of the neoprene wetsuit.
08. The 1950s saw the publication of the book "Gidget", the explosion of surf culture and the exploitation of Malibu in scores of surf movies. It was a period Ancell calls an "Endless Bummer". Heavwater hellman Greg "da Bull" Noll is also represented here.
09. The Vietnam War was presented as a cultural milestone to surfers in two John Milius films: "Big Wednesday" and "Apocalypse Now". The rise of psychedelia was no better represented than in the artwork of Surfer magazine`s legendary cartoonist Rick Griffin. The "Plastic Fantastic" designs of Bob McTavish, helped lead surfers down the path of shorter boards and more radical lines.
10. Gerry Lopez`s stupefying but relaxed charging through the mindbending barrels of the Banzai Pipeline helped lead to a North Shore resurgence and an explosion in performance surfing.
11. Professional surfing "Busted Down the Doors" in the late 1970s and early 80s, pushing barriers, inspiring greed, and creating howls of outrage among surfing purists. The `Thruster` surfboard was invented by Simon Anderson - giving speed and maneuverability never before seen. The pages of surf magazines swelled, and lineups grew increasingly packed.
12. In 1993, Laird Hamilton, Derrick Doerner and a team of friends blew minds when they started towing into heretofore impossible waves on outer reefs off Oahu and Maui. Big wave surfing has never been the same.
