CANVAS: BROKEN BOARD BINGO
When you break a board that you love, it follows that your heart breaks a little bit too. But when 22-year-old British product designer and development engineer Adam Scott’s stick suffered such a fate, he didn’t allow himself to wallow. Instead he took a break from his university studies to hatch a tasty little invention he calls the SurfChair.
“I was doing my engineering degree in my final year,” he says. “To take my mind off it I went into the workshops. I had an old surfboard that I’d smashed up on some rocks. I couldn’t throw it away because I loved it so much, so I decided to turn it into a chair. No drawings, no complicated briefs or specifications. I just sat down with my pen and my paper and drew what I wanted to make.”
The result is a sexy silhouette that’s a surprising marriage of form and function. Style fans take note: this is where furniture design and surfboard shaping meet. It’s grabbed the attention of the international design press – from China to Brazil to Australia and beyond – and was exhibited by invitation at the prestigious design show IMM Cologne. “It’s gone farther than I have!” he sighs.
That may not last for long though. Adam’s currently in talks with major surf brands about manufacturing the chair as in-store seating. “I had no thought as to what it would become in the future,” he says in retrospect. “I just wanted a chair out of my own surfboard.” And what happened to that original broken but beloved board? “Unfortunately the prototype had to be destroyed to make the mold to make other chairs.” A sacrifice in the name of aesthetics maybe, but one that he feels is worth it.
So the moral of the story? It’s simple: when suddenly you find yourself the sad owner of some broken gear, get into an inventive groove. You might just be able to craft some treasure from that trash.
–-By Shannon Denny
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BOOK CLUB: JOAN JETT
There is only one way to describe rock goddess Joan Jett: badass. She was only 15-years-old when she started her first band The Runaways, and went on to become the first woman to found her own rock label, Blackheart Records. And while other rock-and-roll ladies have faded into history, their images confined to dusty vinyl covers in the back of the last few physical record stores, Joan Jett’s legacy is thriving. The Joan Jett and the Blackhearts Greatest Hits CD was just released in mid-March, and a film about her life starring Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning is still playing in over 1,000 theaters nation-wide.
With interest in Jett peaking, along comes a book chronicling the life of the rocker. JOAN JETT, from Ammo Books, is a compilation of never-before-seen photographs, interviews and commentary by the rock icon herself that was just released in time for The Runaways film premiere. We love Jett’s style: leather pants and heavy rock-and-roll worthy eye-liner all the way.
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EVENT: ONE DAY WITHOUT SHOES
You know that old saying about walking in someone else’s shoes? What if they didn’t have shoes to walk in? That’s the point of TOMS Shoes 3rd Annual One Day Without Shoes campaign.
“TOMS Shoes asks everyone worldwide to go barefoot on April 8th for the day, part of the day, or even just a few minutes to experience what millions of children endure regularly.”
To get involved, head to OneDayWithoutShoes.com to pledge your commitment and organize events. There you can also share videos, photos and tell everyone about your experiences.
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IN THE MAG: SURFER BLOOD
Cristina Black talks skating with the Surfers. Read the rest of the interview in our print and digital editions.
Foam: Everybody knows by now that, despite your band’s name, you’re not into surfing. We heard you’re actually into skating.
JPP: That’s true. There’s a really strong skate culture in South Florida, where we’re from. I don’t really do it that much now because it started to hurt more and more.
That means you’re getting old! Were you a demon as a kid though?
I was never as ambitious as some, who would drive to Orlando or Atlanta to go skating, but there were a lot of spots in Miami and West Palm Beach.
What’s your favorite beach spot down there?
I would say Juno Pier and the Lake Worth Pier. Juno Pier is close to my house. Me and TJ, our drummer, used to go running on the beach there a lot. I like Lake Worth Pier because I just think downtown Lake Worth is a really cool little area and it’s an extension of that.
Your sound is being called “beachy” and “surfy” a lot. Is that a miscategorization?
I just think it’s unfair to pigeonhole it. There is so much more to our record than a summertime sound. It’s 40 minutes long, has a nice dynamic, a wide variations between songs, and a nice arc. It’s true there are some guitar tones that could be considered surfy, but there’s a lot more going on.
Read more….
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EVENT: RRRELEASED AT THE SURF GALLERY
As a species we are really good at two things: making art and creating waste. So why not- wait for it- use that waste to create art? Groundbreaking, no? Too bad the RRR Project is way ahead of us on this one. The group just launched their new print magazine (up until this point they were exclusively operating in an ezine format) featuring 100 pages of images of recycled art from artists who were given a mission: “Look around your environment, see what you can save, pick it up, turn it over, and look at it in a different way.”
You can check out the original artworks, drop off your waste (no burger wrappers or banana peels- just art waste here) and pick up your own copy of RRR.001 at a discounted price (it also includes a one year membership to the Surfrider Foundation) now through April 9th at the Surf Gallery, 911 S. Coast Highway in Laguna Beach.
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MUSIC: MGMT CONGRATULATIONS RELEASE
Electro-pop group MGMT is going back in time with an early-nineties themed cover for their new album “Congratulations,” designed by Anthony Ausgang. We’re digging the Sonic the Hedgehogesque vibe, so be sure to get your own copy of the album on April 13th.
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NEW VIDEO: SHE & HIM’S “IN THE SUN”
If the theater kids and art geeks made their own version of “High School Musical,” it would look like this. Zooey’s dreamy, classic vocals are in peak form in the video for “In the Sun” by She & Him. Check out She & Him in our new issue while you give your eardrums a taste.
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SPIN OUT: APRIL/MAY PLAYLIST
Feeling dreamy? Dancey? Sexy? Our current playlist has you covered.
-Cristina Black
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