The Oregon Coast Council for the Arts is pleased to present “Surf & Turf: The Art of Boarding” in the Runyan Gallery at the Newport Visual Arts Center from June 5 to August 2, 2015. The exhibition will feature contemporary and original surfboard art, skateboard art, sculptures and paintings by leading visual artists, designers and surfboard shapers from throughout Lincoln County and beyond. The public reception for “Surf & Turf: The Art of Boarding” will be held on Friday, June 5, 5-7pm at the VAC (777 NW Beach Dr., Newport), with an artists talk at 6:30pm.
“We are extremely excited to bring together art related to two recreational passions of Oregon coast residents,” says OCCA VAC director Tom Webb. “This is a significant spring-summer exhibition for the VAC, during months of heavy visitor traffic throughout Newport and the historic Nye Beach neighborhood. This will not be your average ‘surf show.’”
“Surf & Turf: The Art of Boarding” will include the following artists and artist teams: Shane A. (Colorado), Martin Anderson (Cloverdale, OR), Rick Anicker (Siletz, OR), Sandy & Scott Blackman (Newport, OR), Bill Castleberry (Newport, OR), Chad Cook (Seattle, WA), Yasmina Dedijer-Small (Portland, OR), Julia Goos & Ryan LeBoss (Seal Rock, OR), Ron Houchens (Newport, OR), Luke LaMont (Newport, OR), Mar Lehrman (Newport, OR), Tom McNamara (Newport, OR), Greg Niles (Newport, OR) and Andrew Rodman (Portland/Newport, OR). Scott and Sandy Blackman will have signed copies of their book, “Oregon Surfing: Past and Present,” available for purchase during the exhibition.
Surfing and skating are both board sports and play important roles in contemporary popular culture,” says Mar Lehrman, an advisor to the exhibition. “Skating is strangely wedded to the hardscape infrastructure, and yet is alternative (human powered vehicles) and even rebellious. Hard-core skateboarding and punk rock came of age together. Northwest surf culture is more of a nature and wilderness type activity, whose practitioners tend to be amateur meteorologists and oceanographers so that they may identify and participate in ‘favorable fluctuations in the fluid field.’ Northwest ‘surf art,’ as an expression of surf culture, is even more elusive.”
“Surf & Turf: The Art of Boarding” has been scheduled around International Surfing Day and Go Skateboarding Day, both of which are held on June 21, the summer solstice. For more information related to the exhibition and related celebrations, visit www.coastarts.org. An OCCA fundraiser for the VAC, “Surf & Turf: Poetry Slam & Jam” has been scheduled for June 21, 1-3pm, at Café Mundo in Nye Beach.
“We are pleased to have so many well-respected surf artists, board shapers and visual artists from around the Western United States involved in the exhibition,” says Catherine Rickbone, the OCCA executive director. “The Runyan Gallery is sure to be transformed by these sculptural works of art and recreation.”