Dot Painted Surfboards

The story behind the surfboards is one of sun, sea and sand and is depicted in the colours of the sand, the blue of the ocean and the orange/red of the sun.

The idea to dot paint surfboards came from Steve Packer, the owner of 'Byron Surf' surf shop, 'Byron Surf' clothing label and 'Byron Surf' surfboards.
I was living at Byron Bay and teaching in the Law Faculty at Southern Cross University, Lismore in 1999 when Steve suggested the idea, as he wanted a board to place in the window of his surf shop.

Steve already had one of my paintings hung in his private residence at Byron Bay. But as I moved back to Sydney at the end of 1999, nothing happened until 2003 when I had time to paint a surfboard, so I went back to Byron Bay and painted two 9ft2in mals (malibu or longboard).

The first board went to Byron Surf where it has created a lot of interest. The second board was purchased by the world renowned Powerhouse Museum Sydney and taken to the 2004 Athens Olympics to be displayed in a joint Greek/Indigenous Australian exhibition. It is currently being displayed in Bejing, China as part of a cultural exchange exhibition. Due to the amount of interest the exhibition in Athens created, I have since painted several more boards.

As well as the boards that are being surfed, others have been hung on walls in boardrooms of Sydney businesses.
Since Byron Bay is the hub of the surfboard industry in Australia, the 'Byron Surf' surfboards that I paint are designed, shaped and glassed by some of the best known in the country. Brett Munro is recognized as one of Australia's premier shapers, as is Eddie Doolan who is fast carving out a reputation as one of the best new shapers in the business. Gavin "Gav" Huish is also one of the most recognized glassers in the business. (All the board shapes are tested by the core legend hellman, Gaz Harwood.)

If you like what you see here, why not contact me at Wokka Art and enquire about a dot painted surfboard of your own ?