Kaha (kă'-ha), v. 1. To mark the surface of; to write; to make indefinite marks (Origin: Hawaii).

This series, Kaha, captures the raw, yet stylish relationship between surfer, longboard, and ocean. I chose to create this series due to much of my life being planned around the ocean. The shots used were taken in two places I am more than familiar with: Folly Beach, SC, and Orange County, CA. The prints in  Kaha capture moments within a long boarder's ride. Until the 1960’s, longboards were the only boards available. Longboards allow for an earlier wave entry and a drawn out experience that allows for cross stepping and infamous nose rides. Each wave is a uniquely complex dance made up by the combination of the board, the wave, and its rider.

For this project, I made cyanotypes on cold press watercolor paper, using dark room techniques. I chose to paint the chemicals in a nontraditional spontaneous way to capture the fluidity of the action taking place in the photo. The visible brush strokes in the cyanotypes are done to represent the energy of authenticity. After removal from the UV light, cyanotypes typically result in a blue image with a colder tint. To portray a more intimate photo, I stained the images in coffee to give them a darker tint. This choice in tonality was inspired by Joni SternBack’s series, Surfland, where her work looks vintage due to the slight yellow tone of the wet plate process.

When choosing how I wanted to display this series, I decided to utilize a smaller print size wrapped with a larger mat board to be displayed like the Japanese artist, Masao Yamamoto. Yamamoto uses smaller photographs requiring the viewer to step in closer to experience the photographs without distraction. This only seemed appropriate since Kaha is a collection of authentic longboarders enjoying their artform while being portrayed with the use of a multi-process, time sensitive technique, that leaves little room for anything other than your complete presence.