RARE Vintage Hawaiian California Surfing Airbrush Painting, Bernie Tsao 1983

  

This is a phenomenal and Very RARE Vintage Hawaiian California Surfing Airbrush Painting on canvas, by legendary Hawaiian surfboard artist Bernie Tsao, the esteemed apprentice of Bob Haakenson, and a pioneering airbrush artist and surf culture luminary in his own right. This work depicts the famed "Lone Cypress Tree, " of Pebble Beach, California, along with a colorful and vibrant seascape scene at sunset. Signed and dated: "Bernie Tsao'83" in the lower right corner.

If you are a vintage surfing collector, you know perfectly well how unusual and rare a large-scale painting by Bernie Tsao is. Tsao is renowned for his masterful painted surfboards, which collectors covet and fight over whenever they come up for sale, which is Not Often. This is an early work by the artist, likely after his stint as UC Santa Barbara. Approximately 26 x 50 inches including frame. Good condition for age, with a few light scuffs to the canvas, and some chipping and edge wear to the original period frame please see photos.

Acquired in Los Angeles, California. If you like what you see, I encourage you to make an Offer. Please check out my other listings for more wonderful and unique artworks! BERNIE TSAO Airbrush art, Surfboard Maker. Bernie's area of creative passion is shaping surfboards and airbrushed artwork.

He began working professionally in the surfboard industry immediately following college graduation with an Aquatic Biology degree from UCSB, but at the time wasn't able to acquire work in my specialized field. Ironically, he was a blessed and privileged to have worked under the tutelage of some of world's best surfboard shapers and manufacturing companies in Santa Barbara. He was the primary regional surfboard airbrush graphic artist and worked in one of the largest and best surfboard glassing factories in the Tri-county and central coast.

During this time Bernie sprayed a few thousand boards collectively from Santa Maria, Santa Barbara, Ventura to Oxnard including some very well-known local and international pro surfers like Kelly Slater, Rob Machado, Willy Morris. Bernie also launched his own custom surfboard brand years later and continued in the industry until 1989 when he decided to leave the industry to serve in full time overseas mission work.

Currently Bernie is shaping boards and doing airbrushed artwork as a hobby. The airbrush, as you can plainly see, is ridiculous. I love the way it follows the contours of the channel bottom.

You don't see a ton of vintage Channel Islands with elaborate artwork, but I love everything that's going on here. The airbrush was done by a gentleman by the name of Bernie Tsao. The board's owner tells me that Bernie got his start making boards with David Pu'u, and did stints with folks like Bob Haakenson before moving to Kauai, where he lives today. By now you may also know that I'm a sucker for old school fins, and this vintage Al Merrick surfboard certainly does not disappoint in that department. Bob Haakenson started glassing in Southern California for the Mirandon Brothers down La Jolla way.

Bear and his brother were recognized for making some very innovative surfboard designs. They were in the same building that housed Bahne/Fins Unlimited who glassed for many different labels or made the whole boards. You might recognize some of the names like Sunset Surfboards, David Nuuhiwa, Olympic, Rainbow, Surfing's New Image, Channin/Diffenderfer........ Those are just a few of the labels that cranked out incredible surfing equipment from the hill in Encinitas. Two of the iconic labels ever to come out of the Hawaiian Islands.

There may have been others, but those are the two shaping luminaries I recall. Bob found an idyllic rental with a barn perched above Refugio where he set up his "glass shop with a million dollar view". He & his family lived there for years until the ranch owner discovered the glass factory and told him NO WAY, this is a barn, get this stuff out of here! That landed Bob next to the train tracks by the old Sunkist Lemon Factory (that would eventually become Powell/Peralta Skateboards) on La Patera Rd. This was also about the same time good friend, Al Merrick would.

Begin his meteoric rise to fame & fortune, with Bob regularly glassing 130 surfboards per week. The business thrived for years at that site and many industry guys got their start there. Recognized names now like David Puu who shaped under Rich, airbrushes Cliff Collinge & Bernie Tsao among others. Bob's quality fiberglassing attracted many other shapers to have their shapes finished by Bob and his crew.

By then, the Spindrift Surfshop in downtown Santa Barbara off De La Guerra Street was gone as it was enough work just to keep the busy glass shop humming. Today Bob is located in almost a clone of the La Patera factory.

He is located at 20 S. Which is down the end of the road next to the train tracks and next to the cement factory. It's a great set up and one of the cleanest glass shops you will probably ever set foot in.

That's because Bob knows exactly what he is doing after more than five decades of doing the dance. His laminator, Efrain Lopez, is my former employee who came to me as a man from Mexico looking for work and to realize the American Dream. Efrain had been a tailor in Mexico, so I figured he had scissor skills and trained him to be my laminator.

Baltazar worked construction & was savvy around power tools so he became my sander & box router. Getting these guys was the best decision that I ever made, and I have to admit the advice came from a friend while surfing & spending the night out in the Channel Islands with Tom Sims.

I wish I could remember his name. He was a good surfer and excellent photographer, Greg.........

Ah, memory escapes me, but he told me how Tom had been going crazy in his booming skateboard business with flaky employees......... Wow, yay, memory kicked in........ Get Mexicans and to never look back. So I took Greg's advise and it turned out to be the best move I could have ever made!

Instead of stopping shaping and having to go fill in for a no show sander, glassed glosser, polisher, I now had guys that had a work ethic. These guys had lots of common sense and I rented a one room cabin from George Radon (The Surfing Underground was in the Radon Boatyard) then had him move it up right in front of my factory. We built a deck, a gate & 6 foot wall so when they took breaks they had privacy. Before them I had moved it there for a shack to sleep after late night work sessions, so they got the bed, tv with VCR microwave & student refrigerator. It was literally 3 steps to work and built in security. Plus the boat yard was only one block from the beach on Santa Barbara Street. I paid for the Coyote to get him back each year. When Amnesty was offered, Efrain badly wanted to become legalized, so I took him to Ventura and we went through all the required paperwork to get him legal. Eventually Baltazar went home, Efrain went to work for Chuck at True Ames then eventually ended up at Haakenson's where he remains to this day. Bob told me Efrain is the best glasser he has ever had and can glass twenty boards (40 sides) a day, all perfect. I've watched him over the last few years, and his technique has now far exceeded what I originally taught him.

That was a bit of fun going down memory lane.......... The best hours are between 10 and 2 on the week days. The factory is closed on week ends. Bob will be glad to answer your questions without attitude. If you don't see him in front and walk into the office you'll might see his daughter, the lovely Stephanie, and she will be just as helpful to guide you over to Bob to set up your glassing instructions.

Not that she can't do it, she has helped her dad doing the bookkeeping and has worked in the glass shops since she was 17. The Saga of Tom Sims Surfboard.

Here's one I think you don't have yet... Glass job, glasscraft by Bob Hakkenson out of Santa Barbara..... First one I ever saw. A rare one for sure!

My buddy Mike Nash a Brooks Institute Photo grad shot the first ad for Sims Skateboards, pre snowboard. Chaz reply: That's awesome!

Y'know, I looked at the logo with a jewelers loop and it looks to be pinstriped on, hand-painted under the glass on the foam which is interesting so it's not an actual decal it's hand scribed with a very steady hand... Anyway I don't know anything else about it right now, but if I find anything I'll pass that along to you... ED NOTE: the rest of the story... Its safe to say sims screenprinted his logos on skateboards, easy to print a few on rice paper for his personal surfboards. Where the heck did you find the board?

Collectors are rabid, imagine owning the personal surfboard of the guy who invented snowboarding! I'll wipe it off today in the sun, but i don't think the wife appreciates the sanctity of this board,,, into the man cave for now.... But the bottom is pretty hammered with boulder dings etc. Anyway, i looked closer at the logo and can see the ghost shadow of a laminate around the edges so probably a decal, but i swear the script looks hand drawn by a pinstriper, (i guess sombody has to draw the design for a lam before it's mass produced)...

Could be it was drawn on rice paper, cut out and laid down before the gloss coat but all this will remain a mystery til someone with actual hands-on knowledge sees it i guess.... Thanks mike for all your input, let's keep in touch... If word gets out to collectors you own the one off personal board of Tom Sims i'd expect it to fetch several thousands of dollars given the iconic status of Tom Sims. Go ahead, remove the wax, you don't want it melting in your living room. Ok Charles below is Fowlers take on the board.

Bruce knows allmost all regarding Goleta/Santa Barbara. He's been and is still building boards in SB county for 50 yrs at least. I think you own Sims personal board.

Hey did Tom Sims ever make surfboards? Logo is hand painted on foam or pre gloss coat.

I'm thinking its a one off. Bruce: That was only one of Tom's skateboard logos. He had a few of his personal boards done with his logo but never was formally in production.

I shaped him what he claimed was the first small high performance wake or "free" board. The airbrusher's name is Bernie Tsao who sprayed for Haakenson and others and eventually shaped his own boards.

Sleigh shaped but I didn't really know him. Yes Tom Sims, of snowboard, skateboard fame did make some boards. I shot some ads for Tom when he was testing the waters with hopes of developing his own line of boards. Danny Robertson, brother of Sims team rider Edie Robertson, and I went down to Hendrys beach at sunset one day and shot a roll or two. I have photos of Tom riding one of his Sims boards during a south swell at backdoor indicator.

Tom was riding a green railed board in the photos. Other photos I have of Tom, before he became famous were shot at El Cap and he was riding his all robbins egg blue board. I will try and dig out some of the photos of Toms Boards in the near future, for all you logo guys.

The boards I shot that day at Hendrys had the red and white Sims logo on them, the same style as the one in the small square tribute photos in the Monday 31st mention, and the same style he used on his skateboards. This from David Pu'u. The Sims board was one of several I think we made. Tom Sims was one of the guys behind the launch of my surfboard career.

Put meaning in the word "brother". More than 800 million people in the world are hungry - many are children - and the number continues to climb. It is a distressing statistic people like Bernie Tsao want to reverse.

"That's a really big part of my heart, " he says. "So much food is being wasted, " he explains. His passion is to teach people how to rely on their own food production and become more self-sustaining. Through the Office of Continuing Education (OCET) at Kauai Community College, Tsao is sharing his knowledge of aquaponics with others.

Aquaponics is the combination of aquaculture (fish farming) and hydroponics. Plants and vegetables are grown in a soilless medium where water is circulated from tanks filled with fish, whose waste supplies nutrients for the plants. The system is not as simple as it sounds. It is a fine-tuned science that must be learned and administered properly. For example, bacterium naturally found in the environment uses ammonia from the fish waste and breaks it down into a final product of nitrate, which is what fertilizes the plants. Ammonia is toxic to fish, and factors such as the right habitat size and the correct amount of bacteria must be in place in order to create a precise system. "Everything has to be in balance, " says Tsao, whose company is He Wai E Ola (Living Water) Aquaponics. The hands-on learning environment that KCC provides, which includes tilapia grow-out tanks, a water-harvesting catchment system and hydroponic grow beds, is the perfect resource for people wanting to learn how to run a large-scale operation, as well as create their own small, family-friendly system. Saturday for five weeks allow students to learn everything from basic fundamentals of aquaponics to water chemistry, design and construction of the systems, including how to size the right kinds of pumps, installation and how to manage different species of fish, as well as marketing.

The benefits of knowing how to operate these systems are plentiful. First, no chemicals are needed and soil-related pathogens and pests are omitted from the process.

There is no tilling of soil, no amendments to add and no bending over to weed. "It's great, especially for someone like me who's not getting any younger, " jokes Tsao.

Virtually any type of plant can be harvested, including a wide range of produce, including lettuce and carrots, which all grow two to three times faster than they do in soil and use a fraction of the water. The fish are an added bonus as they also can provide food. In tropical climates, tilapia is typically used, although Asian walking catfish or even koi work well. Tsao dreams of every family having their own systems at home, as they are designed to fit on a lanai or in a backyard, easy to maintain, relatively inexpensive to install and can feed up to six people. "Every family can take responsibility to feed their own family, " says Tsao, who once had a system that provided more than his family could eat, so they always shared with friends.

"That just tells you, if everybody did this, no one would need to go to the grocery store, " he adds. Feeding people has been a goal of Tsao's since he was a child.

Born in Hong Kong and raised in California, he says he always had a "calling" to grow food. Tsao graduated from University of California at Santa Barbara with a degree in aquatic biology, but didn't actually dive into his career until he went back to school to learn mechanical engineering at Santa Barbara City College. Prior to that, Tsao earned a living shaping surfboards.

However, the ringing of wedding bells with his wife, Susan (with whom he has three adult children, Janelle, Cassiee and Titus), inspired him to get serious about his career. "All of a sudden, I woke up and realized there was more to life than just me, " he says. He moved his family to Kona in 1989, where he started a training program and taught fish farming for 11 years.

And before eventually settling on Kauai (which he discovered when he lived in California and was "looking for waves"), Tsao moved to Fiji and continued teaching aqua-culture for six years. He is happy to bring his knowledge to the Garden Isle and is thankful for the island's abundance of high-quality water. "Kauai is the perfect island for freshwater aquaculture, but there's the least amount of activities here, " he says. Tsao is optimistic that things will change. This item is in the category "Art\Paintings". The seller is "willsusa_utzeqm" and is located in this country: US. This item can be shipped to United States.

• Artist: Bernie Tsao
• Signed By: Bernie Tsao
• Size: Large
• Signed: Yes
• Material: Canvas, Airbrush
• Region of Origin: Hawaii, USA
• Framing: Framed
• Subject: Landscape, Seascape, Seaside, Surfing, Tree
• Type: Painting
• Original/Licensed Reproduction: Original
• Item Height: 26 in
• Style: Modernism, Postmodernism, Plein Air
• Features: One of a Kind (OOAK)
• Production Technique: Airbrush Painting
• Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
• Handmade: Yes
• Item Width: 50 in
• Time Period Produced: 1980-1989