Earlier this year, I was honored to work with Ventana Surfboards and Supplies again for their Fin Artist Project. Back in 2019, I participated in their Handplane Artist Project. This time, selected artists were given the task of creating art on longboard fins crafted from Alaskan yellow cedar used in the reconstruction of the Western Flyer. Some of the proceeds from sales have/will be donated to the Western Flyer Foundation, which is the organization responsible for reconstruction. This link with guide you to more about the boat and Ventana's process.
For my design, I again chose aquatic life native to the Monterey Bay area and approached it with a muted version on my favorite combo of pink and green, while exposing some of the gorgeous woodgrain Ventana provided. I chose a less saturated group of colors to complement the peek-a-boo wood segments rather than distract from them.
On one side, there is a striped shore crab surrounded by picklweed and a ghosted Pismo clam shell. The opposite side depicts a Jewel Topped Snail set atop kelp and a two-tone California mussel shell. Each fin was glassed with plant-based resin and epoxy and fitted onto a reclaimed wood base.
Although my fin has been, to borrow Ventana's slogan, "sold but not forgotten", there are a number of them still available on their website. Be sure to browse those and the ones that have sold. There is a ton of talent and creativity packed into each 9" piece. They have also done a great job of documenting the process for each individual artist.