Salvage Sculpture
Herbie Fletcher's
Art Studio Crosses Paths with NYC Aficionados
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(LongBoard
Magazine Feb 2004)
One
man’s junk is another’s artwork.
Well, that is if you’re Herbie Fletcher.
Every winter season, dozens, if not hundreds, of boards are sacrificed at Pipeline’s
famed shallow reefbreak. But what becomes of the
pieces washed ashore? Some get
put back together while most are
tossed in the garbage bin. That’s where Herb steps in.
Inspired by friend and New York art hipster Julian Schnabel, Herbie has in recent
times been locking as many hours in the art studio as he
has in the water—painting surfboards
with elaborate designs and carving
out trippy sculptures.
 After seeing the polyester foam and fiberglass carnage during last year’s
epic winter at Pipe, Herb got a new idea for his next work of art. Collecting
snapped sticks from a number of respected Pipe chargers like Andy Irons,
Matt Archibald, Nathan and Christian Fletcher, Joel Parkinson, Braden Dias,
Mark Healy, and number of others, including himself, Herb amassed a grouping of 20 boards.
The finished piece (above)— titled “Pipeline Wrecktangle”—was
a unique arrangement of foam,
resin, fiberglass and wood
mounted to a metal grid. The 11’ x 13’ x 1.5’ installation
was recently
displayed at Vito Schnabel’s (Julian’s son) art show in New York
at 250 Hudson St., with a price tag
several times more than the original cost of the sticks.
Despite earning big scratch for his creations, Herb still has his day job,
owning and operating Astrodeck (deck traction), and producing no less than one surf film a year. To see more of what Herb’s been up to check out www.astrodeck.com
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