John Severson’s SURF

Southern California, 1960. John Severson founded SURFER, the first magazine to celebrate and revolutionize the art and sport of surfing. Surfing’s most influential artist, John Severson (born in Los Angeles in 1933) has altered the perception, obsession and fascination of surfing in Pop culture. For over six decades, from surfing’s seminal first painting Seal Beach Locals, to the riot and mise-en-scene of his pioneering films––Surf Safari, Surf Fever and Big Wednesday, through the creation of SURFER, Severson has shaped the image and iconography of surfing sending seismic vibrations into the soul of surf culture. John Severson’s Surf is the first monograph and visual survey to explore his singular odyssey through ephemera, painting, photography, film, and publishing. This volume includes an interview with the artist by Nathan Howe, curator at Puka Puka, along with contributions by surf icons, the Hawaiian tube rider Gerry Lopez and the former editor of SURFER Drew Kampion. John Severson’s Surf is a trip to the birth of surf culture and a testament to our Ocean.