Category Archives: Commerical Art

2018 Skullcandy Oz Grom Surfing Open

Held annually at Lennox Head in the July school holidays, this major junior surfing competition draws around 300 competitors, not only from NSW, but around Australia and even from around the world.

Many parents take advantage of the pilgrimage to combine travelling to the comp and make for a family surfing holiday.

I went out behind the scenes with a backdrop of perfect winter weather… to capture a different perspective of the general ‘cool’ vibe of the aged variety of spectators taking in the ‘Groms At Play: IN and OUT of the WATER’ …

Paul’s Fishing Rods

Here is another 9 x 6 cm Ad I created for Paul Woolford to go in the Lennox Wave magazine’s Trades And Service section .  This time Paul can also now use this as his own business card as well…

Paul started fishing as a kid on the North Yorkshire Moors of England. He adds, “I still remember as a 12 year old testing (from the very wharf at Whitby where Captain Cook departed on the Endeavour) the first fishing rod I built for myself.”

Sixty years later from the garage of his Lennox Head home Paul’s custom hand crafted fishing rods are finding their way, similar to Cook on the Endeavour, all around the world.

From word of mouth, Paul now fills custom orders, not just for locals and around Australia but also trout fishing lodges in New Zealand and the Test River in England.

He has even made rods for a salmon fishing tour guide in Alaska!

MUSIC – ‘Anytime James’

Toward the close of 2014 I interviewed musician Michael Gibbons as he was about to lay down his debut album at 48 (and lay down his life dream) for a  2015 release . I was privileged to witness a jam session with Michael and band at the Lucky Boy Analogue Recording Studios in Byron Bay.

After shooting a few photos I then ending up working on a draft design for the Anytime James CD cover.

Anytime James CD

Click image to enlarge.

THE Michael Gibbons STORY:

Lennox Head musician Michael Gibbons life’s journey has led to his debut album “Anytime James”.

At 48 it’s a culmination of his whole life in music. As a child Michael musical influence began by listening on to his mother’s old reel to reel African music tapes from her native Ghana. He first picked up a guitar at 18 and by 27 he left behind a band to write songs that translated beyond the mainstream to him as an individual.

Growing up in Sydney’s Dee Why, Michael fell in love with the Northern Rivers of NSW region on his first visit in 1980. Longer visits each time finally led to a permanent move to Lennox Head in 1997. Six years ago Michael’s guitar teacher in Lennox at the time was Geoff Wright who is a first class world renowned musician having worked with the likes of Tina Turner and J.J. Cale, just to name a few.

Eighteen months ago Michael again sought out Geoff for more lessons and to maybe cut a Demo tape as Geoff in recent years had converted the old ‘Bay F.M.’ building into a recording studio. With Geoff very impressed by Michael’s advancement and both excited by their shared passion for analogue sound, instead of just a Demo they ended up collaborating, producing and recording Michaels work as “Anytime James”.

Michael’s dream had always been to find a way, facility and platform to sketch out, document his feelings and ideas so asked Geoff if he would consider a financial investment in the studio. And so began their partnership in ‘Lucky Boy Analogue Studios’.

Michael’s preference for analogue sound is the perfect medium to bring out the pure texture and tones of his music. Any likeminded artists looking for a traditional analogue recording sound backed by a master producer such as Geoff should contact and connect with Lucky Boy.

Gibbons music can be loosely described as a kind of early 70’s Rolling Stones cross 60’s – 70’s Detroit sound mixed with rhythmic waves.  The “Anything James” album, just like Michael Gibbons is far from the clichés and mediocrity the pretentious pop music culture usually dishes up and presents a unique, raw sound with the lyrics of a somewhat sarcastic poet.

Michael attributes the evolvement of his creativity to that vital decision to move to Lennox where living here instead of the city has fine-tuned his personal volume and contrast controls.

Vic Leto