Paipo's Stone Tikis V2.0 - 2011

Aw man, now look what I've done! Mega replies to respond to...here goes!

Ben - it's a shame that this one is gone already as it seems maybe it was "the one" for you (and maybe my chance to score a Benzart in return)? Ah well, there will be more clubs ... as long as this one took, I really enjoyed it and I'm keen to tackle some of the other variants. Club shaped stones are easy to find so I'll keep my eyes peeled. Thanks for bumping the pics on to the next page!

flynny: I'm so glad to see you return from the land of the lost - come on dude, post up some new work! That little Rapa Nui fish god is still one of my favourite ever TC small carvings and I bet you're cooking now you've got the micromotor. Don't be shy! Thanks!

B-RAD! Sacrilege? Uh-uh - just a cross-Polynesian ART JAM - shaped in Aotearoa and hand painted in Hawaii! I would do it myself if I knew how!

G - Definitely top 3 (depending on the street) - the little guy on the side is easily the best job I've made of a micro mask so far. The 'Zart's neck is just gonna have to wait for an even better one! Stress? Surprisingly relaxed, but the tough part was knowing how much to do and in the end keeping it clean and simple was the way to go. Thanks my friend!

Lake: Thanks! You summed up my approach and intent pretty much perfectly. Waves galore lately - a mate from the Rock School class of '02 just moved back and has been dragging my sorry older ass out just about every second day! I think he has only missed 3 days since he came back! We have had beautiful warm (except for the water!) weather and an amazing run of good consistent swell in the 2-5 ft range. If you get the chance check out the "Drive Thru New Zealand" surf vid to see some pros (including Occy, Donovan etc) ripping the #!@% out our North breakwall on an INSANE winter's day! Best waves/section on the whole DVD!

Conga, Duddy, Babs...thanks guys!

Kinny, I wouldn't be surprised if Ernie's skull is harder on the mohs scale than a standard beach stone. CRACK-AH!

Anwyay, if I sound excited, that's cause I am - it's the opening of the big Jade & Stone show (first one in 3 years) today and it's gonna go off tonight! Got some new work to share too, but the '02 classmate mentioned above is on his way to pick me up so it'll have to wait! Cheers!
:drink:

That is superb work, Paipo, period. The piece flows like a river. Tops.

Wait! I own that dvd, the breakwall? Where's that? In the middle? Save me all the trouble! he-he. I'm lazy. What town?
Soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo jealous. Winter is suckin here. I think I'm moving next fall.
Oh, and do I have to tell you how FANTASTIC your stuff is!! Flows like a river. (class v)

HappyHappy Happy tp see the BK Chime in!!

BK - Thanks, man. Please post up some new stuff for us soon eh - it's been way too long? I'm still totally envious that the guy from Mastodon is sporting one of your pieces!

surfin: speaking of rivers - it's the section from the 20-25 minute mark, they pull up on the breakwall, and paddle out the rivermouth into the crazy drift we get when the swell is still fresh.

Here's our town

Ben: :)

Well, the 12th Bi(Tri?)ennial stone show went off with a bang last night. We had an awesome time catching up with the stoner fraternity from far and wide and soaking up a whole show of nothing but fine rock carving . The TC boys did pretty well - I picked up a major category award (and a nice cheque!) and had one of my works purchased for the gallery's permanent collection. Tama put in two of the very best from his legendary "box", won a very nice chunk o' stone and also had his stunning pekapeka added to the collection. Celebrations went well into the small hours (for a few of us anyway!) and I'm feeling decidedly poked today. Other highlights were getting to spend a lot of time with the judge, a guy whose work I have always been in awe of and get some invaluable feedback from him, as well as a brilliant post-dinner lecture...and also meeting some incredible new talents on the scene and seeing their work in person for the first time after drooling over it online. It really doesn't get any better!

Between the waves, the celebrations, and family stuff I still manage to find time for a little carving:

#65 - The Shark Fisherman

I designed this little hei-tiki as a side hanger, but I kept turning it upright when working on it and liked how that worked too, so he got an extra set of holes in the back of his head. About 1 3/4" (43mm) long....

Really great modern interpretation of a rather traditional form! Nice work, Paip!
So which piece won an award? Pics please! Congratulations! Good to see some of the "important" people finally seeing the genius we've seen in your work for a few years now.

way cool piece paipo. congrates on the award. awesome photo of the wave, i can hear the theme to hawaii 5-0 going off in my head.

bd

Oh Yeah! That part! I'll re-watch it again tonight. I remember Donavon and the guys being pretty spooked about being swept away. But WHAT A WAVE! Wide open barrels! Wow. How often is it good there?
I'm all smiles picturing you out there LOVING IT! Congrats on the award...I would of loved to of seen all that. Nurse yourself today, you deserve it.
-Dave

PAIPO, All I can say is INCREDIBLE!
Beyond that I'm Speechless and Humbled.

congratulation for award!!
And respect for your new piece, I like the hand who become spiral with the belly button.This detail makes the piece.

Congrats! well deserved recognition.

That wave WOW! Chocolate center dream.

You live in a magical place on this earth.

The award is a little thing considering your art... congratulations Paipo. The 'shark fisherman' is worth of Picasso sinthesis! Very impressive, from this only is easy to see how deep and mature is in you the idea and the craftmanship of metamorphosing stone in a new substance..
Absolutely beautiful

[ Edited by: Ellly 2009-02-16 23:09 ]

:o KUDOS...KIWI KOBBLERS KICKA$$!!! :o

Congrats P & T on your significant accolades! TC is truly blessed having such upstanding and certifiable stoners amongst our creative clan!!

:tiki: HAKA HAKA HAKA! :tiki:

congratulations on your award, your work is amazing.

Paipo, have not checked in for too long, man, # 61, 62, and 65 kill me, phenomenal!

This must be one of the most beautiful renditions/interpretations of a Hei Tiki I have EVER seen. It moves me to tears to see how alive and evolving that sacred art is, thanks to talented and motivated artists like you.

Aloha!

Marcus

What stone is the Shark Fisherman carved from and is he for sale/trade?

Aloha!

Marcus

Paipo - congrats on the award! Did you get a trophy? Let's see it.

Love the shark fisherman. Really beautiful design. Execution, as always, flawless. :)

Oh wow!! (I know you don't have time to answer so please don't answer this) But I have to tell you ,that piece is the most amazing thing I ever seen! congrats on the award but more congrats on being able to pop this out of your head , and make it a so perfect piece! Droooolll

Clarita, thanks for the bump. I've been meaning to post and thank everyone for a while, but yet again I wanted to wait til I had something new to post. So thanks for all the messages of congratulations and the perseverance with my infrequently updated thread. I am always thinking tiki, looking at it and even drawing it - just not carving it lately!

A few Qs to answer:

On 2009-02-15 04:45, JenTiki wrote:
So which piece won an award? Pics please!

Tama posted some catalogue pics, but the photo didn't show my piece in detail and I never got any myself before dropping it at the gallery. I finished working on it literally 30 minutes before the deadline, and dropped it off with 15 to spare! I decided I had to make another for my next show (and take plenty of photos this time):

Surfcast - on the surface pretty simple - a USB memory stick encased in a pebble....but, the stick contains a short song-length video file (in several formats to be compatible with most devices) filmed on location the day the stone was gathered. Looking into the waves from a "Stone's eye" perspective on the beach, the effect is somewhat disorienting with no horizon in sight (although the sea itself creates a constantly changing horizontal plane) and the heat haze shimmering off the stones in the foreground:

So the piece plays on concepts of memory and place, as well as contrasting the ancient (stone amulets) with the contemporary (portable devices and podcasts). I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, even more so that the judge got what I was aiming for!

On 2009-02-15 08:34, surfintiki wrote:
Wow. How often is it good there?

Like that ? Hardly ever, but we have had a ton of great sessions at that break and the connecting banks down the beach this summer. Looking real good for this weekend with a groomed swell, offshores and a 17 second period :)

On 2009-02-26 06:26, Aweulekuula wrote:
What stone is the Shark Fisherman carved from and is he for sale/trade?

Thanks Marcus - had he been available I would have been in touch sooner, but he went to a regular buyer pretty quickly after I posted him. Usually I post here before anywhere else, so often a piece is still available when it first appears in the thread. The stone is my typical greywacke beach pebble, luckily a very clean and tight specimen as this guy was reasonably fine-boned!

On 2009-02-26 08:35, TheBigT wrote:
Paipo - congrats on the award! Did you get a trophy? Let's see it.

Unfortunately no - but I did keep the envelope my cheque came in! The catalogue is also a sweet reminder/keepsake of what is easily the highlight of my not-so-brief career.

Well, thanks again to everyone for some pretty lavish praise. I finished all the tikis I mentioned a month or two ago so I better get busy with a box of stones and a black pen! Here's the last of that bunch:

#66 - Baby Buma

As the name implies, just a wee fella at about 1 1/2" long, and the eyes are inlaid silver.

Thanks for looking!

:tiki:

'Baby Buma', I love the title!

Interesting to hear a little more of the concept behind the Surfcast piece; thanks for that. There I was thinking you were just very very very clever.. :lol:

*How about a fresh round of applause for our boy? Well done mate!

ps: still the 'Peoples Choice' Award to come.. :wink:

paipo

the storage device is unbelievable! great idea and a wonderful job of pulling it off. baby buma is pretty awesome as well. once again a masterful job that continues to inspire me to do better.

bd

Damn! I'm jealous!!!Your work is too perfect and your inspiration has no limits...
That said, I started a USB stick in a piece of black palm,I did it so fine that it was cracked .... :(
I do not despair, I would restart him :evil:, even if you have the scoop!!

Rhys, good to see you checking back in and thanks for the story behind the Surfcast.

A wonderful idea, especially encasing technology in nature, love the "stone's eye view" concept!

And again swinging for the fences on your latest creation and hitting it out of the ballpark!

Envious of the surf... I've been dry for about 4 months now... going crazy but not much you can do when the water is iced in and funds are not available for a surfari someplace warm. I hope I get my surflegs back when I do find myself back in the lineup.

Enjoy your incoming swell, and keep up the great work!

Well well, look what happens when I disappear a few days(weeks?), Nice stuff Paipo. Really Brilliant idea with the Surfcast and it's Double great that the judge understood what you did.
THEN you throw in the 'Baby Buma" with Silver eye inlays even! Another Off the shelf Pipe dream to wow the peeps!
Just Where DO you come up with these ideas? Very well done and Big thanks for giving us the update too.

On 2009-03-12 17:52, Paipo wrote:

Surfcast - on the surface pretty simple - a USB memory stick encased in a pebble....but, the stick contains a short song-length video file (in several formats to be compatible with most devices) filmed on location the day the stone was gathered. Looking into the waves from a "Stone's eye" perspective on the beach, the effect is somewhat disorienting with no horizon in sight (although the sea itself creates a constantly changing horizontal plane) and the heat haze shimmering off the stones in the foreground:

So the piece plays on concepts of memory and place, as well as contrasting the ancient (stone amulets) with the contemporary (portable devices and podcasts). I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, even more so that the judge got what I was aiming for!

OOoOOOHHhhhhh! You are so clever and with such a nice heart!
What blows me away, is all this cleverness, craft and concept focused in the stone perspective. I think this says "Thank you" to the material (the natural stone siting in it's natural place), like nothing else could! And to me that means you are a great artist, because you are a humble person willing to say thanks to a stone!
Bravo! and thanks! Nothing makes me more happy than finding some meaning in peoples art and/or art (way) of living.... Sigh...

Wow! That is not at all what I expected, but it's so cool! I may have to discuss one of those hidden sticks within a carved pebble with you for my birthday present to myself.

And Baby Buma is adorable! I'm sure he'll get snatched up pretty quickly.

There haven't been any major tiki events in my neck of the woods lately, so I haven't had a lot of opportunity to wear my Paipos, but I'm looking forward to sporting them at Oasis this year! I love that when I wear an original Paipo, I know I won't see anything like it around the neck of anyone else at the event. I really like some of the resin pendants I have from you and other artists, but there is just something so special about the one-of-a-kind stone pieces you create. You are a treasure to the community, and I'm always proud to call you my friend. Rock on!

Great thinking! Looks like a winner.
Do you remember the pet rocks in 70's

Aloha Paipo -

Surfcast is BRILLIANT - I'm completely blown away. Really astounding concept, and (as always) beautiful execution. Paipo no ka oi!

Henrik

Paipo, I "have" to chime in here with everyone else....

Surfcast...Surfcast is just absolutely wonderful! You are truly an amazing artist. I LOVE the way you see.

Dude, your work is insane man!!! I love it!

BUMP, You do the rest!

GENIUS!

THE PEBBLE CONCEPT/PIECE IS CLASS...PURE CLASS!

and baby Buma makes me SMILE!

#66,eh? that's a lot of grinding!
:)

Oh man, thanks for all the awesome compliments, and the bump! You guys are incredibly supportive and I feel kinda slack for not having anything to share lately, and also for not responding in kind to all the awesome stuff I see here. What little studio time I've had has been devoted mainly to my contemporary jewellery, but I am working on a very cool (and very tiki) piece that is taking sooo long, but it's getting closer every day. One of those ones where I just have to do a little bit each time before it does my head in and I need to stop and think about the next step.
Tama and I have also signed up for a Whakairo (trad Maori carving course) taught by an incredible master carver & artist, so there may be some bigger and better things to come. Watch this space!

the suspense is maintained, more than expected, waiting.....

I've let the tiki torch flicker and wane, but it's starting to burn a little brighter now:

Maui went to the village where his parents lived. His father told him he had heard of his doings, but he
thought he could not do one thing—which was, to overcome Hine-nui-o-te-po (the great goddess of the night).
He remembered that when he baptized him he left out some part of the ceremony, and he feared he would,
after all, perish because of that omission.
Then Maui asked his father: 'What is my ancestress Hine-nui-te-po like?'
He answered: 'What you see yonder shining so brightly red are her eyes, and her teeth are as sharp and hard
as pieces of volcanic glass; her body is like that of a man, and as for the pupils of her eyes, they are jasper;
and her hair is like tangles of long seaweed, and her mouth is like that of a barracouta.'

#67 - Hine-nui-te-Po

I laid down my first wood cuts the other night and my respect for chizzlers has increased tenfold! When I finally got my rhythm going with the mallet and chisel it was a total buzz (and I think also the beginning of a beautiful friendship!)
I'll post some stuff up once I get started on my personal project.

Yay!!! Paipo's back!

Nice work! Love it when there is a story behind objects.

Goddess of Death and Night is Stellar!
The legend really added to the piece
thanks for sharing that!
BEEEE-U-TI-FUL!
The grace and the lines and the curves...
how the heck did you get that one part to curve under the other?
Maybe Pele's given you some pointers on vitrification?
because no human can carve like that..
Oh wait...we're talking about paipo...
Carry on!

Absolutly Awesome! Wood carver now too? Can't wait to see it.

Paipo! glad your back, I see you have added a new style....nice!!!

Amy

The lighting in this shot is the icing on the cake:

Wood carving now, you say?
Let's see!

You're in the summit of your art with stone and you try wood! Respect from me! But I'm sure what a new summit is not far for you...

the great goddess of the night is absoluty awesome!!!!!!!!!

J.

DAMN MAN!!!!!!!
i just spent the last 3 or so hrs going through all 30+ pgs of this thread! i am BLOWN AWAY and don't know what to say. i am stunned, overwhelmed, a little dismayed, and yet COMPLETELY inspired all at once. i am taking too long to write this and mostly just shaking my head and sighing deeply. dude.

Welcome back, Rhys!

Everyone needs a battery recharge now and then, I've had many throughout the years.

Every return back is filled with more passion than before, and I can really see it in your latest piece!

I too love the story that goes with this one.

Wonderful detail and color!

It also has a great feeling of fierceness and gentleness about it. Everytime I look at it, it stimulates different feelings.

Paipo, your girl ios Definitely incredible. Sorry for being so late posting here but I figured I would let everyone chime in so I wouldn't be "Always" the first . I can see where you agonized about the time spent on her and how you hated doing it but loved it so much you wouldn't cut the corners. Very Well done mate!

Damn, Paip' you're killing me with those waves !

Bravo,

Benjamin.

Oh Boy, I get to be the first post on the Ghost page.

These 2 shots Really show the workmanship you put into this piece Paipo. It shows that you really care about your work and that you sacrificed the time spent to get the utmost detail out of that meager River Rock than you could possibly get, transforming it from a lump of stone into a true work of art worthy of any museum collection.
BRAVO Sir! Five Stars for sure...OH, but Wait, I See a flaw, send her to me and I'll fix it right up?