Above: An example of John's work 

You can see the blue whales poster campaign around the streets of Laguna and Dana Point with the whale tail in the air saying... Hello as a sign symbol like image. Visual and Media Artist John Van Hamersveld is the creator of the image for the campaign for the Whale Festival.

Believe it or not the artist John Van Hamersveld lived just south, down the road in Dana Point, on El Encanto Street in a beautiful early California Spanish style house in 1963, and was working for John Severson, who created Surfer Magazine.

While he was living and working there he would drive back and forth to Art Center College of Design, where between the art school and his kitchen... he says, "I created the "Endless Summer" poster image you see today as the icon for surfing".

At the Ritz Carlton Laguna Niguel Hotel from the Bar window you can see down to Salt Creek Beach where John Van Hamersveld composed the three figures and surfboards as a photograph. The black silouette figures and the day glow colored famous poster is "The Endless Summer" started in 1963.

The early tri-pod holes made by the weight of the 4x5 camera have since washed away in the tides of the past 47 years. The famous image is collected by the MOMA of New York. The poster still sells to new customers interested in the icon of Surfing History and the new surf culture.

John started his art career ironically with Surfers and Hippie Culture of the 60s and 70s ideas. Today 'The New Culture' of kids today of the Millenniums generation are evolving in parallel with his boomer past and are captured by the old vibe as their own. Surf Culture today is like an Ancient History showing today how cultures merge in idea, as in the surfers and Hippie attitudes of the 60s and 70s merge in today's youth culture.

Here as example...Art history plays in the transformation of cultures like this.

Greek and Roman culture, although similar, are very different and interesting. Since the Romans adopted culture from the Greeks, many traditions are the same. When the Romans conquered the Hellenistic cities, they became fascinated with the idea of a Greek style of doing things. All things Greek were now considered popular. This is how much of the Greek way of life made its way into the Roman society. The first part of culture that the Romans adopted was the Greek art. Scores of Greek paintings were stolen from Greece and imported into the Roman Empire. Roman artists began adopting the Greek style of art, from the emotional intensity to the great detail. In many cases, it is very difficult to distinguish between Hellenistic works, Roman copies of Greek works, and Roman originals.

Images in the Surf Culture

John says..."In this decade I wanted to explain my transition in the surf industry from the 20th Century to the 21st Century as a Visual & Media Artist," He said. "I began as a surfer and art student in 1963 I invented the modernist Endless Summer poster image with the ground breaking surf film as the early Surf Industry opened in New York City. The posters major sales started there, in their media and distribution around the world by Personality Posters of NYC selling to a new generation, as a part of the Sixties Revolution".

Today he said..."Now as the Visual and Media artist and designer who makes images by drawing "The Next Wave" image within a theme called "Waterworks" and working in the Active Sportswear Culture.

He said," I drew a wave for Graham Stappleburg, the executive of Billabong marketing now. I drew a new Grizzly Pipeline wave image for the Billabong"s Pipeline Masters event, staged on the North Shore of Oahu. The image circulated around the world as a poster, pasted on their store chain windows as the poster became murals too... with huge panels of the wave drawing blown-up in size and wrapped around the event, with the viral web and live streaming of the events".

John says..."This is the Action Sports Empire of today where I find myself back again in the fold with a Surf Culture image 47 years later. Just shy of a half of Century, now trailing my new Pipeline poster of a new vibe capturing the attention of a new generation of Surfer's."