Wade Koniakowsky

Wade Koni­akowsky is a tal­ented Cal­i­for­nia surfer/painter who is known for his vivid depic­tions of the ocean lifestyle. His work is shown in gal­leries all over the world and he recently col­lab­o­rated with Dick Brewer on a series of board paint­ings. We recently spoke with Wade to learn more.

What was your child­hood like grow­ing up?
Lost in a fer­tile imag­i­na­tion. My mom helped chan­nel it into some struc­tured art instruc­tion. And I drew incessantly.

What was the feel­ing you had when you first stood on a surf­board?
Float­ing, I sup­pose. It’s one of the more vivid rec­ol­lec­tions of my child­hood. It was 1966. I was 12.

When did you get your first surf­board?
My first board was wooden. My dad took Tom Blake’s plans, which had been pub­lished in Pop­u­lar Mechan­ics mag­a­zine, and mod­i­fied them slightly. I learned from this that the kook boxes needed all that thick­ness for flota­tion. My dad’s ver­sion was smaller and thin­ner, but didn’t float well. Soon after, I got my first board—a Pop-Out. My brother and I bought it for $60 and paid the guy $5 a week until we paid it off.

Who did you look up to and admire when you were a young man?
Mike Doyle, Joey Cabell, Paul Strauch… guys like that. And a few older local guys.

Where were you edu­cated?
Texas State Uni­ver­sity. I did a pro­gram that com­bined fine art and com­mer­cial art. It was a decent foun­da­tion for the years I spent in adver­tis­ing and graphic design as well as my cur­rent pur­suit of fine art.

Tell us about your won­der­ful paint­ings. What do you hope to evoke with them?
First, I want reach a broad audi­ence; I want to appeal to any­one with an affin­ity for the ocean. I want it to evoke what the ocean evokes: tran­quil­ity, power, beauty, light, color and a con­nec­tion to the lifestyles that revolve around the ocean.

Of all the inter­est­ing places you have trav­eled to, what place in par­tic­u­lar stands out? And why?
These days, when I travel I like to paint and surf. One of the best places I’ve found for good surf and inspir­ing views is Hanalei Bay. A day of surf­ing and paint­ing around Hanalei and the North Shore of Kauai in gen­eral is hard to beat. And thanks to a good friend, I have a very com­fort­able place to stay and work when I’m there.

What code or “golden rule” do you live by?
Life is a gift. Any sense of enti­tle­ment runs con­trary to that.

Who or what inspires you?
Any­one who steps out and takes hold of all that life has to offer. Artis­ti­cally, I’m inspired by early Cal­i­for­nia art. I’m inspired by artists who make sig­nif­i­cant breakthroughs—like Jack­son Pollock—or artists like Warhol, who doesn’t take it all so seri­ously. I’m inspired by artists who sim­ply make a liv­ing at art. That’s an art in itself. I see so many peo­ple doing art and so few really mak­ing a liv­ing doing it. And I’m inspired by a lot of artists who are friends of mine. I get to observe them deal with life in the midst of pur­su­ing their art.

What is the great­est thing you have learned in your life?
God is in control.

Do you have any regrets or wish you had done some­thing dif­fer­ently?
Yes, but I’d rather not remind myself of them.

What are you most proud of?
My children.

What mean­ing does surf­ing hold for you and how has it changed your life?
Surf­ing is a teacher. It’s helped to show me my place in the universe.

What brings you the most hap­pi­ness in the world?
Creating.

What is in your cur­rent quiver? What is your favorite board?
I’m down to one longboard—a 9’8” noserider—and a cou­ple of mini logs in the 8’ range. Then, a bunch of old school mid-lengths between 7’ and 8’ as well as a cou­ple boards in the 6’8” range. The board I ride most is a 7’ fatty tri, two plus one.

What’s your favorite meal?
Hole in the wall Mex­i­can food.

What are you cur­rently lis­ten­ing to on your iPod?
Edward Sharpe and the Mag­netic Zeros.

What causes, projects, orga­ni­za­tions do you sup­port?
Surfrider and art education

What are you most grate­ful for?
Fam­ily and friends.

What’s next for Wade Koni­akowsky?
We’re just final­iz­ing a deal to open a new ocean art gallery with Aaron Chang in the Cedros Design Dis­trict in Solana Beach.

Learn more about Wade Koniakowsky’s and his work here. All work is copy­righted by the artist.