We could tell from the warm orange glow pulsing from the windows of the CO Exhibitions Gallery on Saturday night, October 23, 2010 that were in the right place. Hipsters smoked on the front steps and smiling design fans strolled off into the night with custom signed Draplin prints rolled up under their arms.
Inside Burlesque of North America’s old warehouse in Minneapolis’ North East side, a QR code on the wall linked mobile phone users to a personal welcome from Aaron regarding the Thanks MLPS show. CO even provided headphones. But all these nice touches paled in comparison to the enormous, orange wall filled with 400 black and white Draplin logos. It’s a reminder of the impact Draplin has made on snowboarding and graphic design in general. Pretty much everything Draplin Design Company has created over the past ten years is on the wall.
This show is a coming home of sorts, according to Draplin. “I went to school here [Minneapolis] for two hot years, fell in love with it and then fucked up and went back down to California and threw it all away,” he says. “This is my ode to the two years I had here. It shows all the warts and moles. The good, the bad, a lot of ugly and hopefully a lot of fun. That’s it. Just to say thank you, because this community was the kick in the ass that I needed.”
The Thanks MLPS show runs until till November 20, 2010. Follow the jump for more photos and a short video interview with Aaron. . . [click to continue…]
Loveland Ski Area officially ripped open Colorado’s 2010-2011 season on Sunday, October 24, 2010 and look who was on the first chair: snowboarders, of course. As sometime Colorado local Todd Richards said yesterday on Twitter: “Its officially open season on the white ribbon of death.”
This year’s opening was a little later than last, but it didn’t seem to bother anyone according to the Denver Post:
“It’s been a really strong turnout,” Loveland director of marketing John Sellers said. . . “Everyone’s been saying that the snow’s riding great,” Sellers said. . . . Eight inches of natural snow fell on the slopes in the two days leading up to the opening, making for good conditions on the big day, Sellers said.
Just tempting enough to lure snowboarders out into the trees on those brand new boards. . .
Aaron Draplin, designer of so much we know and love in the world of snowboarding graphics (Union Bindings, Coal Hats, Grenade, etc. . . ), has pulled together “pretty much everything since we spit town” for his Thanks MPLS show tonight (October 23, 2010) at CO Exhibitions in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Here’s what Aaron says:
“Dear Minneapolis: In 1998, after five wild winters cutting my teeth out west, I made my way back to the Midwest to see if I could hack in the big leagues of Art School at MCAD. Things like those Replacements and the ever-inspiring Charles Spencer Anderson brought me to you. Sure, I got myself a hi-falutin’ graphic degree, but more importantly, I fell hard for yer design community and the mountain of great work always coming out of it. And I’ll be forever hooked on you. What you are looking at in this show is basically, “Pretty much everything since I split town.” So that’s what we’re calling it. Thanks, Minneapolis. You were the kick in the ass I needed.” – Aaron Draplin
The show runs until November 20, 2010 and the party tonight is from 7 to 10 PM. Those who attend will get to meet Aaron’s parents, listen to The Evening Rig, and even purchase some exclusive prints, tees, and more.
Personal brand marketing has peeked in snowboarding as the China Air & Style becomes the Shaun White Air & Style (with a little help from Oakley) on December 4, 2010.
“This is a huge opportunity, and it’s really great to be part of it,” said Shaun White. “We’ll bring together top riders and showcase global talent, and we hope to stoke all the homegrown talent that’s coming out of China and see some of their best in action. To partner with Oakley and share our ever-progressing sport with Beijing and Chinese society as a whole is an amazing honor,” White concluded.
Celtek has created a special line of gloves in collaboration with top shops called the SLSH Collection (Shop Local Shop Here). The gloves currently come in eight flavors: Milosport (Salt Lake City, UT), The Youth Shelter Supply (Waite Park, MN), Easy Rider (Alberta, Canada), Shred Shop (Chicago, IL), Tactics (Eugene, OR), World Boards (Bozeman, MT), EVO (Seattle, WA), and Damage (Duluth,MN). And all of them look pretty good.
Celtek founders Erik and Bjorn Leines describe the motivation behind this collection, “The feeling of going in to a real snowboard shop for the first time is a mixture of wonder, intimidation, and stoke. It’s usually the moment when you become snowboarder and stop being “someone who snowboards”. We wanted to let these shops have total control on the artwork on the gloves to showcase their personality, and give the ability to fly the flag of people that bust ass every day to make sure that snowboarding stays awesome.”
Smart way to give shops hand while letting shreds fly the fingers with local pride. Follow the jump for the details. [click to continue…]
Those who doubted that Shaun White wouldn’t take over skateboarding the way he has snowboarding were taught a lesson on Sunday as Mr. White won his third consecutive Dew Tour Vert title.
It wasn’t enough to win the overall (that went to PLG) but it was enough to show that he plans on winning everything he enters from here on out. Thanks for playing, everyone else.
Don’t know how we missed this, but it’s Friday and we could all use a smile. Lizard King talks snowboarding with updown magazine. Let’s just say he’s not all that complimentary to Shaun White.
This show is a coming home of sorts, according to Draplin. “I went to school here [Minneapolis] for two hot years, fell in love with it and then fucked up and went back down to California and threw it all away,” he says. “This is my ode to the two years I had here. It shows all the warts and moles. The good, the bad, a lot of ugly and hopefully a lot of fun. That’s it. Just to say thank you, because this community was the kick in the ass that I needed.”
