Just a little after sunrise at Lowers a tall slender bald man on a lime green pocicle stick of a board slides into an inside right section, unaware of the older ripping grom behind him who defiantly whips an air reverse toward his back and sticks it while his peers on the beach chuckle and point. But incognizant to them is the creative surf/art genius whom has inadvertently hopped in front of them.
Over 30 years ago Peter Schroff made his mark on OC during the 80’s, making MR influenced twins and quads with his own bright art work consisting of checkers and stripes combined with neon and Easter pastel colors that would define the Echo Beach movement happening in Newport. This would later evolve into his own shop, a clothing brand, tradeshow booths, restaurants and furniture. And who can forget his iconic sculpted surfboard? Curvy women, fish, sperm as well as a board that seems to have everything including exhaust pipes a guitar and a beer tap! Yes, Peter has done more than just cool things with surfing and art, he’s gone beyond the norm and done whatever it is that he wants to do. Now coming back full circle, Peter is once again shaping and painting his amazing surf sleds for a whole new generation!
Sitting down with Peter to have a chat is a unique experience in it’s self as he has his own style going on, from his rolled up sweat pants to his man satchel adorned with trinkets. He speaks with his own lingo and a bit of a lisp with a deaf person tone but it gets even more interesting when he texts or writes you as he writes just as he talks!
G+J: How did you get your start in shaping?
PS: fukk, had dat itch at 13, striped down one of my old sticks ’n went at it on da kitchen table at our behind market basket on 30th St. I’ve been sanding ’n maskin car since 7 at my pop’s auto body shop so i kinna had da feel for materials
G+J: Who or what has inspired your shaping?
I think de film Evolution with Wayne Lynch got our minds rollin, George Greenough . Newport’s hero was Scott Price
G+J: What inspires your art and design?
fukk, dat wud god’s only gift i receive
G+J: What was the scene like during the Echo Beach Era?
Plastic Fantastic
G+J: A lot has changed over the last 40 years in board design. What design or innovation do you think has been possibly overlooked throughout the years?
PS: fukk it went from porshe’s to landborghini’s when slater hit da scene, butt fukk, it’d b like mum ’n pop tryin ta drive a formula race car…. deyed look like fukkin retards, they’re fukkin amazin sticks but not 99% of us retards.
G+J: Is it true that you were paid to shop thrift stores in order to gather things for trade show booths and exhibits? Tell us about that.
PS: not really, me ’n my clever buddy (steve jones), loved gettin up at 5AM on Sunday mornin to deviate our hangover at da flea markets, so we figure out how to kill multipal birds……. get our shoppin fix, not worth a shit wid hangovers & make money for next weeks drugs, so we sold our finding to Quik for de stores we created to house deese thangs dat paid our party bills.
G+J: What artists and styles have influenced your work?
PS: chris burden, warhole, laurie anderson, hendeix, martha stewart, link wray, vitto acconcci, merc cunningham, john cage, john baldasarri, robert irwin, ed rusha, black flag, daft punk, paul mc carthy, YSL, jonnie cash only fro mention a few.
G+J: Who is Johnny disco?
PS: is who I becum when I put on the disco ball hat & dig out the o’ lazer guns for after hours parties.
G+J: What’s something that most people don’t know about you?
PS: that i go to yoga class 5-6 days a week & eat all organic & techno’s my wife.
G+J: Granny doylies or Haggar leisure suits?
PS: leisure suits any day hands down with gobs of gold chains & medallions !
G+J: Lowers or Venice?
PS: Lowers any day hands down, best shoulder hoppin place on earth !
G+J: What’s it like back shaping again?
PS: completely different than the 80’s, every board is like makin love to a different bitch now.
G+J: Do you find yourself wanting to come up with new designs?
PS: nope, the skil 100 has becum my hands, together we can do anythang.
G+J: What are some of your latest projects?
PS: a new back yard shop to shape & spray in venice, creating a high end cut ’n sew line for japan, building a swank camper in the new ram to live in & travel up ’n down the coast, singin in a band, making really stupid videos & trying to retire & do nothing !
G+J: Any advice for future shaper/artists out there?
PS: learn to listen to your heart
Final words?
PS: always ed love dem small businesses dat had dat had little dopy sign on dare wall ; your lack of planing doesn’t constitute an emergency on our part.
Posted by: ghetto juice at: 16 Sep 2015 16:04
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