OAHU, HAWAII.- Oregon-based photographer Brown W. Cannon III has been a surfer for more than three decades, with a family legacy in Hawai’i for nearly a century. NORTH (
Damiani Books, 2023) compiles a series he has been working on for more than ten years that captures the allure of surf culture and community on the North Shore of O’ahu, Hawai’i.
All subjects were photographed by Cannon against a 10x20 foot cloth backdrop that serves to highlight every detail of their faces, bodies, and personalities. Scars, taut muscles, wrinkles, sun-weathered skin, ornate tattoos, their gear and tools of their trade all tell a visual story of life on the water. Twenty-one subjects shared personal narratives with writers Steve Hawk and Bruce Jenkins in 2023, in a talk-story format that pays homage to Hawaiian tradition.
“Some of the tales are funny, some are harrowing, some are triumphant, and some are profoundly personal. But all of them have at their core an unwavering passion for the sea,” writes Cannon in NORTH.
A large-format book (12.5 x 17 in.), NORTH transports the reader to center stage, making the strength of the ocean waves almost physically palpable. Focused on the specific stretch of coast known as the Seven Mile Miracle, his images paint a powerful portrait of one of the most legendary proving grounds for big wave watermen and women. In addition to aerial views of the gorgeous North Shore landscape and jaw-dropping sunsets, Cannon includes action shots of his subjects flying down the line on 40-foot waves. He captures the excitement of competitors on the water and spectators on the shore at surf contests like The Eddie and Billabong Pro Pipeline.
“All of these people are magnetically drawn to this magical coast, and they’re all connected by water,” writes Cannon. “NORTH is dedicated to ‘ohana, and to friendships born in the waves. The Hawaiian word meaning ‘family,’ ‘ohana extends beyond blood relations. It is not limited; it is meant to grow.”
NORTH features more than eighty black-and-white photographic portraits of surfers, lifeguards, surfboard shapers, photographers, bodysurfers, and bodyboarders, including:
·Calveena Pua Kamealoha-Gomes, a Hawaiian culture educator, who opens NORTH with a prayer;
·Mark Healey, an unrivaled waterman renowned for his big-wave surfing and spearfishing abilities, who also contributed the foreword to NORTH;
·Keali’i Mamala, a native Hawaiian surfer who has tackled the most treacherous waves from the North Shore to Nazaré, Portugal, Tahiti and Alaska;
·Moana Jones Wong, known as the “Queen of Pipeline”;
·Clyde Aikau, brother of lost legend Eddie Aikau and founder of the Eddie Aikau Big Wave Invitational surf contest, known as “The Eddie” and held only when the surf reaches titanic proportions; and
·The late Peter Cole, a legend who continued surfing into his late seventies and passed away in February 2022 at age 91.
Brown W. Cannon III has traveled the world taking photographs for leading international publications including Travel & Leisure, National Geographic, and the Condé Nast group. His photographs have been exhibited in solo and group exhibitions in American galleries and museums. In 2018 he founded no2plastic.org, a nonprofit organization dedicated to reducing single-use plastics. He divides his time between Oregon and Hawaii.
Stunning photographs of O’ahu’s North Shore surf culture and community, available October 2023 in the U.S.
PUBLISHER: DAMIANI BOOKS
Cloth, 12.5 x 18 in. / 264 pgs / 75 color / 136 bw.
Pub Date 10/17/2023
ISBN 9788862088015 TRADE
