2023 Surf Art Calendar
April
“Luna”
By: Katia Gray
STORY BEHIND THE IMAGE
I woke up to go surf
saw the moon
ditched my board
grabbed my camera.
Picture was taken on April 6, 2020 and uploaded with the following Instagram post: Last time I saw a pink moon 🌝 I went bonkers with excitement 🎟 ran down the beach at 5 am and got this shot 🤩
PERSONAL CONNECTION
I originally met Katia in the parking lot of the famed surf spot San Miguel, located in Ensenada, Mexico. It was 2016 and my cousin Juan had invited me on a weekend trip to K-55 in Northern Baja to stay at the legendary Mexico House he’d been talking about for years, owned by the Spadone family and his good friend Dave Sherrier. The house is located in a private community that is only available to home owners, is heavily guarded by the local surf crew, and so it was a privilege to be invited. We arrived Saturday morning to a swell that was increasing throughout the day and we were able to surf two sessions with only a few guys out. As tradition goes, any guest who stays at the house for the first time has to wear the Pink Mexican Flamenco Shirt out to dinner that night and because it was my first time, I owned it! As we enjoyed tacos and beers at the local restaurant in La Fonda, I didn’t notice the sideways glances or stares from the locals, because we had surfed incredible waves that day and there was more swell on the way.
The next day was too big for the point at K-55, so we decided to head further south to San Miguel because it could hold more swell and was a world class wave when it broke. After the session, I get to the parking lot where I notice Katia packing up her camera gear and strike up a conversation. It turns out she also lived in Los Angeles (Mar Vista) and we were essentially neighbors. I said if you can check to see if you had any shots of me, I’d love to see them, so we exchanged contact information and left it at that. Weeks go by, maybe even a month… then out of the blue I get a text of two great images of me surfing and we have stayed in touch ever since.
After years of following her work, I can say that she is an incredible talent! Fashion, portraits, fur babies, surf… I think she’s amazing and happy to share her incredible image with you.
ARTIST BIO
California born fine art/fashion photographer, art director, brand consultant. Currently living in Los Angeles. Bachelors of Fine Arts, Art Center College of Design, Pasadena
Web: www.katiagrayphotography.com Instagram: @katiamanifesto
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