I’m so excited to introduce you Amanda Phelps – a recent friend, surfer girl and compassionate creative who started Resurface Art. She takes old surfboards, turns them into canvases to paint on, and then donates 20% of each sale to help build clean water wells. Paul and I had an old, dusty, dinged shortboard in our garage that was taking up space so we gave it to Amanda to create one of her masterpieces with. I’m so excited for you to get to know this radiant girl after God’s own heart and be inspired as I have by the life she’s living.
How did you come up with the idea for the boards?
I grew up surfing and cultivated a love for the sport at a very young age. I was a wanna be Roxy girl, for sure. My dad would make surfboards out of wood in our garage and I would watch him so closely and dream of one day working with surfboards too. I realized there is a surplus of old surfboards piling up in people’s garages and backyards and it dawned on me, how environmentally friendly it would be to reuse those boards by making them into art!
What do you find the most challenging about what you do?
Getting the word out there and informing the public about what RESURFACE is all about. There is only one of me which makes it hard when trying to balance everything on my own, from the actual painting and web design to art shows and social media.
What made you choose to partner with World Vision and to construct water wells?
World Vision has always been my favorite nonprofit. They do such an amazing job of clearly communicating the different needs of the oppressed and creating an easy access bridge for people that want to help. They are a credible Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to their cause. I knew I could trust them as a partner and they have been so supportive of RESURFACE from the very beginning.
How many surfboards have you created and how do you determine the artistic vision for each?
RESURFACE just celebrated it’s 1 year anniversary, and since the start, I have painted a little over 20 boards. For the custom-ordered boards, the artistic vision is usually a collaborative effort between the person ordering the board and myself. When I have no guidelines as far as what to paint, I usually draw my inspiration from nature. The beauty that is found in the repeating patters in nature and in the vibrant colors of our planet has always been my inspiration.
How do you like to spend your time outside RESURFACE?
My favorite things to do outside RESURFACE is hiking, surfing, beach combing, SCUBA diving, serving in my community, traveling with my family, learning about wine and playing scrabble with my husband.
What’s next for RESURFACE?
In hopes that RESURFACE continues to grow at the steady pace that it has, my dream is to actually travel to a developing country in Africa with my husband and witness first hand what it takes to build a well.
Check out Amanda in action here…
RESURFACE from Amanda Peck Phelps on Vimeo.
