Photograghs of Texas Tiki Roundup 2012 by Dennis Haberkern

I would like to thank Dennis for providing me with these  photos of some of my carvings and other artistic images of the event. 
You can visit his website here:  http://www.haberkernphoto.com/

A more complete gallery of my carving can be seen at http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=43484&forum=21&11

"Texas Tiki Roundup"

This was my first year to attend this annual party celebrating everything to do with Polynesian Pop Culture... with a heavy emphasis on the word "celebrating".  The good food, good music, and good people were the perfect recipe for a great time!  Check out this YouTube video from a previous year and you will get the idea .
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMHJcbn2g94

All photos courtesy of Brian aka "Limbo Lizard"

Dusk settles on the Enchanted Lagoon...

John Frum Cargo Cult plays Quiet Village,... as Formikahini renders exotic bird calls.  https://www.facebook.com/JohnFrumCargoCult

The surf-rockin' Del Vipers  http://www.myspace.com/thedelvipers

Ukulele Duo, "MonsterJones" and Kathy Murray

       

Upstairs, in the 'Tiki Room'

Later, many switch to bathing attire and enjoy the salt water pool and hot tub.

Oceanic Art at the San Antonio Museum of Art.

“What I am looking for in ancient culture is to understand how and why this type of aesthetic arose, one that is completely mystical and at the same time religious, sensual yet human…there is such emotion in it . . .” - Igor Mitoraj


Mitoraj, a contemporary artist, is inspired by the emotional power of ancient Greek sculpture. Primitive art has the same effect on me and Mitoraj's quote accurately conveys my feelings.  These carvings are a few of my favorites from the San Antonio Museum of Art.

In This Gulf...

 "In this Gulf of uncertain light, there were more illusions than realities."
 Steinbeck - "The Pearl"

Maori Tekoteko wood carving

"though Europeans might guess that carvings represented gods, they had almost no idea who Maori gods were.  Nor did they realize that local ancestors, rather than gods, were often the most consequential figures...in all likelyhood they were the ones embodied in the houses...ingeniously carved."

exerpt from Cook: The extraordinary Voyages of Captain James Cook - Nicholas Thomas




Maori Tekoteko carving as a protector to ward off evil.

Keeper of the Oral Tradition

"He poked the coals with a stick to keep them from going out. The old man sat thinking. He lived for ancient times and was firmly fettered to them. He worshiped his forefathers and their deeds in an unbroken line back to the time of the gods. And he looked forward to being reunited with them. Old Tei Tetua was the sole survivor of all the extinct tribes on the east coast of Fatu Hiva. How old he was he did not know, but his wrinkled, bark-brown, leathery skin looked as if it had been dried in sun and wind for a hundred years. He was one of the few on these islands that still remembered and believed in his father's and his grandfather's legendary stories of the great Polynesian chief-god Tiki, son of the sun".     -  Exerpt from the book KON TIKI.

I call this carving Tetahi Ma'te.  He is the keeper of the oral tradition.

The Remote Beaches of Padre Island

“We need the tonic of wildness... that land and sea be indefinitely wild, unsurveyed and unfathomed by us because unfathomable. We can never have enough of nature.”   -

Henry David Thoreau

Kon-tiki: the band

Here is a digital painting of that wigged-out jazz combo, the Kon-tikis. These paintings are just something creative I do to pass time when it's uncomfortable outdoors.

Marquesas Island Tiki

Here is my carving inspired by the art of Tahiti and the Marquesas Islands.

Tekoteko

Here is my carving inspired by the Moari culture of New Zealand.

South Padre Island as a resort beach

As a resort, many consider SPI the premier beach in Texas.

Island cuisine

I would like to amend the previous post to include a couple of plugs. During my stay in Port Aransas, two restaurants stood out above the others. If you are in a hurry or see value in large portions, you should probably go elsewhere. I am by no means a gourmet, but the seafood at these two restaurants was the best I’ve had. Shell's Restaurant and The Pelican Club both offer superbly flavored foods. On another food note, here is another website you may find interesting. I have never sampled the preparations of Professor G. but I find his website to be both entertaining an appetizing. I am certain his culinary creations are as artfully done as his website. Please follow this link to visit Professor G