Dazzle 'em!

It's taken me years to write this post as I've long been fascinated by US Navy dazzle camouflage and how I could interpret it into a project.

Widely used by the allies in the First World War and then again sparingly in the Second, it's distinct erratic line work was designed to confuse the enemy as to the size, speed, direction and angle of the travelling vessel, thus making it difficult to get an accurate bearing to launch an attack.

Inspired by the work of Carrie Schneider 2008 Dazzle Canoe, I had the idea of applying the pattern to a surfboard, but then realised that there would not be a 'glasser' anywhere in the world who would touch a project like this and so the idea got shelved.

A couple of months back on Instagram Jon of @mosquito_boat posted a photo of a chest of drawers that he had Dazzled and that photo made me think of wood instead of fibreglass and this revelation drew me to the Alaia, a finless wooden surfboard favoured by the Ancient Hawaiians. Choosing this medium made the whole concept possible and so I contacted Jon and and we worked on several ideas to arrive at a pattern to suit the profile of the Alaia board.

From here I teamed up with life-long friend @Charcoal_Smith, a talented sign writer, artist, ladder climber and hero and got down to the business end of applying paint and loads of masking tape. The final touches was the marking of the 'ships numbers', 44, the numerals of the Papa Nui Combat Beach Battalion.

Original sketches. Bottom and top.

Taping begins.

Marking out the block colour seemed the best way.

Layering on the darker shades of grey. The pattern was basically two shades of grey, sporadic white and then overlayed on top with the black stripes.

It amazes me how dramatic an effect can be had with the simplicity of line.

Taking ownership.

Battle flag and numbers.

44 numerals of the Combat Beach Battalion.

Top deck.

Cole 'Charcoal' Smith, artist and sign writer.

Papa Nui with finished Alaia.

Having finally finished this project and seeing the ideas come to life, it reminds me of the importance of inspiration and that adage that says, 'It's not where you take things from, it's where you take them to'. 
All of us need to be inspired but we need to interpret things in our own way, we need to find a connection and draw our own parallels, we need to personalise and individualise and ultimately take ownship of an idea because this is what gives substance and authenticity. There is only one true way and that is in the words of Chris Issacs, "Be yourself because everyone else is already taken".

A Summer of caps. Papa Nui's 2015 line up.

Avenger Cap

The Papa's latest update of his original Corsairs Cap is the new Avenger Cap.

Following recommendations made by Com Air Pac directives the Avenger is built tough in 9oz herringbone twill and utilises a revised custom visor pattern. It's a cap that is as good looking as it is rugged. The under visor is lined in billiard green twill to tame the savage sun and is soft and pliable and ready to be flipped up and swaggered in. So whether you're strutting your stuff down Hotel Street to Wo Fats or making an entrance at the Gooney Bird Hilton its Bravo Zulu Papa all the way!

 

Catalina Cap

Those Navy Boys are a jealous lot! On the decks of the Bird Farm the Flyboys have been crying out for a cap of their own. 'Forget them god'damn Leathernecks Papa, give us a cap for service at sea". And so the Papa delivers a cap born of the South Pacific, designed for maximum protection from the sun but with a visor suited to cramped cockpits and gun turrets. A stubby mid weight indigo denim makes for substance while a under visor of USN life raft yellow provides a marker of safety and a signal of hope in stormy seas. The Catalina is the much favoured choice of Cat Crews and Plywood Canoes.

The Original Corsairs Cap

The Papa knows caps. A lifetime spent under the Pacific sun has taught him a thing or two about a visor of substance to hunker under when the sun would shrivel you to a New England hag, and so with a generous interpretation of the WWII A-1 sun visor the Papa introduces the Original Corsairs cap. A true aviators cap inspired by all things 'field made' and featuring a customised brim built around a period 4 panel crown. The Corsair launches onto the decks in a beautiful USMC Frog Skin camouflage perfect for the Papa's famous fighting Battalions.

Beachmaster Herringbone Twill.

A hat designed for service on land and sea. Part Daisy and part Dixie and all utility this new adaptation is taking beach heads by storm, prompting Admiral Halsey to decry, "Damn you Papa and those fancy sunbonnets of yours, there's not a man in regulation on the entire Atoll, you Huckster! You drygoods salesman!".

Beach master Italian Camouflage.

Flamboyant 'sprezzatura' M-29 Italian campaign camouflage liberated from a Salerno warehouse when the Papa's uncle, Roldolpho Russo landed there with the US 15th as part of Operation Avalanche.

So its all ahead full this summer with Papa Nui's 2015 line up made by exclusive arrangement with the John Lofgren Clothing Factory in Japan where quality is an absolute! 

The Papa is available in the Northern Hemisphere through the Iron Heart Denim Webstore, log on and check them out or ask Giles for the scuttlebutt!

Down under you'll find the Papa at RHD Righthand Distribution in Adelaide South Australia, or a select grouping through Pickings and Parry Fitzroy Melbourne Victoria. 

If all else fails email the Papa direct and let him sort you out with what you need.

Semper Papa.

Papa Nui studies cap styling in the South West Pacific.

Cap Styling.

When I conceived the idea for Papa Nui I was not looking to create a re-enactors brand or a replica product. Nothing could be further from the truth. Granted all my inspiration is drawn from original product but as I've discussed many times before the true goal in my projects was to create what we don't see. What I mean here is to encapsulate the individuality of the general issue serviceman. There's a misplaced belief that the world of war was a regimented and controlled environment when in fact it was as unique and chaotic as any other facet in human life. What I wanted to take note of was the idiosyncrasies of the average soldier and the way he carried himself and his personal style on the campaign trail, in the field of combat and in the forward bases.

This wonderful collection of photos below are screen shots from a short Smithsonian clip about aircraft Nose art and despite the interesting subject matter what really caught my eye was how each of the men featured here validated my point of view with their head gear. If they are wearing GI issues then its customised, bent, twisted or worn at a jaunt and adorned with personalised insignia, if its not issue then its private purchase or 'field' made. This is a really great lesson in authenticity as we must look deeper into our research for the finer details instead of skimming the surface and believing we have things right at a mere glance. At Papa Nui there is a solid belief that you don't completely own something until you customise it and that's why the Papa encourages all to wear his caps hard, to wash, and beat and trash and bend and then to resew or to decorate because at the end of the day as we can see in the images below, 'A man is the hat that he wears'.

Semper Papa!