Cardiff Kook facts for kids
Magic Carpet Ride is the official name of a 6-foot (1.8 m) high bronze sculpture. It was created in 2007 by Matthew Antichevich. He is an artist and also teaches sculpture at Mt. San Jacinto College. The sculpture shows a surfer and stands on a 6-foot high granite base. This base has a poem written by Robert Nanninga. You can find this sculpture in Cardiff-by-the-Sea, Encinitas, California, in the United States. Local people have given Magic Carpet Ride a funny nickname: The Cardiff Kook. This name is a bit teasing and was made popular by the local surfing community.
How the Surfer Sculpture Came to Be
This special sculpture was asked for by the Cardiff Botanical Society. It cost about $120,000 to make. The sculpture was put in place in 2007. You can see it near the entrance to the San Elijo State Beach campground. This is located on Coast Highway 101. The Botanical Society raised $92,000 for the sculpture itself. The city of Encinitas paid the remaining $30,000 for its installation.
The Original Design and Its Meaning
The artist, Matthew Antichevich, had a specific idea for the sculpture. He wanted to show a surfer doing a "backside floater." This is a surfing move where the surfer rides on top of a breaking wave. However, the Botanical Society's budget was not big enough. It could not cover the cost of adding a water or wave part to the sculpture.
Matthew Antichevich was chosen from over 50 artists who wanted the job. His first idea was a female surfer on a breaking wave. This design also cost too much. So, the Botanical Society chose a male surfer on a granite base. This design used half the amount of bronze. Other ideas were also discussed, like a sculpture of famous surfer Rob Machado. There was also an idea for a surfer on a longboard.
According to the artist and Michael Ames Clark, the sculpture has a special meaning. Clark was the head of the selection committee at the time. They said the sculpture shows the fun and sometimes awkward feeling of a young boy learning to surf. This idea recognizes that many new surfers come to this area to learn.
