Handcrafted
Something we don’t see very often in this sport are innovative designs that stray a bit from the norm. Japanese designer Taro Tamai has been designing hand-made boards for over a decade. An answer to the homogenization of board shapes that happened as snowboarding gained mainstream appeal.
Tamai’s goal is no less than to “perfectly blend into the terrain miraculously made of snow and wind, just as if birds flying in the sky or fish flowing in the stream.” The end product of his philosophical approach to the sport is a line of boards renowned for their flexible fins, oversized sized fish tails and ride-ability in almost any snow condition.” More information on these special boards at Gentemstick Snowboards.

Image source: Selectism

 

Return of the Kass
Next season’s Nike Snowboarding lineup debuts their first signature model for none other than Danny Kass. The Danny Kass Signature Boot was designed with Danny and features artwork and branding by Mark Dean Veca. The boot has a more streamlined appearance and features ergonomic shell contruction, premium compression molded, synthetic leather wrapped phylon midsole with embedded zoom air in heel, heat Moldable Liner for custom fit, and a ton more features that you’ll have to wait til the Fall to find out. Bonus points go to the Dunk inspired “winglike” ankle strap for added style. Look for this model in two colorways releasing in September and October this year.

Image source: Nike Snowboarding

 

Made in Japan
Burton Japan, FYi, and Fragment Design have merged forces to work on a joint collaboration project to develop high end technical outerwerar. The result is the [ak] 457 jacket, which can be best described as technical equipment for mountain enthusiasts. It’s the most functional and technically developed outerwear coming out of the Burton camp, and for now it’s only available in Japan.

Image source: FYi Design Department

 

Adam Weiss / Landscape Studio for Burton
Some great design work for the current line up of Burton Snowboard packaging conceptualized and designed by Adam Weiss of Landscape Studio, with Illustrations done by Travis Millard. The packaging redesign encompassed Burton’s entire product offering: boot/binding boxes, board labels, outerwear hangtags and accessory boxes. The aesthetic was later carried over into all communications for the brand.

Image source: Landscape Studio

 

“Don’t worry about a thing, every little thing is gonna be alright”
As with every season, Burton doesn’t fail to sprinkle exciting collaborations among its already impressive array of shreds. We’ve seen official collaborations with the Warhol estate, Futura, Ducati, and most recently for 2011, legendary singer and cultural icon Bob Marley. The Marley Whammy board was made possible with a blessing from the Marley Estate and it should give you some good vibes and easy feelings on the mountain for sure. Available at Burton Flagship stores next season.

Image source: Rad Collector

 

Beastin’
For its 20th anniversary this year, Timorous Beasties, a design studio from Glasgow Scotland, has collaborated with Nike ACG to create a capsule collection of jackets and soft-goods featuring their signature style of visual imagery in a limited run.

For this collection, Timorous Beasties have merged traditional 19th century motifs with designs of the day to create an interesting pattern that compliments itself well. This graphic has been applied to a Nike ACG TB Vertical Shell BK Jacket, in both black and blue colorways, and feature fully taped seams and a wind and waterproof lightweight shell that utilizes the ACG Storm-Fit technology.

Image source: Freshness Mag

 

Live Series Boards & Bindings
We gave you a first look at Endeavor Snowboard Design’s 2011 lineup the other day, now we have a better look at the Live Series, done up by Bristol artist Mr. Jago. The Live Series has always been a show piece for Endeavor. In keeping with this style, they chose to use the Live as Mr. Jago’s canvas for 2011. Having worked with such brands as Addict and Rossignol, and having exhibited his work around the world, it’s clear that his collaboration with Endeavor is a great match. Going to his studio in Bristol, Endeavor selected nine pieces of work from Mr. Jago’s portfolio and photographed them to be used as the graphics for this series of boards and also as the inaugural graphics for the forthcoming Live Series binding.

Image source: Endeavor Snowboard Design

 

Since 2002
One of the brands that I am most interested in seeing year after year is Vancouver Canada’s own Endeavor Snowboard Design. Coming into their 8th season in 2011 and looking to drop an impressive catalog of both hardware and softwear products, Endeavor is still hitting strong with their attention to detail and collaborations with some of the world’s best artists. Mr. Jago, Hydro74, Vince Chan and Derek Stenning are only a handful of the artists that have done work with Endeavor for 2011. New for next season are two models of bindings to round it all out and complete your kit. Keep your eyes out for these!

Image source: Endeavor Snowboard Design

 

Dropping at SIA
A new goggle line has been announced from glove manufacturer DROP MFG for the 2010/2011 season. DROP’s introductory line features six high-performance goggles offered in a variety of prints and colorways. Models include the ESPI, Laax and Helio for men, SPR MDL and Rocker for women, and Ripper for kids. Additionally, two special-edition “DROP Pure Inspiration” (DPI) series goggles will be offered from artists Andy Jenkins and Bigfoot.
More info and images after the jump.

Image source: DROP MFG

 

Artist Spotlight
We brought you coverage of the Aries 2010 Time Capsule Program that Nike and Nemo Design had commissioned from artist and designer Brian Addison Elliot of Portland Oregon. Now we get a closer look at the Aries itself, complete with the initial sketches or the artist’s renderings. Aries turns out to be a massive installation with cues coming from the vintage space days. You can view a time lapse video of the installation here, and be sure to check out the rest of Brian Addison Elliot’s impressive body of work.

Image source: Brian Addison Elliot