Robin Lanei has been surfing since she was nine years old. Like a cup of tea, it’s steeped into virtually all aspects of her life — and especially her art.
Lanei was born and raised in Monterey Bay, California, a place where surfing is a way of life. She spent a few years traveling the world and eventually found everything she needed in Sayulita, Mexico. In 2012, she decided to make the move. Four years later, in 2016, she decided to do something that would change the entire direction of her life: she decided to document a full year of drawing on Instagram. It was just the right push to her creative side, and since then, her drawings have evolved into a clever, irreverent, sometimes-blunt portrait of female surfing and inclusivity in the ocean.
“I like to comment on the surf culture in my art,” she says. “To try and find a way to make it funny and absurd and learn a lesson out of it. For me, the easiest way to do that since I was a kid was to draw it out. It’s funny because the viewers right now see my art as representing women’s surfing. I love that. It’s so awesome. I love to represent a woman’s perspective in the surf industry. But it’s my perspective, you know? I can’t speak for every person out in the water, but I’m just happy that this adds to the collective of perspectives and experiences out in the water… and I just happen to be a woman.”
We’re honored to have Lanei as our Creativity + Social Impact advocate as part of our Third Annual EVOLVE Summit, where we celebrate individuals who are making a positive impact on surf and outdoor culture. Lanei is certainly one of those people, and we’re so glad to have her.
Our full feature with Robin Lanei is streaming live now. Tune in to watch it here and learn more about the rest of our 2020 EVOLVE lineup. EVOLVE 2020 is presented by White Claw with support from Kindhumans.
