Blogs

Driving on to the Black Rock Desert, plumes of dust greeted us from a distance. Little did we know that we would soon be in a full-fledged dust-storm; visibility zero, fine dust everywhere, and all movement stopped. The Department of Tethered Aviation (DOTA) camp was centrally located, so finding our campsite was relatively easy (especially for Blake Pelton and I, we just followed the car in front of us), but many of our camp-mates were stopped at the gate because of the white-out conditions.

Come to one of the world's most loved kite festivals in Long Beach, Washington and join 100 Revolution sport kite fliers of all ages and skill levels, flying together on the beaches. This is another REV MEGA FLY and will feature the likes of team iQuad, the Decorators from England, as well as a host of international and domestic Rev stars. Find them on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday! There will be free Rev lessons on the beach. Watch for the iQuad team members.

Many Chinese kites come in a box that is just the right size. In the DF collection there are many such boxes, and you never know what you will find inside. Centipede kite box (click image for larger version) This week, I opened a pretty green and blue fabric-covered box to find a kite whose character totally captured me. Inside was a Chinese centipede kite.

Sometimes it's easy to take for granted the development of things we see or work with often. Logos are like that. They are widely recognizable symbols of an organization or company and when they are well designed, they are lasting and they become an integrated part of our lives. The American Kitefliers Association (AKA) logo is one of them.

Post by Marina Hernandez, Collections Intern With its delicate paper form and its intricate floral designs, the Malaysian Wau kite is visually enchanting. Despite its beauty, the Wau is far from passively decorative. Steeped in history and tradition, Wau fly high and gracefully, producing a humming sound created by a noisemaker known as a hummer. The largest are five feet by four feet and require two people for launching. These can fly as high as 450 meters, almost 500 yards.

In January, the news of a magnitude 7.0 earthquake in Haiti rocked the world. The capitol, Port-au-Prince, with its old and fragile infrastructure, was all but completely destroyed.

Life is serendipitous, and it is usually a joy to where it takes us. In November, I had the opportunity to meet Yoko Ott (through a semi sweet 16 birthday party), Director of Open Satellite exhibition space in Bellevue, Washington. Her quick conversation with me brought forth a connection, Heather & Ivan Morison, world-renowned guest artists for the months of April and May. As good directors do, we jumped right in and headed to the finish line, detailing a collaborative project with the Drachen Foundation and Open Satellite.