I can't tell you how many times I've written and rewritten this introduction for Lauren Hill's interview. I'm finding myself suddenly inarticulate because there are just so many wonderful things to say about her, so much so it's hard knowing where to start! Our correspondence has only been through email but her kindness, friendliness and general aura have made her words positively effervesce off the screen. Surfer, environmentalist, humanitarian, artist she is so many of my favorite things!
What I hope to convey most of all within this interview is that there is so much solidarity for women in surfing. Lauren is a true water woman who is being part of the positive culture emerging in female surfing.
So without further ado here is Lauren Hill in her own words.
1. If you were given only a minute to explain who you are and what you do, what would be the main points?
LH: I am a human attempting to live a joyful, loving, silly and compassionate existence. In this pursuit I try to live relatively simply, spend as much time in wild spaces as possible, and challenge myself physically, creatively, intellectually and otherwise. I have an incredibly fortunate life and feel a responsibility to share the freedoms I experience with others. It's all an experiment.
2. As an accomplished surfer being new at it probably seems a long time ago but can you tell us how you first got into surfing and how long it took to feel like you were competent?
LH: I started surfing when I was 13. I had lots of guy friends who surfed and one day, after a really vivid dream about surfing, I knew that I had to try. Surfing came pretty naturally for me, especially since I had been a competitive gymnast up to that point. I entered my first surf contest after surfing for six months. I still feel incompetent on a surfboard sometimes, though. Surfing is the kind of experience that has an infinite capacity for teaching.
3. If you were to give advice to aspiring or beginner surfers what would that be?
LH: Learn the basics from someone experienced —how to paddle, pop-up and begin to read waves. Then spend as much time in the water as you can, even just swimming can help you better understand the ocean and make you a better surfer. Observe the ocean and other surfers.
4. For the 21st century woman there is immense pressure to be accomplished in every area of life – career, love, finance etc, how do you maintain balance in your life?
LH: Feminism has won some incredible victories and created so many opportunities for what is possible for us as women. Many of us can have it all—career, family, love, passion, surfing---just probably not all at the same time . It is rare to experience perfect balance of all aspects of life at the same time….and if you do, thank your lucky stars, but know that it will change. All will descend into chaos again at some point. Doing my best to be present and do what makes my heart sing are the things that allow me to find balance. Also, not taking on too much at any one time. And, when all is out of whack, I’ve always got the ocean to go to and put things in perspective.
5. Female surfers are sometimes thought of as bikini models before athletes. What are your opinions of female representation in the surf industry and the future of female surfing?
LH: Oh my. This is a black hole for me. I like to stay positive, so I’ll just say that I try my best to support active, engaged, sustainable and respectful ideals for female surfers. Part of this means spreading the word about how talented female surfers are as athletes, artists, activists, water women, etc. through writings and on my blog TheSeaKin.com I’m fortunate enough to be supported by two companies, Billabong and Bing Surfboards, and I feel like that might have been possible even 10 years ago---there weren’t really women being supported by the industry for being free surfing/activists then. The definition of what it means to be a woman surfer is constantly evolving and the industry will respond to that. Depictions of women in the surf industry really aren't any different from depictions of women in the mainstream. It’s up to us as water women to demand new imagery and create the kind of content that we want to see; to reflect the reality of what it means to be a female surfer. It’s not enough to complain about the wrongs. We can make change by creating our own cultural contributions; make a ‘zine, start a blog, write a story for a magazine, take photos, tell your story.
6. Art and activism seem irrevocably entwined in your life,what inspires your creativity and what motivates you to support environmental and humanitarian causes?
LH: Inspiration is an attitude. It’s all around us. I get inspired observing the non-human world, watching people ride waves, and sharing ideas with friends.
Surfing has been one of the most powerful guides in my adult life---from the topic of my thesis to helping me create a great love. I guess that's partly what motivates me to support environmental causes; feeling indebted to all that the ocean has done for me. I'm so grateful for having been born into such a sincerely fortunate lot in life, I feel responsible to at least play a small part in shining the light on some of the injustices I encounter and working to undo them, even if only in tiny ways.
7. You’ve recently started your own organization ‘Sea Kin’ can you tell us a little bit about this venture and what inspired you to establish it?
LH: Sea Kin’s first incarnation was as ‘Mersea Beaucoup’, a blog that I started straight out of university when I couldn't get a job amidst the global financial crisis. Since I couldn't fulfill the role that society expected of me post-university (get job, climb work ladder, get mortgage…etc) I decided to just do what I really wanted to be doing anyway: surfing. So I wrote about my passions for surfing and environmental science and vowed to surf every single day during that experiment. I ended up getting a number of writing gigs and new surfing sponsors because I was putting what I loved and cared about into the world.
Anyway, Sea Kin is the product of many experiments in doing what I love. It’s a place to share stories about the ocean from different perspectives than what I tend to see in most surfing media. Sea Kin is about creating culture for ourselves.
8. Can you think of a time during your surfing/life where you became stuck and how you overcame that plateau?
LH: Definitely. Life is a constant series of undulations and sometimes it requires active effort to move beyond those plateaus. Challenge is a great way to get unstuck--- try something that you’ve never done before. Also, making time to get out of my head usually helps; doing yoga, exercising, crafting---- something that allows the mind to rest and take a break. This also tends to make space for new ideas and inspirations to come.
9. What are your hopes and dreams for the future?
LH: More love, compassion, empathy, connection to nature, egalitarianism and fun.
10. If the world was ending tomorrow describe how you would spend your last 24 hours?
LH: I’d be at the beach all day surfing with loved ones and eating incredible, fresh food.
Thank you so much Lauren for the inspirational words and for gorgeous pictures!
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