If It's Hip, It's Here (Archives)

With only five days left to bid, Juxtapoz Magazine, California-based shop UNIV and San Francisco's Chandran Gallery's benefit auction for Waves For Water feature 19 uniquely decorated surfboards by various and respected artists. Waves for Water is an organization on the ground in the Philippines, mobilizing an urgent clean water disaster relief initiative in the aftermath of Super Typhoon Haiyan.

Here's a look at all the boards presently up for auction:

Mike DeNicola and geoff mcFetridge IIHIh

Travis Millard and Andrew Schoultz IIHIH

Participating artists include CR Stecyk III, Geoff McFetridge, Richard Colman, Jeremy Fish, Lucy McLauchlan, Tim Biskup, Cleon Peterson, Monica Canilao, Andrew Schoultz, Swampy, Tahiti Pehrson, Ty Williams, Jason Jägel, Mel Kadel, Travis Millard, Michael Torquato deNicola, Jared Swilley of the Black Lips, Brazilian artist Ale Jordao.

As part of the special benefit and auction, a one-night exhibition will be hosted on Saturday, March 29, at T.F.R. Gallery in Leucadia, California to celebrate the creation of the boards, and to give an opportunity for final bids on the boards at the gallery.

Dimensions and details about all the boards are available at the auction site. Bid here

You may not be familiar with the name Stéphane Halleux, but if you saw the Oscar-winning animated short, Mr. Hublot, you've already seen some of his work. I'd been following his talents for awhile and was thrilled with the recognition Mr. Hublot received at the 2014 Academy Awards.

Stephane crafted the main character for Mr. Hublot, whom he affectionately called "Mr. Cinema" during his construction:

It was Halleux's steampunk sculptures that caught my attention about a year ago. An incredible imagination coupled with craftsmanship, unique materials and a dose of adorable make me want to buy every single one. In the over 20 sculptures of flying soldiers, controllers, winged men, robots and vehicles shown below, you can see which ones served as the inspiration for the character. Take a close look at the finely crafted details - the leathers, metals, goggles, buttons, suitcases with plaques, working levers, spinning propellers, functioning wheels and more.

Stephane's sculptures as they appear in galleries:

Stephane has been sculpting since 2005 when he first began to create the fabulous universe he’s still developing to this day. He studied at the Saint-Luc Institute in Lièges (Belgium) before working as a model maker and coloring for the animation business.

above: in the images of Stephane with some of his pieces, you can see the scale

In addition to his sculptures, Stephane embarked on an amazing steampunk video game, The Dead Flowers Case, produced by Mando Productions in Paris, France. They were seeking funding for the game on Kickstarter last year, but the campaign was cancelled in November 2013 for reasons unknown. For updates on the status of The Dead Flowers Case, they suggest you stay up to date on the Facebook page.