SHAPER
BUM
FROM SEOUL TO THE SHAPING BAY.
EVERY BOARD CARRIES THE WHOLE JOURNEY.
“I DIDN’T CROSS THE PACIFIC TO CHASE A DREAM.
I CROSSED IT TO BUILD ONE — PLANER IN HAND.”
THE STORY
A DESIGNER
WHO FELL INTO THE SEA
BORN IN KOREA. TRAINED AS A DESIGNER. PRODUCTS, INTERIORS, THE LOGIC OF HOW THINGS LOOK AND FEEL. THEN SURFING HAPPENED — AND IT BROKE EVERYTHING OPEN.
I DIDN’T SET OUT TO BECOME A SHAPER. I JUST NEEDED A BOARD. MY BOARD, BUILT THE WAY I WANTED IT. SO I STARTED LEARNING. WHEN I REALIZED THIS WAS IT, I LEFT KOREA AND HONG KONG BEHIND AND MOVED TO HUNTINGTON BEACH — NO BACKUP PLAN, NO SAFETY NET. JUST A DIRECTION.
I FOUND CHRIS AT CARROZZA SURFBOARDS. WHAT STARTED WITH DING REPAIRS BECAME A FULL EDUCATION: MATERIALS, STRUCTURE, ROCKER, GLASSING, SANDING, POLISHING. EVERY PART OF THE PROCESS, LEARNED WITH MY HANDS. THAT’S WHERE BUMSURFBOARDS BEGAN.
I SHAPE EVERY BOARD AS IF I’M THE ONE RIDING IT. THE PERSON, THEIR WAVES, THEIR STYLE. EVERY BOARD CARRIES A STORY — SOMETIMES IN THE SHAPE ITSELF, SOMETIMES IN THE DESIGN. IT’S ALWAYS IN THERE.
01
EVERY BOARD
HAS A STORY
SHAPE ISN’T DECORATION — IT’S NARRATIVE. EVERY OUTLINE, EVERY ROCKER LINE, EVERY DESIGN DETAIL IS BUILT AROUND A STORY. THAT STORY MIGHT BE YOURS.
02
FUNCTION
MEETS ART
A DESIGNER’S EYE NEVER TURNS OFF. I CAN’T SEPARATE HOW SOMETHING LOOKS FROM HOW IT RIDES. I DON’T TRY TO.
03
BUILT FOR
THE RIDER
YOUR BODY, YOUR WAVES, YOUR STYLE. I SHAPE EVERY BOARD AS IF I’M PADDLING OUT ON IT MYSELF. NOTHING IS TEMPLATED.
THE NAME
BUM.
TWO MEANINGS.
ONE IDENTITY.
범 (BUM) — THE TIGER
IN EAST ASIAN TRADITION, EACH PERSON IS BORN UNDER ONE OF TWELVE ANIMALS.
MINE IS THE TIGER — BUM IS A TIGER IN KOREAN.
SAY IT OUT LOUD: BUM. THAT’S ME. MY NAME, CARRIED IN EVERY BOARD I SHAPE.
SURF BUM — THE LIFE
A SURF BUM DOESN’T SURF AROUND LIFE. LIFE REVOLVES AROUND SURF.
SOME CALL IT RECKLESS.
I CALL IT HONEST. I CROSSED A CONTINENT AND AN OCEAN FOR THIS LIFESTYLE.
THE PEOPLE WHO RIDE MY BOARDS — I WANT THEM TO FEEL THE SAME WAY.
“BUM ISN’T JUST A NAME. IT’S A DECLARATION.”
THE WORK
IN THE SHAPING BAY
RIDE THE BUMSURFBOARDS
YOUR STORY DESERVES A BOARD BUILT FOR IT.
EVERY BUM BOARD IS SHAPED BY HAND. ONE BOARD AT A TIME.