Category Archives: Other Tiki Topics

Tiki Art at WonderGround Gallery at Downtown Disney

Posted by The Tiki Chick in Other Tiki Topics and tagged with , , , , ,

Hipster Mickey by Jerrod Maruyama

Last month a new art and retail concept made its debut at Downtown Disney at Disneyland. WonderGround Gallery seems to give their artists a fair amount of freedom in representing the classic characters, like this “Hipster Mickey” designed by Jerrod Maruyama. (His portfolio shows he can even make a can of Spam look super cute, and there are also more photos of WonderGround on his blog).

Nemo and the Tank Gang by Calef Brown

Of course, one of the main pieces that caught my eye from Disney’s announcement was “Nemo and the Tank Gang.” In it, Calef Brown depicts the aquarium setting, complete with one of the tikis, from “Finding Nemo.” (That film is another instance of Pixar sneaking tikis into scenes.)

Tiki Fest by Calef Brown

While browsing Brown’s web site, I also found more tiki-inspired art, like Tiki Fest, an original illustration commissioned by Los Angeles magazine.

Anyway, I’m looking forward to checking out the WonderGround Gallery for myself. Between the Art Deco-style stores on Buena Vista Street and the new tiki mugs for sale at Trader Sam’s, it seems like Disneyland just keeps getting better and better at taking my money!

For more information, and to see much more of the art, visit WonderGroundGallery.com.

Previous Posts about Tiki Art

The Contemporary Idol Art Show at Modernism Week
Tiki Bob Art Show at the Tonga Hut

Say “Aloha” to the Chicago-based band Tiki Cowboys

Posted by The Tiki Chick in Other Tiki Topics and tagged with , , , ,

Tiki Cowboys
Until recently, the only connection I knew of between “tiki” and “cowboys” was a famous little tune called “Hawaiian Cowboy.” (I remember it from “The Muppet Show,” but according to legend it was composed off the cuff by Solomon K. Bright in 1936.) In further researching these seemingly unrelated subjects, I also discovered that Hawaii’s history of cattle wrangling actually goes back before the heyday of the Wild West in America. Anyway, this is all a roundabout way of introducing Eric “Baron” Behrenfeld’s band: the Tiki Cowboys.

He sent me a copy of his 2009 debut EP “A Taste of Tiki,” on which Baron was a one-man band, supplying vocals, ukulele and percussion. Of the four original songs, the first track “Tiki Lady” is my favorite. It’s upbeat and fun and has some suggestive lyrics (ooh la la!). “My Little Song” takes on the country music trope that goes something like “my dog died, my wife left and she took my truck.” “Slap, Clap & Tickle” is a syncopated instrumental while “Feel So Good” brings in some elements of surf music.

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Their logo tiki, a cowboy hat-wearing carving with its tongue hanging out, appears on swag like stickers and even a coconut-scented car air freshener. (Available on the Tiki Cowboys web site if you’re so inclined.)

Sharp eyes might recognize the setting in that first photo as the Tiki Terrace in Des Plaines, which is where Baron and the other musicians that make up the Tiki Cowboys perform live every third Thursday from 6 p.m.-8:30 p.m. Later this year we should also be able to look for a full-length album with more of their “Beach Blues and Tiki-Twang” sound.

For more information, check out the Tiki Cowboys Facebook page.

Oregano’s Pizza Bistro Menu – Tiki Deja Vu

Posted by The Tiki Chick in Other Tiki Topics and tagged with , , ,

IMG_6693On our last visit to Mesa, Arizona, we caught a geographically convenient lunch at Oregano’s Pizza Bistro. (Tiki types in the Valley of the Sun should check out Hula’s Modern Tiki in Phoenix or pay their respects to Trader Vic’s Scottsdale, which closed in July 2011. The decor is being sold off piece by piece but the space is pretty much intact and being used for private events hosted by the Hotel Valley Ho.)

IMG_6703Anyway, Oregano’s serves up decent pizza and a heaping helping of nostalgia. Mark Russell founded the restaurant a decade ago to pay tribute to his father Lawrence Gibbilini, whose flair for cooking Italian food earned him the nickname “Lawrence of Oregano.”

IMG_6704Each of the dozen Arizona locations tries to evoke the feeling of a neighborhood Italian restaurant in Chicago from decades past. The dining rooms are filled with random kitsch like neon clocks, old wooden skis and surf boards covered with Christmas lights.

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I was a bit surprised to see a mug shot for a young Frank Sinatra framed up on the wall. His crime? Seduction.

IMG_6672But the most interesting thing about Oregano’s is the menus, which graphic artist Jon Arvizu designed to look like retro album covers. There are several different styles but “Polynesian Paradise” features a hula girl pin-up and a tiki that looked rather familiar…

DB383075Design Toscano turns out resin tables with a similar tiki that they’ve dubbed The Lono (Tongue). (I ought to recognize it as we have one in the tiki room.)

IMG_7568But then I remembered how that catalog has been “inspired” by photos in “The Book of Tiki,” and there it was when I flipped through my copy. The image illustrated author Sven Kirsten’s discovery that tikis from the original Luau in Beverly Hills somehow ended up at the Hanalei Hotel (now a Crowne Plaza) in San Diego. Double déjà vu!