In its first year, Asymbol Gallery has become a haven for adventure-fueled creativity, important dialogue and creative exchanges.
Twelve months of blind faith fortified with blood, sweat, whiskey and dreams. It was the maiden year of Jackson Hole’s newest gallery, Asymbol Art + Essentials, the brainchild of Travis Rice and Mike Parillo.
This year has been a whirling dervish of the new-to-this merging with the true-to-this. We didn’t start out with the intention of reinventing the wheel; we were just trying to find a way to keep rolling. And still, from this endeavor a new wheel did emerge, a cyclical creation that feeds and is fed by our action sports community as a powerful whole. Asymbol is a living thing that has become so much more than just a gallery. This year has shown us that if one is going to build a vehicle and put gas in the engine, one had best be ready to haul ass.
A seed planted many years ago came to life in downtown Jackson on July 1, 2014. There was a shindig of course, and that was that. The easy part, a part that we all thought would be the hardest, was now over. What we learned, however, is that it is one thing to build a physical space and another thing entirely to breathe life into the inanimate. Throughout this year, our crew, with the invaluable help of our artists and community, did a damn good job of filling the space with memories, fabulous friends, iconic art and life. Here are a few moments we look back on with great fondness, penned by the magnanimous man we know as Travis Rice.
-Josi Stephens
Photos: Asymbol
01 – Wyoming Decks
Working with the incredibly talented Wyoming native Tim Tompkinson, we were able to plant the spirit of our state in the very challenging medium of a special-edition snowboard for the Wyoming Tourism Board.
02 – Mr. Plant
The Mr. Plant squad brought a piece of authentic snowboard culture to town. With a collection of Vernon Deck stills from the flick and a premiere of Pat Moore’s film, this event will go down in the annals of history as a true period piece of snowboarding now. The party raged late and the spirit still lingers like a horse’s fart.
03 – Iuna Tinta
Probably our best turn out all year, Iuna Tinta’s show brought a festive and fresh energy to the gallery. Her visual approach to the drastic shifts we are seeing throughout the world because of climate change sparked inviting and honest dialogue. It was a great segue to open up the discussion that is often times surrounded by doomsday statistics. As one of our newest artists at Asymbol, Iuna continues to bring something extremely special to the table.
04- A Binding Union
Adam Haynes was our dream designer for the 2016/17 Asymbol x Union binding collab. His inventive style and work ethic aligned seamlessly with what it took to handle this kind of endeavor. We asked, and being the good guy that he is, he said yes to our project and all the hard work that it entailed. A massive part of that work ended up being a huge mural on the south-facing wall at the legendary Evo, a shop that has enthusiastically supported our art. With Adam’s help, Asymbol is now a part of the landscape in Seattle, Washington. A true honor.
05- Bryan Iguchi
Guch is an artist who happens to also enjoy painting. His simplified dreamscapes have a way of focusing the dialogue onto the specific message that he’s conveying. Scoring two new pieces of his this October was Christmas come early! –TR
Travis Rice is a pretty good snowboarder. @travisrice
