For over 15 years, Ra Superstar has painted in acrylics, stone and sand on Venice Beach.  He told me this story:

One day I met an artist from NY called Pep while I was drumming and sleeping on the Brooklyn Bridge.  Pep wanted to learn drumming so he gave me a meal at his home which was filled with art.  It was then that I was first inspired to paint.

Mr. TV’s always been called a comedian.  From within his TV tube he specializes in his own hilarious brand of slapstick with puppets and props.  Come on down to the beach and tune into some classic street comedy–Venice Beach style!

Originally from Auckland, New Zealand Matt Dowd has been ripping up the riffs on Venice Beach for over seven years.  Influenced by Deep Purple and Kiss, Matt can often be found near the Sidewalk Cafe–singing and rocking for the crowd.

For over 12 years ArtByNonya has been showing her acrylic paintings on the Venice Boardwalk.  Next time you’re near the Waterfront Cafe whimsy by.

On Landosh they call me Lantis.

Treeman’s a plant-like amphibious celestal being from Landosh.  His father is King Aqua–founder of the lost city of Atlantis.

Live from Japan–it’s Funny Tombow!  How can you not love this guy?  Tomoyo Kobayashi started out playing on Bourbon Street.  Influenced by the colorful street musicians of New Orleans, he then took his act home to Japan. 

Well he’s back in the USA, and if you’re lucky, you’ll catch him on the beach one of these weekends singing classic American songs like “It’s A Wonderful World” and “Blowing In The Wind”.  Here’s a link to him performing on Bourbon Street.

Harry Perry is one of the most famous street musicians in the world and an icon of Venice Beach.  In his early days, Harry studied Kundalini Yoga, eventually becoming a member of the Sikh Dharma–thus the Sikh turban and robes.  The Sikh community has given him the honorary title of “Nihang Baba”, indicating that he’s considered an elder within the Sikh community.  In addition to his rock music which you can explore at the link above, Harry is also known for his renditions of traditional Sikh music.

Novik (Nakhapet Tcholokian) is an acrylic painter who’s been associated with the Venice Beach Boardwalk for over 16 years.  He’s originally from Tbilisi, Georgia.  In the eighties he had several exhibitions in Poland, Germany, Yugoslavia and Italy. 

In addition to his website link above, you can also watch a slideshow of his work on YouTube.

                                                 WARNING: GRAPHIC

So I’m walking along Venice Beach, singing with my guitar, and I come across Mister Morgue.  First off–he’s not faking anything.  He really does swallow a snooker-sized billiard ball right down into his stomach–and then regurgitate it back out.  He does hammer a 5″ steel nail up his nose.  He drops the nail afterwards so the audience themselves can hear the solid steel TING.  I can’t go on describing him–it’s just too freaky.  Mister Morgue–amazing.