PUNCHMAGAZINE.COM 93 more intricate designs. “I’ve really been enjoying doing stuff that’s 30 feet across,” he says. Sandy Synergy It was Brighton who introduced aerial photography to the family art. In the early days, Jim positioned his designs close to cliffsides to give onlookers a seagull’s eye view. Even so, “It’s an oblique angle,” Brighton observes. By also running a drone business, Brighton can showcase his creations (as well as his dad’s) right above the center point. That advancebetter,” says Brighton. Partnering on a number of sand designs does lead to certain similarities in styles; though as Brighton sees it, “Nature’s the original artist. We’re just copycats.” That said, Brighton has forged his own path. “My father has always had this obsession with doing the biggest thing ever,” he chuckles. “At one point, I was driving a circle at a hundred miles an hour and you could barely even tell it was a curved line because the thing was as wide as a city.” Brighton, on the other hand, prefers “smaller,” ment in aerial photography also ensures easy preservation of their designs long after high tide sweeps the shores clean. As Brighton reminisces on his many projects, he fondly recalls a collaboration with a landscaper friend. After his buddy showed up at one of Brighton’s radial sand labyrinths with a dozen discarded Christmas trees in tow, the two set to work installing them around the edge of the circle. “It was amazing seeing the forest on the beach and walking amongst the trees,” Brighton recalls. “And then me ARTWORK PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF: BRIGHTON DENEVAN / PORTRAIT: JOHANNA HARLOW
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