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Kites are not just for flying. Ripstop nylon, silk and other vibrant kites from around the world are finding a spot or two inside area homes. Ethnic kites reflecting many components of cultures, such as Japanese and Chinese portraits or Indonesian bug and bird designs, decorate high ceilings and give a three-dimensional look to those two-story rooms found in some new home styles, says David Gomberg, the 2005 president of The American Kitefliers Association (AKA).
Elected nine times as president of the AKA, Gomberg has seen just about everything when it comes to kites, including the use of kites as enchanting decor for not only tall rooms, but also to decorate and to be used by occupants of second or beach homes as well as children’s spaces. It’s a low cost alternative to posters, which once framed can cost more than one hundred dollars, he says. A pretty diamond kite for lots less makes a great wall hanging in a child’s room. And a colorful box kite shaped like snowflakes is a whimsical addition to an illuminated atrium setting, Gomberg adds.
“Kites are the secret of youth,” says Jon Burkhardt, Potomac resident, master kitemaker and winner of numerous awards for his spectacular designs. Holding every office except president of the AKA over the years and every office of the Maryland Kite Society, Burkhardt started making kites in the late 1970s after buying his first kite for $50 while on vacation with his family in Wisconsin. He especially enjoys the creative people involved in kite design. One of the kitemakers who inspired Burkhardt was Ansel Toney, an Indiana farmer who started crafting kites when he was 89-years-old and who made a kite in the 1970s for Amy Carter, daughter of President Jimmy Carter.
One kite design can take Burkhardt a solid two weeks or 80 hours to create. And early on in his craft, some designs took 200 hours because colors and materials were limited. Now with the availability of a wide range of colors of ripstop nylon, which is also used for spinnakers on sailboats, the fabrics make the kites almost indestructible and resistant to fading when displayed as art. When the kites are illuminated from behind, they almost resemble stained glass, Burkhardt says. He tries a variety of shades to get a layering effect and to emphasize the visual appeal and the creative and innovative nature of kite making.
It’s not just about beauty, though; kites require proper weight distribution and proportion to even take off. This is where Burkhardt’s interest in architecture and his knowledge about a kite’s multiple uses are key. He also has been commissioned to design a six-sided fighting kite, a Rokkaku, for a Japanese women’s team. “The wonderful thing about kites is that you get to travel around the world,” he says, to attend numerous national and international kiting events. Travel and transportation are a way of life for Burkhardt, who spends his days finding means of transportation for the elderly and disabled as a senior study director for WESTAT, a local research company.
But it is his love of American culture, folklore and classic art that inspires him to create his kites, such as “Songbirds” designed after a 1920s Art Nouveau cosmetics ad by Fred Packer. This kite, now being manufactured by Premier Kites & Designs, is popular as a wall hanging, Burkhardt adds. The elements also influence his work as shown in his “Sun/Sea/Sky” kite. And over the years, Burkhardt has been involved in collaborative kite designs where fellow kitemakers design a portion of a kite and then all the pieces are brought together. Often the kites are auctioned off with proceeds going to a charity. Burkhardt also has raised money for AKA for the last 24 years by donating a kite or piece of equipment in a nationwide auction.
Kites have advanced from simple diamond shapes that many remember to elaborate pieces of art to one element of an extreme sport. “The cutting edge of kite flying,” says Gomberg, is found in kite skiing, surfing and boarding. Kitefliers are “combining wind surfing with regular surfing and using kites to power themselves,” he adds.
Art in the air is celebrated in many ways, including at the 39th Annual Smithsonian Kite Festival on April 2. Organized by The Smithsonian Associates and the National Air and Space Museum, this year’s event on the National Mall focuses on “A Sky Fantasy” theme. Open to all ages, the event, which takes place during the annual National Cherry Blossom Festival, features handmade kite competitions judged on design, appearance, construction and flight performance. The Festival includes kite demonstrations and the new Smithsonian Hot Tricks Showdown where participants can demonstrate trick moves with multi-line controllable kites. Burkhardt has been head judge at this event for years, while his wife, Karen, who also has designed kites including a traditional Japanese bowed fighting kite, participates as head scorekeeper.
And with April being National Kite Month, the festival brings the colors of kites to the skies and possibly into area homes.
