Andrew Blauschild Remembered as Talented Surfer, Photographer

Andrew Blauschild, a photographer whose images of fellow surfers riding the waves off Ditch Plains were widely published, died on Monday, August 19 in his hometown of Montauk. He was 53.

Born on March 22, 1971 in the Bronx, Blauschild was the son of a painter and a trainer. He realised early in life that he was a shutterbug, taking a camera with him everywhere. He later became established as a fine art and commercial photographer, working with high-end brands, and did a stint as a partner in the surfboard company Kookbox.

“He brings an experimental eye to environmental photography, often physically and digitally manipulating iconic landscapes to reveal uncanny and unusual images,” Blauschild’s biography on his website states. “Ranging in tone from playful to majestic to austere, the wide scope of his work demonstrates the reverence and intimacy of someone who has spent decades immersing himself in nature and the cultures that emerge from it.”

He was also a cancer survivor who was a local legend in the surfing community and media darling among writers on the surfing beat. After news of his death, a larger group of local surfers did a paddle out — a ceremonial surfing tradition to pay respects to someone who has died by forming a circle in the water — off Ditch Plains in his memory.

A memorial service for Andrew was held August at Hellman Memorial Chapels in Spring Valley. Contributions in Andrew’s memory may be made to a charity of one’s choice.