Richard "Ric" Friar is an English-Australian big wave surfer, artist, peace activist, film-maker and

horticulturist Horticulture is the branch of agriculture that deals with the art, science, technology, and business of plant cultivation. It includes the cultivation of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs, sprouts, mushrooms, algae, flowers, seaweeds and no ...

. He is known as a pioneer of commercial

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: ''Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternatively ...

(

hemp Hemp, or industrial hemp, is a botanical class of ''Cannabis sativa'' cultivars grown specifically for industrial or medicinal use. It can be used to make a wide range of products. Along with bamboo, hemp is among the fastest growing plants o ...

) cultivation in Australia.

Big wave surfing

Friar is considered a pioneer of 1960s

big wave surfing Big wave surfing is a discipline within surfing in which experienced surfers paddle into, or are towed into, waves which are at least 20 feet (6.2 m) high, on surf boards known as "guns" or towboards. Sizes of the board needed to successfully su ...

. In 1966, he was among the first to surf the

Cribbar The Cribbar ( Cornish - ''kribow'': reefs), also known as the Widow Maker, is a reef off the Towan Headland in Newquay, Cornwall, England, United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the Un ...

off

Towan Head Towan Head ( kw, Penn Tewyn) is a headland one mile west of Newquay on the north coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom.Ordnance Survey Landranger 2000: Newquay, Bodmin & surrounding area, 1:50 000 It is at the western end of Newquay Bay. The headland ...

in the United Kingdom, along with Peter Russell, John McIlroy and American Jack Lydgate, during that year's ''Great September Swell''. In 2013, Friar contacted locals in Newquay with plans to reunite the group of 1966 Cribbar surfers for the 2016 unveiling of a monument and a "celebration of British surfing" event. He has also announced his and his partner, Wendy Harper's, plans to establish the "International Surfing Pilgrim's Trail" and a ''"global sustainability project"'' called 1GiantWave.

Horticulture

In the early 1990s, Friar was humorously dubbed the "King of Poo" by the

Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper i ...

's quirky '' Column 8'' for his disposal of manure for the Agricultural Society at the

Sydney Royal Easter Show First held in 1823, the Sydney Royal Easter Show, commonly shortened to The Easter Show or The Show, is an annual show held in Sydney, Australia over two weeks around the Easter period. It comprises an agricultural show, an amusement park and a ...

. He continued to pioneer the use of worms,

mulch A mulch is a layer of material applied to the surface of soil. Reasons for applying mulch include conservation of soil moisture, improving fertility and health of the soil, reducing weed growth and enhancing the visual appeal of the area. A m ...

and

manure Manure is organic matter that is used as organic fertilizer in agriculture. Most manure consists of animal feces; other sources include compost and green manure. Manures contribute to the fertility of soil by adding organic matter and nutri ...

in horticulture and established a business selling related products. In 2009, Friar received permission from the

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Department of Primary Industries for a pilot program to study the potential commercialisation of

. Friar cultivated 500 cannabis plants and suggested potential applications in the "textile and construction industries". The pilot would also allow consideration of applications including automotive

fibreglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass clo ...

, paper and

biofuel Biofuel is a fuel that is produced over a short time span from biomass, rather than by the very slow natural processes involved in the formation of fossil fuels, such as oil. According to the United States Energy Information Administration (E ...

.''Sydney gets its first hemp farm''
by Joe Hildebrand (

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...

, 2 February 2010) Friar said Government fears about

psychoactive A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, psychoactive agent or psychotropic drug is a chemical substance, that changes functions of the nervous system, and results in alterations in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition or behavior. Th ...

cannabis had put a stop to what had once been among the world's largest crops.

Film making and art

Having semi-retired, Friar and partner Wendy Harper have produced a number of short films about their commercial endeavours and general interests. In 2007, they produced an hour-long documentary about the

anti-war movement An anti-war movement (also ''antiwar'') is a social movement, usually in opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict, unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. The term anti-war can also refer to ...

in Australia and parallels between it and the

Australian Aboriginal Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait Islands ...

indigenous rights Indigenous rights are those rights that exist in recognition of the specific condition of the Indigenous peoples. This includes not only the most basic human rights of physical survival and integrity, but also the rights over their land (includ ...

movement. Called ''Think About It!'', the documentary starred indigenous actor

David Gulpilil David Dhalatnghu Gulpilil (1 July 1953 – 29 November 2021), known professionally as David Gulpilil and posthumously (at his family's request, to avoid naming the dead) as David Dalaithngu for three days, was an Indigenous Australian actor ...

and included commentary from former Prime Minister,

Malcolm Fraser John Malcolm Fraser (; 21 May 1930 – 20 March 2015) was an Australian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Australia from 1975 to 1983, holding office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Fraser was raised on hi ...

, former Greens leader,

Bob Brown Robert James Brown (born 27 December 1944) is a former Australian politician, medical doctor and environmentalist. He was a senator and the parliamentary leader of the Australian Greens. Brown was elected to the Australian Senate on the Tasman ...

, and Terry Hicks, father of Guantanamo Bay detainee

David Hicks David Matthew Hicks (born 7 August 1975) is an Australian who attended al-Qaeda's Al Farouq training camp in Afghanistan, and met with Osama bin Laden during 2001. He was then detained by the United States in Guantanamo Bay detention camp ...

. In 2009, Friar produced a short film detailing the social aspects of railway history in Western New South Wales. In 2011, Friar and Harper collaborated with two-time

Wynne Prize The Wynne Prize is an Australian landscape painting or figure sculpture art prize. As one of Australia's longest-running art prizes, it was established in 1897 from the bequest of Richard Wynne. Now held concurrently with the Sir John Sulman Prize ...

winner Ian Bettinson to create a series of semi-

abstract art Abstract art uses visual language of shape, form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world. Western art had been, from the Renaissance up to the middle of the 19th ...

works and poetry. Over three weeks, the artists jointly created 30 works of art that were subsequently featured at the live exhibition version of

Grand Designs Australia ''Grand Designs Australia'' is an Australian spin-off of the British TV series ''Grand Designs''. The show documents people who attempt to build a custom-designed house and the challenges they face. It is aired on The LifeStyle Channel and is ho ...

. The paintings were displayed with corresponding poetic works written by Harper. Friar is known for using

wood ash Wood ash is the powdery residue remaining after the combustion of wood, such as burning wood in a fireplace, bonfire, or an industrial power plant. It is largely composed of calcium compounds along with other non-combustible trace elements presen ...

and other unusual

artistic medium Arts media is the material and tools used by an artist, composer or designer to create a work of art, for example, "pen and ink" where the pen is the tool and the ink is the material. Here is a list of types of art and the media used within tho ...

s as well as bark, leaves and grass in place of paint brushes. Also in 2011, Friar controversially used the ashes from his son's

cremation Cremation is a method of Disposal of human corpses, final disposition of a Cadaver, dead body through Combustion, burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India ...

to create a series of artworks as a tribute. He now produces similar artworks for others.''Ash Artist Richard Friar''
(Chroma Paint Talk, 7 June 2011)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Friar, Richard Living people Australian artists Australian surfers Cannabis activists Year of birth missing (living people) Australian drug policy reform activists

Big wave surfing

Horticulture

Film making and art

See also

References