An Interview With Glenn Davison

Glenn Davison

I used to build indoor model airplanes. When I began building kites, I continued to use many of the same lightweight materials and techniques. I was motivated by seeing people flying kites indoors, and I knew I could build kites lighter so they would fly better.

My first was a tissue-paper delta and my second was an indoor Cody that was transparent. It was made from balsa wood and a thin transparent film that's much lighter than plastic wrap and therefore it flew very well. I was encouraged to build smaller kites by Paul Berard.

I guess the book about miniature kites and the website were a result of people asking questions about miniature kites. The Miniatures website grew, and I knew that people wanted more plans and building information, so I merged two guides into one book called "Miniature Kites." See the link at the bottom of this page.

2. What was your most memorable moment when introducing some aspect of kiting to a non-kiter or a group of non-kiters?

There are too many memorable moments to mention. That's why I stick with kiting... because I can do one thing today and something completely different next week. I always like to try something new.

I fondly remember teaching a group of five people at First Beach in Rhode Island how to fly my Prism stunt kite. After teaching hundreds of people I still don't know why that day stands out. I've had great times with non-kiters in Taipei, Taiwan, Bogota, Colombia, Antigua, and at sunset in Boracay! I fondly remember talking to people during night flies at Wildwood and Kites On Ice and giving lessons in Newport. I like to say these words, "want to try my kite?"

3. What is the earliest kiting experience you can remember, and how did it make you feel at the time?

When I was a boy, I must have seen a fighter kite somewhere, so I built one from newspaper. The kite looked cool, and I put the symbol "phi" on the front. It looked great, so I was pleased with it. Looking back on it, the spreader was too stiff and it was too heavy to fly. The funny thing is that my dad told the same story about building his first kite, and it was also too heavy to fly.

4. What do you enjoy the most and why?

Oh there are so many things. I enjoy designing, building, and flying quad-line kites and single-line kites, demonstrating, and giving lectures and presentations about kites. I love flying quad.

Right now, I'm the chair of the AKA's Education Committee. It's a big committee, so it's fun but lots of work too. I'd like to give students more awareness of kites. Science teachers always make paper airplanes with kids, but they rarely make kites! Right now we are talking about National Kite Month.

5. You seem to be active in so many arenas of kiting. Do you have any favorite statistics you like to quote when interacting with onlookers?

I tell them about my 252 sq. foot kite, 100 foot tails, running 50 workshops for the AKA, spending 20 hours to build a kite, a kite that spent 7 hours aloft, flying indoors, flying at night, and meeting my wife at a kite festival.

6. You have described yourself as a "kite artist." Could you expand on what that means to you?

To me it means designing and building beautiful kites that are different from production kites. I like to trying something new and getting it to fly. I often experiment with shapes and keep the graphics simple. Kites can be beautiful for their colors, shapes, designs, tails, or all of them combined. I've done many kite exhibits, and people are really amazed at the possibilities.

7. What individual kite that you have made has brought you the most satisfaction? Satisfaction with which aspect of making or flying the kite, exactly?

I get satisfaction from trying something new and finding out that it flies well. New designs give unexpected results. For example, I built a tiny butterfly that sometimes will flap its wings in flight. One of my designs flew better upside down! I'm very pleased with an indoor rev that I built with Orcon (reinforced plastic) and carbon.

8. Looking to the near future... What accomplishment in the world of kite making, flying, or education are you looking forward to the most?

I feel like I've only gotten started. I have about a half-dozen events planned with kite workshops and lectures. I'd like to have more.

I have four large kites in various stages of completion and books filled with sketches. I need to replace a worn-out miniature kite with an improved version, and I have many boxes that cry out to be filled with kites! I'd like to build larger versions of some of my miniature kites and miniature versions of some of my large kites. I'd like to try an animated kite with more than four lines. I'd like to build at least one more rokkaku, and I'd really like to build a train of many kites. Maybe more than one train. I have more experimenting to do with vented kites, and layered and cellular kites are some of my many favorites.