Addi Somekh is a self-taught balloon hat maker, incorporating improvisation, abstract design, and comic delivery to create headdresses that have an uncanny ability to reflect the wearer’s personality.
Addi’s balloon hats have taken him around the world, as he traveled to 34 countries with photographer Charlie Eckert, making hats for people for free and taking photos of them, in a kind of rolling investigation into the universal nature of laughter. Their travels resulted in the book The Inflatable Crown (2001, Chronicle Books).
During the years Addi taught his balloon art in England, Belgium, Holland, France, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Israel and in Harvard and Stanford Universities
In 2011, Addi starred in the TLC reality show, “The Unpoppables,” which followed his LA-based company, New Balloon Art, as they built impossibly large, interactive balloon installations at high-end events. Addi has also appeared on The Today Show, The Tonight Show, Martha Stewart, Access Hollywood, and several other shows.
