Skate Art 022

As an skateboard driver in the ’80s, I quickly discovered that painting my decks and upgrading wheels, trucks, and other parts, such as nose and rail guards, was an expression of some sort of art, even at a juvenile level.

A few years back I started making my own custom printed decks (an article high on hopes but low on actual output, sadly, as life took over). While it was rewarding to have them printed by one of the biggest deck companies in California, it wasn’t exactly a complete creation. I was only involved in the design, not the ‘make’.

Creating

So, more recently, I ordered some uncut blanks and began cutting and finishing them myself. Then I started drawing on them… painting, marking, and creating a few custom decks that, besides glueing, I’d nearly made all myself. In fact, shortly after this I even found a way to glue them up and press them myself. This will take some practice and a lot of work, but it is much more rewarding. Perhaps some of the art that I handmake will get printed on a deck at some point, though. That’s an option.

Already there’s a long list of my deck designs to create. A long list. All my own work, too, which, as it turns out, is the best part about it.

Over the years I’ve watched as skateboard art grows in popularity, and has established itself as an artform in and of itself. Skate deck art is one of my favorite art forms and is now a larger part of my creative life and my desire is to continue to paint and share what gets created.

Do it

Get out there, grab a pencil, acrylic, some markers, or even some plywood canvases and get to it!