Artist Profile: Haroshi

When starting this blog, I immediately hit Google with a search for skateboard art to see what results would come up. One of the first, and by far the most interesting, was a link to an artist by the name of Haroshi. His art breaks the mold of what people typically associate with urban skate art.

Haroshi is a Japanese artist and wood sculptor who became fascinated with skateboarding in his teenage years. He has turned his love of the sport into an art form, gathering used and sometimes broken skateboards to give them life again in the form of three-dimensional sculptures. Using his vast knowledge of the design of a skateboard, he selects sizes that complement each other when stacking. He then carves and sands the designs into beautiful works of art.

The most fascinating part of the process, for me, is how colorful the artwork is without any additional paint. Skateboards are primarily made from maple wood, and the majority of these are created by combining seven thin layers of the said wood. Some skateboard manufacturers will add a color dye to a number of the layers, which results in the stripe effect you see in some of his work. Another interesting fact about these pieces is that he inserts a “soul” into his sculptures, which normally consists of a broken piece of metal from a once-used skateboard. He places the object inside of the unfinished work before completing his process, forever encapsulating the piece as the heart to his amazing new creation.

Below, you’ll find the link to Haroshi’s website, as well as the original link I found via Google. What do you think of this art form? Share your thoughts in the comment section.

Source:

Haroshi (Official Site)
Haroshi: Skateboard Art (designboom)