Link Out: Books About Skate Art

If you want to explore more about the art found in the skate world, or just want to learn more about skateboarding itself, visit your local book store and look for these following books. I’ve included a link to their Amazon page if you’d like to know more about them.

Disposable: A History of Skateboard Art by Sean Cliver

The Disposable Skateboard Bible by Sean Cliver

Surf, Skate, and Rock Art of Jim Phillips by Jim Phillips

Boards: The Art and Design of the Skateboard by MTV

New Skateboard Graphics by J. Namdev Hardisty

Concrete to Canvas: Skateboarders’ Art by Jo Waterhouse

Vans “Off The Wall”: Stories of Sole from Vans Originals by Doug Palladini

Thrasher Skate and Destroy: The First 25 Years of Thrasher Magazine by High Speed Productions

As an additional resource, you may want to hunt down these magazines (or just visit their websites). They shouldn’t be too hard to find.

Transworld Skateboarding

Thrasher Skateboard Magazine

Skateboarder Magazine

The Skateboard Mag

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)

Link Out: A Studio Visit with Jim Phillips

I found this article online that highlights a trip to the studio of Jim Phillips, one of the most recognizable names in skate art. He is most know for his work with Santa Cruz skateboards, and is responsible for creating thousands of memorable pieces, including t-shirts, posters, and stickers. His artwork of a screaming hand is one of the most widely known designs in the skateboarding community.

Studio Visit: Jim Phillips