These custom designed drop-deck longboards were some of the results of time spent in the studio with Ted Hunter (Roarockit Skateboard Company). The cherry wood board was on display and sold at the Ontario Longboarding Swap, where this student launched his new brand "Blank Beauty":
Over the year of attending this amazing program I have finally found the one thing I will do with the rest of my life, which is starting up my very own longboard company. When I completed my first personal deck, I immediately started working on my company. After brainstorming long and hard about what my company should be named, I finally found a name that matched the style of my boards which is “Blank Beauty”. The meaning behind the name Blank Beauty is that all of my longboards are going to showcase the natural beauty of the wood grains. Furthermore, I want to communicate a better understanding of what lies under the graphics on skateboards and longboards and how something so simple and natural can be even better than a graphic.
For my first Blank Beauty, I got the opportunity to make a custom drop-deck. To make a custom deck you first start with your template. This is where you deign what your deck is going to look like. After finishing your template you start on your mold. In this step you decide how much concave you want in your deck, then once your mold is finished you can press your deck. Once your board is pressed you have to trace out your template onto the pressed veneers. You then cut out your board with a jigsaw, and shape it using a scraper and sandpaper. I was able to put a special veneer of cherry wood on the top and bottom. With every layer of polyurethane that went onto the board, it shined more and more. The only graphic I had time to put on the first deck was my logo. My logo for “Blank Beauty” is a tree with its roots and the name coming out each side of the tree. I used the principle of shape and contrast while designing my logo. I used shape by using the silhouette of the tree and roots, instead of making a detailed tree. I also used the concept of contrast in my logo in how the black stands out on the sleek wood gains. The reason I didn’t put anything on the bottom of it: it sold before I could! While attending a longboard swap meet at Roarocket I sold my first Blank Beauty before I could even finish it.
When I was younger I loved to watch my grandfather working at his drafting table making art with paints and pencils. He was my first inspiration to start my journey of becoming an artist. At my old school I took art every year as well as wood shop. I found that working with wood was just as artistic as sketching out a design with a pencil. Making skateboards is the best of both worlds; you get to shape the wood in any way you want and combine it with a design. The art courses helped my further my skill on paper and use different elements of art. Thinking over my time at OSF, I’m now going to be making skateboards for the rest of my life and I love it!
