Skateboard Bowl
Skateboard Bowl
Skateboard decks have a natural end of life, as they either lose their springiness or pop, become chipped, or completely snap. Traditionally these old, used decks are thrown away and viewed as garbage, wasting workable lumber. Although the structural integrity of the wood is not conducive to the physical demands of skateboarding, the lumber can be reworked into beautiful household products.
Once the old skateboard decks are processed into workable lumber, I laminate them together and turn them on a lathe. The process of de-gripping the skateboards then removing the residual adhesive and graphic finish is a time consuming process, however the end product is worth the hours of effort. Not only does the process yield beautiful multi-colored pieces of art, but also, reduces the amount of reusable materials ending up in a landfill.
These pieces are a practice in patience and have taught me the power of finding value in under-appreciated objects that others would normally throw out.