John Cardiel

I did this sculpt to honor one of skateboarding's most incredible individuals. It wasn't a commission or anything. I really did it for myself. But as I came close to finishing the sculpt, I thought 'Why not send it to John?' I'm really glad I did. It's the least I could do for a guy who gave so much inspiration to the skateboarding community. When he recieved the sculpture via the guys at DLX, he called me to thank me for it. When I realized who I was on the phone with I couldn't breathe. LOL I was so hyped! Thanks John!
I want to thank the guys out at DLX for helping me finish the sculpture. Jim Thiebaud and Damon Thorley both sent me photos that helped me out tremendously. When the sculpt was finished I sent it to DLX and they made sure John recieved it.

I love Mark Gonzales so I'm gonna quote him again here speaking about Cards in the Transworld Sight Unseen film. "He's an original ripper; He's an original Coors." I'd say that about sums it up. There are few people who epitomize the spirit of skateboarding like John Cardiel. If you don't know that, then you need to go watch his videos. Enough said.

Steve Caballero

Shortly after completing the sculpt of Jamie I got a PM from Steve Caballero. I didn't believe it was him at first. LOL He wanted me to sculpt him. I freaked out. I honestly had never been complimented like that in my life. After reading his message, I called all my friends and family to tell them. I totally nerded out. But jeez Steve is a living legend so how else was I supposed to react? He's one of THE dudes that molded skateboarding in to what it is now. I believe Mark Gonzales said that Steve is probably the best all-around skater ever. Needless to say I couldn't wait to get started on the commission. Especially when he showed me the photo he wanted it based on. A vintage shot taken by Ted Terrebonne at Winchester!!!

Doing this sculpt had to be one of the most gratifying experiences of my artistic career. I still think about it frequently and say to myself... 'Oh my god I did a sculpt for Stevie Cab!'

Beginning:






Kind of the middle:






Size


Finished:









Detail :








OMG!!! Thanks for the opportunity Steve!

Johnny Romano

Again, I lost my vision with this one. I started sculpting it right before he passed away and I felt a little strange continuing the project. Like it was cheap or something.
In case you haven't heard Johnny's story; He was a young kid in Texas who was passionate about life and skateboarding. Unfortunately he came down with leukemia and passed away in 2008. Johnny brought a lot of people together with his spirit and energy despite the terrible disease he was fighting. I was always amazed reading about his insistence upon skateboarding even after the exhausting treatments he was undergoing. It was a real bummer when he passed but I think he fits this quote very well- "All men die, few men truly live".
I'm definitely going to finish this one. I'll probably come back to it very soon as there isn't so much emotion surrounding the subject now. I can look at it more objectively.