Haroshi is best known for making sculptures from recycled wooden skateboard decks. The self-taught artist blends craftsmanship and pop culture as he stacks and glues together carefully selected decks, then hand-cuts, carves, paints, and polishes them to a smooth finish. Because of the layering involved, the finished sculptures—which take the shape of animals, body parts, skulls, teddy bears, and cartoonish figures—have striped exteriors. Intricate and precise, they can evoke inami, a Japanese wood-carving tradition, and the sleek forms of Jeff Koons. Haroshi has also transformed skateboards into large-scale collages and installations and produced sculptures in bronze, vinyl, and iron. Haroshi’s work has been exhibited in cities including New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Tokyo, Osaka, and London, and he has collaborated with a number of brands, including Nike, BE@RBRICK, and Sacai.

Haroshi

Japanese