d*face spraypaint skateboarding at ridiculous

in a project by d*face, five riders whose skateboards are armed with spraycans become the human brushes for a pool-sized canvas


in a project by london-based artist d*face at the southern california skate pool 'ridiculous', skateboarders become
the human brushes on the concrete canvas of the pool's walls, leaving permanent colourful skatetrails as they ride.

informed by the led zeppelin song 'physical graffiti', the project replaces d*face's previous canvas at the pool (located
at cunningham regional skatepark in san jose), and took about a year from conception to its realization. the system relies
on a transmitter-- a remote control attached  to a skateboard-- and a receiver, attached by velcro to the underside of the board
of the current rider, where a can of spraypaint is also affixed. the transmitter triggers a pressure-sensitive servomechanism
that pushes down on the cap of the spraycan, releasing varying weights of paint along the skateboard's trail.

d*face explains:
'this new idea was sprung from my last visit to the pool when I watched the skulls [of my previous pool painting]
being smeared and stripped by the lines the skaters took. the tracks produced beautiful linear marks of past motion
and it started me thinking how I could recreate this instantly. watching the skaters ride through the pool,
I wondered how it would be to attach paint to the boards & see the end result after each rider rode
with a different color. I set the idea into motion.'



full view of ridiculous skate pool, in progress
image courtesy of concrete disciples



skateboarder dave ruel
image courtesy of concrete disciples



skateboarder ozzie ausban leaves a wake of blue spraypaint as he strafes
image courtesy of concrete disciples


he reflects that the biggest challenge was 'getting everything to fit into a device that was no deeper
than a can of spray paint, yet weigh as little as possible so as to not to alter the dynamics of the board
when skated, whilst being able to withstand some harsh treatment.'



d*face and his five human brushes prepare the skateboard receivers
image courtesy of concrete disciples



video documenting the project


via wired.co.uk