Landyachtz
I think most young graphic designers and illustrators at some point in their early days dream of creating artwork for skateboard decks. I was lucky enough to not only get to do that, but to do it for one of the best skate companies in North America: Landyachtz. They’re based in Vancouver, and they put more care and consideration into creating their products than I ever imagined went into a skateboard. The attention to detail and no-corners-cut quality is astounding and it made working with them that much better, because that’s how I approach my own work as well.
I started off working for them through a collaboration with another regular client of mine, Said the Whale. Landyachtz was putting out a limited edition skateboard for the Vancouver-based band to coincide with the release of their new record: Dandelion and they needed a design. After pitching a few ideas with the dandelion theme in mind, we created a design that features an array of bugs, critters, and wildflowers (including plenty of dandelions) arranged in an eye pleasing “knolling” sort of pattern.
The second time I got to work with them it was for a longboard in their 2022 collection. They liked the nature-themed artwork so much they wanted to try again but this time with birds. They asked for an illustration full of bird species native to the East Coast. We went through a few iterations, trying to find a way to create a dynamic and exciting composition that still had an educational bird book feel to it. We landed on this design that features the natural grain of the wood underneath but with a dark stain, and the a chaotic flurry of birds flying in every which way, slowly disbursing more and more as you move up the board.
We had a plan for a fungi themed board as well, but unfortunately before it hit production another skateboard company released a similar mushroom themed board and we decided to scrap this one. It looked quite good though so I’ve included a small sneak peek below:
Landyachtz is always releasing new boards with incredible artwork, so head over to their site and see what they have in stock right now!