NYAB Event - Haroshi “Still Pushing Despite the Odds”

Haroshi “Still Pushing Despite the Odds”

Jonathan Levine Gallery (557C W 23rd St.)

This event has ended.

Jonathan LeVine Gallery presents Still Pushing Despite The Odds a series of new works by Tokyo-based Japanese artist Haroshi, in what will be his third solo exhibition at the gallery.

Haroshi creates three-dimensional wooden sculptures with recycled skateboards as his primary medium. Incorporating every part of the board, this self-taught artist uses his vast knowledge of the sport to construct vibrantly colored and playful works. In Still Pushing Despite the Odds, the artist embraces the imperfections of his boards and relates their willpower to that which individuals endure on a daily basis, stating “Throughout their lifespan together the skater and his board get battered, but even so they get up again to face the obstacles in their path.”

The artist draws upon his personal history with skateboards to sculpt with an uncanny level of precision. His tedious process begins by assembling skate decks he has carefully chosen into stacks, gluing them together and cutting the structure into a cube. He then uses an assortment of tools, including chisels and Japanese carving instruments to meticulously hand-sculpt each form, using imagery from skateboard culture as inspiration.

The innumerable decks appear to fit together seamlessly and Haroshi allows their differing colors to serve as his palette, creating mosaic-like patterns that do not require paint or pigment. He often re-purposes other parts of the board, using wheels and hardware as accents. In Still Pushing Despite the Odds, Haroshi incorporated articles of low-technology from the early to mid-1900s. Vintage items such as neon signs, dental tools and roller skates create a striking textural contrast when paired with the smooth silhouette of the skate decks and illustrate the artist’s passion for innovation.

Haroshi’s technique is akin to the ancient Japanese tradition of building wooden Buddah statues, including the conservation of materials to minimize weight and embedding an object inside the sculpture. Unkei, a master sculptor in 12th Century Japan, used to place a crystal called Shin-gachi-rin (meaning new moon circle) in the position of the statue’s heart to represent its soul. Similarly, Haroshi places an object from his collection of broken skateboards within the layers of decks. He views this process as “giving a soul” to the sculpture in a way that allows him express his Japanese heritage.

Haroshi was born in 1978 in Tokyo, Japan, where he is currently based. As a passionate skater from his early years to present, Haroshi possesses a thorough knowledge of the anatomy of a skateboard and all of its parts, including the decks, trucks and wheels. With no formal art training, he adapted the determined perseverance, freedom of expression and DIY ethos of skate culture, into creating works of art. In 2011, commissioned by NIKE CEO Mark Parker, Haroshi re-created a pair of SB Dunk sneakers made from decks used by several NIKE pro-skaters – the work was featured in his debut solo exhibition in the United States, Future Primitive.