Monday, October 31, 2016

Chelsea Griffin - Week 11 - Laser Engraving: Skateboard Deck


Concept : For this assignment, I knew right off the bat that I wanted to engrave a drawing onto my skateboard deck. I wasn't initially sure what kind of drawing to put on the board, but I knew that I wanted something that could somehow represent my own artistic identity. I might've mentioned in an earlier assignment that I often incorporate eyes into my work. I appreciate not only the aesthetic of the eye but also the deeper concepts that have been associated with them throughout human history.

Initial Sketch in Autodesk's Sketchbook


After using Image Trace in Adobe Illustrator

Image in 1-Touch Laser Photo

Test engraving on medium-density fibreboard

Deck after laser engraving


Deck after coated with transparent black stain, sanded, and finished with Watco Danish Oil (Medium Walnut)


Techniques : I drew the eye in Autodesk's Sketchbook using the pen and pencil tools, as well as a bit of airbrush. Once satisfied with the image, I opened the file in Adobe Illustrator and used Image Trace. I decided to raster the entire image.
Materials : For the trial engraving, I used some material that I had on hand called MDF (medium density fibreboard). It's not the same material as the wood of the skateboard deck, but I still felt it gave me a rough idea of what the final engraving would look like and helped me determine the different aspects I needed to fix in my Illustrator file. I stretched the file a bit when putting the image onto my skateboard template. I realized after the trial engraving that I didn't much care for this and plan on scaling it back to it's original state.
Once the deck was engraved, I decided to bring out the engraving a bit more by using a transparent black stain. After this, I lightly sanded the board in an attempt to get rid of the intense glossiness of the laminate that came with it. Once I was satisfied with the texture, I went over the entire board with some Watco Danish Oil. 


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