Recently CONS Project put on an event in their pop-up space at 358 Dufferin St. to teach young minds, ages 13 to 24, how to design and create a skateboard deck. This was the last installment of creative workshops that have taken place in New York City, Los Angeles, Toronto and Boston. Other workshops have included building skateboard ramps, making zines, wheat pasting, typography, djing and creating furniture from beat-up skateboards.

This time pro skateboarder and CONS Skate Ambassador, Quim Cardona, teamed up with Cody Hager and Jarad Hager of CreateAskate.org along with artist, graphic designer and owner of Lewis Cruise Skateboards, Jacob Jerkiewicz. They discussed the finer points of the skateboard making process beginning with tree selection and good harvesting practices. The wood used is called rock maple or acer saccharum and is found in the great lakes region; Toronto’s “back yard”. This wood has a greater density and elasticity making it perfect for the continued abuses of skating.

The more environmentally conscious companies, like CreateAskate.org, make sure to keep a balance of old growth and younger trees so as not to destroy the forests. The trees harvested are generally 40 to 80 years but can be as old as 120. The lower 20 ft of a tree is best and with fewer branches. The tops are used for other types of lumber.

From there they take the wood to their facility where it is processed, left to cure and harden for eight to 10 weeks. Next, trees are kilned in a fire and then cut into the thin sheets called the veneer. These veneers are glued together in alternating grain directions to add extra strength. They are put in a press and left for two weeks for the glue to set and harden.

The CONS Project picks up from this point of the process. The decks came as squared off pieces of veneered wood, the layers pre-sandwiched together. Participants took paper templates to design their nose and tail shapes as well as board widths. It was cool to see all the different designs people came up with. One guy did his in the shape of a hand, a lot of people made old school style cruisers with a squared off back tail. A carpenter cut out everyone’s shapes on the bandsaw and the lines started to form.

Next, it was time to sand down the edges into the smooth curve. The rough edge was taken off with an oscillating belt sander and the smoothing was done with sanding blocks starting with a rougher 36 grit and moving up to a smoother 120 grit for finishing.

After that Jerkiewitz gave a talk on skateboard graphics, where he went into information on graphic design and screen-printing as well as alternative DIY techniques such as stencilling and hand-drawn designs. It was evident that those in attendance felt blessed to have a Toronto native and owner of Lewis Cruise skateboards to gain some knowledge from. The popup space was limited by the lack of computers or screen printing equipment, but bustling at the seams with spray paint, stencilling materials, sharpies and clear coat wood sealant. The guys and girls got to work finishing off their decks, and many ended their day with a little skate session outside

For More information visit:

http://consproject.com/
http://lewiscruise.com/
http://www.createaskate.org/

Article by Luke Harley

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On Saturday, the Converse CONS Project held a “Zine Making and Printing” workshop in Toronto. The event was hosted at 358 Dufferin Street and was led by Brian Lamotte, publisher and founder of Pau Wau Publications, and photographer Nick Sethi, both from Brooklyn, New York.

Free and open to everyone, the event brought together skaters and artists of different ages and backgrounds who all shared an interest in learning more about zine making.

Lamotte started the workshop with a brief introduction on zine culture and how he got into zine making and independent publishing, emphasizing on the DIY aspect of it. “We started really raw, didn’t have a lot of money, didn’t really know what we were doing and just had the urge to make things.”

Zines are self-published and small-circulated books that are not-for-profit and still very popular in underground communities, especially in the skate culture. They have been an important alternative means of communication from the 1970s to the 1990s with political and punk rock movements looking for a way to share their strong and often controversial ideas. As Sethi puts it, “Zine was the Internet before the Internet.”

Lamotte and Sethi emphasized on the importance of creative freedom when making a zine. “The big part of it is that there are no rules, no set boundaries about how you do it. It’s about how you want it to be” Lamotte said.

They put together this workshop to show how easy it can be to make one. Participants were encouraged to collaborate together to create their own zine with the bare minimum in materials and supplies: a piece of paper, a pen, a glue stick, a photocopier, etc. At the end of the workshop, participants had the chance to walk home with their own copy.

Although zines are not as popular as they used to be, the art of zine making is still alive thanks to professional zine makers like Brian Lamotte and Nick Sethi who commit themselves to passing on what they have learned to the next generation of skaters and zine makers.

In Toronto, you can shop for zines at Working Title and Art Metropole.

Here are some of Lamotte’s favourite zines that you can also check out: Next w Presto! by Lele Saveri, Even in the End by Peter Sutherland, K is For Kurt by Jaclyn Delorey & Various Contributors, HCO by Nick Sethi, Hannah by David Brandon Geeting, Cavalos & Bangalos by Anna Kleberg.

The Converse CONS Project is about celebrating the skate culture and its DIY spirit. “Zine Making and Printing” was the fourth of five in the ongoing series of CONS Project workshops happening across North America. The previous workshops were about “Building Skate Structures”, “Filming Skate Videos” and “Creative Recycling – Making Furniture from Skate Decks”. Check out their website and stay tuned for more information on the next workshop coming to Toronto in April 2015.

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(Video by Elle J. Andrews)

The sound of skateboard wheels slapping the pavement echoes across Dufferin Street. Tucked behind an industrial building, skateboarders roll across a half-empty parking lot, soaking up any sun that’s left on this cold November day. Their backdrop is a large studio space bearing the logo of the Converse CONS Project.

Last Saturday, The CONS Project hit Toronto with a third workshop in its North American series. “Creative Recycling” invited skaters and creators to join Jason Podlaski, the founder of Deckstool, in building furniture with used skateboards. The free event was open to the public and included raffles and some complimentary grub. Like the previous workshops, “Creative Recycling” was hosted at 358 Dufferin Street and welcomed preteens, adults, and everyone in between.

The event kicked off with a story about a stool. Jason Podlaski and his brother Adam grew up in Pennsylvania, immersed in the skateboarding culture. As they got older, however, skating somewhat dwindled out of the spotlight. So, when remnants of the early days (aka, beaten-down skateboards) started collecting dust, the Podlaski brothers decided to “give them a second life,” as Jason says. The boys worked from their mom’s garage, piecing together skateboard scraps. A truck, a couple screws, and two and a half decks later, and their prototype was born: the original deckstool.

“With good luck, hard work, and the Internet, I was able to turn it into a business,” Podlaski says. Today, the original deckstool still sits in Adam’s apartment. The company has grown to sell everything from wall clocks to kitchen tabletops, all decorated with the unique artwork of recycled boards.

At “Creative Recycling,” participants had the chance to build their own versions of the stool. The room came alive as everyone rummaged through a heaping pile of decks, choosing the ones that were most in tune with their creative minds. One boy carried a board with a naked lady across the bottom, while another held a deck with a faux family portrait.

This workshop had the most diverse group yet. Not only was there a broad age range, but “Creative Recycling” saw more girls attend than any of the previous workshops had.

Converse ambassador and pro skater, Don “Nuge” Nguyen, also joined CONS Project Toronto for his second time. “It’s just great to bring all the kids together and let them build things for themselves,” he says. “They’re always hyped to come out.” Nuge attended the last CONS Project workshop in October called “How to Film a Skate Video.” This time around, he flipped his long hair back to help with the electric saws.

The roar of power tools matched the room’s high energy, yet despite the excitement, one thing was clear—every skater had a burning itch to skate. Luckily, the space at 358 Dufferin was equipped with two skate structures. The now scuffed-up ramps are tokens of Toronto’s first CONS workshop in August, which taught people how to build their own. Between Converse’s workshops, the ramps are set up for the community to use at Dufferin Grove Park.

For Jason too, the CONS Project has provided him with an opportunity to give back. “[Deckstool’s] furniture is expensive. Not every skater kid is gonna buy it,” he says. “I used to be pretty protective over the idea [of Deckstool]. But now, with the CONS Project, it’s nice to have it out there and get the community involved.”

Toronto is the first Canadian city to welcome The CONS Project. Its intertwining of art and sport has reached out to the creative community and intensified the already booming skate culture in Toronto. Check out The CONS Project website, and stay tuned for details on their next workshop in 2015.

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Converse wrapped up the spring season by unleashing a series of creative outlets for its devoted supporters. From May 23rd to 25th, Converse hosted its third CONS Project at Queen West’s Goodfellas Gallery. The three-day event was open to creators over the age of 14 at no cost. Participants had the opportunity to work with professional artists in a unique hands-on environment.

This time around, the CONS workshops included typography hosted by artist Andrew “Rcade” Kidder, wheat pasting with street artist Error Message, screen printing with The Baitshop owner Greg Rodriguez, and DJing with DJ Law and DJ Skillmore.

“Our goal with all CONS Projects is to help inspire ambition and push the creative limits for our consumers,” said Converse’s VP of marketing Ian Stewart in a press release.

The original CONS project premiered in Brooklyn, NY in 2013 where children were able to fine-tune their music skills through six diverse workshops including “How to Make Beats” and “How to Make a Music Video.” Converse followed this with a project based in Los Angeles earlier this year where skateboarders Louie Lopez and Kenny Anderson worked with kids in a “How to Produce a Skate Video” workshop.

To kick it all off, Converse introduced its first Canadian CONS project with the launch of their new Weapon Sneaker shoe collection. The summer line of sneakers appeals to lifestyle and sport footwear with an emphasis on creative designs. They returned to Goodfellas Gallery on May 29th to hold the collection’s launch party where the art of CONS Project participants was showcased.

Guests enjoyed an evening full of musical performances by artists such as Vince Staples, EI-P and renowned rapper Ghostface Killah. Toronto-based jazz band BADBADNOTGOOD and local hip-hop duo The Airplane Boys were also in attendance.

The Weapon Sneaker collection will continue to expand throughout the summer with yet another series of shoes set to launch in August. Converse is also planning for more upcoming global CONS Projects in cities such as London, Boston, Los Angeles and New York, so keep ears open and your creative juices flowing!

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