Rafa Alvarez artworks for Pantheon longboards, skateboards and snowboards.
Board illustration process and inspiration
The Pranayama Portal
Illustration of mighty god standing on his own shoulders, trapped inside of a dimensional portal.
Final image on 3 color + black ink sublimated on the bottom fibreglass layer.
The Gas Guzzler
Still life featuring mother nature taking over fuel fossils and human greed. Original artwork redrawn digitally and flipped to negative ( no black ink, line is created by wood see-through ) with a 2 colour screen print.
The Aegis
A very unique distance board with fenders that protects the rider from water and mud. Graphic features Athena´s wielding her protector shield Aegis in front of a bunch of animals, the Owl of wisdom among others. 4 colour screen print on brown stained wood.
The Trip - Space Whale
Illustration of an ancient whale spouting stars and galaxies into the cosmos. Hand drawn whale, photographic textures + ink stains and real constellations. 3 colour sublimation on fibreglass.
The Banantheon
A judgemental banana deity inside a fractal pattern created for a big popsicle with an aggressive curved profile. 4 colour screen print on black wood. Luckily the first "banana hammock" concept didn´t go very far.
Kenny Napp Pro Model (a.k.a. "Los Osos")
Pro rider Kenny Nappolitano crashed into a bear while skating downhill. None of them was harmed but it was fun to illustrate the bear´s version of the incident. 4 tone screen print on all-black stained wood.
Superduper Mystic Tree
3 colour screen print of tree taking care of a squirrel over the Rocky mountains in Colorado, where the brand is based. Hand drawn logo and a heart shape is hidden in the branches.
Boreas snowboard
For this larger format I went more conceptual. I used microscopic shots of a snowflake at different micrometers and nanometers and used the shapes to create motives to overlay on an abstracted topographic map of the Rocky Mountains.
Trip infinite Loop
Limited run of boards created as prize for the few participants of the Ultraskate Marathon Miami who can achieve more than 250 miles in 24 hours of continuous pushing. The illo features a bunch of runners and animals skating on a Moebius strip, an actual infinite geometrical surface.
Panorama - Mitty Pro v2
Illustration created for rider Mitch Thompson, featuring his favourite race track , Mount Panorama in Australia. I stylised the road using dust trail , a fishbowl effect and circular patterns to convey the board speed. 3 colour sublimation print under the fibreglass with an extra white ink layer at the bottom to make the colour pop.
Other graphics in development, stay tuned and
thanks for taking a look!
