"The wood is the first brushstroke." That’s what a master craftsman once told me, and it fundamentally changed how I view the skateboard deck. Most people see the graphic first, but I now see the foundation: seven layers of Canadian maple, pressed into a perfect curve. If that foundation is flawed, the art is compromised.
When I first started DeckArts, the biggest challenge wasn't creative; it was technical. It was finding a manufacturing process that treated the deck not as a sporting good, but as a fine, three-dimensional canvas. The journey from raw wood to a finished, gallery-worthy piece on your wall is a painstaking process of quality control, precision engineering, and specialized printing. This is a look behind the curtain—the story of how we transform simple maple planks into valuable skateboard wall art that meets the standards of sophisticated interior design.
Stage 1: The Foundation—Mastering the Maple
The quality of the final piece is entirely dependent on the quality of the wood. We never compromise on this, as it determines the physical integrity and longevity of your investment.
Sourcing and Selection: Why 7-Ply Canadian Maple
The gold standard for any quality deck is North American 7-ply maple. It’s renowned for its optimal strength-to-weight ratio and flexibility, but crucially for art, its minimal warping tendency. We meticulously source our blanks to ensure a consistent, uniform grain structure. Wood that is too brittle or uneven can ruin the print, distort the concave shape, and ultimately compromise the longevity of your custom skateboard art. This foundational decision is an investment in durability and is the first line of defense against environmental stresses. We explain the specifics of this choice in our article, The Complete Guide to 7-Ply Maple Quality.
Pressing and Shaping: The Perfect Concave
The deck's shape—its concave and kicktails—is what defines it as a cultural object. Our blanks are pressed using high-tonnage molds under specific heat and pressure conditions to ensure the shape is perfectly symmetrical and permanent. This curvature is not merely cosmetic; it is a critical element of the final display, ensuring that when viewed, the authentic skateboard graphics interact dynamically with light and shadow. The pressing must be flawless before any ink touches the surface; any deviation here means the piece will never hang flat or straight.
Stage 2: The Articulation—Preparation and Printing
Translating a vibrant, high-resolution digital file onto a curved wood surface is where 90% of mass-produced decks fail. This is where DeckArts applies specialized technical expertise and attention to detail.
Pre-Press and White Base Layer
Wood is absorbent and naturally dark, which would dull and distort the artist’s chosen colors. To combat this, every deck first receives a precisely calibrated white base layer. This is the invisible foundation that allows the colors to pop with the saturation and vibrancy intended by the artist. Without this step, the art would look murky and muted. This is essential, especially when reproducing the bright, demanding palettes found in our Limited Edition Collection. This base coat is a critical barrier between the natural wood and the delicate ink.
UV Printing: Precision on a Curve
We use advanced industrial flatbed UV printers. Unlike cheaper methods that rely on heat or solvents, UV printing cures the ink instantly using ultraviolet light. This allows for two critical outcomes:
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Zero Bleed: The ink does not spread or soak into the wood, ensuring razor-sharp lines and perfect detail, which is crucial for fine artwork or complex typography, such as in our High-Contrast Graffiti Deck.
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Vibrant Saturation: The colors are densely deposited and cured on the surface, achieving the brilliant saturation necessary to carry the raw energy of street art into your home. This process allows us to replicate the exact color codes provided by the artist.
Quality Check: The Final Approval
After printing, every deck is manually inspected by our team. We check for color fidelity against the artist's proof, precise print alignment along the deck's centerline, and any minuscule defects in the wood or finish. If the piece doesn't meet the high standards of both DeckArts and the artist, it is rejected. Our commitment to low-run editions means we maintain this extremely high bar for quality control, ensuring that the piece you receive is flawless.
Stage 3: The Finish—Preservation and Presentation
The final stages are about protecting your investment and preparing it for a lifetime on display.
The Protective Coating: Longevity
To ensure the piece remains a pristine asset, every deck receives a durable, scratch-resistant, matte finish clear coat. This specialized coating is engineered to protect the vibrant print from dust, scuffs, and most importantly, UV fading. The chemical composition of this coat is designed to withstand typical indoor environmental changes, ensuring the aesthetic brilliance of your skateboard art collection is preserved for decades. We covered how this essential finish protects your asset in Caring for Your Skateboard Art Investment.
Signing and Inventory
The final physical step for any limited edition skateboard is its authentication. The artist signs and numbers the edition directly on the deck. This physical signature is followed by internal documentation, securing its provenance before it is carefully packaged and prepared for shipping to your home.
The product you receive is not simply decor. It is a piece of wood that has undergone a rigorous, multi-stage process of engineering and artistry, designed specifically to bring the authentic spirit of the street into a sophisticated setting. Explore the results of this process in our catalog today.
About the Author
My name is Stanislav Arnautov, and I founded DeckArts out of an obsession with quality—the idea that raw, street-level energy deserves a refined, premium platform. My journey is about technical mastery meeting artistic passion. We don't just sell art; we sell a commitment to the process, ensuring every deck, from the initial sourcing of maple to the final UV coating, respects the artist's vision and the collector's investment. This dedication to integrity is what defines us, transforming a simple piece of wood into a collectible, cultural asset.
See the fusion of art and technology: Instagram @rntv and stasarnautov.com.