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Writer's pictureArtists Creating Together

Gone Boarding: Art on Wheels


Our Region III Transition Program apprentices have been working hard to create a fun, unique body of work. Each year, ACT’s apprentice program works to create high-caliber, intensive art apprenticeships for young artists with disabilities attending special education transition centers in West Michigan. This year, our nine Grandville apprentices worked with students involved in Forest Hills Northern High School’s Gone Boarding program. They created custom longboards and paddle boards. Our apprentices were each partnered with a Forest Hills Northern student, who helped glue, cut, and sand longboards. Once the boards were ready, apprentices worked with teaching artist, Evie Džomba, and artist assistant, Mikaela O’Conner, to design and paint their boards. The apprentices met again with the Gone Boarding program to apply grip tape to the top of their boards and install trucks and wheels on the bottom.


Throughout the program, the apprentices had entry into the world of product design. They painted their own custom shoes, hats, and helmets with consistent color palettes. In addition to building their boards, they sketched multiple thumbnails, selected their final designs, and painted their boards. Once their products were completed, they were inspired by other famous skateboard brands to create logo designs that matched the look and feel of their finished custom apparel and longboards. Jermarrio Lynn, whose signature mark was a smiley face within a heart, named his brand ‘Happy Hearts,’ and Gustavo Portillo, whose signature mark is a star and used a lot of blues in his palette, named his brand ‘Blue Star.’


All of the apprentices and their mentors from Forest Hills Northern flourished through the inclusive opportunity to explore the arts together.


Learn more about our apprentices here.

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