B
orn on the bottom left side of the Buckeye State, in Cincinnati to be exact, Joe Castrucci has traveled the world, but has always returned to the quietness and varied seasons of Ohio. For the past 13 years, Joe has been involved with all the creative aspects of Habitat Skateboards, from decks, to tees, to ads and especially videos such as 2003’s Mosaic. These days his focus is on the art that Habitat is well-known for. Rather than go to college, Joe worked at his dad’s car dealership after attending a vocational high school for commercial art. Washing cars and delivering parts wasn’t his calling, so his first
creative endeavour was at the now-defunct Strength Magazine. That is, until he answered a newspaper job posting at DNA Distribution (Alien Workshop, Habitat and other brands throughout the years) in 1998. He was hired and was there for the birth of Habitat in1999, but the brand didn’t release products until the winter of 2000. From the start Habitat has been influenced by Joe’s love of graphic design from the ’50s to ’70s, especially the work of Alexander Girard, Saul Bass, Paul Rand and Mary Blair. The look is clean yet hand done with a fine balance of tone and colour. Joe’s attention to geometry and typography is very
refined and classic. He also played a part in the branding aesthetic of Mike McDermott’s Green Apple Skateboard Shop in Winnipeg, MB, and hopes to do more with them when time allows. The consistency and quality of his artistic vision has set Habitat apart from many other skate brands that tend to recycle the same ideas and board layouts. While the graphics Joe creates translate easily onto skateboards, they can be just as dynamic hanging on the wall as pieces of art. —Randy Laybourne habitatskateboards.com
clockwise from top left:
Habitat TransWorld Skateboarding Ad Habitat “Bamboo Janoski” deck Habitat “Chronicle Of Time Garcia” deck Habitat “Cork Janoski” deck Habitat “Silas” deck Habitat “Lion Heart” O’Connor deck Habitat “Hole Gillette” deck Habitat “Hinderland Angel” deck Habitat “In4mation” deck Habitat “Bamboo Leaf” longboard Habitat “Mayan” beanies Habitat “Garcia” insoles 18
Concrete skateboarding
visit concreteskateboarding.com to download art blender wallpapers for your computer and iphone.
“Joe is one of the hardest-working humans I’ve ever met. His artwork stands alone, and I consider him a pioneer in skateboarding’s aesthetic. Habitat is unique, much like Joe. C’mon, the man-made Photosynthesis for God’s sake!” —Michael McDermott // Habitat International Pro
“Collage” By Joe Castrucci. Created exclusively for Concrete Skateboarding.