Lovenskate Work Placement by luke aveil

Contents

Introduction: Page 4 Section One ‘Stickers’: Pages 5-13 Section Two ‘T-Shirts’: Pages 14-26 Section Three ‘Boards’: Pages 27-37 Section Four ‘Around the Studio’: Pages 38-47 Section Five ‘My Screen Prints’: Pages 48-51 Cover Letter: Page 52 Creative CV: Pages 53-54 Online Portfolio: Page 55 Online Social Media: Pages 56-61

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Introduction to my placement For my placement I decided to work in an area that I have great interest in and has been a basis for some of my previous projects. The skateboard industry is a hugely creative sector employing professionals from a wide range of specialist areas, anything from graphic designers to photographers to printmakers. Unlike a lot of sports companies the industry is not purely dominated by huge multinational companies, small independent companies make up a large proportion of the industry. These smaller companies continue to survive through the support of the local skateboard community that they represent. One such independent company that I am familiar with is Lovenskate whos owner lived and skated in my home town of Maidstone before moving to and setting up business in central London. Having contacted the owner Stu Smith and explained what my intentions were for my placement he was more than happy to let me come and spend some time with him in his studio. I made clear to him that I was not really after a work placement in a typical sense but wanted to spend time with him documenting and observing the running of a small independent skateboard company. In terms of the photographs I was going to take I thought it would be best to firstly just spend time in the studio taking photographs of the environment then try concentrating my efforts in documenting certain processes used in producing some of the main products Lovenskate sell ie skateboards, clothing and stickers. All these product lines require a number of processes to get to the end design on the tshirt or skateboard that is sold to the customer, I wanted to try document the different stages in the design process, from the initial drawing to the final print. A huge part of producing graphics for skateboards and tshirts is being able to work with screen printing techniques but this technique of producing a print is not just limited to hand drawn designs but can also be applied to photography. As a major outcome for my placement I wanted to learn some basic screenprinting techniques so I could produce a print from a photograph I took during my time at the studio. During my placement I would also publish any work I produced online via the means of my facebook profile, this would include photo albums and status updates.

Section One: Stickers

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Section Two: T-Shirts

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page15 NT

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Section Three: Boards

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Section Four: Around the Studio

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Section Five: My Screen Prints

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Cover Letter

Creative CV

Hello,

26 Clarence Court, Maidstone, Kent, ME14 5UP

My names Luke and I am a second year photography student at London Southbank University and was also once a very keen skateboarder from maidstone, I used to be a regular at county hall and law courts etc I think I even know some people you may know.

Date of Birth: 04/02/1985

Having not really been on my board properly for a good while now I guess I am not really classed as a skateboarder anymore but I am still a keen follower and when I can I enjoy photographing my friends that still skate in maidstone. Skateboarding has also featured greatly in some of my university projects, which has recently included a self-published book ‘Go Paintboarding’.

Academic

What I am asking is if there is any chance I could come spend some time (one day a week for a few weeks?) at lovenskate heights to document the running of a skateboard company and produce my own brief led project and get a better understanding of the skateboard industry and how a company is set up and run.

2003-2004:

http://luke.clickgarden.net/

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London Southbank University BA Honours Digital Photography

Technical Skills: • Adobe Flash, Indesign and Photoshop • Rapid Weaver web design • Microsoft Office • Digital SLRs and studio work

1996-2003: At work ….. Oct 2006- Present day

Regards Luke

Mobile Number: 07891 677418

Email Address: lukeaveil@hotmail.com

2007-Present day:

Here’s my website if you want to see some examples of my work.

Nationality: British

Telephone Number: 01622 734259

I am mailing you in regards to a unit I have been given as part of my photography course. I have to organise a work placement project, this basically means I have produce a project around spending some time within a placement in the creativity industry, I guess a documentation of my chosen placement would be a good way of saying it. As I have said I still have a great interest in skateboarding and the whole life style and is something I enjoy documenting in my work, and what I would ultimately like to document for this project is a few days ‘in the life’ of lovenskate. I find it really awesome that you have come from the maidstone skate scene and have started a very successful and popular skateboard company, definitely a dream I had when I used to skate. I also attended the premier of your DVD ‘super jumbo’ in Shorditch a few weeks back, which I enjoyed greatly, and was pleased to see lots of old faces!

I understand that you are very busy and what I have asked may not be possible but I would really appreciate it if you gave it some thought, as this would hopefully create some very exciting new work for not only myself but also lovenskate. Thanks for your time.

Luke Aveil

Kent Institute of Art and Design BTEC Diploma in Foundation Studies (Art and Design) NCFE Advance Certificate in Creative Craft Maidstone Grammar School for Boys 10 GCSEs grade C and above including English, Mathematics and Science. 3 A’ Levels in physics, art and technology. Cotswolds Outdoors Work as a retail assistant for Cotswolds outdoors in Maidstone and in their flagship store in London. I gained knowledge in areas including technical outwear, sleeping bags, footwear and tents all through in house and out of house training sessions.

Oct 2007May 2008

Turnmills and Ministry of Sound Nightclubs Worked as the student representative at my student halls for two of Londons busiest nightclubs. I was required to promote nights for the clubs by the means of flyering and getting together guestlists. This was unpaid work but gave me experience in the promoting side of the dance music and club industry.

JanuaryApril 2006

Lake Louise Ski Resort, Canada Work experience in a Canadian Ski School in preparation for becoming a qualified Level 1 snowboard instructor. I also participated in an avalanche rescue course and team building exercises such as a weekend trekking in the mountain backcountry.

What do I do in my spare time?

My online portfolio

I enjoy participating in extreme sports especially snowboarding. Living in Canada for three months whilst training to be a snowboard instructor, helped develop my communication skills, ability to manage people and to work well within a team. The Avalanche Course helped to develop my analysis skills. Trekking and camping in the backcountry was incredibly character building both individually and within a team. It also tested my survival skills in extreme weather and environmental conditions. The first aid training that I received was vital. I play basketball as often as I can. I was a member of the school team for two consecutive years in which time we won the Kent cup. I have a passion for music and try to attend as many concerts and festivals as possible in my free time. I enjoy all types of outdoor pursuits. I was a scout up until the age of fifteen and I was also a member of the Combined Cadet Force at School.