Free Skates

love this video

Free Skates — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 02:12:27 +0000

Free Skates — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 00:25:45 +0000

Sorry folks

team Free Skates has been on a summer staycation. The translation? We’ve neglected posting in lue of busy summer schedules and projects. With labor day just past we’re ready to get back work. The beginning of the new academic year brings the start of the Toronto International Film Fest and a host of culturally relevant and irrelevant films. In 2008 a little gem called Death Bowl to Downtown produced by Coan Buddy Nichols, Rick Charnoski and Noah Goldsmith was not part of the Toronto International Film Fest (Were in the process of gathering factoids from the producers so don’t quote us on that) and it contains a barrage of footage and imagery from the NYC skate scene from the early 80′s and 90′s. Skaters include …….. the credit list is long to post. The film looks pretty amazing and the host of locales through all the NYC boroughs are just as impressive and inviting. In honor of not being part of TIFF………..

perhaps Free Skates could organize a screening of Death bowl to downtown.

Jam econo

Free Skates — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 22:25:28 +0000

G20 summery

Free Skates — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 22:29:22 +0000

the G20 embarrassment is well over and we at Free Skates feel redeemed by the 1billion price tag in policing and trampling of civil liberties. We identify the need for radical reform but we by no means identify with the types of organizations who employ “any means necessary” tactics and we’re not into nonsensical indiscriminate acts of violence the same way we’re not into football hooliganism. In any case thanks to all the peaceful demonstrators that tried to stay just that “peaceful” and thanks always to all the community activists for making a difference.

Let’s say there was a billboard time had by all! protesters and law enforcement

Off topic Soy and I checked out the Vaderhoof park a few days ago

peace

Free Skates — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 23:14:09 +0000

A small stroke of genius from your friends at the Igloo Tornado. Well, not necessarily genius but worth the 4 dollars (U.S. plus $1 shipping). We’ve all been wondering for years about what a homo erotic relationship involving two of punk rocks hetero-normative poster children might look like. Igloo Tornado has given you a small glimpse of when Henry and Glen are very good “Friends” and “Also room mates”. If you haven’t already caved and thrown your 4 dollars across the internet to microcosm I’ll give one more selling incentive “Daryl (Hall) and John(Oats) live next door. They are Satanists”.

and the best part is on the back cover

You and I both want to know if that’s an actual quote from Rollin’s and is Glenn ever actually amused? I mean …come on!

this brings to mind Free Skates next fund raising project. We’re diligently working at getting it together. Its inspired by zine culture and is due by years end. More to come.

peace

Printing day!!!

Free Skates — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 21:36:54 +0000

Today was the conclusion of the Oasis Skateboard Factory three session screen printing work shop series at The Biatshop and the bench mark for Free Skates first sponsorship program. After designing graphics in the previous sessions today was the production session and the practical process of Printing. The Oasis logo was first in line for printing and every student took the opportunity to step up and print.

Following the Oasis shirts and bags the next step was deciding on what the correct inks would be for the white and blue T’s that Free Skates purchased for the program ( avail sizes M,L ) and thinking from a design point of view the students decided on black. Greg walked through the process from exposing screens, aligning shirts and finally to the baking process.

All in all, as a pilot project, it went very well and the whole team was stoked with the results. Free Skates is proud to have sponsored this and the tee’s look incredible and as mentioned previously they will be for sale at the OSF’s end of the year BBQ. I hope that some of the students keep up a relationship with The Biatshop because Ken and Greg are a great resource within the arts and printing community in Toronto. One of the reason that Free Skates funded a program like this, beyond hoping to interest students in stewardship of a dying art, was to help the them “network” with professional folks in the local business community.

In case your wondering this one fits the slender gent

Free Skates — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 01:54:03 +0000

Tomorrow is the final workshop for the students of the OSF. On Friday the production team visited local indy business’s on Queen West like Play Dead and Public Butter to learn about what its like being an artistic entrepreneur in this day and age. While the design team workshopped an amazing graphic Ken gave us a mock up of the design on a T-shirt and on Monday the production team will be ready to go ahead and start printing the graphic on the T’s Free Skates picked up this past weekend. Ken and Greg have been doing a fantastic job facilitating this workshop series. In addition Tracy from Play Dead has been kind enough and will be on hand volunteering her time and expertise. Thanks man!!!

This is during a brain storming session after the design team gave us a preview of their graphic

The Up Coming Oasis Workshop’s

Free Skates — Sat, 29 May 2010 00:54:11 +0000

This year the Students of OSF’s final art/business project is designing and silk screening some original Bait Shop/Oasis/Free Skates tees. The work shops are being facilitated and curated by Ken and Greg at The Bait Shop in Parkdale. With Free Skates sponsoring the program and the t-shirts. Ever since meeting Craig from Oasis, we knew we wanted to lend out time and resources anyway we could. The tees from these workshops will be available for sale at OSF’s public end of the year “SK8boards & BBQ” event.

With all this talk about alternative schooling in Toronto OSF’s teacher has pioneered a unique program with the TDSB, In what is getting to be an increasingly retrogressive city. It’s in need of a solid support network with in our community. Free Skates wants this important work to continue and we were so stoked that two of Craig’s students Wolf and Adam Rushton participated and collaborated in this years disposable show.

Please support Oasis Skateboard Factory and any alternative school doing positive things for their students and community.

T.

Free Skates — Sat, 15 May 2010 01:09:32 +0000

Holy shit!

its a week late but none the less. We figure last Saturday that close to a thousand people came through the doors, and shit Toronto, we’re impressed. You all make it out in fine fashion. While tending bar and trying to mingle I sort of stopped…….. and decided that 52 McCaul was more than crowded. Thanks to Steve, Brendan, Sean, Tracy, Buffy, Barbra and everyone else for donating your time and helping facilitate the whole event.

Thanks!

Free Skates — Sun, 02 May 2010 18:23:57 +0000

In addition to salable arts this year the Disposable show will be having few raffles. I want to take this opportunity to thank the small local business’s that have offered help by donating their product for the draws. Thanks so much to Clothing Brand Experiment for donating some of their hoodies and 1up Games for donating an original NES (sans packaging) and
Super Mario Brothers. On the same note last week we received a finished deck from local artist Nicholas Di Genova (as I’m sure you already read via the FF blog) who donated his time and talent for the show.

ummm…. holy shit?