Haroshi is a skateboarder and self-taught woodworker, known for his sculptures made from skateboard decks. Haroshi carefully selects and stacks the skateboards for each sculpture, then hand carves and polishes them into a veneered finish. Haroshi started developing his practice driven by the urge to reuse the object that provides so much joy and marks one’s life, even once it’s no longer usable. Because skateboard decks are made of layers of processed wood, the final sculptures appear to have striped surfaces. Haroshi favors popular and recognizable forms for his subjects; in addition to skateboard sculptures, he has created teddy bears such as the iconic MEDICOM Be@rbrick, cartoon characters, sneakers, and fire hydrants. Haroshi also puts a broken skateboard piece into the core of the piece—or gives each piece a “soul”. This practice is inspired by Unkei, a 12th-century Buddhist sculptor who would place a crystal ball inside each of his Buddha sculptures.