​We Talked to Pro Skater Chad Muska About Making Art

Chad Muska is one of skateboarding's biggest personalities. If you grew up in the late 90s you'll probably remember the skateboard superstar – AKA "The Muska" – as the boombox-wielding skater in a red vest, grinding a formidable handrail with his backpack on; the blonde-haired videogame star with steez and balls-out confidence. Yet his talents go far beyond pushing a plank of wood down the street.

Ever the polymath, the 38-year-old is also a music producer, footwear designer, DJ, photographer, entrepreneur and artist. But it's the latter that preoccupies him most these days. With his art, Muska intends to take the streets into the gallery space, while avoiding being labeled as a "street artist" or as "the pro skater who makes art".

As part of SUPRA's Always on the Run campaign, which celebrates life off the board, we spoke to Muska about his art, its roots in his skating, how he's forged his own path in the creative world, and why skateboarding will always remain a part of everything he does.

VICE: Hey Chad. So tell us, what are

you working on at the moment?

Chad Muska: I'm constantly creating through various forms of media and put no limitations on what I can try to achieve. This keeps me very busy at all times and it can be hard to put what I'm up to into one sentence but I'll give it a try.

My art studio was in a building that sold a while ago and since then I've been working out of my garage and had to downsize considerably on the work I was creating. The size of the space that I work in always dictates what I will make. Coming from 5,000 square feet to 500 was a big challenge at first but it led to me exploring the digital world more as I had been only focused on creating physical art over the last few years.

I've realised that the digital documentation of your physical work is as equally as important as the work itself. So I've been experimenting with video and photographic documentation of the objects and actions associated with them.

Some of your pieces contain written messages like "dream big, work bigger" and "art is not crime" as well as personal statements like "I am a better person when I do not drink". Do you find using text the most direct way of communicating your ideas?
Most of those pieces are just quick doodles that I do to express a feeling or idea that I have at that moment and feel the need to share though social media. Or some are associated with a mural that I think should be more suggestive or inspirational. The art that I currently display is very minimal and open to interpretation from the individual viewer. I feel that art can be over suggestive and then have less of a lifespan. But this is only a reflection of my current state of mind and that is always changing. I have an appreciation for all art and forms of expression.

Do you feel like with your art you have something to say and share that comes from your lived experience?
Most of the messages I write are usually a reminder to myself to keep on with a positive path. It's like writing down a grocery list so you don't forget. I've lived a very crazy life and it plays a role in my art for sure. Hopefully I can inspire others while trying to keep myself in check.

You've been called a street artist in the past; would you describe what you do as street art? The "Post No Bills" piece in particular seemed to have those roots.
We all have a past that leads to our present work that will lead to our future body. I grew up on skateboarding, hip-hop, graffiti and other various forms of expression associated with the culture. These roots are embedded in me for life. As a teenager, I turned to graffiti as an outlet for my frustrations that I couldn't express through skating, later in life some of those frustrations reoccurred and I retuned to the streets again. By this time "street art" had taken over graffiti and that was around the time I started to put things up in cities around the world.

There was a long progression that lead to where my work is now. The "Post No Bills" pieces I made were around 2010 and that was an attempt to create something artistic that was associated with graffiti and street art but wasn't a classic tag or poster paste. I wanted to find a cool way to take the streets into a gallery environment and liked the idea of taking something that was negative towards street art and make it a positive. I don't consider myself a street artist though. I don't want to hold onto any label that may limit my ability to grow and become something new. I want my work to live in galleries and homes and I use it as a tool to be remembered.

A lot of great skaters turn to art as another outlet for their creativity – The Gonz, for example. Do you see yourself as following in that tradition?
I try not to follow any person or tradition. The only thing I follow is my heart and destiny. I have so much love for Gonz, Templeton, Natas and many other skaters who express themselves through art as well as skateboarding but feel that what I'm doing is my path and not to be compared to other skaters just because we all skate. Skateboarders are just creative people and it's no surprise that skateboarding gives birth to so many great artists, cinematographers, designers, etc. I will continue creating till I'm no longer in this life.

Are you always looking to incorporate skateboarding into your art somehow or does it just naturally emerge in the work sometimes?
I really tried to get as far away from skateboarding with my art as possible. I never wanted to be "the pro skater who makes art". I just wanted my art to speak for itself. But then one day I stopped and looked at what I was creating and I was building cement half-pipes that I called sculptures. That's when I realised that skateboarding will remain a part of everything I do forever. And I love that. I'm currently working a lot with cement and steel. I feel a strong connection to these mediums and without them there would be no sidewalks to ride down or walls to spray paint on.

You've exhibited both in gallery spaces and on the street. Do you have a preference for where your work should be viewed, and how does that affect how you create it?
They are two very different things. Graffiti and street art are made fast and you have less attachment to them because they could be gone hours after you make them. So I think it's not as impactful to take what people put up real quick in the streets and put it in a gallery. You just have more time to think about what you want to do in a gallery. I think graffiti and street art should remain on the streets and gallery work should live in the galleries.

One thing I can say, though, is I really enjoy seeing graffiti and street artists that are famous for things on the street discover something new to apply to fine art. I really like how Revok's work in the galleries is nothing like his masterpiece graffiti is in the streets. There is a way to do both.

In addition to art and skating, you also make music. How do you juggle all these interests? Is it a matter of focusing on one at a time and going through periods of doing just one thing?
Yes. I'm usually completely into one thing at a time. If I'm skating, that's all I'm doing, and when I'm doing art or design, that same mentality applies. The beauty about all these various forms of expression is that they're all connected and feed off and inspire each other. If I make a cool song, I can listen to it in my headphones while skating and hype me up to do more tricks or if I design a cool art piece I might find a way to apply it to clothing or shoe design. Like I said, I place no limitations on myself and my creativity. There is no formula to my life, only constant change.

Do you ever feel, with your background, that you're unfairly pigeonholed as a "skate artist"?
Most people would say, "Oh it's easy for you to be an artist because everyone knows who you are from skateboarding." In some cases this may help but for the most part you'll just get a lot of backlash from people saying that you're not an artist because you're so known for skateboarding. And I never want to be put into a category of artists that are grouped together just because they skate.

I just want to create and continue on with my dreams regardless of what people say, what amount of money I make from creating, or the amount of recognition I get from these actions. I'm blessed to have been able to make a living off of skateboarding, the thing I love most in this world, so I have no expectation other than creation.

Lastly, where do you find inspiration for your work?
In my head, my heart and from this beautiful world that we all share.

Thanks Chad.

Available now at Slam City Skates West, other select retailers & suprafootwear.com

The SUPRA Always on the Run campaign launches today (8th July) with a dedicated microsite on the SUPRA footwear website – visit www.suprafootwear.com for further details.