Adam Bertolet rode his first skateboard, made by his father, when he was 5. Within a week, he slid through an intersection face first, and has been skating ever since.

“At first, I used ride on my board on my hands and knees and bomb hills,” Bertolet said.
Besides having an insatiable taste for skateboarding, Bertolet, 22, also has a passion for painting and is completing his first year studying fine arts at SF State, while also working part-time at the Student Center art gallery.

“I wanted to be an artist ever since kindergarten, I guess I thought it would be a good way to spend my time creating what ever comes to mind,” Bertolet said.

Whether creating a painting or a three-dimensional piece, Bertolet uses everything from acrylic to Sharpie pens. Currently, he has been experimenting with different surfaces such as wood, scrap metal, and denim. Movement, color, and lines heavily influence Bertolet’s art.

Bertolet grew up in Northridge, Calif., and at age 18 he moved to Santa Barbara where he attended Santa Barbara City College.
While attending SBCC in December 2004, Bertolet delved deeper into his art and won an award for “Best in Show” after submitting a piece for a student art exhibition.

The winning piece was a triptych – a three-paneled painting. The untitled piece was his first triptych and took 20 hours to complete.

“I wanted to involve myself in higher levels of creativity,” said Bertolet, who moved to San Francisco a year ago.

Although he strives to challenge himself artistically, Bertolet wants his work to be accessible to everyone.

“My art is not super abstract … it’s enjoyable to the eye,” he said.

When he is not painting, sculpting or working, he is carving lines on rails, ledges, and sidewalks with his skateboard.

Bertolet is sponsored by Powell Skateboards, a distributor located in Santa Barbara. In exchange for free boards, wheels, grip tape, and clothing, he must skateboard weekly.

Throughout more than a decade of skateboarding, Bertolet has suffered from two broken ankles and wrists, bruised bones and countless scrapes. As much as his sport has bashed his body, Bertolet said skateboarding has a positive influence on his life.

“Skateboarding is a form of artistic expression, as a skater you have to look at the world differently,” he said.

Skateboarding and art are similar to Bertolet because they allow him to see the world in terms of shape, lines and movement.

Whether it is a graduated ledge or sharp-edged graffiti, Bertolet constantly gets inspiration from his environment for both his passions.

“I think a lot of art comes from skaters, because they have a creative spark inside doesn’t go away,” he said.