One of the most exciting collaborations coming from Vans as part of their Spring 2008 collection, is with Dennis McNett. Dennis has designed board graphics for Anti-Hero skateboards and has collaborated with Cannonball Press. Dennis is a uniquely talented individual, having participated in the skate and art subcultures while also achieving significant success in the world of higher education. He holds an MFA from Pratt Institute, where he has taught as a visiting instructor at the graduate and undergraduate level.
This collaborative project with Vans happened naturally and was born from mutual respect and a common vision for what hardcore skateboarding is all about. McNett explains it best:
“In the early to mid ‘80s, the punk rock music, the album covers, the unsavory characters on the bottoms of the boards, and the grinds all had the same flavor to me. The graphics surrounding these things and the overall aesthetic of that time inspired me to make art then and still influences what I do now. If I were to recall an image of how Vans fit into that aesthetic it would be a Sk8-Hi with blown out soles and a wad of duct tape around the toe holding it all together.”
The pack consists of a No Skool Mid, AV Sk8 Lo, Rowley “Shambles” and a TNT Slip-On III. Expect these to hit stores soon!
