Adrian and Martinus Pool

Calgary, Alta.

Adrian and Martinus Pool. Stackton Credenza, 2018-present. White Oak, recycled skateboards and plywood, 165 x 51 x 64 cm. COURTESY OF ADRIANMARTINUS.

Studio: How would you describe your approach to your medium? What made you choose it?

Adrian and Martinus Pool: Recycling skateboards began as a hobby outside of our jobs as carpenters after seeing the work of Haroshi, who is the “godfather” of the medium. Being skateboarders for over 20 years we were able to start collecting boards from friends and our local skateshops. After making a table entirely out of boards we realized that we would need to find a way to make the skateboards go farther in projects especially since the supply drops off quite significantly for 6 months of the year while there is snow on the ground in Calgary. Recycling skateboards is extremely labour intensive, pairing that with their limited supply, our design approach focuses on material usage and finding a use for every part of the board. We apply that same approach to our offcuts from our furniture production, so that we can find a use for almost all of our waste pieces, as they are filtered down through our different smaller products.

Adrian and Martinus Pool. Hexagon Wall Art, 2020-present. Recycled skateboards and plywood, 47.6 x 41.3 x 2 cm. COURTESY OF ADRIANMARTINUS.

S: How would you describe yourself, personally and professionally?

AM: We are kind of hard to pin down because our work doesn’t fit nicely into one category. We are definitely woodworkers but we make a fair bit of art and also design our smaller items with production in mind. Even though we don’t get to skateboard as much as we’d like any more I think skateboarders probably fits us best. We think separating our professional lives with personal lives isn’t really a thing for us. Our business consumes us, also being a family business - we always end up chatting about business, about how to solve a particular project or what pattern would look great for the next wall piece. We have our two dogs, Maisie and Sapele and they are a big part of our personal lives. They remind us to take breaks and go to the park (where we can stew over the next project.) 

Adrian and Martinus Pool. R5 Coffee Table, 2018-present. Recycled Skateboards, walnut and plywood, 122 x 56 x 46 cm. COURTESY OF ADRIANMARTINUS.

S: What inspires you?

AM: Skateboarding, especially skate videos. A lot of our taste and cultural references come from growing up and coming of age constantly watching skateboarding videos. They also sparked my interest in film so much that I went to film school before pursuing my carpentry ticket. 

Being wood hoarders also helped us come up with some of our best ideas too, having the material around the shop to meditate on helps have those sort of breakthrough moments where you can find the perfect use for a certain kind of off cut. While we have streamlined our process and narrowed our focus a lot since our beginning, we find a lot of our inspiration currently from studio furniture makers and ceramicists.

Adrian and Martinus Pool. Cribbage Board, 2022. Maple and recycled skateboards, 10 x 36 x 2 cm. COURTESY OF ADRIANMARTINUS.

S: What do you see as your contribution to the field of your craft?

AM: I think something that we’ve managed to do is move past our DIY beginnings and into the realms of fine woodworking, design and art while still maintaining a DIY attitude towards it. Our work has reached a point where the quality and character of the design allows it to stand on its own, without the novelty of it being made from recycled skateboards being the defining feature. 

Adrian and Martinus Pool. Skateboard Bowls, 2014-present. Recycled skateboards approx 19 x 12 cm. COURTESY OF ADRIANMARTINUS.

S: What wisdom do you want to impart to younger makers?

AM: If you are working with a very labour intensive medium, learn the value of good tools and their ability to unlock new creative avenues for you. Persistence is also important. You might see yourself fail a lot or not see much correlation between the hours you put in and your income, but keep trying and experimenting and things will likely align. Always wear your safety glasses!

AdrianMartinus
w: adrianmartinus.com/
ig: @adrianmartinus
t: @_adrianmartinus
f: @AdrianMartinusDesign

This article was published in the Spring/Summer 2023 issue of Studio Magazine.