Portrait of a Skateboard Artist, on Prince Street

Photo by myself, on Prince Street and Broadway, in SoHo.

A young artist was selling art in the form of hand-painted skateboards in SoHo, Tuesday afternoon.

Sitting beside his work, the artist told me his story: A few weeks ago he was hit by a car while crossing the street in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. His left arm is now in a sling, and he has partial nerve damage along the left side of his body. He counts himself very lucky to be alive.

'It's a great story. All this work was painted with one arm', he said. Good thing he is right-handed.

I asked if he had a website. 'I prefer to meet my customer,' he said. What looks to be stickers are painted by hand. Each skateboard is unique and reasonably priced.

You can find the artist and his work on Prince Street, between Broadway and Mercer. For various reasons, he asked that his name and face not be published. Email me if you would like to contact him directly; I have his email address.

The Portrait Series is a once-in-a-while installment, featuring New Yorkers encountered on the street.

ps: If you have a spare moment, do stop by at Greenwich Village Daily Photo and leave a note for our good friend Ken Mac.

Ken lost his dear mother recently. He has shared childhood photos of himself and his family, alongside photos of Old New York. Ken is a passionate voice for the city that is disappearing before our eyes.

Related posts: Five New Yorkers, on the Upper East Side, Playing Pianos as Public Art and I *Heart* New York, Downtown.