Dozens of local and state artists have slapped their unique takes and styles onto a rather unusual kind of canvas.

The kind you could conceivably ride.

Thirty-nine artists have altered the appearance of 50 blank skateboard decks for Lincoln's first Freestyle 50 skateboard exhibit, which opens Friday evening and runs through June at Screen Ink.

The show had been a topic of discussion for local graphic designers Ryan Holt and Jeremie Memming for nearly two years. "We wanted to create an event," Holt said, "that brought together a large group of Nebraska artists with diverse styles and backgrounds."

"A lot of people took a different approach," Holt said. "Some people looked at it as still being used as a skateboard, as disposable art. Some people looked at it as a fine art canvas."

Though all 50 pieces used more or less the same canvas, the mediums, methods and designs run a wide gamut.

Mickey-Moused Robocops, gears, robots, skulls, guns, monsters, pandas, monkeys, ice cream and abstracts made with:

Spray paint and stencils, acrylic, watercolor, mixed media and resin, vinyl, marker, fabric patches, ink, varnish, metal inlay, laser engravings and screen prints.

Local filmmaker/photographer Elisabeth Reinkordt developed one of her own photos directly onto the wood using an archaic developing process.

"This was a new adventure for me," she said of the piece called "Bloom." "Printing onto wood was sort of leaping in feet first."

Screen Ink owner Jason Davis, who also contributed a piece to the show, said the 50 Freestyle is a sign of more things to come.

"We've got some other group shows that we're putting together for later this year," he said. "The idea is to do shows based around a theme."

Reach Micah Mertes at 473-7395 or mmertes@journalstar.com.