Growing up in Cannes, France, Lucas Beaufort spent his days skating down its narrow rues with the fresh, salty Mediterranean air whipping through his hair. His work captures the rebellious, free-wheeling attitude that permeates skate culture. We chatted with LB about his process, what he would name his RAD contribution, and his life-long love of skating.

How would you describe your style and process?

My style is a mix of a rainbow, a bird, and a human. The process is really natural. I never sketch before, I just let my hand dance all around the world.

A lot of your work involves illustrating over photos. How does a photo catch your eye and draw you to put your art into the world of that photo?

The main idea behind these pieces was to give a second chance to a skate photo and to show my love for prints. Though painting on magazine covers was just a moment in my life, over the past years I’ve really slowed it down. I’m more focused on painting canvases and murals now.

Who or what currently inspires your work?

I’m inspired by my travels and people that I meet. My recent trip in Cairo taught me a lot, it’s a different world; discovering the Pyramids was an incredible feeling. There are a few artists I follow as of late. I love Joan Cornella, Geoff McFetridge, Henry Jones to mention a few.

What was the inspiration for this piece?

The piece I made for Rumpl was inspired by my love for people and nature. We are all connected. I would name it: Poufpouf

How do you prep a piece?

I close my eyes and I imagine myself in Bryce Canyon, UT, and everything just comes.

What’s the most indispensable thing in your studio?

My little pug @grenouille_the_pug! She gives the love I need to create.

What excites you most when you first start a big project, and what keeps you going when you’re hours into it? Is there a feeling you have when you know a project is done?

What excites me the most when I start a big project is imagining it done. What motivates me to work hard on it is the feeling of making things happen. My brain is a crazy storm with 1,000 ideas per minute. I have to create no matter what. The biggest problem I have is that my job is never done. I always have something new and I don’t know what taking a break means.

With such a natural, free-flowing style, how do you know a piece is done? Is it ever really done?

It’s about the balance, that’s what matters to me, when I start painting a canvas, it’s done when I’ve found a good balance.

What’s the first thing you do when you’ve finished a piece?

Make a new one! I love to work on several pieces at the same time. Right now I’m painting on 9 canvases at the same time and I jump from one to another.

Where is your favorite place to skate?

My favorite place to skate is my hometown of Cannes. I know each single crack and have an orgasm with each single push. I love to skate with all the young guns from Cannes.

What’s the best trick you can do on a board?

Pushing. And skating as fast as I can.

Learn more about the Rumpl Artist Division>