This Artist Can Turn Your Sneakers into Custom Gas Masks

The artist, known as Freehand Profit, can transform almost any sneaker into wicked, one-of-a-kind gas masks.

You’ve seen sneakers becoming canvas art, but have you met someone who transforms sneakers into gas masks? Virginia-based artist Gary Lockwood, who goes by the moniker Freehand Profit, has been doing just that for the past couple of years, deconstructing sneakers and turning them into all sorts of fanciful masks.

Paying homage to graffiti artists who often wear gas masks while they’re at work, Lockwood’s foray into this unique art form started when he cut up an old handbag that belonged to his friend’s mom and made a mask out of it.

To date, Lockwood has over 100 masks to his name, each with its own unique appearance. For instance, the 100^th mask he created resembles an elephant’s head, and was made with elephant print uppers of a Jordan 3Lab5. Other works include a Stormtrooper-inspired piece that comes from two pairs of adidas Super Skate Mids, and a Chicago Bulls mask that was constructed from the Air Jordan IV “Toro”.

Each mask is 1-of-1, and Lockwood only works on a specific colorway of a sneaker just once. So if he’s dissected a pair of “Moonrock” Yeezys already, he won’t be touching those again. Prices start from US$3,000 a mask, and interested parties will have to provide their own sneakers and wait between eight to 10 weeks for the mask to be completed. Intrigued? Check out more of Lockwood’s work here.

Source: USA Today
Images: Freehand Profit