Airbrush artist David Arrigo not only designs goalie masks for the National Hockey League, the Maple resident painted murals for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, including a portrait of gold medallist Sidney Crosby.
The artist has designed pieces for the NFL, NASCAR and Toyota U.S.A. Arrigo also paints racecar driver helmets, murals, and even cars.
Arrigo, now 40, has been painting since he was 25 years old.
“I’ve been painting for 15 years now,” says the artist. “I started doing wall murals in small bars.”
The NHL reached out to him, and his art career has been a success in the sports world ever since.
Arrigo has designed murals for Formula One racecar driver Michael Schumacher, Toronto Raptors Vince Carter, and Toronto Maple Leafs stars Mats Sundin and Wendel Clark. Arrigo also painted the famous Wayne Gretzky mural at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.
“That was one of the biggest pieces I had done to date,” he says.
The artist also has done murals for the Air Canada Centre to honour the Toronto Maple Leafs.
As for the 2010 Olympics, Arrigo designed helmets for Team Canada’s Paul Rosen and Brigitte Acton, Team Slovakia’s Jaroslav Halak, and also a mural for Team Canada’s Joannie Rochette.
“Every day that Canada won a medal I would takes images of the athlete and paint on a canvas,” he says. “When Canada won the hockey (final), I stayed up that night to paint it and it was ready the next day.”
The artist designed a mural for Canadian hockey sensation Sidney Crosby, who scored the winning goal in the 2010 Vancouver Olympics hockey tournament.
He says designing goalie masks takes one to three days, depending on the amount of detail. Arrigo says he sits down with clients, goes through ideas, sketches up the designs, and then lets the paint flow.
Arrigo’s done masks for Montreal Canadians Carey Price, Tampa Bay Lightning Mike Smith, Pittsburg Penguins Brent Johnson and goalies from the Phoenix Coyotes, Calgary Flames, and Ottawa Senators.
Tampa Bay Lightning goalie Mike Smith, a popular client of Arrigo’s, had a few custom masks specially made for him, including a special Remembrance Day mask.
“That was painted for Remembrance Day for a tribute to American and Canadian soldiers,” says the artist. “Depending on the goalie it can really say a lot about the goalie’s personality.”
As Arrigo spoke with Vaughan Today, he was preparing for a special trip to the Middle East.
“I’m actually going to Afghanistan to raise awareness for troops there,” Arrigo says. “I’ll be playing some hockey and doing some painting.”
He says he will be working on murals of former NHL hockey players, but couldn’t release their names for security purposes.
Arrigo says the road hockey will likely be on sand.
“It’s going to be interesting, that’s for sure,” says the artist.
Arrigo is goalie for a community team in his spare time. He says he thought about pursuing a career in hockey once, but he was too short.
“I stunk,” he says.
Ironic as it sounds, Arrigo failed grade 9 art. Arrigo says one must never listen to those who doubt them.
“Things like that happen and if you really believe in yourself, you got to keep going,” he says. “Don’t give up on your beliefs.”
Grades aside, Arrigo has proven with his art that he has successfully scored his goals.
