In 1997, the founder of Slap-On Decals a passionate surfer and
designer Mark Buck. He came up with the idea for decals that
could be applied to surfboards, car windows, shower doors, skis,
skateboards, snowboards...anything with a smooth surface that
would look better with a gorgeous image of a sexy woman applied
to it. Cartagena was commissioned for a series of pinups for
the first release of decals.
Advertising went in every magazine from Abercrombie & Fitch to
Penthouse, Playboy, Surfer and endless other publications.
Cartagena was an instant success; fans of his work bought all
his decals. He received many letters from around the globe
praising him for his work. After reaching international success,
Slap-on decals became a huge success and Carlos achieved
international recognition.
Cartagena's pinups are now commissioned and licensed
worldwide. This website attracts thousands of visitors; some to
just look, others to do business.
Today, Carlos long list of clients includes the internationally
acclaimed Hooters Magazine, where you can see his latest pin-up
designs.
Thanks for visiting. Cartagena would love
to hear from you.
pinupworld@hotmail.com
Carlos Cartagena was born on April
29th of 1960 in Guatemala City, Central America. From a young age,
his teachers noticed that Carlos had a natural ability to draw well.
He migrated to the Unites States In 1981.
His first ten years in the US, he
worked in a variety of jobs. In 1988 he was determined to learn
illustration skills with an airbrush. Investing all his money in
airbrush equipment he began to teach himself airbrush techniques. He
made lots of mistakes in the process as he moved forward toward his
big dream.
In 1990 he landed his first job
as an illustrator for Southern California luminous sign company. It
was good practice and he perfected many skills there. But soon it
was time to advance...he would divide his time between freelance
work; painting requests on leather jackets
and custom Harley-Davidson
bikes. Although by this time his work was gaining national
recognition for his murals on the backs of leather jackets, he was
now reaching a wealthier U.S. audience through his artwork on the
tanks and fenders of Harley Davidson motorcycles. And his work was
beginning to reflect "his" sexy pin –up style and sometimes erotic
but always in good taste. In 95 and 96 he won 1st places at Sturgis
and Laughlin for his mural created on a custom Harley-Davidson and
consequently the covers of Easyriders and Hot bike magazines.
