Garage Life
Garage Life was founded in 2011 by Daniel ‘DK’ Kuo. DK’s strength and niche was in his ability to work with Mazda rotary engines, a skill desperately needed by the Southern California automotive enthusiasts who during that time had limited options for service. Daniel was able to satisfy this growing demographic, providing wankel rebuilds, cage fabrications, and even dyno tuning in addition to the more normal modification and maintenance jobs. Garage Life has since grown into a lifestyle brand that still offers it’s excellent automotive services, constantly engaging in competitive track events as well as providing music entertainment when out of the shop and racing seat.
Its slogan, “決して諦めない,” or “Kesshite Arkiramenai,” means to “Never Give Up.”
Garage Life Business Cards
The two generations of business cards for Daniel featured custom art that I had the pleasure of taking the ample working time to develop properly. With the most recent iteration, I featured a fully from-scratch drawn vector illustration of a CDJ set with a cross-section of a rotary engine, highlighting characteristics of the types of services he offered. A small but key feature in the engine art is bridge-port hole modification, something Daniel himself was very proud to learn and experiment with when rebuilding those kinds of motors. DK’s iconic Mazda FC3S RX-7 was a featured as an element in both designs as well.
Goldie - DK’s Custom Mazda FC3S RX-7
When I initially worked with Garage Life in 2012, Daniel’s mascot drift vehicle was a gold-painted RX-7 with carbon vinyl tiger stripes. Goldie was both his testbed and competition vehicle; constantly undergoing modifications and engaging in Formula D Pro-Amateur events. This digital illustration was originally done for him as a personal fan piece as well as an asset for the Garage Life business.
Business Card Mock-Ups
Intro to Digital Media Ads
With Daniel, I found my first working opportunities with digital and video ads. The first Facebook web banner I ever did was for a sponsored local drift group and event, 626Drift, and hidden deep in my Youtube were short videos I edited to help promote the shop and his services.