1950s & 1960s:
ON TO THE SIDEWALK
The earliest versions of the skateboard are made in 1950s California from roller skate trucks nailed to wooden crates. At first, these 'scooter skates' have a handle attached. This is later stripped away to leave just a wooden plank and wheels – the beginnings of the skateboard as we now know it.
Surfers realize that they can use these makeshift boards to practice their moves on concrete when there are no waves. Big surf-style turns are some of the earliest tricks, and skateboarders often stand barefoot on their decks. Skateboarding quickly spreads from the West Coast to other parts of the United States and then to Europe.
1970s:
INTO THE SKATEPARK
Skateboarding transforms in the 1970s from a surf-related pastime into an independent attitude and culture. Design is the enabling factor behind this shift. Skateboards are increasingly engineered to meet higher standards of performance. With improved traction, size, grip and speed, skaters can master a wider range of terrains: pools, reservoirs, ditches, industrial drainage pipes and banks. A skatepark industry pops up, capitalizing on skateboarding's growing popularity.
Skaters continue to create new and increasingly complex tricks. Journalist Craig Stecyk documents the Zephyr 'Z-Boys' skate team, a gang of teenagers from 'Dogtown' in Venice Beach. Their anarchic surf-skate style quickly inspires worldwide fascination, and their almost mythical influence is considered by many as the foundation of contemporary skateboarding. A 14-year-old Alan Gelfand perfects the 'Ollie' in Florida, a trick where skaters lift the board into the air without using their hands.
1980s:
BACK TO THE STREETS
In the 1980s, the demise of the skatepark at the end of the previous decade leaves skaters in search of adventure and fun in new terrains. Some skaters take to the streets, a free playground where curbs, walls and handrails become part of skate apparatus. Street skating – incorporating grinding, sliding and tricks – is formed.
At the same time, plywood, with its smooth surface, is being used to build homemade ramps and half-pipes in private backyards and gardens. Steep vertical ramps enable skaters to push the limits, and vert skaters quite literally reach new heights.
1990s:
AROUND THE CITY
The 1990s marked a transformative era for skateboarding, as it rolled from the fringes into the urban mainstream. During this decade, skater-formed companies emerged as the vanguard of the sport's coolness, becoming breakout successes with their authenticity and innovative spirit. These pioneering brands captivated the skateboarding community with team videos, opening up a new world of skating possibilities within the concrete jungles of cities around the globe.
The era's soundtrack was a mix of underground hip hop, soul, and classic rock, reflecting the diverse influences that fueled skater culture's counter-cultural energy. This vibrant blend of music, ideology, and global youth interest in skateboarding caught the attention of mainstream platforms, notably influencing ESPN to launch the Extreme Games. The decade culminated in the commercial phenomenon of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater videogame, a testament to skateboarding's ascent into popular culture and its indelible impact on the sports world.
2000s:
PUSHING BOUNDARIES
Skateboarding enjoys a mega boom in global visibility and popularity in the early 2000s. The rise of the internet means a larger communication platform. Skate films are slicker and the narrative more choreographed. Skateboarders convey greater professionalism and the industry thrives.
The appeal of skateboarding bleeds into the mainstream. Pro skateboarders feature on youth culture channels such as MTV as celebrities not just skaters. Skateboarding is everywhere, straddling subcultural membership and pop cultural glare. Pro skater shoe deals become the dominant sponsorship model as there is more scope for technical progression in this field than in deck construction. The now distinctive skate ‘look’ of baggy trousers, key chains and oversized t-shirts means you no longer need to carry a skateboard to look like a skater.
2010s:
PAST RADICAL
Starting from 2010 Instagram further democratises skateboarding's image; its self-documenting functionality enhances the culture's spirit of individuality. This changes the way skateboarding is shot, viewed and shared forever.
Skateboarding reaches an even larger audience with increasingly diverse backgrounds and ethnicities, as well as people with disabilities and the LGBTQ+ community. This cultural shift is seen in the move of many pro skaters to smaller boutique skate companies. Skateboarding has never looked more inclusive.
NOWADAYS:
KEEP ON THRIVING
Skateboarding is seen as beneficial to the urban landscape, and skate spots are recognised as positive communal spaces. In 2010 the Stoner Skate Plaza opens as a replacement to the West LA Courthouse, where it was illegal to skateboard. Four years later, the Long Live Southbank movement (LLSB) wins a landmark campaign and is granted a legal guarantee to remain at its legendary spot, the Undercroft on the Southbank, London. In 2021 skateboarding appears in the Olympics for the first time, at the delayed 2020 Tokyo games. Seventy years on, skateboarding is changing cities, culture, sport and lives.
Hi there! :) I hope you enjoyed it.
Hi there! :) I hope you enjoyed it. This is a passion project made by @xmx.luo, to celebrate the 60 years of skateboarding history. Inspired by the Skateboard exhibition in London Design Museum.
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