Skateboard Graphics and Design: Influence on Skateboarding - Essay Example

How graphic design and skateboard graphics coincide and have influenced the growth in skateboarding since the 70s Introduction Skateboarding has beenconsidered primarily as a sport. However, it could be stated that skateboarding is rather a style of life. In fact, anyone can be involved in this type of activity; however it would be preferable to take all appropriate measures for his safety. Physical condition is critical for engaging in such an activity. On the other hand, skateboarding is related with a particular philosophy introducing a new style of life. In accordance with a relevant research ‘the first skateboards were actually more like scooters, with the undercarriage consisting of roller-skate wheels attached to a two by four; once the push bar of the scooter-like contraption was broken off, skateboarding was born’ (Skateboarding History, 2007). Through the years, skateboarding has been developed extensively especially as of the shape and the size of the skateboards. Moreover, graphics were added on skateboards presenting figures of all types (always in accordance with the cultural and social trends of a specific period). Current paper examines the relation of skateboarding with graphic design. The influence of the latter to the development of the former especially after the period of 1970s is the main issue analyzed in this paper. In order for the above relationship to be clearer, it is necessary to present the history of skateboarding from its appearance (approximately in 1959) until today. At the same time, it would be useful to refer to the development of graphic design throughout the years especially in relation with skateboarding. The views of professionals in the specific area have been also considered to be a valuable tool towards the understanding of the role of graphic design in the development of skateboarding since the 70s. Chapter One Historical development of skateboarding and role of graphic design The historical development of skateboarding has not been continuous. The period that characterized by a high growth of this activity is 1970s. In fact, it was during that period that the first skatepark appeared while skateboarding was extensively advertised in the television and the cinema. Moreover, new styles of skateboarding were adopted like slalom and freestyle. Regarding the developments in skateboarding that took place in the above period it is noticed that ‘this was the first time skateboarding had stars, some of the first really big names being Tony Alva, Jay Adams and Stacy Peralta; the look of skateboards also changed from being six to seven inches in width to over nine inches, providing better stability on vertical surfaces’ (Scateboarding History, 2007). In the above context, skateboarding expanded in daily activities of many teenagers ever since. However, not all teenagers participated in the specific activity. It could be stated that skateboarding is not just a physical activity. It is rather a style of life involving in many aspects of daily life including art, leisure and even profession. In fact skateboarding has become a basic source of income for certain teenagers that participate in this activity from early years of their life and attract the interest of advertising companies and other firms that need to be advertised in the particular area. It should be noticed that through the years the structure and the form of skateboarding has been differentiated. Each manufacturer added his own style in the skates produced and in this way a high range of skateboards have been presented in the market since the first appearance of skateboards but especially after 1970s. More specifically, ‘in 1972, Frank Nasworthy invented urethane skateboard wheels, which are similar to what most skaters use today; his company was called Cadillac Wheels, and the invention sparked new interest in skateboarding among surfers and other young people’(Skateboarding: A brief History, 2007). The role of teenagers that participated in this activity has been significant in the development of skateboarding. In this context, in 1975, the Zephyr team participated in a contest in California presenting a new style of skateboarding (it was a type of freestyle skateboarding). After the above contest, in which three of the most known members of Zephyr participated – Tony Alva, Jay Adams and Stacy Peralta (Skateboarding: A brief History, 2007) – skateboarding started a significant growth having attracted the interest of many teenagers across the country. In the years that followed, especially in the decade of 1980s, skateboards were differentiated in accordance with the new cultural and social ethics and the trends followed by teenagers in their daily activities (school, sports, leisure and so on). In this context, plastic base plates were introduced in order to minimize the weight of skateboards. A significant development of the particular period has been the application of graphic design on skateboards; however, colours and themes used were still of a ‘conservative’ style. Other changes also noticed in the form of skateboards. More specifically, in accordance with Borden (2001, 24) ‘wheels, for their part, became harder at around 97A durometer, optimized for ramp riding; similarly, toward the end of the decade, tall and narrow wheels around 66–7 mm in diameter and 36 mm wide, such as the Santa Cruz 66 mm ‘Bullet’ (1988), were developed for vertical riding on large half pipes’. The above developments are mentioned because they have their role in the growth of skateboarding through the years. More specifically, under the influence of the cultural and social trends, manufacturers made a series of changes in skateboards in order to meet the demands of teenagers. In 2000, skateboarding entered the mainstream through its presentation in many videogames and its extended commercialization. In this way, skateboarding is being accepted by the society as one of the common teenagers activities – in the past skateboarding has been even related with anti-social and criminal behaviour. Another important issue of this change is the fact that skateboarding is engaging actively in teenagers’ daily life; contests are organized across the country and firms of all types are interested in participate as sponsors. Moreover, ‘with more money being put into skateboarding, there are more skateparks, better skateboards, and more skateboarding companies to keep innovating and inventing new things’ (Skateboarding: A brief History, 2007). In this way, skateboarding becomes a significant activity for teenagers of all ages. Its ‘bad’ past – i.e. its involvement with potential criminal behaviour of the persons involved – has been forgotten. Currently, skateboarding is considered to be the favourite activity of many teenagers around the world. There are also contests that are being organized internationally with the participation of many teenagers – athletes – some of them are professionals. In order to understand the relation of skateboarding with graphic design, it is necessary to refer to the history of graphic design as it has been identified and evaluated by the researchers that deal with the specific subject. In this context, it is stated that ‘the term graphic design was coined by U.S. book designer and type designer William Addison Dwiggins in 1922’ (Graphic design history, 2007). Through the years graphic design was extensively expanded in many social and industrial areas being adapted to the needs and the characteristics of each particular sector. In 1970s, graphic designers around the world participated in the trend of ‘Modernism’ which was based on the need for consideration and improvement of all styles applied until then in graphic design – which was thought to be slightly far from social and cultural trends of the particular period. However, no appropriate framework for such a differentiation has been proposed. As a result ‘younger designers challenged and rejected the tenets of Modernism and questioned the “form-follows-function” philosophy that came to be associated with the diluted, corporate version of Modernism that derived from the International Typographic Style’ (Encyclopaedia Britannica Online, 2007). In other words, it was necessary for graphic design to be restructured in accordance with its initial principles (which were still valid in typography). The adaptation of graphic design on the development of technology has been gradual. In fact, in 1980s with the appearance of desktops and the publishing software, graphic design entered a new era. In this context, programs like Adobe Illustrator and Pagemaker helped towards the radical restructuring of graphic design and its adaptation on the electronic era. Currently, a series of software applications like Corel and Photoshop are used in order to create graphics. The level of analysis of the colour and the accuracy of lines lead to the creation of graphics of extremely high quality applicable in all industrial, social and scientific sectors. Generally, it is stated that ‘computer graphic design enabled designers to instantly seeing the effects of layout or typography changes’ (Graphic design history, 2007). However, the development of graphic design was primarily an issue of personal attitudes of the persons involved (designers); the use of improved techniques and tools just helped designers to proceed easier to the realization of their ideas. In this way, it is the development of social context that should be considered as having the major role in the changes made on graphic design through the years. Graphic design should represent the ideas of designers as they were related with the social context of their era. It is for this reason that graphic design is closely related with skateboarding, which is also an activity depended on the social and cultural trends of each particular period and region. It is this dependence that ‘join’ skateboarding and graphic design. The analytical explanation of this relationship as it is presented in the following Chapter will prove the validity of this assumption. Chapter Two Skateboarding and graphic design – interaction and common characteristics In order to understand the relation of skateboarding with graphic design, it is necessary primarily to refer to the presentation of the structure and the functions of the skateboard’s parts (these parts are used as a tool for the presentation of specific graphics). In this context, it is noticed that ‘skateboards consist of three parts: the deck (the actual board), the truck (a component usually made of metal that holds the wheels to the deck), and the wheels; the average skateboard deck is about 32 in (81.3 cm) long, 8 in (20.3 cm) wide, and is a little less than 0.5 in (1.3 cm) thick; the deck has a defined nose and tail with a concave in the middle’ (Scateboard, 2007). It should be noticed that usually skateboards are differentiated regarding their material or the graphics designed on them. However, the form of a skateboard is not likely to be changed – just perhaps as of the size of the parts involved. In fact, deck is considered to be the most important part of skateboards. In accordance with a relevant study published by Heyday Skateboarding (2007) ‘the deck is the board itself; it is the part that you stand on; decks are usually made from laminated plys of maple wood that are pressed in molds to give them a particular shape; most decks have a graphic (picture) on the bottom, but some have no graphic or only a small logo on the bottom; decks with no graphics are called blanks’ (source: Heyday Skateboarding, 2007). Because of their structure, decks should be considered as the parts of skateboard with the most significant role in the promotion of graphic design. More specifically, it is on decks that various designs are made referring to a theme related with music or skateboarder’s personal preferences, attitudes and so on. In the above context, the development of graphic design through skateboards can be considered as started since the first appearance of recognizable skateboards (this took place approximately during the decade of 1950s). The skateboards that were manufactured in the particular period were made of wood (like the first models of such a type) with various graphics on them. In the years that followed ‘skateboard art also continued to evolve; art was based on street trends and whatever was hot at the moment: comics, bands, logos, and original art; in the mid-1990s, deck manufacturers would introduce an average of six board designs per month, making only 1,000 of each’ (Scateboard, 2007). Today the development of graphic design in skateboards continues. Many new graphics are added daily on the skateboards manufactured around the world. The most common characteristic of these designs is that all these designs refer to themes that are in fashion currently (i.e. they represent the trends of the art and the market of the period in which they are manufactured). In order to understand the interaction of skateboarding with graphic design it is necessary to refer to the manufacturing procedure of skateboards as it can be described through the empirical testimony of manufacturers that are working in the particular area. In this context, the study of Hill (1998, 196) showed that ‘the architecture of skateboarding falls into two interdependent categories, one closer to the conventional realm of architecture as the conceptualisation, design and production of built spaces, the other closer to the realm of the user and the experience and creation of space through bodily processes; both involve spatial thoughts, objects and actions’. In accordance with the above description, manufacturing of skateboarding is closely related with graphic design. In fact it could be stated that graphic design has a strong influence on the expansion of the particular activity worldwide – the representation of favourite themes on skateboards can attract many teenagers worldwide to participate in this activity. On the other hand, the manufacturing procedure of skateboards implies that there are ‘three kinds of territories of occupation involved in this production: the physical or natural space that is simply found, constructed space, and the space of representation’ (Hill, 1998, 196). The level of influence of each particular territory to the final formulation (construction and decoration) of skateboards depends on the social and cultural characteristics of the country in which the skateboards are manufactured; It is also likely that these territories reflect the cultural trends and characteristics of another country: the country of destination (when the centre of manufacturing lies in another country from the one in which skateboards are going to be sold) Figure 1 – Description of skateboard (source: Heyday Skateboarding, 2007) In the Figure 1 above the parts of a skateboard are presented; this representation helps towards the understanding of the role of graphic design on skateboarding. It is clear that the relevant graphic ‘occupies’ all the surface of the ‘Deck’. On the other hand, it should be noticed that the above Figure can help to understand the role of graphic design for the financial support of the activity by companies that use skateboards in order to promote specific advertisements (like in the case of skateboard presented above). On the other hand, it is supported that ‘the tensions between skaters and non-skaters are thus reflected in the graphic style which skaters have adopted; typically, this involves the adoption of certain motifs, foremost of which in the 1980s was the skull (a motif particularly favoured by Vernon Courtland Johnson at Powell-Peralta, influential skater-designer Pushead working for Thrasher and Zorlac skateboards, and Rick and Peter Ducommuns Skull Skates company), replacing 1970s surf-related themes of sun and ocean with those of death and primitive survival’ (Borden, 2001, 152). In accordance with the above remarks, skateboard can have another role (apart from being a daily activity or supporting specific marketing activities). More specifically, skateboard can help in order to identify personal characteristics of its user (personal attitudes and preferences regarding a wide area of commerce, sports, art and other areas). Also in this case the participation of graphic design is necessary. It is through the graphic design that one can formulate an opinion for the personality and the preferences of a particular skateboarder. The graphic design chosen for the decoration of the deck is a key element for the completion of such a procedure. In order to understand the role of skateboarding in the daily life of teenagers around the world, Rahn (2002) made a survey among teenagers living in the same neighbour. The findings of this survey showed that ‘the participants all shared an ability to network; SEAZ worked for a friend who had started a hip-hop clothing manufacturing business; he emphasized how graffiti opened doors for him simply through his contacts; EVOKE at age eighteen received a contract to design skateboards through contacts made in skateboarding competitions; the graffiti crews were all networking together to produce both legal and illegal street art and to make a living at what they loved to do’ (Rahn, 2002, 157). In other words, graphic design in skateboarding can create a new community, this of the graphic designers; it is not necessary that these designers are professionals from the first minute. The important issue is to have a strong willingness to progress on the particular activity and – of course – to enjoy skateboarding. The development of graphic design through skateboarding is also proved through the personal testimonies of people that have worked for years in the particular area. A characteristic example of this case is that of Emil Kozak who ‘was inspired to take on graphic design as a result of his life long passion for skateboarding; through a commitment to cross-pollination and self-discipline, Kozak has developed a successful career and global following as a unique artist that executes brilliant ideas; Kozaks works has been exhibited around the world and his clients include VANS, Eastpak, Graniph, Element, Streetmachine, Planet Earth and Norse’ (Behance, 2007). In other words, any person working in the particular sector can formulate and use his own style in decorating skateboards. In fact it could be stated that the application of graphic design on skateboards is another form of painting. The cultural trends and the preferences of the graphic designer define the form, the colour and the theme applied in the graphic design of a particular skateboard. General trends of the market have also a significant role in the development of particular themes of graphic design used in skateboarding. In accordance with a report published in New York Times (2004) ‘the underside of these "decks" can be a rich world of artistic expression; the mobile canvases of the skating world are the main focus of an exhibition titled No Comply; more than 70 decks have been commissioned, bringing together 19 Melbourne graphic designers, graffiti artists and even a tattooist’. The above report refers to a particular exhibition/ event in Melbourne. . Figure 2 – Graphic design on skateboard (source: The Seattle Times, 2006) In accordance with the report graphic design can have a strong influence on the expansion of skateboarding as a daily activity around the world. However, it is necessary that people that participate in this activity to have the necessary willingness in order for such a target to be achieved. More specifically, the arrangement of events internationally is a good start for the success of the relevant effort. Other initiatives that are helpful towards this direction could be also used. The feasibility of the relevant schemes and their promotion to many people (either locally or internationally) are necessary requirements for the success of these initiatives. The use of alternative methods of approaching the public (like using stickers) has been also expanded in skateboarding around the world. In fact it is supported that ‘inspired by graffiti, posters and the communal culture of the Web, stickers are gaining wide attention as an artistic phenomenon, academics and practitioners say; hand-drawn, stenciled or screen-printed, the images float on the Internet, available for downloading, printing and pasting in ways that the creators could only have imagined’ (New York Times, 2004). The main reason for the expansion of the use of stickers as an artistic tool towards the creation of specific graphic designs is the fact that these stickers are available to the public through the WWW; a fact that is extremely helpful towards the expansion of the their use by skateboarders around the world. More specifically, every skateboarder can choose the graphic design he prefers for his skateboard and apply it with no particularly difficulty or without having to buy a new skateboard. Because of the expansion of the use of stickers by skateboarders around the world, the artists that are involved in their production can influence the cultural trends applied within a particular period; the themes represented on the stickers available to the market can refer to a particular subject; this subject is then very likely to become preferable by many teenagers worldwide. In accordance with the view of one of the artists that are involved in the production of stickers for skateboards: ‘Kids want to have cool high-quality stickers, especially more subversive ones from underground artists; theyll actually fistfight for free stickers at skate demos’ (The New York Times, 2004). Through the years stickers have been proved to be an effective way to promote specific cultural or even advertising ideas. It depends each time on the willingness of the skateboarder to follow the trends applied in the particular market. There are also others in the particular sector that still believe to the value of hand-made graphic design avoiding to apply stickers on their skateboards. The importance of graphic design for skateboarding has been extensively examined in the literature. In fact, a relevant research showed that ‘skateboards might not sound like the most attractive of media for art or art collecting, but their importance has been made the subject of several books, including Disfunctional by Aaron Rose, of New Yorks famed Alleged Galleries’ (Fairfax Digital, 2004). In other words, skateboarding is not only an activity of teenagers in specific neighbours across USA. It is an important daily activity of many people that find skateboarding an effective way to have a short break from their daily obligations; however skateboarding remains still the favourite activity of teenagers while in older ages there are few chances for people to continue practicing skateboarding (issues related with health and difficulties in recovery in case of injury of older people are considered to be the main reasons for this phenomenon). As it has already mentioned above skateboarding has a significant influence on the development of specific artistic trends worldwide. In fact ‘according to Melbourne artist Kano Hollamby, skateboards serve a more important function; "skateboard art was and is a vehicle for so many young artists to get their work out there; skateboard companies like New Deal, for example, had work by Barry McGee (aka cult New York-based artist Twist) on a skateboard 10 years ago before he was a successful artis’ (Fairfax Digital, 2004). The above article refers to the importance of skateboarding not only as a daily activity but also as a tool for the promotion of specific trends in art (as explained before). However, it is always an issue related with the user’s (skateboarder’s) preferences and his willingness to participate in a relevant effort. In any case today most of skateboards are decorated and the use of decks with no graphic design on them is avoided by teenagers. Towards this direction, Nims (2001) refers to an event held in Philadelphia in 2001. More specifically, in 2001 Philadelphia was the ‘host-city’ for the 2001/2002 X-Games. The particular event was extremely positive for the town’s economy. More specifically, it is noticed that this event resulted in ‘tens of thousands of hotel room stays, international media coverage, and millions of dollars worth of retail and food sales to 250,000 people visiting the city for one or more days’ (Nims, 2001). It seems that skateboarding continues to have an extremely strong influence on teenagers worldwide. During the particular event many local skateboard manufacturers and graphic designers had the chance to promote their work and also gain significant amount of money. The income from the advertisements presented during the above event was also important. In this case, skateboarding was proved to be important both for the art (representation of specific graphic designs) but also for the economy (income from advertisements throughout the event). However, it should be noticed that USA is not the only country where skateboarding is famous among teenagers. In fact, in Britain also skateboarding is quite known as a daily activity among teenagers of different social and cultural background. In fact, in a recent exhibition (called Moving Units) held in London, the relation between the skateboard and the art was promoted through the presentation of relevant works of art (including documentary on the specific issue). In a relevant article referring to this exhibition, ‘one of the central organizers behind the show, Richard Holland, describes the group that administered the whole exhibition as “a dynamic collective working and living in London, whose sole purpose is to explore and promote the symbiotic relationship between skateboarding and art/photography/design/architecture’ (BBC, 1st November 2007). Other initiatives have also taken place in UK through the years. The events described above are mentioned as indicative examples of the expansion of skateboarding across the population. Conclusion The interaction of skateboarding with art has being proved throughout the existence of this activity in many countries around the world. However, art started to have a significant role in the promotion of skateboarding (and vice versa) after the introduction of decoration of skateboards (decks) with specific graphic designs. Apart from this role, skateboarding has been proved to be significant for the personal development of teenagers. This development can refer to the formulation of specific personal preferences regarding all the aspects of social life. Towards this direction it is supported that ‘while attempts are continually made to institutionalize and ‘integrate the adolescent in trade and consumption by offering him a parallel everyday life’, in skateboarding this process is resisted by young people setting up their own parallel world, distinct from the one organized for them by their parents and by the state’ (Borden, 2001, 156). However, the level of influence of skateboarding on the skateboarders’ views regarding specific social and cultural trends cannot be precisely estimated. Only assumptions can be made taking into account the most common views of teenagers (in terms of art, culture and society) as they are expressed through the graphic designs represented on their skateboards. On the other hand, the role of manufacturers and graphic designers involved in the particular industry is crucial towards the development of specific preferences (referring to social and cultural trends) in teenagers that participate in the specific activity. Regarding this issue, it is noticed that ‘board makers must sell an image, one that in many cases is painted right onto the product; the elaborate graphic treatments that individuals and manufacturers have long put on boards to differentiate them probably explain the skate-art connection’ (The New York Times, 2005). In other words, in order for the support of specific cultural trends to be completed using the skateboard as a tool, it is necessary that the professionals that work in this area (manufacturers and graphic designers) to have specific views and common interests (the promotion of personal views that have no relation with the trends recognized within a particular society could have no effect on the development of specific cultural trends through skateboarding). In the long term, the images and the designs used in skateboards’ decoration can become important in terms of their cultural value. In the case that these designs represents specific commercial activity (advertisement) the financial profit resulted to the user (skateboarder) is the first positive outcome from using graphic design on the skateboards. However, it is necessary that appropriate control of the images and the designs used on skateboards’ decoration exists. More specifically, in the case that the designs applied on skateboards support an activity (directly or indirectly) that it is illegal or harmful for personal health, then it is necessary for the local authorities to intervene. This reaction is of particular importance especially because skateboarding is a ‘sport’ practiced mainly by teenagers and the themes and the ideas represented in their skateboards could cause a severe damage to their personal life influencing their views on appropriate social behaviour. The presentation of all the issues developed above can lead to the assumption that skateboard is closely related with graphic design. The interaction between them is such that many teenagers that practice skateboarding enter the area of graphic design (especially regarding the graphic design used in skateboards’ decoration). The personal interviews of teenagers as presented above verify the validity of this assumption. On the other hand, there are high chances for people engaged to the particular activity to become professionals. The financial support offered by sponsors (advertising through the graphics that are used in skateboards’ decoration) has been proved to have a significant role in such a decision. In other words, graphic design has helped skateboarding to expand within the international community. On the other hand, skateboarding has also helped graphic design to be developed (many new graphics are added daily in the particular industry). It seems that in the case of skateboarding and graphic design mutual interest and common targets exist. References Books Borden, I. (2001) Skateboarding, Space and the City: Architecture and the Body. New York: Berg Hill, J. (1998) Occupying Architecture: Between the Architect and the User. London: Routledge Rahn, J. (2002) Painting without Permission: Hip-Hop Graffiti Subculture. Westport, CT: Bergin and Garvey Websites Skateboarding History. 2007, [Online], available at http://www.skatelog.com/skateboarding/skateboarding-history.htm Skateboarding: A brief History. 2007, [Online], available at http://skateboard.about.com/cs/boardscience/a/brief_history.htm Encyclopaedia Britannica Online. 2007, [Online], available at http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-242774/graphic-design Behance. 2007. [Online], available at http://www.behance.com/Featured/Articles/Emil-Kozak-The-Art-of-the-Skateboard/5527 Fairfax Digital. August 14, 2004. Theres an art to skateboards, really, [Online], available at http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/08/11/1092102515419.html?from=storyrhs Nims, J. (2001) The Economic Impacts of Skateboarding Culture on Philadelphia, [Online], available at http://www.ushistory.org/lovepark/more/economicimpact.htm BBC. 1st November 2007. Skateboarding goes legit on London’s South Bank, [Online], available at http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/collective/A2897698 Scateboard (2007), [Online], available at http://www.madehow.com/Volume-6/Skateboard.html The New York Times. 2004. Art, [Online], available at http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/26/arts/design/26STOR.html?_r=1&oref=slogin Heyday Skateboarding (2007), Skateboard Anatomy, [Online], available at http://www.hdskate.com/skateboarding-articles/beginners/skateboard-anatomy/ The New York Times. 2005. Decked Out, [Online], available at http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/06/magazine/06CONSUMED.html?ex=1265346000&en=38379b9378ee0160&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland The Seattle Times. October 13, 2006, [Online], available at http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/entertainment/2003301799_pushin13.html Read More