Skateboarding San Francisco: Concrete, Community, Continuity

Until the 1990s, skateboarding was perceived as a suburban, niche activity in Southern California, surfing on sidewalks. Today, it has surged into a global, urban, youth culture phenomenon. Defying easy definition and traditional classifications, skateboarding can be both a sport at the Olympics and an underground subculture, a way to connect with other skaters and surfaces, and also a means of self-discovery through movement in space. Much of skateboarding’s 21st-century appeal – embracing diverse communities, creative approaches to the city’s built environment, music, fashion, slang, trick choice and style – come directly from San Francisco. Skateboarding San Francisco explores how a local activity made global impact. San Francisco has always been and remains a lodestar for skateboarders worldwide, where challenges are seen as appeals, surfaces beckon play and whose lore is celebrated through the city’s characteristic concrete and evolving, vibrant communities.

Opening Program and Reception: Thursday, Feb. 13, 5:30-7:30 pm. Light refreshments served. Wine generously donated by Deux Punx.

Check out the related satellite exhibitions at the Main Library:

Margaret Kilgallen: Off the Wall, in the Book Arts & Special Collections Center Exhibit Space on the 6th Floor.

First Person: Art by Felicia Gabaldon, 5th Fl., Wallace Stegner Environmental Center​

Karl Watson: My First Skateboard, 2nd Fl., Main Children’s Center​

Thrasher Mag: San Francisco in Concrete, 5th Fl. Elevator Landing​

Get Busy: LGBTQIA Zines from the Bay and Beyond, 3rd Fl., James C. Hormel LGBTQIA Center ​

That's Rad: San Francisco Bay Area Zine Culture, 6th Fl., Skylight Gallery​

Related Programming:

April 12: Speaker: Ted Talks

April 24: Performance: Street Versed

April 26: Social: Skate, Rock, Roll, Read