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Wednesday, November 20, 2019

A Chronology of Skateboard Graffiti Art


A Chronology of Skateboard Graffiti Art
by Damian Gomez
Nov. 20, 2019


     The emergence of graffiti influenced art in the skateboard industry occurred during the early 1970's and graffiti has continued to influence skateboard art to this day. Many skate brands have, at one time or another, adopted and made use of graffiti art in an attempt to sell more skateboards. Graffiti subculture and the skateboard industry allied early in their nascent forms and have flourished together over the last several decades. Although the history of graffiti influenced skateboard art has been lightly discussed in recent online articles, the chronological timeline is vague at best. What's most interesting is that much of the early graffiti influenced skateboard art appears to be a derivative of genuine graffiti art. The exact time period in which genuine graffiti and graffiti artists began to have a direct influence on the skateboard industry has yet to be examined.

     Modern day skateboards are admired for both their functionality and aesthetics. The specific shape, size and concave of a skateboard deck is of utmost importance. However, the graphic that is printed onto the deck helps to make it more aesthetically appealing to consumers. Skateboard brands hire artists to design graphics which are then either screen printed or applied to the skateboard deck via a sublimation process. Skateboard graphics are specifically designed to target the various demographics that exist within skateboard subculture. Skateboard brands carefully monitor the ever-changing trends within skateboard subculture and adapt accordingly. By releasing a new series of decks every few months or so, skateboard brands are able to maintain artistic flexibility and validity. As a former skateboard sales rep and owner/operator of a retail skateboard store, I can attest to the fact that skateboard sales rely heavily on graphics. It's not uncommon for a consumer to purchase a particular skateboard deck with their decision being based solely on the artwork and nothing more.

     Those who find themselves interested in learning more about the history of skateboard graffiti art will quickly find themselves reading one of the few online articles in which the author is all too ready to attribute praise and credit to American artist and photographer Craig Stecyk. A Southern California native and graduate of fine arts school, Stecyk is most recognized for his photographic and written documentation of surf/skate subculture during the 1970s and 80s. Stecyk's graffiti art appears in many of his photographs from that era. Much like a director of a play uses theatrical props on stage, it looks as if Stecyk used his graffiti art to visually enhance his photographs. It's not clear as to whether Stecyk was shooting at locations that he had previously spray painted or if he was spray painting locations specifically for photo-shoots.
Nathan Pratt                                      photo: Craig Stecyk

     In 1973, Jeff Ho opened Zephyr Surfboard Productions in Santa Monica and employed Stecyk to design graphics. Ho also began manufacturing skateboards and would later organize both a surf and skateboard team, the Z-Boys. In an online article, author of the book Gnarly Skateboarders, Steve Cave writes “Stecyk pulled his graphics from local graffiti and made Zephyr surfboards reflect the area where they were made.” As already mentioned above, the area in which Zephyr surfboards and skateboards were being manufactured was Santa Monica. The specific area within Santa Monica that was being reflected in Stecyk's art was Pacific Ocean Park. Pacific Ocean Park, at one point in time, was a thriving nautical-themed amusement park that was situated on a pier in the Ocean Park section of Santa Monica. The amusement park closed down in October of 1967 and what was left was twenty-acres of abandoned ruins which soon became the local hangout for Stecyk and the Z-Boys. Pacific Ocean Park or POP, as it was referred to by the locals, became the backdrop for Stecyk's photography.

graffiti in Pacific Ocean Park
Santa Monica is also home to a variety of Mexican-American gangs with the most prominent of these gangs residing in the Pico neighborhood. In fact, the Pico neighborhood is positioned diagonally across from Pacific Ocean Park. Considering the close proximity of these two areas, it's easy for one to infer that Stecyk was indeed exposed to Mexican-American gang subculture. Journalist and writer Joe Donelly writes in his recent publication titled L.A. Man, “Taking cues from the local gangs, Stecyk began tagging his own tribe’s turf with graffiti, creating icons and images that would find their way onto the Zephyr Shop surfboards and skateboards and later across the country and eventually into skate culture’s lore.” Stecyk's hand lettering style in particular is clearly a derivative of a traditional cholo lettering style that is most often associated with Mexican-American gang subculture.


Craig Stecyk
     By 1976, Stecyk's graffiti influenced aesthetic had been adopted by Wes Humpton and Jim Muir, owners and operators of Dogtown Skates. Wes Humpton was highly influenced by Stecyk and his graffiti influenced art. In an online interview, Humpton credits Stecyk with being one of the most influential individuals in the skateboard industry, “...first would be Craig Stecyk who was a big inspiration to me and so many others for his art, writing and photography that made so many want to make art & go surf and skate.” It was Stecyk's Dogtown Cross that would become one of the most iconic graphic designs associated with Dogtown Skates. First published in Skateboarder Magazine (c. 1976), the Dogtown Cross was originally one of Stecyk's guerrilla art projects that was carried out in Pacific Ocean Park. It was in this abandoned and dilapidated area of Santa Monica that Stecyk had spray painted a three-dimensional cross with the words “Dog” and “Town” intersecting within the cross. The Dogtown Cross appears to be Stecyk's interpretation of what traditional Mexican-American gang members call a placa or plaqueazo. A placa is a type of roll call in which a gang member will write or spray paint his associate's names on a wall in cholo style lettering. Placas will often include the name of the neighborhood or local gang that has claimed territory. The history of the placa can be traced all the back to the 1940's when Mexican-American gang subculture began to take shape in the American Southwest. Many variations of the Dogtown Cross design were produced by Dogtown Skates in the following years.

Dogtown Cross
     Stacy Peralta, original member of the Zephyr skateboard team and co-owner of the Powell Peralta skateboard brand, took notice to Stecyk's artistic skills and offered Stecyk a position as creative director at Powell Peralta in 1980. Powell Peralta is a skateboard brand located in Santa Barbara which is about an hour North of Santa Monica and Venice. Prior to Stecyk's arrival, the graphics that were being designed at Powell Peralta consisted mostly of skulls and daggers. Stecyk's graffiti influenced aesthetic was eventually injected into the design process and by 1983, Powell Peralta released the Rat Bones deck. According to Stacy Peralta, the Rat Bones graphic was originally called the Vato Rat. A lightly sketched rat head with elongated ears and nose sitting atop a pair of crossbones, the Vato Rat became one of the most iconic and recognized graphic designs in skateboard subculture. For those unfamiliar with the Powell Peralta Rat Bones graphic, it could be described as a type of multi-print design with the Vato Rat graphic being repeated three times down the center of the deck. Each Vato Rat is accented with an outline color and sequence of spray painted lines that descend diagonally from from the center of the deck. The text on the nose of the deck reads “Bones” with the brand name “Powell Peralta” positioned above the bottom truck hole pattern. Stecyk produced a unique hand letter style for the text portion of the Rat Bones graphic which appears to be a hybrid cholo style lettering. In an online interview with Jack Erwin, Peralta sheds light on the origin of the Vato Rat graphic, "The graphic was done by Stecyk. He did that ages ago, probably in the early to mid '70s. That was a Dogtown graphic, and I don't mean Dogtown skateboards, that was a graphic out of Dogtown, out of Santa Monica, out of Venice. I remember liking that, I remember growing up with that graphic and liking it so much that I encouraged Craig to bring it back for our products.” Stecyk's graffiti influenced art would be perpetuated throughout the 1980s by the Powell Peralta brand and would eventually become immortalized in skateboard history.

Powell Peralta
Rat Bones
     I'll argue at this point that although Stecyk is a legendary artist that has attained an almost deity like status within the skateboard and surf industry, Stecyk was not a genuine or prolific graffiti artist. The graffiti that Stecyk was producing during the early 70's was restricted to a very small area of Santa Monica called Pacific Ocean Park. It is my belief that Stecyk was initially emulating local gang graffiti for the purpose of visually enhancing his photographs. The hand lettering styles that Stecyk developed are clearly a derivative of the traditional cholo hand styles that were present in his local area. Upon doing further research, I also learned that the name Dogtown originally belongs to a Mexican-American gang from the Highland Park area of Los Angeles called Dog Town Rifa. Researchers at streetgangs.com have recognized the Dog Town Rifa gang as being “the oldest active gang neighborhood in all of Los Angeles County going back to a period from 1895 to 1900.” After analyzing old black and white authentic photographs of genuine Dog Town Rifa street graffiti, it strikingly apparent that Stecyk attempted to copy the gang's unique hand lettering style right down to the swastika that was being used in the gang's placas. Maybe this is all just coincidental or perhaps Stecyk had negotiated a sweet deal with the Dog Town Rifa gang in which he used their gang name to launch his career as a graphic designer.

Dog Town Rifa graffiti

     The 1980s was a prosperous time for the skateboard industry. Among the handful of skateboard brands that were doing well was Santa Cruz Skateboards. Sometime between September and December of 1986, Santa Cruz Skateboards released their second pro model for team rider Jeff Kendall. This particular deck is loosely called graffiti and was designed by artist Jim Phillips. The Kendall graffiti deck is of significance because of the graphic's direct reference to graffiti art. This vibrantly colored graphic consists of a brick wall backdrop, some mock tagging and the name Jeff Kendall in block letter form. There is even a hand that is gripping a can of spray paint! The Kendall graphic screams graffiti yet there is something very peculiar about it.

Jeff Kendall graffiti deck
     Jim Phillips was hired as the art director for Santa Cruz Skateboards in 1975. Far from being a city dwelling graffiti writer, Phillips resided in the mellow beach town of Santa Cruz and specialized in cartooning. Phillips was also heavily involved with the local surf scene and his art was featured in many surf magazines during the 1960s. When asked about his artistic influences in an online interview, Phillips responds “Let’s just say the greatest comic book and animation artists who ever lived.” Unlike Stecyk, Phillips didn't have the environmental influences that were present in Los Angeles. Phillips' rendition of a graffiti themed skateboard graphic is much different than that of Stecyk's in that it is brightly colored and less threatening. To the untrained eye, Phillips' graffiti graphic may come off as genuine but it is devoid of certain attributes and/or components that are associated with genuine graffiti art. In other words, Phillips' letter style lacks the characteristic arrows, flourishes and ligatures that are usually present in genuine graffiti style letter arrangements. Also, Phillips' block letters look highly polished and symmetrical which is indicative of someone who is skilled in the sign painting trade. In fact, one of Phillips' early artistic influences was a man by the name of Ralph Grey who was – yes, you've guessed it! A sign painter. “I was profoundly inspired by his work.”, Phillip says, “He was a gifted commercial artist and sign painter whose cartoon characters rode on delivery trucks all around town, and still do to this day.”
   
Jim Phillips
     I feel that it's glaringly apparent by now that Jim Phillips was and is not a genuine graffiti artist but rather an extremely talented individual who designed a one-off graffiti influenced graphic for Jeff Kendall and Santa Cruz Skateboards. It's not clear as to who or what was the inspiration behind Phillips' graffiti design but what is clear is that, much like Stecyk's graffiti influenced art, Phillips' graffiti influenced art is a derivative of genuine graffiti art. Among the multitude of graphics that were illustrated by Phillips during that time, the Kendall graffiti deck became one of the most iconic designs from that era of skateboarding. Phillips is still producing artwork for Santa Cruz Skateboards and is a highly respected artist within the skateboard and surf industry.

     The next graphic design of interest belongs to the Bryce Kanights B.K. pro model by Madrid Skateboards. The Kanights B.K. graphic, like the Kendall graffiti graphic, is set against a brick wall backdrop. The initials “B” and “K” are positioned on the wall and represented in large three-dimensional lettering. They are accented with a dual color outline, shine effects and random splatters of paint. The flavor is definitely that of graffiti but much like the Kendall graffiti graphic, Kanights' initials lack the characteristic arrows, flourishes, and ligatures that are typically found in genuine graffiti letter styles. One of the most salient features of this particular graphic is its rough and unpolished look. When compared to graphics that were being designed by other skateboard brands at that time, the Madrid B.K. artwork looks much less refined. The text underneath the illustrated initials reads “Madrid Skates” in what appears to be a botched and distorted cholo letter style.
Bryce Kanights B.K. pro model by Madrid Skateboards

     I'll admit that my first assumption was that Bryce Kanights himself designed the B.K. graphic but after doing some light research, I was shocked to learn that the B.K. graphic is a subject of scandal and controversy. While combing through online forums, I discovered submissions that were posted by a graffiti artist from San Francisco named Fury One who claims to be the artist that designed the B.K. graphic. On his Flickr account, Fury One writes “I designed the 'BK' for this Deck in 1985(?). It was stolen and used by Mr. Bryce Kanights for his first pro deck on the Madrid skateboard line, along with Images used for a Jimmy Z clothing shoot for Thrasher Magazine featuring Tommy Guerrero, ...Too bad BK chose to gank instead of open doors.” Fury One continues his explanation in a separate post, “I did the outline for the 'BK' lettering plus a couple of others... I think he might have used one of the other designs on his second or third deck also. He didnt keep his end of the deal. Didnt kick down the cash, gear, or original photos of tommy g. doing tricks on my production they used in jimmyz clothing ads. Im not bitter...”

     
Madrid ad for the B.K. pro model
March 1987
The artofskateboarding.
com, a popular online website frequented by serious skateboard collectors, dates the release of the Madrid B.K. deck at 1987. However, while researching archived issues of Thrasher magazine, I discovered an article titled “Product Patrol” in which the Madrid B.K. deck is featured. This particular issue of Thrasher is from February of 1987 but considering the amount of time that it took design and manufacture a new line of skateboard decks in the 1980s, one can deduce that Madrid Skateboards must have been manufacturing the B.K. deck at least several months prior to it being featured in a February 1987 issue of Thrasher magazine. If so, this would push the B.K. release date back to late 1986 which coincides with Fury One's claim that he designed the B.K. graphic in 1985. This would all be speculative assumption had I not come across a photograph of a Madrid B.K. adhesive sticker that has a 1986 copyright printed in the bottom right hand corner. Considering that the Madrid brand was established in 1976, I think that it's safe to conclude that it is the B.K. graphic on the adhesive sticker that is being protected by the 1986 copyright, not the Madrid brand name. Upon further examination, I noticed a very small signature positioned immediately below the initial “K”. After zooming in further via a photo editing application, it became clear that the signature belonged to Fury One. Although difficult to discern, the signature begins with what looks like a backwards upper case “F” followed by the lower case letters “ury”. The last letter in the signature is undecipherable but likely to be “One” as in Fury One.

Madrid B.K. sticker
     I feel that it would be a disservice to my readers if I failed to mention that during the very same year that Madrid Skateboards began production on the Bryce Kanights B.K. pro model, a small skateboard brand called Shut Skateboards was being established in New York City. In fact, Shut Skateboards is the first skateboard brand to come out of New York City. Owners Rodney Smith and Bruno Musso hired local skateboarder and graffiti artist Eli Gesner to design graphics for their newly formed skate brand. The graphics that Gesner designed for Shut Skateboards were heavily rooted in graffiti art and his unique style reflects that. Despite being founded in 1986 and displaying genuine graffiti art on their skateboards, Shut Skateboards didn't begin production until approximately 1987-88. According to my research, the first Shut deck was released in 1988.

     Finally, I feel that it may be concluded that both Craig Stecyk and Jim Phillips were not genuine or prolific graffiti artists. Therefore, the graffiti art that was designed by Stecyk and Phillips are derivatives of genuine graffiti art. However, when one takes into account all of the available information pertaining to the Madrid B.K. graphic, the artwork seems to be genuine. Just to be clear, my assertion here is that the 1986 Madrid B.K. pro model is the first mass-produced skateboard graphic to exhibit genuine graffiti artwork. Fury One, the graffiti artist who designed the B.K. graphic, is still involved with graffiti art and has a Flickr account under the name aka Don San Pancho.



A nice collection of OG B.K. decks
Thrasher magazine
Feb. 1987
Fury's signature








2 comments:

  1. Mr.GOMEZ...
    WOW!
    Thank You Sir.
    You appear to have done your due dilligence and homework.
    I am thankful for your truthfulness, educated history lesson.
    And yes, while the years have faded the initial insult and injury... as a friend once said to me...
    "At least you have the deck and the story"...
    Bryce continues to gank and add insult to injury through his continued use of the graphic in his newish skate company lifeblood https://youtu.be/6JYhBd-E5Ow
    Where he produces his own decks using the "BK" logo.
    In the above linked video you can see it multiple times along w what i believe was one if the other designs i produced that he used.
    Yes, years pass and i "got over it" but its like a slap in the face to see hes STILL making money from my design. I saw the product patrol you featured and if i remember correctly, it claimed the original deck was one of the hottest sellers of the year, first of the minis and first to sell overseas. And Bryce told me he made nothing off of it. He could have opened so many doors...
    Shame.
    Again, THANK YOU FOR THIS CLARIFICATION of HISTORY.
    And yes, i still paint today.
    Have not updated the flickr page in some time but should.
    Good job and thanks again!
    Fury.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I think its lawyer time. He knew when he did it that it was dirty so get a bar of Irish Spring snd clean him up. You have many that will support you and it looks like the facts will speak for themself.

    ReplyDelete