In the mid-1970s, skateboarding had started to develop into the sport recognized today by the Olympics and photographer Hugh Holland was lucky enough to be right there in California when the exciting new scene was emerging.
From 1975 to 1978, Holland immortalized the burgeoning subculture of skateboarding in California, photographing young sidewalk surfers on the streets of Los Angeles, parts of the San Fernando Valley, Venice Beach, and as far away as San Francisco and Baja California.
In four short years, he documented the rise of the sport before it became officially sanctioned and permanently changed by commercialization, brand sponsorships, and safety precautions like helmets and knee pads. In hindsight, this time period held a wild and free innocence that Holland captured beautifully.
His images, from suburban backyard haunts to the asphalt streets that connected them, still resonate as an important document of this time and place where legendary Dogtown and Z-Boys skateboarders were just beginning.
With their requisite bleach-blond hair, tanned bodies, tube socks, and Vans sneakers, these young outsiders are masterfully captured against a sometimes harsh but always sunny Southern California landscape.
Now, a new book is due to be released showcasing Holland’s iconic images that are well-known and beloved while also uncovering unseen gems.
Last Days of Summer contains a foreword by internationally acclaimed artist Shepard Fairey who talks about the cultural significance of Holland’s work, and writer Nick Owchar’s extensive interviews with Holland and well-known skateboarders and visual artists, including the legendary Danny Kwock and Ed Templeton, underscores how this photographic time capsule of California youth culture still inspires today.
In an interview with The Malestrom, Holland said he first began noticing skateboarders on his street in 1975 and when he saw them riding vertical in storm drains or empty pools he began taking photos.
“I saw them in a drainage bowl in the Hollywood hills going up and coming down and I thought that looks really interesting,” he said.
“So I found a place to park, walked over there with my camera and that was the start of it. From then on for thirty years I didn’t stop taking pictures in my time off. It was a phenomenon at the time and I didn’t even realize how much. I don’t think anyone did, it was just happening.”
Last Days of Summer by Hugh Holland will be published by Chronicle Chroma in September 2024. Avaialble from Amazon and Edelwiess.
Image credits: Photographs by Hugh Holland.