Hiroki Muraoka
Hiroki Muraoka, ollie, Tokyo; photo: Hart
Hiroki blasting one, ninja-style, in the busy streets of Shinjuku late one night.
From his 'In a Sentence' feature in PP2.
Hiroki Muraoka, ollie, Tokyo; photo: Hart
Hiroki blasting one, ninja-style, in the busy streets of Shinjuku late one night.
From his 'In a Sentence' feature in PP2.
Howard Cooke, mighty bank transfer, London 2005; photo: Hart
One day perhaps I will write at greater length about one of my all time favourite skaters, H. But for now, here is a photo taken from the Long Lost London article in PP2, which features some pictures I shot in the summer of 2005. They were meant to form an article for Slap which never happened. This picture did get run, however, and even though I don't intent to re-use too many pictures in Push, I decided to include this one, as it is one of the most amazing tricks I have ever witnessed or shot. I didn't think it was really possible but I was perhaps forgetting that H is an untamed beast.. Much love, H!
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Don Brider has a colourful resumé in skateboarding. From being one of the first British street skaters, to producing everything from zines, boards, T-shirts and videos to.. subversive stickers. And that is where the story of this graphic begins.
In the mid/late 80’s, Vision Skateboards’ clothing brand, Vision Street Wear, was supposedly the biggest money-maker that skating had ever known, and Don’s response to the then-omnipresent VSW logo was to make a sticker reworking it as ‘Victim Street Wear’; a comment on the many band-wagon-jumping fashion victims (and a dig at Vision itself, a company whose ethics he did not approve of).
Don B at 'Handrail Land', Southampton, late 80's; photo: Abbott
Vision, of course, didn’t take kindly to this criticism, and soon, Don had reworked the (fashion) Victim idea..
The origins of the ‘Zone’ graphic are hazy. I seem to recall Don telling me that he had lifted it from a record shop ‘Christmas Free Zone’ logo on a carrier bag, or something..
In any case, in the first version, it was his then-board sponsor Brand X who declared a Victim Free Zone.
(And one of my earliest skate memories is seeing Don B, with McSqueeb haircut and patterned beret, slapping a Victim sticker on the train door opposite me, when I found myself in the same carriage as him en route from Southampton to Southsea skatepark for the Shut Up And Skate contest, as a youngster. It was my first trip to Southsea (or any skatepark).. and I think I may have just unlocked, like a good psychologist, the reason I got him to make these stickers for me.. But I digress..)
The design got updated in the early 90’s for Don’s clothing company Wear and Tear, when they, too, declared a Victim Free Zone. As such, it was a graphic that was always ‘around’ in British skating of that period.
Don B at Dead Rabbit's, Winchester, early 90's; photo: TLB (?)
And now, as a tribute to those days, that man, and the abolishment of fashion victims; here it is again (see 'SHOPPE' above). Hand screen-printed by Don B himself and available in limited quantities-
Push Declare a Victim Free Zone.
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PP2 is currently infiltrating the display cabinets of skateboard vendors worldwide.
US shops should contact me directly for copies. Shops in the UK, please contact Rock Solid; in France contact Magenta; in Spain contact Pier; in Japan contact Kukunochi; in Australia/NZ contact Pact.
If you are not a shop but a human being, check out the mail-order services provided by Palomino in UK/Europe, Magenta in France/Europe, Pact in Oz/NZ. And if you are an American human being, try Theories or Quasi.
There are also magazines and a few other tasty Push Products available to be shipped worldwide, if you click the 'SHOPPE' tab, above..
May you live to be a thousand years old, sir.
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Jason Spivey, 50/50, NYC; photo: Hart
Love watching this guy skate; look out for him in the new Threadcleaner video and TWS video (TC DVD is free with first 100 copies of PP2, and vid will also be online soonish).
Photo taken from the New York is Now article in PP2. If you are having trouble finding the mag, you can now order it direct from here; see that 'SHOPPE' tab up there ^^^? Other goodies too..
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The first 100 copies of PP2 sold worldwide will come with a free Threadcleaner DVD.
This is the new full-length vid from the Threads Idea Vacuum lads, who previously brought you Headcleaner.
It features too many people to list, amongst them PP2 cover boy Cromer and Push Pal Ryan Barlow. There is a second video included on the disc, introducing The Vacation Skateboards whose team includes Jason Spivey, David Clark, Brian Powderly and others..
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Cover- Brad Cromer, 50/50, NY; photo: Hart
Push Periodical Issue 2 is the 'Metropolis' issue, with articles from New York, Tokyo, Taipei and London.
The NY article is written by Anthony Pappalardo with photographic contributions from Pep Kim. It features Bobby Worrest, Zered Bassett, Jason Spivey and others.
There is a long-lost London article originally intended for Slap in 2005, featuring Paul Shier, Nick Jensen, Howard Cooke and others.
The third article is of the GX1000 crew in Japan and Taiwan, skating some amazing spots..
Contributors to this issue also include Raymond Molinar, Dave Bevan, Benjamin Deberdt and Jeremy Fish.
PP2 will be available very soon.
Stay tuned for more developments..
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If you can get past all the cat photos, the internet contains some real nuggets of cultural archaeology. Like this recently unearthed footage of Simon Evans doing the do in mid-90’s SF.
Now, I am sharing this in the full knowledge that Simon will be embarrassed about it surfacing, but that is because I am also well aware that there are many more people who will enjoy and appreciate it.
Whether he acknowledges it or not, Evans was one of the most influential skaters of early-90’s Britain, but since his whole mid-90’s Stateside career was spent riding for the low-key and low-budget Experience Skateboards (who never made a video), footage of him is scarce. Very scarce. In fact, until now, I think the sum total of it was a few tricks in a New Deal video and a few more in some early 411s.
He never had a full video part, and even though I lived with him for years, I still only managed to snipe one trick of him for the Howard House video ‘A Decade Late’. This stuff trumps all that, and it’s two decades late.
So, without hyping it too much, here is some nice vintage street skating, filmed by Alex Terekov (of the Russian Twins) and edited by Adam Schneider. Spend two minutes in a simpler time, when nollie hardflips were brand new.
I have always been a fan of Simon’s work, be it in skateboarding, writing, or his current incarnation as a fine artist. He does things with taste and character.
Even so, like I said, he’s prob’ly gonna hate seeing this…
Sorry, Simon.
-Richard Hart
Simon Evans in his studio, Brooklyn, 2015; photo: Hart
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Ben Gore- bar hop, Tainan Taiwan; photo: Hart
The GX Taiwan vid is now available for your viewing pleasure.
The article about the GX Japan/Taiwan trip will be in Push 2, coming in January.
Sebo Walker- switch smith, NYC; photo: Hart
Switch photo of a switch smith. Three lefts make a right.
From the limited edition Krooked NY zine which comes with my guest artist board, out now..
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Zach Lyons- 50/50 to bank, Bordeaux; photo: Hart
Thank you to Live Skateboard Media for their interview about Push, and to The Good Copy for their review of Issue 1. Also there is a Cameron Adair Podcast with an audio interview about.. stuff.
Cheers all.
Jake Johnson- b/s k/f, Tokyo; photo: Hart
The GX1000 Tokyo edit is now up.
(I remember filmer Ryan saying to me, before the trip- "I want to get lots of footage of security guards kicking us out"; "That shouldn't be a problem" I replied..)
Push Issue 2 will have an article from this trip, coming out January 2016.
Mike Anderson, f/s wall, Brooklyn; photo: Hart
Sort of an un-official Push 1.5, this zine features photos of the Krooked team on a visit to the grimy streets of New York earlier this year. It comes with the Richard Hart guest-artist board (and there are probably a few more copies of it floating around, if you keep your eyes open).
The board is a limited edition of 333 and will be released sometime in November..
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Matt Field, handplant kickflip, SF; photo: Hart
It was an honour and a pleasure to work on Matt's interview for Push Periodical issue 1. When we started to shoot, I was still only vaguely toying with the idea of making a magazine. But when we started to get tricks like this one, the mag began to take form in my head, and I knew I wanted to make a full Field interview for it. (Not that I told him for a while!) Thank you Matty.
Mark Gonzales, boardslide, New York City; photo: Hart
No introduction needed for this guy. Important and inspiring. I was stoked to be able to include him in the first Push Periodical 'Foto' section.
If you are looking for a copy of the mag, see the list of sellers/ distros in previous post; I have none left.
I am both stunned and reassured to report that I sold out of Push 1 before the release show in SF last week. Most of the copies are currently on their way to distributors and online shops (see list in last post, below..), and should be available very soon.
I have a handful of copies left for the second release party & photo show in Croatia this month. (Stay tuned about potential Bordeaux release.)
Thank you everybody for your support, especially advertisers Magenta, Northern Co., Carhartt WIP, FTC, & Quasi; and my dashing and talented contributors Mark Whiteley, Sergei Vutuc, Ben Gore, Zach Chamberlin, Aymeric Nocus & Mat O'Brien.
Thanks too, of course, to everybody who appears in issue 1: Brendan Carroll, Alex Davis, Brian Delatorre, Matt Field, Glen Fox, Mark Gonzales, Ben Gore, Jake Johnson, Jimmy Lannon, Zach Lyons, Takahiro Morita, Taylor Nawrocki, Stevie Perez & Tobin Valverde. You all rule at skateboarding and life.
Til next time.
Brendan Carroll, SF; photo: Hart
Like Brendan, I would like to point out some shit..
Push will be available in a week or so, from the following sources-
Mail order (direct to you) from:
(US) Quasi or Theories of Atlantis
(UK/ Europe) Palomino
(Australia & NZ) Pact
(Brazil/ So. Amer.) Outprint
Shops should contact the following distributors:
(US) Love Child or Theories of Atlantis
(UK) Rock Solid
(France) Magenta
(Spain) Pier
(Japan) Kukunochi
Alex Davis, pole jam, SF; photo: Hart
Kicking off Issue 1's FOTO section is the one and only AL MF D.
Also featured are Brian Delatorre, Taylor Nawrocki, Tobin Valverde, Jake Johnson and Mark Gonzales.
Push will be available in September from select shops and distributors (info soon).
Issue 1 is limited to just 700 copies worldwide.
Ben Gore, pole jam; Photo: Hart
Push 1 will feature an article about Ben Gore's newest SF-filmed video project, in which he chose to utilize objects we all skate past every day: motorbikes.