Skateboarding is more than just a sport, it’s a complete aesthetic of its own.
Fashioned once by an underground community, it’s now popularized and part of the mainstream. The exhibition “No Comply” at Somerset House in London explores the skateboard subculture and how it has changed.
Skateboarders have shaped the urban landscape ever since its emergence in the 70s. Wether we were obsessed with finger skates as a child or went to hang out at the skatepark with the intention of becoming part of the local cool gang, skateboard culture has always been part of the youth and influenced many. Although the practice was primarily an underground sport at the beginning, it has now been popularized and pushed into the mainstream by the likes of Trasher Magazine and brands such as Palomino or Palace. Most people have never stood on a skateboard in their Vans, but still wear them daily. Lockdown gave a new impulse to skateboarding, as outdoor-activities were more than needed to escape the loneliness of isolation. And the bounding feeling of community strongly present within skate culture became even stronger than before.
