Sunday, December 19, 2010

books, books and more books!

art, skateboarding & life + two dvd set by andy howell
ironxhanger ©art, skateboarding & life is an action packed story that is related in a series of awesome visuals. in his first monograph andy howell’s work on the deck and as an artist is presented within the context of an expansive network of artists, skaters and agitators, all bent on having an impact. it is an intense mixture of interviews, narrative text and non-stop visuals that follow howell’s journey through pro skateboarding, the action sports industry, and allied segments of the diy movements within art, music and design.

the two dvd set features interviews with artists and skaters, skate videos, and music by alyashaowerka-moore, monkey wrench, mass prophets, the blowing rock triplets and more! — directed by ted newsome (former art/film director of transworld skateboarding) — contains interviews and videos with andy howell, shepard fairey, ed temleton, rodney smith, and other artists and skaters. plus full length videos from new deal, freedom, and howell’s personal archives!

the disposable skateboard bible by sean cliver
ironxhanger ©with the release of disposable: a history of skateboard art in 2004, author sean cliver made a brilliant attempt at artfully cataloging every important skateboard deck ever released. in the process, he created a classic, but was left feeling less than satisfied. ever the completist, the gaping omissions in the first book gnawed at him and drove him to envision compiling the ultimate encyclopedia of skateboard decks.

while disposable: a history of skateboard art was beautiful, capturing the essence of the aesthetic, the disposable skateboard bible sets out to be the ultimate guide. the author’s industry insider status (mesmerized by his first visit to a skate shop in 1986 he went all out and in 1989, landed his first job as a designer at powell-peralta) allows him to guide readers through the culture and experience, the art and the mania of the skate world with authority and expertise.

as the boards take center stage, fascinating vignettes and recollections by an a-list of skateboarding personalities from tony hawk to mike vallely, mark gonzales to mark "gator" rogowski, steve caballero to stacy peralta and more, complete the book.

skateboarding is not a crime by james davis, photographs by skin phillips
ironxhanger ©electrifying full-page color photos of skateboarders in action will attract readers to this history of the sport. davis traces skateboarding back to its origins in surfing and the homemade toys of the 1950s to the huge industry it is today, covering developments in equipment, shoes and safety gear as well as stars like tony hawk, mark gonzales, waves of devotion and eric koston. chapter two looks at skateboarding around the world, from the us and canada to south america. australia, japan, europe, and more. davis then goes on to discuss skate culture: skateboarding music, fashion, art, contests, the nomadic way of life, and authority and rebellion. the last chapter examines skateboarding media, such as magazines, videos, and the movies, and describes some skateboarding tricks and techniques. skateboard fans will love this, and the photos are quite amazing.

cliché: résumé
ironxhanger © cliché: résumé spotlights the largest, best known european skateboard brand from its humble beginnings during the days of vhs and polaroids to the present. classic skate photography takes center stage with crucial work from some of the industries' most renowned lens-men such as mike o'meally, olivier chassignole, oliver barton, alexis zavialoff, benjamindeberdt, fred mortagne and more.

this epic narrative is given form with a lively text written by transworld skateboard’s mackenzie eisenhour. "resumé" chronicles the tactics of jérémie daclin, as he launches cliché skateboards in france in 1997 and pours his heart and soul into a start-up with no money, investors, or even employees. daclin’s shoestring budget never held him back, as breath-taking tour imagery ranging from athens, greece, to new york city, to the island of sardinia and italy quickly makes clear.

interviews, tales of camping in sewer tunnels, rental van tours, and home-cooked meals are all integral to the story of resumé. this modus operandi at the heart of cliché’s strategy culminates with the gypsy tours 1 & 2 — a skateboard "survivor"-style challenge to team skaters, forced to test their mettle by traveling with no secured lodging on only 10 euros a day. more recently, cliché has broken into the american market, just as daclin dreamed, and now with the release of "resume", tackles the rest of the world too.

concrete 2 canvas: more skateboarders' art by jo waterhouse
ironxhanger ©since the first time a graphic was hand-drawn onto a board, there has been a deep-rooted connection between skateboarding and art. the culture of skating is a very creative and visual one, with by-products such as board graphics, videos, stickers, magazines and clothing. as more skater-artists emerge, skateboard magazines feature more artwork in their pages, and there are an increasing number of exhibitions focusing on skater art. bringing together the finest artwork produced by skateboarders around the world, this second volume of skater-art follows on the successful first book, concrete to canvas. each artist's work is highly individual and distinctive, and there is a huge variety in genre, style, method, medium, subject matter, inspiration and influence. the work featured includes digital art, street art, fine art, paintings, drawings, doodles, illustration and installation.

blabac photo: the art of skateboarding photography
ironxhanger ©blabac photo: the art of skateboarding photography is a stunning chronicle of a youth movement as seen through the lens of mike blabac, a man who is as dedicated to his craft as he is to the skateboarding lifestyle that inspired it. for millions of people around the world, skateboarding is more than a mere hobby or a sport—it's a way of life that has shaped everything from fashion and music, to video games and art. blabac photo proves that point with 300 awe-inspiring images that communicate the stories and exploits of some of the most creative athletes to ever step on a skateboard including eric koston, stevie williams, colin mckay, rob dyrdek, and danny way. as skateboarding evolved over time, from a hobby for kids on the venice boardwalk into a global culture, skate legends were born, records were broken, titans of industry materialized—and mike blabac was there to document the history of the movement as it developed before his eyes.

mike blabac is one of the preeminent skateboard photographers of his generation. his career has been built on a strong work ethic, a small dose of good fortune, and an undying love for riding on a small board with four wheels. his parents gave him his first camera at age 13, but he didn't grasp the full power of photography until he started looking at skateboard magazines. in the early '90s, blabac caught his first break. he began taking pictures of a rising skater named josh kalis, and an image off the first roll he shot ran as a full page in transworld skateboarding magazine. in the '90s, blabac moved to california, where his career took off. he began shooting spreads and covers for the top skateboard magazines, including thrasher and skateboarder, and eventually became staff photographer for mad circle and girl skateboards. In 1999, blabac joined friends ken block and damon way and helped to shape the image of their at their rapidly expanding skate shoe company, dc shoes.


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for more information about the above mentioned books, go google 'em yo'selves, a'ight?

peace.

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

don't make me!

ironxhanger ©please, i thank you!

goodnight!

peace.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

thrasher magazine soty 2010!

thrasher magazine ©click on the image above to enlarge.

the party went off, and so did leo. here's the phelper handing over the skater of the year trophy and leo's speech. everybody loves leo — congrats bro! for all skater of the year 2010 coverage check here.

Friday, December 10, 2010

ride the best! fuck the rest!

bad fukkin' ass skate thrashers from liverpool, england!!! a tribute jam for the best skateboard trucks man ever made! chekkit!!!



angels have harleys, we got indy pride
straight to your veins to corrode your insides
spawn of four 275s molten rage
pledge your allegiance + your life is changed

drop in full speed, hellbent, heaven sent
bomb drop, roulette, hang up, eat shit
rise above all the rest

the newest and hottest everything is obsolete
were built to grind to destroy all the 'crete
fucked board, coned wheels, your bearings are spent
heavy metal under your rig you're 100%

drop in, full speed, hellbent, heaven sent
bomb drop, roulette, hang up, eat shit
free yourself i'd rather fight than quit
tools of the trade as you light up the lip............. possessed!

paid my dues, earned my stripes
broken body, i'm down for life
fw mfwides grosso rides 169s

ride the best fuck the rest
the backbone
independent!
- short sharp shock.

short sharp shock ©
check out short sharp shock.

edit: a big thank you to foxy from the band sss for uploading this on youtube and emailing me to update! much appreciated! cheers mate!

sculpt or die!

check out this amazing life like sculpture of steve caballero done by ehren bienert. fuckin' jaw droppin' siq! speechless... much respect!

ehren bienert ©the sculpture.

ehren bienert ©the image used.

ehren bienert ©steve caballero.

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circa 1994... i was standing outside my jr high school waiting for my mom to pick me up. i watched in fascination as two fellow 9th graders rolled by on their skateboards. mike manidis looked up at me after attempting some sort of flip trick and said, "i know there is a skater in you." (mike is currently directing the element skate camp, and i think that makes perfect sense.)

he was right, and the following year i began skateboarding. 15 years later, i still ride. a lot happened in the interim of course. i (barely) graduated high school, went to art school in philadelphia, started sculpting professionally, got married, bought a house etc etc. through all the ups and downs, i had two constants. my art and skateboarding.

during the 7 years i spent sculpting for mcfarlane toys, i had a lot of time to reflect on my interests. at some point in 2007, it dawned on me that i could combine the two great passions of my life in to one pursuit. i could sculpt skateboarders. few things in my life have seemed more obvious. i could combine my years of experience in professional sculpting with my years of experience as a skateboarder. i immediately felt as though i had found my 'niche'. and so with no real goal in mind other than enjoying myself, i went home that night and started sculpting a skateboarder at my kitchen table in our tiny studio apartment.
- ehren bienert.

check out more of ehren bienert's amazing works, here.

peace.

skateboard decks tapestries.

it's nice that ©
in the art basel convention center, mounir fatmi’s skateboards covered in prayer carpet tapestries were mesmerizing. the colors were so vivid, and i enjoy the play between a sacred tapestry covering a skateboard. the colors shimmered on these prayer rugs, and seemed ironic that they were mounted on a skateboard – a fun ‘toy’ meant to ride around the streets with. maybe the artist wanted to comment on the sacredness of riding skateboards? either way, i think they are fabulous. they were shown scattered about the floor at lombard-freid booth.

- it's nice that.

check out mounir fatmi.

peace.

january 2011: 30 years of thrasher magazine!

ironxhanger ©click on the image above to enlarge.

thirty years of thrasher. free poster, free sticker, grant taylor on the front, a classic covers article on the '80s mags, the first ever thrasher tattoo, the story behind the first cover…and the rest of the inside contains one of our best issues, period. we'll be looking back on the past three decades throughout 2011. this one kicks it off.
- thrasher magazine.

ironxhanger ©click on the image above to enlarge.

photo / scan: pinkviolence



erik ellington sits down with lizard king and picks through the january 2011 mag.

thrasher magazine ©
check out thrasher magazine.

Thursday, December 09, 2010

it's neckface, bitch!

mike leavitt ©
click on the image above to enlarge.

this one is super old but anyway... it is an interactive action figure of the illustrious neckface! standing nine inch tall, d.i.y. hand crafted and sculpted with polymer clay done by none other than mike leavitt. fukkin' awesome job, i must say! big up!

mr. leavitt has sculpted a plenty of d.i.y action figures of iconic "celebrities" & "symbols" and does other forms of mediums too. but this one sure does take the cake! it's fukkin' neckface, yo! can't go wrong with that ma'faka, man. and if this wasn't sold, i'd pay some good money for this one of a kind, well..., then again... maybe not. ha!

mike leavitt ©
check out mike leavitt.

peace.

Friday, November 26, 2010

i have a really bad habit...

i spend way too much money on skateboarding periodicals... *sigh* hahaha! are you kiddin' me? below are some skate mags i copped and received thru' mail in the months of october and november.

i have not been writing reviews for any skate magazines purchased lately and i don't think i'll do so anytime soon. if you wanna know more about these magazines below, go out and cop yo'self some, a'ight?

ironxhanger ©click on the image above to enlarge.
photo: pinkviolence

from top left:
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the skateboard mag issue 80 november 2010, the skateboard mag issue 81 december 2010 and skateboarder dec '10 vol. 20 no. 4 (special interview issue).

from bottom left:
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thrasher magazine november 2010 - issue #364, thrasher magazine december 2010 - issue #365 and color magazine volume 8 issue 4 fall 2010.

i was also wondering why the issue of my color magazine purchased, did not come with the elephant direct dvd as stated on it's site? oh well, at least i've already watched it. vamos!

peace.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

der bratwurst tour ever.



ty evans put together a siq edit from girl and chocolate's trip to germany. chekkit and enjoy! i'm out!

crailtap ©
check out crailtap.

skateboarding in singapura.

"skateboarding in singapore has been undergoing a revival in the recent years. with newly opened skate parks and the establishment of many new and locally based skate shops, the sport has been experiencing a surge in popularity, spawning further growth for the local skateboarding community."

above is an extract from an article on cnngo.com written by ethan lou, a local skateboarding enthusiast, about all things skate in singapura.

read the full article here.

peace.

trampoline skateboarding.



jason harvey, in the video above, might be the world's first professional trampoline skateboarder. he is also the inventor of the "tramp trucks", which can be fixed on any regular skateboard deck, which enables you to "skate" on a trampoline.

personally, i think this is an ingenious idea/invention that can improve ones aerial and varial skills on a normal skateboard. but the only down side about tramp skating, is the adrenaline rush when one pushes a skateboard (with regular trucks and wheels) and cruise. 'nuff said, watch the video above and enjoy!

oh yeah, in case y'all are wondering, jason harvey also rides a real skateboard.

the tramp skate company ©
check out the tramp skate company.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

shine on you crazy diamond...



goodbye and good luck heath, you'll be missed...
emerica ©
check out emerica for more info on heath kirchart's departure.

Friday, November 12, 2010

got my december 2010 thrasher magazine in the mail...

ironxhanger ©click on the image above to enlarge.
photo: pinkviolence

received my december 2010 thrasher magazine - issue #365 a coupl'a days back, in the mail. i still have yet to go thru' it but i'm super stoked! hell yeah, biatch!

peace.

Tuesday, November 09, 2010

skateboarding.3d.



so, we’ve been waiting for someone to lead us into this new dimension and who better to have as a virtual tour guide than upcoming creator sebastian denz. for three years, denz shot photos of carhartt’s skateboarding team using an 8 × 10 inch large-format-stereo-apparatus that his friend and custom camera specialist, dr. kurt gilde made for him. denz claims his images capture “the real hyper-reality” of the world of professional skateboarding and that he is hoping “to bring up for discussion a hybrid space that is between the virtual and the real.”
- the creators project.

purchase the book, here.

the creators project ©

Sunday, October 24, 2010

full bleed.



skateboarding in new york city is a singular experience. it is impossible not to feel the magnitude of the landscape and with the city in constant motion, skateboarding is both exhilirating and extremely dangerous. there is no right or wrong way to navigate this vast terrain. only one thing is certain — the skaters and images produced in new york city are wholly unique.

the shots in full bleed span 30 years, with contributions from over 60 photographers. this is the first-ever comprehensive overview of one of the most diverse and rich skating locations in the world, bringing together legendary skaters and iconic photographers.

full bleed ©
check out full bleed on vice land.

Friday, October 22, 2010

mike blabac's photo book.


mike blabac - dc book premiere.

ironxhanger ©click on the image above to enlarge.
photo: pinkviolence

finally, after a long wait, i managed to get me'self the blabac photo coffee table book. t'is gonna be awesome! i love blabac style of photography!

also, received ten percent off the retail price for the book. privileges, privileges. ha!

blabac photo ©
check out blabac photo.

peace.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

chick skater!

ironxhanger ©click on the image above to enlarge.

this is the most adorable photo ever! a chick on a tech deck. hee!

peace.

illustrations of my favourite skateboarder!

ironxhanger ©
ironxhanger ©
illustrations of cards. he's da' man, yo!

all hail cardiel!

respect!


peace.

got me'self a skateboarding art book!

ironxhanger ©click on the image above to enlarge.
photo: pinkviolence

scored me'self a "concrete 2 canvas: more skateboards' art" book by jo waterhouse from my favourite bookstore in the city yesterday evening.

peace.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

hook-ups - destroying america.



hook-ups video from 2001. one of the best skate videos in my opinion. have you ever seen tony hawk taken a toke from a blunt and drinkin' 40's? no? then you should check this out and enjoy!

hook-ups ©
check out hook-ups.

Monday, October 18, 2010

i'm a fuckin' poseur!

ironxhanger ©click on the image above to enlarge.
photo: apez

last night's skate sesh' with apez. tossing salad, biatch!

peace.

x ray results of my right foot.

so i fell and injured my right foot from ollieing down a ten foot drop from last night's skate sesh' with my buddy apez; and i thought i fractured my foot. luckily the results from the x ray scans as shown below, doesn't show any signs of fracture nor dislocation. thank god! but the doctor advice me to refrain from skating for the next three weeks. dog damn! that's a f'n long time but it's all good now knowing that i'll be alright. all praises due to allah!

ironxhanger ©right foot x ray scan results.

ironxhanger ©x ray diagnostic results.
photos: pinkviolence

peace.

royale video magazine dvds.

ironxhanger ©click on the image above to enlarge.
photo: pinkviolence

copped these "royale video magazine" dvds: volumes #1 and #2 straight outta indonesia, earlier yesterday, from a local skate shop. can't f'n wait to watch 'em! score!

royale video magazine ©
check out royale video magazine.

peace.

Sunday, October 17, 2010

i ♥ tech decks!

ironxhanger ©click on the image above to enlarge.
photo: pinkviolence

scored this anti hero skateboards - john cardiel tech deck model earlier yesterday! hell yeah!

peace.

Saturday, October 16, 2010

matt "scobie" hensley.


matt hensley, there's not much i can say about him but he definitely shreds, considering his age. he also co-owns innes clothing with his brother, chris hensley.

innes ©
check out innes clothing.

in remembrance.

ironxhanger ©harold atkins hunter (april 2, 1974 – february 17, 2006) was an american professional skateboarder and actor. he was best known on screen for his part in larry clark's 1995 film kids, playing the role of harold. he died of a cocaine overdose which triggered a heart attack.

read more here.

harold hunter foundation ©
check out harold hunter foundation.

peace.

adio going forward: chris troy



enjoy!

adio footwear ©
check out adio footwear.

mail! mail! mail!

ironxhanger ©click on the image above to enlarge.
photo: pinkviolence

received my november 2010 - issue #364 of thrasher magazine in the mail earlier yesterday and a letter of notification to renew my subscription.

hells yeah!

peace.

Thursday, October 07, 2010

skate study house.

ironxhanger ©click on the image above to enlarge.
photo: pinkviolence

i seriously need to get myself a new scanner. anyway, above is a medium resolution (sorta) image that i snapped using my digital camera, of an article/interview from streetwear magazine circa 2008.

it features innovative solutions by pierre andre senizergues (pas) and gil le bon de lapointe, turning skateboard decks into household furnishings. click on the image above to read the article (if it's readable to you, that is).

alternatively, you can click on the link below to know more about these two men's ideas and concepts.

skate study house ©
check out skate study house.

peace.

Sunday, October 03, 2010

i ♥ toys!

yes, yes, i know it's freakin' lame to collect tech decks but i love toys! especially these ones below.

ironxhanger ©habitat "silas baxter neal" - tech deck.

ironxhanger ©anti hero - tech decks (red and black).

ironxhanger ©real skateboards - "handboard" tech deck.

ironxhanger ©krooked skateboards - be@rbrick by mark gonzales (front).

ironxhanger ©krooked skateboards - be@rbrick by mark gonzales (back).
photos: pinkviolence

i'm still a kid at heart and i ♥ toys! i really do!

 tech deck ©be@rbrick ©
check out tech deck and be@rbrick.

peace.