Board design, not just for jocks

Surfboard design by South African illustrator Simon Berndt. Photo by Jonx Pillemer.

Sport and art often sit at opposite ends of the spectrum but board riding – surfing, skating and snowboarding – have long been linked with various forms of creativity including music, filmmaking, photography, writing, fashion and of course, design. 

In the 1960s we saw the fashion associated with surfing take flight and more recently skating fashion, including brands designed by pro skaters themselves, is also extremely popular.

Kuta Lines was an early Australian surf fashion company, established in 1973 after its founder Tony Brown visited Bali and was inspired by Indonesian textiles and designs. Since then brands like Rip Curl, Quicksilver and Billabong, which all have roots in surf culture, have branched into mainstream fashion – especially in Australia.

The link between board riding – surfing in particular – and creativity is deeply interwoven. Those who surf, who take pleasure from being out in the great abyss, are often alone with their thoughts – and what better place to spawn creative ideas?

Tim Winton is quoted as saying, ‘Writing a book is a bit like surfing. Most of the time you’re waiting. And it’s quite pleasant, sitting in the water waiting. But you are expecting that the result of a storm over the horizon, in another time zone, usually, days old, will radiate out in the form of waves. And eventually, when they show up, you turn around and ride that energy to the shore. It’s a lovely thing, feeling that momentum. If you’re lucky, it’s also about grace. As a writer, you roll up to the desk every day, and then you sit there, waiting, in the hope that something will come over the horizon. And then you turn around and ride it, in the form of a story.’

Musicians like Jack Johnson, Matt McHugh from the Beautiful Girls and Donavon Frankenreiter are part of surfing culture – the latter of whom is still a professional free surfer sponsored by Billabong. Australia is a famous surfing nation and so are its surf culture music bastions such as Ash Grunwald, Xavier Rudd and Pete Murray. Their tones, gentle, lulling – reflective of the landscape. Surf riffs like Dick Dale (known as the King of the Surf Guitar) are also only linked to surfing.

On land, their skating cousins prefer the harsher, fast-paced riffs of punk rock. Musicians on the Vans Warped Tour draw in skaters worldwide, and bands like Suicidal Tendencies, popular in skating culture, have collaborated with skate brand Vans to create a line of shoes. These sorts of collaborations happen all the time and with no team uniforms, what you wear is an expression of you association with your sport, and an important identity marker.

Mark Oblow, a photographer, skater and creative consultant, told The Guardian about the rise of skate fashion, ‘Back in the day we just started companies to make things we wanted. The first things we made were skate shoes, because skaters needed specific footwear, and then shorts and denim. If we wanted to make something we just went ahead and did it. It was cool because you had a lot more creative freedom. People like Spike Jonze came out of the skating world because he had an eye for things and he was able to do what he wanted. Skaters were allowed to do their own stuff and no one gave a shit. Now there are all these humungous clothing companies coming in and buying up these smaller companies.’

Oblow makes a good point. Skaters need footwear, much like surfers and snowboarders need boards. It’s only natural that they would get creative. Skaters and surfers, like artists, are often social misfits. Unaccepted by the norm they broke off to create their own culture. Once that became big enough, the mainstream wanted them back. 

The aesthetic of the board is a status symbol, while its functional design boosts performance. Within the sports of riding, the board that you carry is almost like a canvas, allowing you to reveal about yourself who you are as an athlete and who you are creatively.

There are hundreds of board designs out there that reflect this link, but we’ve picked out a few that we like below. And, if surfing words and music are more your thing, all of Tim Winton’s novels are so drenched in water, that you’ll find a place there.