UNDEREXPOSED

A body of work highlighting female and non-binary skateboarders.

Over the past six months, I skated with and captured photos of female and non-binary skaters to portray their impact on this male-dominated space. Some were friends; others were complete strangers.

After every shoot, I left feeling overwhelmed by the sense of community at the skate park. I discovered that the space immediately becomes more accessible when other female and non-binary skaters are present. My goal with this project was to capture the creativity & discovery that happens at the skate park and simply how fun it is to skate with friends. I am forever grateful for the ones who were a part of it, inspired me to become a better skater, and helped me along the way.

All of the pieces are for sale and can be purchased on my website!

There is no better feeling than going out and skating with friends. Learning a new trick, bombing a hill, or simply hanging out at a skatepark creates a special kind of connection with the people around you. As a woman, being in this heavily male-dominated space can be challenging though, as feelings of ineptitude and imposter syndrome creep in. The skate park can be an intimidating place. When skating with other female and non-binary skaters, I feel empowered to challenge myself and grow to be more comfortable in my own skin.

Through the use of 35mm film, my aim is to capture photos that portray the physical and symbolic freedom of female and non-binary skateboarders and the challenges that come with being a part of this male-dominated sport. The practice of film photography is a slow and intimate process due to only having a certain amount of frames, which creates an immediate connection with my subject. I attempt to communicate this connection in the framed photos as well as the images I’ve screen printed on local and used skateboard decks. The screen-printed figures creatively interact with the scratches and surface of the deck, similar to how skaters interact with the environment around them, both exuding a welcoming, complete, and unifying experience. The work as a whole is both dynamic and colorful, conveying the joy and thrill of skating.

MULTI-MEDIA SKATEBOARD DECKS

Other than framed photos, I knew I wanted to practice screenprinting for this project. I struggled for a while, thinking of imagery, and did not find myself excited about printing on a flat piece of paper. I sat in my studio trying to think of ways I could print these images that would exude both the physical and creative side of skateboarding.

After realizing I could just print directly onto local and used decks, I began to get really excited about the opportunity to add a whole new layer to my project. I was touched by the shared excitement expressed by the skate shops and friends who donated the used decks, and I love how the scrapes and marks on each deck interact with the images I screen-printed onto them.