Craft in America exhibition shows expressive side of skateboards
Beverly Press/Park La Brea News
March 12, 2026
The Craft in America Center presents “Vehicles of Expression: The Craft of the Skateboard” from March 14–May 30.
The exhibition is among the first in the U.S. to focus on the crafted innovations of skateboards, from their inception in Southern California to contemporary, irreverent expressions from artists across the nation. Where other exhibitions have focused on deck art and visual culture of skateboarding, “Vehicles of Expression” focuses on the historical development of the skateboard as a constructed object – from rough-and-ready homemade inventions with lumber, nails and repurposed wheels to contemporary high-tech, ecologically-conscious uses of materials and conceptual works.
Through choices of materials and finishing approaches, artists imbue boards with style and meaning. Some skateboards are made to be cherished as gorgeous objects and others are made for artful performance stunts, departing radically from the sport’s competitive aspect. With skating’s spirit of undaunted exploration and ingenuity, the exhibition celebrates a diversity of approaches. The show expands definitions of craft, art and performance by presenting multiple vantage points on skateboards.
An opening reception with remarks by multimedia artist Abe Dubin will be held on Saturday, March 14, from 3-5 p.m. “Build It and Ride: How Skateboards Began,” an in-person and online talk by Todd Huber, skateboard historian and founder of the International Skateboarding Hall of Fame, will be held on April 11, from 3-4 p.m.
“Skateboarding the Canyons, Plains and Asphalt-banked Schoolyards of Coastal Los Angeles in the 1970s” with scholar Lorne Platt on the evolution of skateboarding environments in suburban developments will be held on April 18 from 11 a.m.-noon. Additional in-person and virtual talks by skateboard historians, makers, artists and performances will take place in conjunction with the exhibition.
The Craft in America Center is located at 8415 W. Third St. For information, visit craftinamerica. org/exhibition/vehicles-of-expression-the-craft-of-skateboarding.
Craft in America announces skateboard exhibition, Vehicles of Expression
Woodworking Network
By Dakota Smith
March 6, 2026
LOS ANGELES, Calif. — Craft in America, a Los Angeles-based non-profit organization founded in 2004 to promote original handcrafted work, is hosting Vehicles of Expression: The Craft of the Skateboard. The exhibit will be one of the first museum exhibitions in the U.S. to focus on the crafted innovations of skateboards, starting with their inception in Southern California and ranging to contemporary, irreverent expressions from artists across the nation.
Beginning March 14 through May 30, Abe Dubin, skateboarder and multimedia artist, will address the “why” that fuels skateboard innovation and how the melding of imagination with physical objects (and the altering thereof) is the essence of skateboarding.
Where other exhibitions have focused on deck art and visual culture of skateboarding, Vehicles of Expression focuses on the historical development of the skateboard as a constructed object; from rough-and-ready, homemade inventions with lumber, nails, and repurposed wheels, to contemporary high-tech, ecologically-conscious uses of materials, and ultimately, performative and conceptual works that perpetuate its mischievousness and spirit of continual exploration.
From its very inception the skateboard has been the product of MacGyvering things together, drawing from hockey, roller skating, surfing and go carts. This exhibition will be one of the very first to substantively present skateboards as material culture and as handcrafted objects of artistic expression. In terms of design, material, and construction, skateboards are some of the most common, widespread crafted objects in our world, yet they have generally been overlooked by museums. Skateboards can be artfully made and used for equally artful performative acts. Intended to show wear and tear as badges of pride, these carefully crafted objects exist in a state of potential ephemerality. This show will expand definitions of craft, art, and performance by looking at this beloved and familiar object. Arguably one of LA’s biggest cultural exports, the show will focus on the artistry and history of the handmade, handshaped skateboard.
Some skateboards are made to be cherished simply as gorgeous objects and others made for artful performance—stunts of deconstruction and midair transformation engineered into the boards—in each case, departing radically from the the sport’s competitive aspect.
With skating’s spirit of undaunted exploration and ingenuity, the exhibition celebrates its diversity of approaches—being both trickster and diplomat. Intended to show wear and tear as badges of pride, these carefully crafted objects exist in a state of potential ephemerality. This show will expand definitions of craft, art, and performance by presenting multiple vantage points on this well loved and ubiquitous object.
If you would like to attend, send an email to rsvp@craftinamerica.org
Original article here.
Craft in America Center’s tool exhibition extends through February
The Beverly Press
February 5, 2026
The Craft in America Center has extended the exhibition “Tools of the Trades: American Handmade Implements & Devices” through Feb. 28.
The exhibition is the first of its kind to highlight beautifully designed, hand-crafted tools made by contemporary toolmakers in the United States. It is the first in a series of exhibitions for Handwork 2026, a nationwide semiquincentennial collaboration celebrating the diversity of craft that defines America.
Artists, particularly craftspeople, rely heavily on tools in the creation of their work. Some processes might require implements that are very idiosyncratic to an artist’s process and that are not simply available at the hardware store. “Tools of the Trades: American Handmade Implements & Devices” focuses on contemporary, handmade tools, made by artists distinctly for craft processes with extreme attention to craftsmanship and design. Vintage tools will round out the selection.
Prior to mass production, makers and artists fabricated their own implements as needed. In doing so, they might decide to add beauty to the functional tool with decoration. “Tools of the Trade” celebrates the ingenuity born of necessity and the special narratives in the hand-crafted. The objects pertain to a wide scope of crafts including ceramics, textiles, hot glass, wood working and metal, as well as niche fields within them, such as ironwork or spinning.
Participating artists include Jeff Amundson; Randy Augsburger; Jim Austin, of Alchemy Metalworks; Brent Bailey; Brien Beidler; Bosworth Spindles; Elia Bizzarri; Med Chandler; Saign Charlestein; Dennis Dusek; Dyakcraft; Troy Evans; Janet Fox, of Handywomanshop; Seth Gould; Max Grossman; Spencer Hamann; and Kelly Harris. Also included are Arlen Heginbotham; Indian Lake Artisans; Ben Jackel; Rachel Kedinger; Clark Kellog; Andrea and Chuck Kennington, of NC Black Co.; Jay Burnham Kidwell; Kalia Kliban; Anna Koplik; Will Larranaga; Tom Latané; Terry Lee; Shanna Leino; Robert Liu; Jim Moore; Liza Nechamkin; Potter USA; Douglas Pryor; William R. Robertson; Eleanor Rose; Fabiano Sarra; Reid Schwartz; Michael Sherrill, with Mudtools; Elias Sideris; Randy Stromsoe; Tony Swatton; Dossain Valencia; Watanabe & Co.; and John Williams, of Guildwerks.
Craft in America is located at 8415 W. Third St. For information, visit craftinamerica.org.