StrangeLove
USA #1
Sean Cliver
Any long term skateboarder in the lifer sense will surely remember a classic T-shirt that came out in 1990 boldly stating "USA #1." The design accompanied the Blind Jason Lee "American Icons" pro model, drawn by Marc McKee, which was heralded as an instant classic and has since become an elusive Holy Grail for many skate collectors to this day. You have to understand, satire wasn't really a part of the skate graphics repertoire back then, but the "American Icons" blew the door wide open for a flood of illustrated social commentary to come out of skateboarding in the decades to follow—and thank god.
summer lovin' with timothy johnson and max murphy
Sean Cliver
I'll keep this brief and to the point. No, seriously, in the modern day ADD spirit of brevity and 142-character attention spans, I'm only here to present (proudly!) a Midwestern metropolitan mix, featuring Timothy Johnson and Max Murphy, with a special thanks going out to Uprise Skateshop and filmer/editor Blake Matthews. Enjoy!
the no show me the money debacle
Sean Cliver
Father, forgive me, for I have fucked up. Not only that, I'm feeling a little... I don't know... I guess "unhinged" is the popular buzzword du jour, so what better state of 50-scattered mind to bare my selfish soul and talk about something that's been weighing on my mind of late (and apparently my partner Nick's, too, as he's quick to remind me about this one particular product call I made whenever I suggest making a "Heart Skull" trucker hat). To do so, however, we must first take one of my prerequisite trips into the past to better explain the situation of the present, because just like Morrissey I too tend to go about things the wrong way.
"magical witchy girl boards," an interview with aaron rose, by dave carnie
Sean Cliver
I’ve been friends with Aaron Rose a long time—circa 1990? I’ve shown my art in his former Alleged Gallery in NYC, he included my work in his seminal book, Dysfunctional, I’ve buttfucked him right in the mouth, and I’m honored to say that he invited me to hang a piece in that first skate art show he curated in Hollywood at Gallery X [1]. So I’ve always known Aaron as a CURATOR. I know he is creative and makes art—I love his art—but who doesn’t make art? I think of the art curator as sort of like a football fan—even though he doesn’t actually play the game himself, he’s very passionate about it and sometimes he likes to toss the ole pigskin around with his bros at the beach. I’m guilty of thinking of Aaron as a curator first and forget that he does actually play football—artball, whatever.
to logo or not to logo
Sean Cliver
Hello and welcome to yet another episode of Herman's Head, where the four quadrants of Herman's brain go lobe-to-lobe in full battle royale over a wholly inconsequential matter. That said, today's debate: logo boards—to do or not to do, but we obviously did, so what's done is done, the point is moot, and fuck me.