Ed Templeton (born in Los Angeles, 1972) is a star skateboarder, entrepreneur, painter, and street photographer. He has published over twenty books of his photographs, not including the volumes of zines he has self-produced over the years. His work has been exhibited worldwide, including at Alleged Gallery, New York; Roberts and Tilton, Los Angeles; Modern Art, London; and Aki-X Gallery, Tokyo, and in solo museum exhibitions at Museum Het Domein, Netherlands, and Palais de Tokyo, Paris. He is considered part of the Beautiful Losers, a group of artists who, in the 1990s, defined the high-brow/low-brow mix of graffiti, skate culture, and art. Brian Anderson is a Queens-based professional skateboarder. Anderson was named Thrasher magazine’s “Skater of the Year” in 1999, the same year he won the World Cup of Skateboarding title. Erik Ellington is a professional skateboarder, designer, and entrepreneur based in Los Angeles. He is the founder of Human Recreational Services, a luxury footwear company. Justin Regan is head of global brand and product marketing at Vans Skateboarding. Elissa Steamer, one of the first women to become a professional skateboarder, is a four-time X Games gold medalist. Deanna Templeton is a photographer based in Southern California. She has exhibited widely and published multiple books, including What She Said (2021).
“I’m not sure I successfully answered the question of what makes a skater tick in this book, but I do think it’s a great time capsule of a certain era in skateboarding as told through my life and the lives of some of the best and most unique skaters the world has ever seen.” —Ed Templeton, Thrasher Magazine