2024-05-06T14:49:13-04:00 https://archinect.com/news/article/150158830/california-s-concrete-skateparks-come-alive-in-a-new-photography-book Sean Joyner 2019-09-12T20:30:00-04:00 >2024-03-15T01:45:58-04:00 <img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/75/75348bd0c8c887d286b327c3cb377427.jpg?fit=crop&auto=compress%2Cformat&enlarge=true&w=1200" border="0" /><p>Released this month,&nbsp;<em><a href="https://www.amazon.com/California-Concrete-Skateparks-Amir-Zaki/dp/1858946786" target="_blank">California Concrete: A Landscape of Skateparks</a></em>, takes the birthplace of skateboard culture and celebrates the dynamic landscapes created by Cali's expressive skateparks. Amir Zaki, creator of the book, is an artist and photographer who grew up skateboarding and has spent years photographing the built and natural landscape of California.&nbsp;</p> <figure><p><a href="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/64/6400822ed0fe64742d5b5f4fb26a71a8.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=1028" target="_blank"><img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/64/6400822ed0fe64742d5b5f4fb26a71a8.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=514"></a></p></figure><p>Tony Hawk, the legendary skateboarder, has contributed an essay to the new book. In it, he expresses how Zaki's photography captured his first memories of visiting a skatepark as a kid. Los Angeles-based architect <a href="https://archinect.com/features/article/150133718/the-geometry-of-the-world" target="_blank">Peter Zellner</a> also contributed an essay in which he explores the origins of modern vertical skateboarding in the mid-1970s and the resulting skateparks that came out of that movement.<br></p> <figure><p><a href="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/2e/2e5428201f634ca2aeac1b8f3185edcb.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=1028" target="_blank"><img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/2e/2e5428201f634ca2aeac1b8f3185edcb.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=514"></a></p></figure><p>Ultimately, this book provides a beautiful collection of photography, architecture, and concrete landscapes, sure to capture the interested reader.<br></p> <figure><p><a href="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/48/48892cf5e4f6b27b143cea2361c99d5d.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=1028" target="_blank"><img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/48/48892cf5e4f6b27b143cea2361c99d5d.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=514"></a></p></figure><figure><p><a href="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/99/998799fbbc8f243787f77a50d41fcd4d.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=1028" target="_blank"><img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/99/998799fbbc8f243787f77a50d41fcd4d.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=514"></a></p></figure><figure><figure><a href="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/ee/ee90987f7337f85813059d8df96b2015.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=1028" target="_blank"><img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/ee/ee90987f7337f85813059d8df96b2015.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&amp;w=514"></a></figure></figure>