Boards Across Hermosa
Celebrating Skate Culture in Hermosa the Business Way
By Tara McNamara Stabile Economic Development Action Committee Member and Project Manager
This past winter, Hermosa Beach was visited by music legends. Kurt Cobain gazed upon Pier Avenue from @Mike’s Guitar Parlor, Jim Morrison held court at Patrick Molloy’s, and Pennywise oversaw the mosh pit inside Tower 12. These iconic music acts and their impact on Hermosa Beach were artistically portrayed on skateboard decks designed by Armelle Ngo, Ele Starlight, and Janet Miho as part of the Boards Across Hermosa art exhibit project.
“Rock, Roll, Rebel: Hermosa Beach” was the theme for this year’s Boards Across Hermosa art exhibit, where 83 local artists created 92 works of art on skateboards displayed in 76 businesses throughout the city. The theme celebrated Hermosa Beach’s unique attitude and culture.
“The 1.3-square mile city of Hermosa Beach has a rich history when it comes to creating a space for those who approach life and creativity differently – musicians, skateboarders, surfers, beat poets, and more,” says Tara McNamara Stabile, the project manager of Boards Across Hermosa 2023. “We wanted to recognize what makes Hermosa so hermosa through art, and skateboards, a sport with origins in Hermosa Beach, seemed like the perfect canvas.”
Hermosa Beach has a significant association with skateboarding. Many Skateboard Hall of Fame icons, manufacturers, and innovators started their careers here in Hermosa Beach, and in 1963, the first skateboarding competition was held at Hermosa’s Pier Avenue School (now the Hermosa Beach Community Center). Academy Award-nominated Skaterdater (United Artists, 1966), the first skateboarding film ever made and nationally distributed, was shot entirely in the South Bay. Today, skateboarding is a preferred mode of transportation in Hermosa, with constant sightings in the street, the Strand, and parking structures throughout Hermosa Beach.
The Economic Development Action Committee of the Chamber of Commerce took on the task of continuing the Boards Across Hermosa exhibit, which was initiated by the Leadership Hermosa Beach (LHB) Class of 2022. The project, which originally involved the creation of art out of surfboards, was brought over by class members Tara McNamara Stabile, Susan Casty, Erika Langetieg Newman, Kitty LaDocy, and Abby Wohlford.
Langetieg Newman, a member of LHB’s Board of Directors, says, “LHB’s Class of ‘22 Boards Across Hermosa project dazzled our community as a grand celebration of Hermosa’s unique art and surf culture. The project engaged local businesses to display surfboard art curated by local artists. The Chamber was a great partner in the project’s success, and a key vision for the project was that it could be replicated. So, transitioning project logistics to the new EDAC branch within the Chamber has been a natural transition.”
Cheekily referring to their second iteration as (skate)Boards Across Hermosa, the organizers teamed with Indivisible Arts to create a show that used smaller surfaces and reached more businesses. This year, the Boards Across Hermosa program became a fundraiser to support both the skateboard artists and Indivisible Arts, a local 501(c) (3) non-profit that partners with organizations such as Walk With Sally, Richstone, DaVinci/RISE, Friendship Foundation, and Beach Cities Health District to address the mental health crisis through art, creativity, and awareness.
The project began in October 2022 with Hermosa retailers and restaurants posting flyers with a call for artists. By the end of February, skateboards dotted the storefronts of downtown Hermosa Beach from Jack’s Surfboards down Pier Avenue to Playa Hermosa and spread across Hermosa Avenue from Martha’s at 22nd Street to Mickey’s Deli at 1st Street. Truly putting boards across Hermosa, the art stretched up Aviation to Stretch Spot and Art Zone, and along PCH from Hermosa Saloon at 3rd Street to Spyder at Gould.
“Post-COVID, we wanted to pull the community together and encourage folks to get outside, to stroll in and out of businesses,” says Casty. “Our city is small enough to walk and full of artistic talent to display. Linking the artists with businesses all over Hermosa created great community spirit and attracts people to stores.”
While all participating artists were required to have a connection to Hermosa Beach, the project was inclusive across age, race, gender, and experience. Featured alongside professional high-level artists like Victoria White, Dan Wonderly, and Brent Broza, were young artists just beginning to realize their talents. Ten of the students in Stacey Ripley’s art class at Hermosa Valley School were featured by Marlin Equity Partners. Kindergartner Ella Goeldner was featured at ArtZone, and Resin student Leo Bradley, 9 years old, was displayed at Miss Bee’s, who reports that the board attracted a lot of interest, with passersbys coming into the tutoring facility to learn more.
EDAC Chairman Ed Hart says that Boards Across Hermosa is the perfect expression of his mission with the Chamber of Commerce. “Economic development and vibrancy occur through community engagement. Beauty, arts, and giving back is what unites us.”
One artist’s interpretation of the theme buoyed the project to go full circle. Jessy Cummings’ company, Titty City Design, raises awareness of breast health through lighthearted cartoon art of breasts of all shapes and sizes. The Pier Ave store Curious created an end cap for Jessy’s skate art that paid tribute to Hermosa Beach living skate legends like Cindy Whitehead. Whitehead is a Skateboard Hall-of-Famer who advocates for girls and women in the traditionally male-dominated sport. 
The skateboard art was brought together as the exhibit’s finale, on display together at Indivisible Art’s State of the Art Gala on March 18. The auction concluded at the end of the party, with sales of the skate art grossing $33,500.
“Indivisible Arts is deeply grateful for the Boards Across Hermosa project and it’s team, who helped us raise funds that go to the front lines of teaching tools of resilience to teens. This year we’re focused on highschoolers in the foster care and criminal justice system,” says Rafael McMaster, Executive Director and Founder of Indivisible Arts. “The complete display of the boards was a stunning experience, that created awe, awareness, and grace through art and decks.”
For artists, participation had its own meaning. Keith Brinker, the graphic designer who has been running his own firm for the last 20 years and designed the 2021 Hermosa Beach parking placards, it means giving the next generation a leg up. “It’s always great when I get a chance to do something I love while supporting great cause, especially when it has to do with art,” he says. “I’m passionate about supporting young artists.”
Stacia Costa, whose skate deck was covered in colorful bottle caps that blended in with the pastel and pop décor at Lucky 7 Coffee, says being a part of Boards Across Hermosa has emboldened her with a feeling of acceptance. “Putting something I created out there and calling it ‘art’ was a vulnerable act for me,” she says, adding that seeing her artistic vision on display in the community and going on to sell for $800 “gave me a validation that I am part of the art community in my adopted city.”
Now with two years under their belt, Boards of Hermosa is rolling into the future. Look for Boards Across Hermosa to come back again annually to celebrate local artists and drive foot traffic to local business.