Skateboard City Amsterdam: Discover Urban Culture, Architecture, and Photography Through Skateboarding

Skateboard City was an exhibition exploring skateboard culture's relationship with the city, highlighting its originality, creativity, and do-it-yourself ethos. It showcased how skateboarders view urban spaces as a playground, featuring archives, films, photos, music, models, maps, and a skateboard ramp.

Skateboard City was a large-scale exhibition that delved into the vibrant world of skateboard culture and its profound connection to the urban landscape. The exhibition emphasized the original, creative, and do-it-yourself spirit inherent in skateboarding, showcasing how skateboarders perceive the city differently – transforming walls and fences into challenges and viewing the urban environment as a vast playground. Originating in California in the 1960s among surfers, skateboarding gained popularity in the Netherlands by the late 1970s and has since evolved into the professional sport it is today. The exhibition featured a rich collection of original archival materials from Amsterdam skateboarders, including films, photographs, music, architectural models, city maps, and a central skateboard ramp. A significant focus was placed on the interplay between skateboarding and architecture, illustrated through design projects by Maurer United, OMA, SCALA+MANA, and Bureau B+B. Visitors could also participate in related programming such as free skateboarding lessons for youth, film nights showcasing skate and video culture classics like 'Mid 90s' and 'Minding the Gap,' and the 'GRIND' photo exhibition by young Amsterdam photographers capturing the local skate scene.

On Thursdays and Fridays, visitors presenting a skateboard could enter the exhibition for free and use the skateboard ramp. Specific ticketing details for general admission are not provided, but the exhibition was supported by cultural funds and partnerships, suggesting a standard museum entry model.