Born to humble beginnings in Venice Seashore, Blake Johnson grew up in one of the vibrant, eclectic environments that would form a younger man. In an space of Southern California the place browsing, skateboarding, and hashish pervade the tradition, it’s no shock that he was drawn to the few skateparks round his neighborhood at a younger age.
When discussing Venice skateboarding, it’s obligatory to say legends corresponding to Jay Adams, Eric Dressen, and Natas Kaupas. These pioneers set the precedent of what it meant to be an expert skateboarder within the ‘70s and ‘80s. Reaching that degree is difficult sufficient; to face out within the literal birthplace of skateboarding, surrounded by immense competitors, takes one other degree of expertise.
Johnson rose to the problem. Regardless of setbacks throughout his rebellious adolescent years, he remained dedicated to his purpose of attaining the ever-elusive skilled standing. With the precise angle and an immeasurable work ethic, he was given the nod by Santa Cruz Skateboards in 2016 and was awarded his first pro model by Dressen himself.
At the moment primarily based in Barcelona, Johnson was completely happy to leap on a FaceTime name to debate rising up in Venice, how his hometown has modified lately, what America may study from a European perspective on life, and the way hashish has formed him as a human and skateboarder.
Excessive Occasions: How does it really feel to come back from Venice, which is traditionally the birthplace of skateboarding?
Blake Johnson: It’s a blessing, truthfully. That’s the place all the things began. It gave me somewhat bit extra of an incentive to attempt to make one thing occur with skating, as a result of it had been so lengthy since any individual from Venice truly made it into the trade since again within the day.
Who have been a number of the Venice influences you had as an upstart skateboarder?
Rising up, I didn’t even know that a lot about how historic Venice was for skateboarding. I simply knew that lots of people who lived in Venice skated. In a while, I finished skating for a pair years as a result of I obtained extra into graffiti. After I got here again into skating round age 17 or so, that’s when the historical past of Venice resonated with me. I began taking extra pleasure in it.
It may need been my pal Richard who mentioned in the future, “Who was the final particular person from Venice that turned professional?” That query actually gave me quite a lot of motivation to attempt to make one thing occur.
As a lot as Venice is related to skating, it’s additionally related to weed…
Oh yeah.
What was it like rising up there?
I bear in mind beginning to smoke weed at 13. Throughout my years at Venice Excessive College, we’d ditch our sixth interval, as a result of after 1:30 pm you couldn’t get a truancy ticket. So we would go away as soon as lunch began and go straight all the way down to the seaside and smoke. Again then, weed wasn’t authorized but, and the seaside was simply so open. And different individuals have been doing it too, we weren’t the one group of children smoking.
Finally the medical shops began opening up, and that was a giant hit. The medical outlets nonetheless are a vacationer attraction. Vacationers go down there, take footage with them, and journey out. These locations are so gnarly–they’ll give a weed license to anyone [laughs].
It seems like as you have been coming into your individual as a skateboarder, you have been additionally experimenting with weed, and that the 2 issues have been interwoven.
I believe virtually each single skateboarder goes to come back throughout weed. I really feel like ninety-something p.c of skaters have smoked weed, at the least as soon as of their lives.
Weed goes so effectively with skating as a result of it isn’t as a lot of a sport as it’s an artwork. It’s simply an expression of the way you trip your board, how your thoughts works, and the way you see the outer world. If you smoke, it intensifies that. It helps you get extra into your artwork, if you’ll. Say I’ve been skating for half-hour or one hour, generally after I smoke I get a second wind.
Do you have got any particular methods that you recognize occurred since you had been smoking weed?
Yeah, for positive. Hardflip bottom tailslide was one among them. I watched Felipe Gustavo do them, and he made that trick look simple. I discovered it a very long time in the past, on the small outledge at Stoner Park [in West Los Angeles]. I bear in mind smoking, and considering, Properly, possibly it’s similar to a kickflip noseslide, however you sort of physique varial and land on the opposite foot as an alternative. After I put it in my head like that it made sense. Fortunately it doesn’t appear like that [laughs].
Venice has arguably modified with gentrification–how has that affected the weed tradition?
Oh man, it’s not arguably. I simply noticed an interview with the homie earlier saying Venice is probably probably the most gentrified metropolis on the earth. He was like, “The rationale why I say that’s due to the period of time that it took to gentrify was subsequent to nothing.”
He talks about 2011, or every time it was that Google confirmed up. And it began as quickly as they opened their doorways. You had the landlords discovering out about Google workers making a bunch of cash, in order that they began jacking up the lease. Plenty of small companies needed to go away as a result of all these tech startups are shopping for up the workplace area.
They began attempting to name it “Silicon Seashore,” and it turned that. It was like they have been vultures simply feeding on a lifeless metropolis as a result of they sucked all the life out of Venice, something that it ever had. It’s laborious to place your finger on what you need to name this “new” Venice. These tremendous wealthy dudes gown all bohemian-looking and shit to attempt to slot in. It’s like, Dude, you’re clearly not from right here, man.
The vibe and all the things; it’s not the identical anymore. However fortunately these those that have been there earlier than all this, the locals, although lots of people needed to transfer away, individuals are nonetheless in Venice hanging out on a regular basis.
Now, you go all the way down to Venice and there’s some boutique MedMen-type dispensary.
I used to be going to say, MedMen dude! I suppose that is the place we’re. Gentrification sucks. With that being mentioned, I do hope that it may probably open up some alternatives for the brand new era arising in Venice, in order that they will maintain the surf and skate tradition alive within the trend that it needs to be.
After rising up in Venice, what was it wish to expertise skateboarding and hashish in Barcelona, your present residence base?
I used to be simply at MACBA just about all day at present. The quantity of spliffs and methods that go down at that place is like bread and butter–it simply goes hand-in-hand.
How did you alter to dwelling in Europe as an American?
The largest factor for me, and never that locations within the U.S. aren’t like this, is the way in which that you just get outdoors and go skate. You might be at all times on foot, and all the things is public transportation. There isn’t any getting within the automotive, driving, sitting in visitors, or smoking in visitors. I most likely smoke extra weed again residence simply due to visitors [laughs].
You’ve been to Christiania in Copenhagen and traveled round Europe, what do you suppose America may study?
One of many greater issues that we may enhance on, and I do know that there’s a lot of division in all places, however clearly our nation has it greater than wherever. The entire world sees it. I believe one factor would merely be simply coming collectively as one, slightly than being this divided nation.
Most locations in Europe that I’ve been to appear to be fairly sound. It’s laborious to know as a result of I’m not into the politics right here, as a result of that’s often the motive force of that, however simply the way in which that folks get together with one another so far as not having an ego and never being so judgmental of the subsequent particular person.
I believe we get so caught up within the American Dream of the grind, work, cash, and all that. Not saying that everybody shouldn’t like these issues, however I really feel like we’ve got a tough time balancing that out with simply dwelling life and being completely happy.
I really feel like lots of people right here in Spain are the counter of what we’re–they aren’t money-driven and are as an alternative extra involved with their wellbeing. If you dwell in such a pleasant place, why would you be so confused about all these little small issues that aren’t actually going to switch your day-to-day life? If lots of people again residence centered on themselves as an alternative of judging others, we’d all get alongside so much higher.
Taking that one step additional, you can say that smoking hashish may change your perspective on these sorts of issues and create a extra peaceable, welcoming society.
One of many best methods to get to know any individual is to smoke a joint with them. Over that entire 5 or 10 minutes or no matter that it lasts, you’ll have gotten to know this particular person so much higher than if that joint by no means existed [laughs].
It’s an off-the-cuff dialog, which is extra pure. With smoking weed, the way in which that it connects individuals collectively is fairly cool too. One man may ask, “Hey, have you ever obtained papers?” And one other may reply, “Certain, I used to be about to roll a joint, need to smoke?” Subsequent factor you recognize you meet the particular person, go skate, and possibly turn out to be associates or no matter. It simply occurs like that.
And it’s the identical with skating; it’s a instrument to deliver individuals collectively.
Skateboarding is only a shut household, worldwide. We’re simply so fortunate to have that shit as a result of I really feel like quite a lot of vacationers go locations and so they don’t know the place to begin so far as even [connecting] with locals.
As skate boarders, we all know precisely the place to go. In case you have a skateboard and also you present as much as a skatepark, I promise that in the event you attain out to any individual and ask for native meals spots, the place to get weed, and the place the great bars are, you’re gonna discover all three of these issues 99% of the time. Even when the skater doesn’t communicate your language, they’ll work with you; possibly they’ll discover some homie who does communicate it and so they can translate.
Any updates on what you have got been engaged on?
So my last part got here out a yr in the past. I have already got quite a lot of new footage; out right here it’s simpler to get shit performed, so you possibly can stockpile footage and have sufficient for a number of tasks.
Proper now I’ve laid out a timeline, and I’ve somewhat over 4 minutes of footage. Actually, lots of people may put it out proper now, however for me, after my final half, I need to maintain elevating the bar, you recognize? This yr is Santa Cruz’s fiftieth anniversary, so I’ll put some footage in direction of that too.