How the Momentum Generation redefined modern surf culture
- Text by Michael Fordham
- Photography by Art Brewer
Taylor Steele’s Momentum films were, for us, a dispatch from surfing’s Holy Land.
The tight cadre of impossibly talented, preposterously privileged, infuriatingly pretty young surfers that made up the cast were blessed apostles, whose fate it was to ride the most radical waves on the planet, in the most progressive fashion imaginable. If you were left feeling like an outsider as you watched Todd Chesser slide into that cavernous Backdoor barrel, it was understandable. Especially from the perspective of Britain’s gloomy, piddly waved latitudes.
From that gilt-edged upbringing on the edge of waters which threw, pitched and ramped into our dreams, the Momentum Generation sprouted from an extended and riotous slumber party on the North Shore, before making their way into every VHS player in every scuzzy surf shack in the known universe. So many of them – Rob Machado, Shane Dorian, Taylor Knox, King Kelly Slater – would go on to define their own distinct corner of surf culture. We envied these guys. We wanted to be them. We tried to surf like them. We failed.
In association with London Surf / Film Festival 2018, Huck is celebrating the stars of Steele’s seminal videos with Momentum Posse, an exhibition – hosted by Machado himself – featuring some of our favourite images from the photographers who were there to watch them do it. Showing at the 71a Gallery from 2pm on 13 October, 2018, join us as we pay homage to the characters that changed surfing forever.
The Momentum Generation lived lives we could only dream of. But in doing, so they inspired us to live our own unique versions of that impossible dream. And for that we are forever grateful.
Momentum Posse, an exhibition presented by Huck and Rob Machado, is showing at the 71a Gallery from 2 – 5pm on 13 October, 2018.
Special thanks to Art Brewer, Todd Glaser, Guy Martin and Steve Sherman.
Enjoyed this article? Like Huck on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.
You might like
Maryam El Gardoum is breaking new shores for Morocco’s indigenous surfers
The Amazigh Atlantic — Through her groundbreaking career and popular surf school, the five-time Moroccan champion is helping women find their places in the waves.
Written by: Sam Haddad
Volcom teams up with Bob Mollema for the latest in its Featured Artist Series
True to This — The boardsports lifestyle brand will host an art show in Biarritz to celebrate the Dutch illustrators’ second capsule collection.
Written by: Huck
A new documentary spotlights Ecuador’s women surfers fighting climate change
Ceibo — Co-directed by Maddie Meddings and Lucy Small, the film focuses on the work and story of Pacha Light, a wave rider who lived off-grid before reconnecting with her country’s activist heritage.
Written by: Hannah Bentley
How the ’70s radicalised the landscape of photography
The ’70s Lens — Half a century ago, visionary photographers including Nan Goldin, Joel Meyerowitz and Larry Sultan pushed the envelope of what was possible in image-making, blurring the boundaries between high and low art. A new exhibition revisits the era.
Written by: Miss Rosen
In Queens, local surfers are moulding a neighbourhood in their own renegade images
Rockaway breaks — On a little-known stretch of beach in eastern New York City, an ecosystem of wave catchers, and the local bars and restaurants that fuel them, is seeing a boom. Paolo Bicchieri meets the residents and business owners behind the growing swell.
Written by: Paolo Bicchieri
Laird Hamilton
Made of Stone — In an exclusive interview, the legendary waterman tells HUCK about his estranged father, his distrust of people, his love for red wine and Jimi Hendrix, and his boundless commitment to pursue what he calls his ‘art’.
Written by: Alex Wade
