Mark Gonzales
Encyclopedia
Mark Gonzales also known as "Gonz" and "The Gonz," is an American professional skateboarder and artist
. He is known in the skateboarding
world as a pioneer of modern street skateboarding, currently skateboarding's most popular form.
, his sponsor at the time. He soon changed sponsorship by riding for Vision Skateboards and shortly thereafter turned professional.
Gonzales won the 1985 Oceanside street contest and placed high in others that year. By then, Gonz was shifting street skating away from the vertical skateboarding based style that had been the standard, to a more technical one based on the freestyle skateboarding of Rodney Mullen. The most notable trick Gonz transferred at this time from freestyle to street was the kick flip ollie, and by 1986, Gonzales could even be seen doing double kick flips at demos.
In the summer of 1986, Gonzales performed a groundbreaking ollie
at the Embarcadero in San Francisco
. So historic was this incident for skateboarding, it became forever known as the "Gonz Gap" and helped make the Embarcadero a popular location for skateboarders. Later that year, Gonzales became the first person to skate handrails, thus cementing his contribution to street skating's early to intermediate stages.
Gonz went on to further influence street skateboarding as it modernized with the 1991 video Video Days
by Blind Skateboards
(a company he formed with Steve Rocco in 1989). And in 1993, Gonzales was the first to ever kick flip his namesake, the Gonz Gap at Embarcadero, as well as the first skater to do the Wallenberg Set
4 block. After leaving Blind Skateboards, Mark went on to start two new companies: ATM Click and 60/40 Skateboards (which 60/40 is now defunct). Mark skated for Real Skateboards before launching Krooked Skateboards, a brand under Deluxe Distribution
.
's cult film
Gummo
, where he wrestles a chair. He was also the male lead in a 1997 Spike Jonze
short film, How They Get There
. A film called Beautiful Losers (film)
, about Contemporary Art and Street Culture, also features Gonzales and was released on August 2, 2008.
In 2007 he published a skateboarding video called "Gnar Gnar" that was shot with an old VHS
camcorder and was limited to only 1000 VHS copies.
Most recently, Mark Gonzales was also featured in the music video "West Coast" by Jason Schwartzman
's band, Coconut Records
. This was a skate video sequence originally filmed in 1998 at a German museum, but edited and synced for this music video with his permission. He also recently directed and is featured in Coconut Records
' new video "Any Fun" alongside actress Chloë Sevigny
as well as skateboarder Alex Olson.
He is also a poet and author and has published several books including Social Problems, High Tech Poetry, Broken Dreams, and Broken Poems. In 2008, Drag City released a book called The Collected Fanzines that consists of reproductions of old zines that he collaborated on with Harmony Korine.
Gonz also appears in the skate video game EA Skate and filmed a commercial to promote the game's release.
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
. He is known in the skateboarding
Skateboarding
Skateboarding is an action sport which involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard.Skateboarding can be a recreational activity, an art form, a job, or a method of transportation. Skateboarding has been shaped and influenced by many skateboarders throughout the years. A 2002 report...
world as a pioneer of modern street skateboarding, currently skateboarding's most popular form.
Skateboarding career
Gonz came on the skateboarding scene at age 15 with a modern approach to street skating and made the cover of Thrasher (magazine) November 1984 issue, riding a board from AlvaAlva
- People :*A. Shanker Alva , Indian politician and lawyer*Bartolomé de Alva , Novohispanic mestizo secular priest and Nahuatl translator*Jeevaraj Alva , Indian politician...
, his sponsor at the time. He soon changed sponsorship by riding for Vision Skateboards and shortly thereafter turned professional.
Gonzales won the 1985 Oceanside street contest and placed high in others that year. By then, Gonz was shifting street skating away from the vertical skateboarding based style that had been the standard, to a more technical one based on the freestyle skateboarding of Rodney Mullen. The most notable trick Gonz transferred at this time from freestyle to street was the kick flip ollie, and by 1986, Gonzales could even be seen doing double kick flips at demos.
In the summer of 1986, Gonzales performed a groundbreaking ollie
Ollie (skateboarding trick)
The ollie is a skateboarding trick where the rider and board leap into the air without the use of the rider's hands. Particularly on flat ground, it is not intuitively obvious how the liftoff is achieved, making the trick visually striking....
at the Embarcadero in San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
. So historic was this incident for skateboarding, it became forever known as the "Gonz Gap" and helped make the Embarcadero a popular location for skateboarders. Later that year, Gonzales became the first person to skate handrails, thus cementing his contribution to street skating's early to intermediate stages.
Gonz went on to further influence street skateboarding as it modernized with the 1991 video Video Days
Video Days
Video Days is a skateboarding video by Blind Skateboards released in 1991. It is considered one of the most influential skate videos, as director Spike Jonze's format has continued to be the definitive template for most skate videos....
by Blind Skateboards
Blind (company)
Blind is a skateboard company founded by Mark Gonzales, in 1989 under Steve Rocco's World Industries empire.The name "Blind" is an intentional slight to Gonzales' former sponsor, Vision Skateboards. He has since left the company and today the company continues under the ownership of Dwindle...
(a company he formed with Steve Rocco in 1989). And in 1993, Gonzales was the first to ever kick flip his namesake, the Gonz Gap at Embarcadero, as well as the first skater to do the Wallenberg Set
Wallenberg Set
Wallenberg, also known as the Wallenberg Four, is located at the Wallenberg Traditional High School in San Francisco, California.It is a popular gap among the skateboarding community and measures 6 feet high and 22 feet and 6 inches long....
4 block. After leaving Blind Skateboards, Mark went on to start two new companies: ATM Click and 60/40 Skateboards (which 60/40 is now defunct). Mark skated for Real Skateboards before launching Krooked Skateboards, a brand under Deluxe Distribution
Deluxe Distribution
Deluxe Distribution is an ERMICO owned subsidiary founded in 1986 with limited partner Brian Ware in San Francisco. The original intent of Deluxe was for the distribution of the Beware Record label and various small record labels popular with skateboarders along with Thunder Trucks and Supercush...
.
Various media
Gonz has appeared in a few movies, including Harmony KorineHarmony Korine
The story is told from the perspective of a young man suffering from untreated schizophrenia, played by Ewen Bremner, as he tries to understand his deteriorating world. Julien's abusive father is played by Werner Herzog...
's cult film
Cult film
A cult film, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a highly devoted but specific group of fans. Often, cult movies have failed to achieve fame outside the small fanbases; however, there have been exceptions that have managed to gain fame among mainstream audiences...
Gummo
Gummo
Gummo is a 1997 American independent drama film written and directed by Harmony Korine. It was his directorial debut and has since become a cult film. The film stars Jacob Reynolds, Nick Sutton, Jacob Sewell, Chloë Sevigny, Linda Manz and Max Perlich...
, where he wrestles a chair. He was also the male lead in a 1997 Spike Jonze
Spike Jonze
Spike Jonze is an American director, producer and actor, whose work includes music videos, commercials, film and television...
short film, How They Get There
How They Get There
How They Get There is a short film directed by Spike Jonze, which illustrates how lonely shoes wind up in the gutter. It is featured on the The Work of Director Spike Jonze DVD and can currently be viewed on YouTube.-Plot:...
. A film called Beautiful Losers (film)
Beautiful Losers (film)
Beautiful Losers is a 2008 documentary feature film by director Aaron Rose and co-directed by Joshua Leonard. It was produced by Sidetrack Films in association with BlackLake Productions, and stars several artists including Harmony Korine, writer of independent cult films Kids and Gummo.It...
, about Contemporary Art and Street Culture, also features Gonzales and was released on August 2, 2008.
In 2007 he published a skateboarding video called "Gnar Gnar" that was shot with an old VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
camcorder and was limited to only 1000 VHS copies.
Most recently, Mark Gonzales was also featured in the music video "West Coast" by Jason Schwartzman
Jason Schwartzman
Jason Francesco Schwartzman is an American actor and musician. He is perhaps best known for his roles in the Hollywood films Rushmore, Spun, I Heart Huckabees, Shopgirl, Marie Antoinette, The Darjeeling Limited, Funny People, and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World...
's band, Coconut Records
Coconut Records (band)
Coconut Records is a Los Angeles, California based indie pop musical solo project by Jason Schwartzman , which began in 2006. The debut album, Nighttiming, was released on Schwartzman’s Young Baby Records in 2007. The album had musical contributions by members of Incubus, as well as appearances by...
. This was a skate video sequence originally filmed in 1998 at a German museum, but edited and synced for this music video with his permission. He also recently directed and is featured in Coconut Records
Coconut Records (band)
Coconut Records is a Los Angeles, California based indie pop musical solo project by Jason Schwartzman , which began in 2006. The debut album, Nighttiming, was released on Schwartzman’s Young Baby Records in 2007. The album had musical contributions by members of Incubus, as well as appearances by...
' new video "Any Fun" alongside actress Chloë Sevigny
Chloë Sevigny
Chloë Stevens Sevigny is an American film actress, fashion designer and former model. Sevigny gained reputation for her eclectic fashion sense and developed a broad career in the fashion industry in the mid 1990s, both for modeling and for her work at New York's Sassy magazine, which labeled her...
as well as skateboarder Alex Olson.
He is also a poet and author and has published several books including Social Problems, High Tech Poetry, Broken Dreams, and Broken Poems. In 2008, Drag City released a book called The Collected Fanzines that consists of reproductions of old zines that he collaborated on with Harmony Korine.
Gonz also appears in the skate video game EA Skate and filmed a commercial to promote the game's release.
External links
- Interview with Mark Gonzales in the frequency: The Snowboarder's Journal
- Mark Gonzales at Rolf Contemporary
- Krooked Skateboarding (Gonzales' skateboard company)
- Mark Gonzales fiction and illustration in Frequency The Snowboard Journal (Gonzales' Interview)