Tobin Yelland is a bonafide photographic legend, but nowhere is he more beloved than in San Francisco’s skateboarding community. Yelland grew up in the city and got his first skate photo published when he was just 15. His reverence, not just for skateboarding, but for his fellow skaters, shines through every shot — as does the community’s unruly camaraderie.
Tobin Yelland Exhibit Launches Deluxe Skate Shop’s New Mission Location
Ron Allen (R) and Jim Thibaud (L) skating outside the 16th St. Mission BART station in 1989. (Courtesy of Tobin Yelland)
It’s only fitting, then, that a collection of 24 of Yelland’s photographs is on display right now to celebrate the launch of Deluxe Skate Shop’s new location in the Mission. Deluxe is as much of a Bay Area institution as Yelland is; its Potrero-based distribution center opened in 1986.
The Yelland images on display at 2330 Mission St. were all captured between 1988 and 1993 — a game-changing period for street skating, when San Francisco was at the forefront. Yelland was one of only a handful of photographers working to capture it all.
It’s clear that Yelland carefully curated the images for this show to give a well-rounded and complete picture of what was happening in San Francisco skate culture during that time: Wide shots of kids gathered with their boards at the Embarcadero (EMB) “Wave.” Wallrides outside the 16th Street Walgreens. Hill bombing in Twin Peaks. Three decades later, watching these young men mastering their craft remains a joy to behold.
Even better, there are as many stationary portraits of key individuals here as there are actual skate shots. And often, these are the images that tell you the most. Whether it’s a smiling Mark Gonzalez hanging outside of a deli or a haunted-looking John Cardiel in the passenger seat of a car, these small moments speak volumes. None louder than the image of Mickey Reyes and Jeff Whitehead detained in the back of a police car. (Whitehead looks thoroughly indifferent, Reyes is gleefully laughing.)
This particular period of images is a good fit for the new Deluxe store for other, less exciting reasons. In many ways, Deluxe remains married to a period of skateboarding in which women were entirely invisible (unless they were in a state of objectification). The new store is as male-focused as skating was throughout the 1990s, despite the emergence of a new generation of female skaters who are pushing the sport forward. (In addition to only carrying men’s clothing, the lone instance of female representation I saw in Deluxe were naked women inside a book.)
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This oversight is a shame given how much thought has clearly gone into designing the store. Colorful figures painted by Jeffrey Cheung decorate the wall outside the restroom and storeroom. Another wall is dominated by a San Francisco-themed mural by Chris Johanson and Max Marttila. Then there’s the restroom, which features probably the greatest Todd Francis pigeon mural I’ve ever seen. Ten birds circle the walls, one awkwardly giving “full blown eye contact,” another clutching the corner of a Taqueria Cancún menu, and two judging any men foolish enough to stand before the toilet bowl. To be in the center of it all is a jubilant experience.
@rae_alexandraThe Todd Francis bathroom at the new Mission Deluxe store is a thing of true beauty.♬ original sound – rae_alexandra
These paintings will be permanent fixtures at Deluxe, while Yelland’s photos will be up for six months only. His images — a time capsule of sorts — capture a key moment in San Francisco history. The photographer may be based in Los Angeles now, but in an interview with Australia’s Monster Children published earlier this year, Yelland himself noted, “Being in San Francisco was such a great place. I don’t think I could have done it in any other city.”
Tobin Yelland’s photography is on display at Deluxe Skate Shop (2330 Mission St., San Francisco) through April 2025.
