Hangup was an exhibition I made in connection with the opening of Katrineholm’s first proper concrete skatepark. Growing up here in the 90s, a park like that felt completely impossible to imagine.

I’ve skateboarded in Katrineholm for most of my life and had a camera with me for just as long. I started shooting photos as a kid and eventually built up an archive of images. With Hangup, I wanted to bring that material together and show the skateboarding history of the city. From the few who skated before my generation, through what we built and lived, up to the concrete park that would become the starting point for the next generation.

The exhibition featured framed photographs spanning several decades alongside an installation made from used skateboards. The wall is built in wooden OSB boards to change the feel of the room and give the photographs a setting closer to where the images came from. The photography carried the story. A few early images from the late 70s set the starting point, followed by material mostly from my own archive and my friends’. Local skaters active after me contributed photographs to cover the more recent years.

A few people skated in Katrineholm around 1978. Plans for a concrete park were drawn, letters were sent, but nothing happened at the time. Thirty-six years later, it finally did.

Alongside the exhibition, I also made a book under the same name, Hangup. It gathers the photographs shown in the exhibition, a collection showing moments from decades of skating in and around Katrineholm.

This exhibition and book were my way of saying thank you. To everyone who skated, built spots, filmed, photographed, and kept things moving. You are all part of the history.