Episode 96: Arto Saari / Photographer / Professional Skateboarder

Mar 7, 2019

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Professional skateboarder, photographer, and frequently requested guest Arto Saari joins the show to talk about how he went from a small rural town in Finland, to leaving the country as a young teenager to go on tour with Danny Way and start an adventure that's continued ever since. Like many people from a certain generation, Arto had his young mind blown by films like Thrashin', Gleaming the Cube, and even Back to the Future's skate scenes, but it would be an old board left behind by his uncle that would end up changing his life forever. Although Seinajoki, Finland wasn't known for its abundance of skate-able terrain, Arto and his friends set about taking their skills to the next level by finding old warehouses that would make do as their own personal skate parks. Before long Arto began to attract global attention when he seemed to come out of no where at the world championships in Germany. That would lead to an invite to go on tour with Plan B, and the rest is history. Arto would end up living in southern California and form a life long relationship with Flip Skateboards and a successful career as a professional skateboarder becoming Thrasher's skater of year in 2001. During his career, he used his close proximity and friendships with many of the industries leading photographers and filmmakers to hone his own skills behind the camera and began to carve out a place for himself in a new profession that he was also passionate about. He continues to both skate and create beautiful photographs that attract both commercial clients and art buyers alike, and has since taken on the humbling task of learning to surf Hawaii's North Shore. During our conversation we talk about what made him leave Los Angeles and move to Hawaii, the intersection of skateboarding and photography, his love for Leica cameras, his photojournalist approach to skateboard photography, and the advice he gives to others coming up in the creative world.