BMX and punk are two things I have been involved with for many years, long before I ever picked up a camera.
When I was putting this book together, the photographs reminded me of what it was like to be a teenager: the fire inside, the restlessness, the drudgery, the boredom & monotony of school; tearing around on my bike at night listening to Dag Nasty on my walkman, and the batteries dying on the way home.
I got into BMX growing up in the culturally numb suburbs of Northern Ireland in the early 90’s. At the time it was considered totally ‘uncool’. BMX had had its hey-day in the 80’s and in most people’s eyes the ‘craze’ was officially dead. The fact that we rode bikes clearly marked my friends and I out as ‘losers’.
While others were in the pub or at home passively watching T.V. we were out blasting around on our bikes or going to punk shows. Bands such as Gray Matter, The Descendents, Fugazi, and Naked Raygun guided me through those teenage years. They eased the drama of being young and somewhat directionless. They gave me strength, inspired me, and to some degree kept me sane. The perfect antidote to the mainstream bullshit that otherwise surrounded us.
Some people would say that these activities are part of a subculture or counterculture. To me it just felt right.
Fast forward about 6 or so years to when I eventually got a camera. Everything that I had been into suddenly took on new meaning once I had the new-found ability to document what I was seeing. It was as if some sort of trip switch went off inside of me.
Something was set in motion, the fuse was lit. My only regret was that I hadn’t picked up a camera sooner.
The following photographs reflect that same attitude, people who have a different way of looking at their environment.
It’s not a book about ‘BMX’ or a book about (for lack of a better word) ‘punk’. It’s a collection of photographs of people who do their own thing their own way and live life from the heart, no matter what the consequences.
They say the heart rules the mind. It’s the only way to live my life...
- Ricky Adam
http://www.rickyadamphoto.com/
