Ed Templeton

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Ed Templeton (born July 28, 1972 in Orange County, California) is a professional skateboarder who resides in Huntington Beach, California. ^[1]

Ed started skateboarding in 1985 in his hometown of Huntington Beach, California, with his friend Jason Lee. He turned pro for New Deal Skateboards in 1990. ^[1] He left New Deal in 1992 to start the short-lived company "TV" with Mike Vallely. ^[2] In 1993, Ed founded Toy Machine skateboards. ^[1]

Outside of skateboarding, Ed is an artist and photographer. He began by painting the graphics for his skateboard company, Toy Machine. In 2000, Ed's book of photography Teenage Smokers placed first in the Search For Art competition in Italy, winning $50,000. In the fall of 2001, Ed's artwork was featured in Juxtapoz magazine. ^[2]

Ed has been a vegan since 1990/91[1]stating "Once you read about the meat and dairy industry and the things they do, it is hard to keep supporting them. I didn't want to partake in the killing of animals or spend my money on the whole system." He is an advocate for animal rights. ^[3]

Ed Templeton is a featured artist of "Beautiful Losers", a touring art exhibit, collected art book and feature documentary film, which includes the work of various contemporary artists. ^[4] A lot of the art included in Beautiful Losers provides skateboarding and other urban themes. Templeton and some members of the Toy Machine team skated on ramps (and even a car) setup at the base of the Cincinnati Contemporary Art Center in the summer of 2003 for the temporary showcase of Beautiful Losers. Ed Templeton is also an interviewee and his work and career one of the subjects of the Beautiful Losers film.

He is currently working on a book, to be titled Deformer (also the title of a 1996 documentary film about Templeton directed by Mike Mills). The book will chronicle his childhood growing up in Orange County, California. ^[5]

He is also a co-editor of the arts magazine, ANP Quarterly, started in 2005.