Santa Monica Twins Tandem Skimboarding, c.1930s — Archival California Surf Photograph

This photograph from the Surfing Cowboys archive captures the Santa Monica twins performing an extraordinary feat of balance and coordination, riding a single wooden Alaia-style board in tandem along the shoreline. Skimming takes precision; doing it side by side on one board makes the image all the more remarkable — a testament to both their bond and their skill. Photographed in Santa Monica in the 1930s, the scene offers a rare glimpse of early Southern California beach and board culture, long before surfing became an industry. The open shoreline, wet-sand reflections and spare black-and-white composition give the image a timeless quality that feels as good in a contemporary interior as it does in a collection of California surf history. According to the history accompanying the photograph in our archive, the twins both went on to live past 100 — adding another wonderful chapter to an already memorable California story. This offering is a contemporary archival print made from the historic c.1930s photograph, professionally printed on acid-free archival-quality paper and presented in a clean white wood frame with white matting.