CHICAGO — The city’s tight-knit skateboarding and photography scenes are in mourning after 22-year-old Elias Kim, whose raw, soulful images of Chicago street life were already turning heads, died Saturday in a tragic accident.
Police say Elias was filming a night skate session with friends near the Wilson Skatepark in Uptown when he stepped backward off a low concrete ledge to frame a trick. He landed awkwardly, struck his head on the pavement, and never regained consciousness. Paramedics rushed him to Illinois Masonic, where he was pronounced dead shortly after arrival.
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Friends who witnessed the fall say it was a routine move Elias had done hundreds of times—only this time the landing went wrong.
Within hours, #EliasKim began trending locally as skaters, photographers, and galleries flooded social media with his work: grainy black-and-whites of kids bombing hills in Pilsen, golden-hour portraits at the Lakefront Trail, slow-shutter shots that turned ollies into streaks of light and motion.
“He saw beauty where the rest of us just saw concrete,” said longtime friend and fellow photographer Maya Torres. “Every photo felt like he was saying, ‘Look closer—there’s magic here.’”
Elias had just landed his first paid gallery showing scheduled for February at Vertical Gallery in Wicker Park. The owner announced Monday the exhibit will go on as planned, now titled “Forever 22 – The Vision of Elias Kim,” with all proceeds going to his family.
A GoFundMe launched by the Chicago skate collective 4Ply raised over $62,000 in 24 hours to cover medical and memorial costs.
Tonight at 8 p.m., hundreds are expected to gather under the Wilson red line tracks for a mass skate and candlelight memorial. Skaters are asked to bring boards; photographers, prints of their favorite Elias shot.
“Turn the lights off at the skatepark and you could still see his smile in the dark,” one friend posted. “That light doesn’t go out.”
Rest easy, Elias. The city will keep rolling for you. 🖤📷🛹