Surfing lost one of its greatest innovators today, when legendary Hawaiian surfer Buttons Kaluhiokalani passed away from complications caused by cancer, aged 54.

Born Montgomery Ernest Thomas Kaluhiokalani (1958) in Honolulu, ‘Buttons’ will be forever remembered for his radical surfing, which hugely influenced the way future surfers approached a wave.

With surfing that was both spontaneous and innovative, the mark he left on modern wave riding is clear for everyone to see from the generations that followed him – including modern legends like Occy and Kelly Slater.

Interestingly, Buttons’ passing is exactly three years to the day that the surfing world lost another of its legends – Andy Irons.

Check out the video above to get an idea of the lines Buttons was drawing on waves in the 70’s.

Then read more about Buttons’ legend on the Encyclopedia of Surfing.