Keith Hufnagel, legendary skateboarder and founder of streetwear brand HUF, has passed away at the age of 46 after a two-and-a-half-year battle with brain cancer.

"We are absolutely heartbroken to deliver the news today that HUF founder Keith Hufnagel has passed away," HUF said in a statement issued yesterday. "Keith battled brain cancer for the past 2.5 years. And though he beat the odds and fought back much longer than his diagnosis permitted, he ultimately and unfortunately lost the fight."

Before founding streetwear brand HUF in 2002, Hufnagel helped trail blaze the East Coast skate scene in the '90s. “Keith loved skateboarding and the culture around it,” the brand said. “He did things his way and did them for the right reasons. He inspired so many of us across the globe.”

A pioneer of streetwear and skate culture, Hufnagel simply wanted to create cool products. “We all do these things differently just as we would being a skateboarder,” he told Highsnobiety in 2019. “We all have different styles. We have different goals. Some people just want to eat, some people want to be popular, some people want to be rich, and some people just want to make cool products.”

The news of Hufnagel's passing has been met with heartbreak. Many across the skate and streetwear industries — and beyond — have taken the time to pay their respects to the fallen icon. You can read some of the tributes below.