Grey Area – FIFI
Words by Axel Lindquist
When skating around the world it’s easy to get the sense that the skate scene is one. We are skaters first, and whatever respective nationality second. Yet it’s certain that your skateboard-saga started somewhere particular, in specific formative conditions. While some grew up waiting out the sun because it’s too hot outside, others sat eagerly waiting for it to show up in the first place. Some learned to prepare for a waxed ledge at the plaza, others taught themselves to brace their legs to roll away on cobblestone. And was there a community around? Did that community focus on events or DIYs? Did anyone make money from skateboarding as a professional or running that indoor park? The different local climates of the respective scenes will, in one way or another affect the skater, offering unique flavours; that is, each scene’s unique terroir. Regardless of where the board might later take you.
Kickflip, Warsaw. Photo: Kuba Baczkowski.
In recent years, Poland has stood out as an especially flourishing scene in an otherwise often overlooked (or underrepresented) region of Europe. But it took a while. The first skate shop, Street Style, opened in ‘89-’90, and they got both a domestic video magazine, Info Mag, and their first Polish skateboard brand, Capitol skateboards, in ‘97. Yet it was first with the ever ingenious group of skaters and videos from Grey Area that Poland sealed a place in the minds of skaters elsewhere, representing the distinctive essence of spots and skaters from Eastern Europe. One of the sprouts of this flourishing scene is Filip Dziewicki, aka Fifi. As a Polish local recently picked up by both New Balance and Element, and being a part of the now honourable Grey Area crew, he’s proof that there is something special in the local soil. Yet things are rarely as glossy as they seem from the outside. From a Nordic experience, no matter how many great skaters are fostered through long indoor winters, you still only wish for sun.
So while it’s been said it’s a bad idea to ask a fish to explain water, having the chance to interview Fifi, I figured it’s a good chance to take the temp on the Polish skate scene and hear about it from someone who knows it inside out.
Backside nosegrind, Warsaw. Photo: Kuba Baczkowski.
Fifi grew up in Kielce, a small city with just short of 200,000 residents, located between Warsaw and Kraków. Kielce is found in the oldest mountain range in Poland, with the mountain called “Łysica”, standing roughly 612 metres above sea level. There is also the Łysa Góra, which translates to bald mountain. Now this is not me highlighting these rather specific details, but Fifi, when asked where he’s from.
“The legend says that at the top of the mountain, the witches were assembling for the sabbath. Now there is a monastery with relics of the holy cross. A fun fact: this place was included in the Witcher 3 game in the form of a quest. In general, I really love my city. It is surrounded by beautiful nature, and it’s rather peaceful. I would say it has some great spots, but I’m biased towards my beloved hometown.”
It was in Kielce that Fifi started skating fifteen years ago. Back then, he also dwelled in sports, but in 2014, he left the local handball team and decided to focus on skateboarding.
“I mean, at first, I was inspired by some kids from my school hanging out and skating in my neighbourhood. Also, there were a bunch of older dudes who skated. Once in a while, they passed me on the street, and I can clearly remember the 360 flip that one guy did, which was remarkable to me. Also, how swiftly he moved through the street sparked my attention as well. I wanted to be like that for sure. Back then, there were many people skating in my hometown, but I feel like it has slowly been declining from that time on, unfortunately. Still, there are some good friends of mine to whom I send my best wishes.
Later on, after I got into skateboarding a little bit, I started watching skate videos. At first, I really liked to watch Polish skate videos; I could identify with them more easier. Videos like Grey Area, Problem or Easy Livin’ were the foundation of my skateboarding understanding, and to this day I still watch those videos. Not long after those videos, I encountered In Search of the Miraculous. The video is pure art, and I just simply love it. Michał Juras´ and Eniz Fazliov both have great parts in it, so I’m even more delighted that I can skate with those rippers now.”
Smith grind to firecracker, Berlin. Photo: Joel Peck.
In 2019, Fifi moved to Warsaw and has lived there ever since. The stated motive was to study American Studies at the University of Warsaw, but with the capital being five times the size of Kielce, and having a tenfold population, it offered a lot more than higher education.
“When I moved to Warsaw, I already knew Krzysztof Poskrobko, who was always my big inspiration and mentor for many years. He was my first sponsor throughout Filharmonia skateboarding. Sadly, the company did not survive. I would say it was one of the best Polish skateboarding companies. Kris (Poskrobko) introduced me to Krzysztof Godek, a great, passionate filmer. We immediately started filming a part for his movie If You Don’t Skate, Don’t Start, which was my first project out of Warsaw. Also, Mateusz Matczak, owner of the local skate shop SH Store, made it clear that when I move to Warsaw, he is going to sponsor me. It’s a great place to meet up with friends before the skate voyage through the Warsaw streets. And it’s also a place to grab Free skate magazines. So it was really no-brainer for me to take that offer.”
And the studies?
“The studies were in English, so it was kind of natural for me to choose that because I always liked English at school. I was also interested in the United States in general because it’s the birthplace of the thing that brought us here today. I had some lectures about utopias in America. Although the main thing that I learned about them is that they are not really achievable, and usually, most of them collapse after a while. I had a course on photography, and I explored some beautiful works. One of them was “A Period of Juvenile Prosperity” by Mike Brodie. It showcased Mike’s journey by the free means of transport throughout America. The project brings a great sense of freedom; it really encourages the viewer to explore the world. In general, I enjoyed the studies, but I think I would enjoy them even more now. Also, during that time COVID hit, so one year of my studies was really pointless to me because of all the lockdowns.”
Frontside 50-50, to backside 180 out, Warsaw. Photo: Kuba Baczkowski.
After his studies finished, Fifi stayed in Warsaw.
“I really adore Warsaw. It’s a great place to be. It’s a beautiful city with a horrible past. 70% (more or less) of the city fabric was destroyed during the Second World War. Sometimes I watch videos showcasing Warsaw before the war and try to imagine how it might have been. However, the city got up from its knees and flourished greatly. The constant growth of the city is present, and that contributes to the emergence of spots on a daily basis. The city is for sure the best city to skate in all of Poland. But don’t be misled, it’s going to be rough from time to time. The people here are not always pleased with skateboarding. But it’s like this, 10 people pass by with smiling faces, however, there needs to be only one upset person to ruin the session, and that is usually the case. However, I think it’s worth trying, always, no matter what. I always tell them to call the police and leave me alone. Police don’t really mind that; usually, it gives you like 30 minutes to skate some more.
In case of some mellow skate sessions, I usually skate at Iglica. It’s a relatively new spot next to the Palace of Culture. In general, that area has lots of possibilities to skate and film. It’s for sure the best location to skate without problems from the pedestrian side, though it still may occur.
In the wintertime, I try to skate outside whenever I can. When it’s above zero degrees, it’s still alright. The indoor skateparks in Warsaw are a bit weird, and I don’t really feel like skating them that much. Like once or twice a week at Woodpark, but it takes me an hour to get there. Last winter I started climbing at the bouldering gym with my girlfriend Agnieszka.
It became our passion for sure. During winter, I go climbing with her like two times a week. It’s a really fun activity, and it makes you stronger. I also stretch a lot before climbing and do a workout afterwards. I think it prepares me for the skate season in a good way. They also have some cafes there with some crazy good Basque cheesecake.
Warsaw is rather flat, so I usually look for some new spots by bike. Occasionally, I use Google Maps to check some spots, but most often, they need a double check. I also watch some videos of Warsaw streets and try to come up with some fresh ideas. My friend Kuba Kaczmarczyk (Grey Area), aka Toyboy, who also filmed this upcoming project, came up with lots of ideas for tricks for me to do. He knows my skateboarding well and helps with ideas to a great extent.
360 flip, Berlin. PHoto: Rafal Wojnowski.
I really like that in filmers, when they know how to engage the skater with something interesting that they come up with. Kuba is also a great fixer of spots. He made countless spots skateable, for which I’m really grateful. He’s incredibly passionate about skateboarding. It’s good to have such people around. I would say the Warsaw scene is very welcoming, and it’s quite easy to get some skate companions. However, I do not think it’s exclusive to Warsaw. Skateboarding tends to be very welcoming wherever I go.
I mean, places like Albania or North Macedonia don’t have so much in common with the Polish skate scene. However, there are a couple of skaters in Skopje whom we met, and there’s even a skate shop, so the North Macedonian skate scene is for sure bigger than that of Albania.
Pole-jam, Berlin, Ph: Joel Peck.
My favourite Grey Area trip is probably the Skopje one. We have been there twice, and both times it was dope. There is a great restaurant called Skopski Merak, and I could come back to Skopje just for this restaurant. We also experienced some great hospitality by Eniz’s family. His brother Sadri is a real legend. He drove us around Skopje, buying snacks and encouraging skaters to do their tricks. We were also invited to a dinner prepared by Eniz’s mother, and it was so delicious that I’m never going to forget it.
In Tirana, we did not encounter a single skater. However, some kids were really interested in what we were doing. They immediately grabbed our skateboards and tried to ride down the hill. I think they need a precursor to introduce them to the world of skateboarding.
Back in Poland, my personal favourite kids right now are Franek Rutkowski, aka Croksik, and Nelly Zarzycka. They both have a sick style and a good bag of tricks.I can’t wait and see what they are going to become in the future. I’m pretty sure they are going to get more recognition. So if you are reading this, kids, never give up and keep on skating.
In the case of Poland, in comparison to places like Spain, I think the scene is still smaller, but it’s strong for sure. The Polish environment produces some raw skaters that adapt well to the Polish streets. In Poland, nice ledges rarely occur outside the skatepark, with some exceptions in bigger cities, of course. In general, most of the spots really need lots of work to make them skateable, but they also have their charm. But Spain, I love it so much, it’s always nice there. Probably I’m gonna go to Barcy soon, like almost every year in the wintertime.”
Kickflip, Warsaw. Photo: Kuba Baczkowski.
So the best part of the Polish skate scene is that you can go elsewhere? No, that’s not the point. In his bachelor’s thesis, ‘Performative Side of Skateboarding: a Way to Express Oneself’, we find something else. Fifi writes in the conclusion:
“Skaters tend to be resistant towards societal norms and expectations… Everyone is free to do it on their own terms, and there is not a determined way to ride the skateboard.”
That is, while we can acknowledge our local circumstances shaping us, we probably do best in redefining our surroundings rather than letting our surroundings define us. In that sense, the skate scene is united. Yet only the Polish terroir can pride itself with fostering the specific phenomenal skater that is Fifi.
The rest of us can only remain grateful to the mountains of Kielce and the rough streets of Warsaw,
and the scene the skaters have built together over there.
Backside 180 kickflip, Warsaw. Ph. Kuba Baczkowski
