Fulfill the Dream by Magdalena Wosinska
© Magdalena Wosinska Courtesy of Fahey Klein Gallery, Los Angeles
‘Fulfill the Dream’ is a documentary photobook by Polish photographer Magdalena Wosinska that captures the American skate culture of the ‘90s through color and black-and-white snapshots. The scene’s energy, creativity, and rebellious spirit influenced fashion, music and artistic expression, shaping a generation of American underground youth. The book features Chad Muska, Austyn Gillette, Jim Greco, Harold Hunter, Ed Templeton, Eric Ellington, Ali Boulala, and many other influential skaters. Beyond the book’s broader examination of American skate subculture, Wosinska’s project is a deeply personal journey through her teenage years and an exploration of what it means to be a misfit in a world of misfits. She presents some of her first photographs, taken at the age of 14.
Austyn Gillette, Frontside Flip, Highland Park, CA, 2016_© Magdalena Wosinska, courtesy of Fahey Klein Gallery, Los Angeles.JPG
Wosinska’s visual diary captures the duality that has shaped her life: the joy and exhilaration of skateboarding alongside meaningful human connection and the adrenaline-fueled world of drugs, a first love, prejudice, a deep need to find a place of belonging and struggles with mental health. Shortly after immigrating to the U.S. from communist Poland in 1991, Wosinska’s coping mechanism for culture shock was her camera. It became her passport to a world ruled by boys, and a language for fitting in and forming heartfelt friendships in the skate community. Through raw, visceral portraits and self-portraits created in juxtaposition to the male-dominated scene, she captured the now-famous teen spirit of the ‘90s, reflecting the ever-shifting balance between the highs and lows of belonging and the essence of years of making dreams come true as a skate photographer through perseverance, diligence, and hard work. Alongside the teenage angst of the era, the project explores themes of resilience, female empowerment and the relentless pursuit of goals. ‘
© Magdalena Wosinska Courtesy of Fahey Klein Gallery, Los Angeles
Fulfill the Dream will launch in the US at Magdalena Wosinska’s overview exhibition with Fahey/Klein Gallery in Los Angeles, which was launched on April 18th; the show will run until June 1st .
Cowboy Josh, Kickflip, Mesa, AZ, 2000_© Magdalena Wosinska, courtesy of FaheyKlein Gallery, Los Angeles.jpg
304 pages, 240 x 285 mm Section-sewn quarter-bound, hardcover Designed by Tom & George McQueen Published by Homecoming Gallery Publish date March 2024 Ships from Europe Press.
© Magdalena Wosinska Courtesy of Fahey Klein Gallery, Los Angeles
For more information about this title and the exhibition, please visit the Fahey/Klein Gallery’s website. Magdalena's exhibition has also been showcased in the magazine and can be visited here. Magdalena’s interview with the magazine can also be found here.
