NINE Island skaters are going to the Swedish city of Malmö in August to learn more about its celebrated skateboarding culture and history.
It is hoped that the trip – which has been funded by the Rivington Fund – will inspire and educate participants, providing motivation and ideas for Jersey’s skate parks.
The city of Malmö is famous for its skateboarding culture. It has a skateboarding high school – which uses the sport as a teaching tool – and a skate ambassador in its government.
Natalie Mayer, who organised the group’s funding application, said: ‘Malmö encouraged community skateboard projects from a variety of people,’ including skateboarders and people involved with the creative side of skateboarding.
The participants, who are aged between 14 and 30, are associated with the Skate Space charity. They include skateboarders, filmmakers, photographers and parents.
They plan to learn how skateboarders collaborated with the authorities to build skate parks and host events that make Malmö famous in the skate community.
The group will have the opportunity to take part in photography and filmmaking workshops at the Bryggeriet skateboarding high school, visit the city’s skate parks and meet professional skateboard filmmakers, photographers, and skateboarders.
They hope that the trip will provide inspiration for skateboarding and for Jersey’s public spaces.
The long-awaited Les Quennevais skate park opened earlier this year, while the government has said that construction work on a satellite skate park at South Hill could begin as early as next year.
Natalie Mayer, from the charity Skate Space, organised the group’s funding application.
She said: ‘Malmö has a reputation as a city that has supported the skateboard world for many years, encouraging a DIY skate build scene, creating nine skateparks dotted about the city, hosting exhibitions, competitions, film screenings and skateboard-centred academic conferences.
‘Not to mention, it is home to the Bryggeriet skateboard high school – which offers a traditional education taught through the medium of skateboarding, art, photo and film. We will visit all these goings-on, connect with locals from the art and film world, and hope to return inspired and full of ideas.’
