The Minister of Culture awarded the Gold Medal for Merit to Culture Gloria Artis to Andrzej Grabowski “for his outstanding creative achievements”. The distinction was presented by Bartłomiej Sienkiewicz on Saturday after the premiere of “The Wedding” by Stanisław Wyspiański, directed by Maja Kleczewska, on the stage of the Słowacki Theater in Krakow.
On this occasion, Minister Bartłomiej Sienkiewicz announced that Kraków will have a second national stage.
“Kraków will have a second national stage. We intend to co-run the J. Słowacki Theater in Krakow. Formally, we have been prepared for a long time, but we want the agreement to be concluded after the elections, with the new regional council, and not with the one who wanted to destroy it. Thank you for your work , resilience and kindness. As the Minister of Culture, I am always with you – on the side of culture and artists,” Sienkiewicz said from the stage.
When receiving the distinction, Andrzej Grabowski admitted that he received the medal in 2020, but he did not want to accept it then. Now, after the change in the position of Minister of Culture and National Heritage, the actor has changed his mind.
Andrzej Grabowski is a theater, television, film and dubbing actor, cabaret artist, singer, screenwriter and director. He received his education at the Kraków State Theater School, graduating in 1974. Since then, he has been associated with the Theater. Juliusz Słowacki in Krakow. He was a member of the Artistic Ensemble of the Theater. Ludwik Solski in Tarnów and the Stary Theater in Krakow.
He made his debut in front of the camera as a student in Wojciech Marczewski’s series “Departures, Returns” (1972), but he had to wait for his first major cinema role until 1989, when he appeared in Feliks Falk’s film “Capital, or How to Make Money in Poland”. In the following years, we saw him in “Death like a slice of bread” by Kazimierz Kutz, “Szabla od komendant” by Jan Jakub Kolski and “Kochaj i rób co wyou” by Robert Gliński.
Grabowski’s next important role was the role of Andrzej Jurewicz in the series “Boża podszewka” (1997) directed by Izabella Cywińska. He also played in “With Fire and Sword” by Jerzy Hoffman (a drunk nobleman in the Pilawce camp), “Like a Drug” by Barbara Sass (an uncle from London) and “Superproduction” by Juliusz Machulski (gangster Andrzej G.).
Grabowski gained particular popularity with the role of Ferdynand Kiepski in the television comedy series “Świat dla Kiepskich” broadcast on Polsat in the years 1999-2005. After a one-year break, the series returned to the air and was included in Polsat’s schedule until 2022. “Some people will probably find it hard to believe, but I consider this sitcom to be an intelligent production that perfectly shows our vices in a completely absurd way. However, I understand someone who thinks that this is entertainment at the lowest possible level,” Grabowski admitted in an interview with the magazine “This and that”.
Only in 2021, as many as ten screen productions with his participation premiered. We watched Andrzej Grabowski in the second part of the Netflix horror “No one will fall asleep in the forest today” (Sergeant Waldemar Gwizdała), he also appeared in “Republic of Children” by Jan Jakub Kolski (angel Rafał) and “The Second Half” by Marian Liński, editor-in-chief of “Wydarzeń Sportowe” “). He also created expressive roles in the Netflix hit “How I Loved a Gangster” (rugby coach, later a salesman at the Lechia Gdańsk stadium), “Pitbull” by Patryk Vega (Jacek Goc “Gebels”) and the series “Pajęczyna” (Edward Gierek).
However, his best, semi-autobiographical role was in the film “Songs about Love”, in which he played the role of the outstanding theater actor Andrzej Jaroszyński, who is increasingly criticized for flattering popular tastes.