200 works, mostly art, but also projects and products of artistic craftsmanship, personal mementos, manuscripts and photographs – Wyspiański’s legacy can finally be seen in the museum dedicated to the artist. The new branch of the National Museum in Krakow was established in the building of the former granary at Plac Sikorskiego 6. – This is a unique moment to see Wyspiański in an intimate, personal, and intimate way, says Andrzej Szczerski – “We can see up close how the most famous projects were created, how the artist created graphic and design works. We will also see Wyspiański here – the artist of the interior”.
A museum dedicated to Wyspiański
For years, the museum announced in Krakow, which is to be created with Wyspiański in mind, is still a foggy future, the priority of the NMK in the coming years is the renovation of the Main Building. For now, the works of the author of “Wesele” will be presented at 6 Sikorskiego Square. On 3 levels of the Wyspiański Museum, which was established there, there are 200 works by the artist.
We put Wyspiański in a building whose rooms are smaller than large museum rooms, thanks to which we bring out other values of his work, which can be seen especially in the spaces devoted to his graphic works or portraits, images of Krakow, where we can see that Wyspiański looks great in intimate interiors. It is a model of a museum-artist’s house, where we are closer to the artist than in large gallery spaces.
Prof. Andrzej Szczerski, director of the National Museum in Krakow
Wyspiański‘s collection open to the wide public to enjoy!
Wyspiański’s library and his graphic works are displayed in the basement. There is also a multimedia stand where you will be able to see the cataloged entire Wyspiański collection owned by the National Museum in Krakow. In the next room, you will find the theatrical costumes of Wyspiański’s project from the NMK collection, you can also see fragments of famous theater and film productions of his plays – this part of the underground focuses on Wyspiański’s theatrical work.
Self-portraits, images of the closest family and friends, views of the studio, landscapes spreading from the studio’s windows are presented on the ground floor of the building.
Religion and nature-focused works take the main stage!
The main part of the exhibition is the first floor, where the 3 most important themes in Wyspiański’s work are presented: religion and nature-focused on works from the Franciscan church, antiquities related to the works for the Medical Society, and Wawel and history organized around Wawel projects and national symbolism.
An important element of the whole is the courtyard, where theatrical performances or recitations of Wyspiański’s works will be presented in the future, as well as works of contemporary art inspired by Wyspiański.
You will have to come back to this place, because the exhibition will change every year – for conservation reasons, we cannot show all of Wyspiański’s works all the time. Each year we will present around two hundred works. The first change will take place in 2023.
Prof. Andrzej Szczerski, director of the National Museum in Krakow
The largest paintings made in the oil technique, which are more resistant to light, or those that will be partially covered during the exhibition, in accordance with the conservation requirements, will be permanently exhibited.
I don’t know about you, but I love Wyspiański’s work and definitely, this museum is on my list 😉
The Nights of Museums are events in which the inhabitants of Kraków have been willing to participate for years. Last year’s night sightseeing was foiled by a pandemic, this year the Night of Museums will take place, but in a different formula than before. Queues standing late at night to see the museum collections, that is something that we will definitely not see.
When will it happen?
The 17th Night of Museums is scheduled for Friday, May 21, and 37 institutions will take part in it, while the tour will be hybrid, some institutions will invite visitors to their premises, others will only make museum spaces available online. This year’s sightseeing night will take place during the day, during the museum’s regular opening hours, some institutions, such as the Museum of Municipal Engineering, the Polish Aviation Museum, or the Museum of the Academy of Fine Arts, have announced that they will extend their working hours.
This year: no free tours – symbolic fee
This year, most museums do not provide free tours on Museum Night, admission to most of them is paid, although in many institutions it will be a symbolic fee. In addition, all museums require prior registration and reservations, they are available on the websites of institutions participating in the Night of Museums.
The program includes permanent and temporary exhibitions, making available unique places that are normally inaccessible to visitors, as well as special attractions: workshops, multimedia presentations, shows and guided tours.
What will you be able to see?
“All the king’s tapestries. Returns 2021–1961–1921 “, Crown Treasury,” Eastern Art. Turkish tents “,” Cranach at Wawel “, Smocza, Ogrody – (paid PLN 1 for each exhibition) are waiting for visitors at Wawel
The Princes Czartoryski Museum, open after renovation, has prepared a temporary exhibition” Royal Portraits – Vases “
Contemporary Art Gallery” Bunkier Sztuki ” ”Proposes a new exhibition dedicated to the memory of Krzysztof Penderecki,“ Score and Garden. Music in the face of the image, the garden in the face of music “(admission fee 2 PLN) available in its temporary seat on the Main Market Square 20.
In turn, the International Cultural Center invites you to the newly opened exhibition” Not only Bauhaus. Interwar German photography and Polish traces ”.
Until the evening hours, you will be able to visit the greenhouses and the Museum of the Botanical Garden in which they are located. incl. 19th and 20th century teaching aids for learning botany (admission PLN 1).
In the Garden of Experiences Stanisław Lem, which on that day will be open until At 10 pm, in the evening, there are planned element burning shows (“Colorful Flames”) and visualization of the sound wave with gas flames.
Online you can go to the Stary Theater Museum and the Jagiellonian University Museum Collegium Maius.
Newly added to the collection…
For the first time, the Museum Night will be attended by the newly established Museum – KL Plaszow Memorial Site in Krakow. German Nazi labor and concentration camps (1942–1945) (in organization), which invites you to thematic tours around KL Plaszow.
The detailed program of the 17th Night of Museums is available on the website krakowskienoce.pl
The first weekend of museums and galleries after lockdown is ahead of us. Krakow institutions invite you to their branches, extend temporary exhibitions and tempt you with cheaper tickets.
We invite you to permanent galleries and to ongoing temporary exhibitions. In May, we will open to the public the new Permanent Gallery of Ancient Art at the Arsenal, which has just been completed.
director of the National Museum in Krakow, prof. Andrzej Szczerski
The MNK (National Museum of Krakow) extends 2 temporary exhibitions
Until May 16, the experimental exhibition “The Power of the Museum” will be available in the Main Building. There, in only one of the exhibition rooms, 104 objects from several eras have been collected. Most importantly, you can smell, touch, watch in a different light or to the sounds of music and see how the perception of works of art changes under the influence of stimuli and information.
Without going far, you can once again visit the exhibition “Architecture as Music of Space”. This is the 2nd temporary exhibition extended by the MNK, open in winter at the former Cracovia Hotel. The exhibition presents large-format photos showing five unique concert halls in Europe. The nature of their interiors can be seen in the photos printed in 3D technology.
Cheaper tickets between 7th and 9th of May!!!
It is also worth visiting the Szołayski House at Szczepański Square, where the exhibition ‘Aleksander Kotsis. Shades of realism‘ reside. This is a story about one of the most important Polish painters of the mid-nineteenth century. The exhibition covers 2 floors, where we can admire landscapes and portraits by Kotsis as well as photographs of the artist’s lost works and works of socialist realists inspired by the painter’s work. The exhibition will be open until June 13.
The museum also encourages visitors with promotions. On the first weekend after opening, between May 7 and 9, tickets to all branches will be cheaper by half.
MOCAK: exhibitions and tours
The MOCAK Museum of Contemporary Art in Krakow has also prepared a gift for visitors. Together with the Przekrój quarterly, it prepared a brochure, a reprint of a fragment of Szpilki from 1976, a crossword puzzle, drawings by Marian Eile, and a poster with a reproduction of the artist’s work. The gift can be collected with each purchased ticket.
Tickets can be purchased for permanent and temporary exhibitions, among which the “Final Song” by Paweł Althamer and Artur Żmijewski will be available for the shortest time – until May 23. Until 30 May, you will also be able to see the exhibitions “Artists from Krakow. Generation 1950-1969” and “Marian Eile Artist and Editor”, “Dialogue with space” and “Contemporary models of realism” will remain for longer.
Additionally, MOCAK invites you to mini-guided tours every Wednesday at 12 noon. You can join these short meetings around selected works of art at the exhibition or watch a live broadcast on MOCAK’s Facebook. On the other hand, every Friday, between 15:00 and 16:00, the representatives of the Museum will talk about the activities of the institution and will visit people asking questions.
Krzysztof Penderecki’s score and garden
Meanwhile, the second Krakow facility presenting contemporary art offers an exhibition devoted to the memory of Krzysztof Penderecki. In Bunkier Sztuki, temporarily located at 20 Rynek Główny, the exhibition “Score and garden. Music against the image, garden against music” was opened on 4 May. Visitors to the Gallery will see, among other things, private sketches – called by Maria Anna Potocka as prepartures – and drawing concepts for the garden, portraits of Krzysztof Penderecki by Beata Stankiewicz, Marcin Maciejowski, and Bartek Materka, and photographs of Marian Eili.
New exhibitions at the Krakow Museum
Also new after the reopening of museums and galleries in the open-air exhibition “Museum in the neighborhood – Prądnik Biały”. From 5 to 30 May, in the green surroundings of Dworek Białoprądnicki, you can see an exhibition about Prądnik Biały and the identity of its inhabitants. “The exhibition is to be an opportunity to reflect on the identity of the inhabitants of Prądnik and whether the rich history of this space is a sufficient bond for the creation of a contemporary local community” – the organizers explain.
Oskar Schindler’s Enamel Factory has a new temporary exhibition!
The Krakow Museum has opened yet another completely new temporary exhibition – “Separation – Search. The wartime fate of Krakow citizens”. It is available from May 5, 2021, in the Oskar Schindler’s Enamel Factory. The exhibition consists of six parts and tells from the individual perspective of the inhabitants of Krakow about the tragic events of World War II. Both those who left the city when the war broke out and those who moved there later tell about the war experiences. Their journey to Krakow sometimes took years and led across several continents.
In turn, in the House under the Cross at ul. Szpitalna, the exhibition “In Chocholim Taniec” is available again, presenting a synthesis of the history of subsequent directors’ interpretations of the drama and social reactions to the performances, at the same time proposing a reflection on how Poles saw and showed themselves in the mirror of this drama.
Exhibitions on both sides of the Vistula
On the occasion of weekend walks, it is worth visiting Wawel, where you can see the Wawel tapestries again. “All tapestries of the king. Returns 2021–1961–1921″ is the only display in the history of the Jagiellonian residence of the entire preserved collection in the interiors for which the tapestries were created. Permanent exhibitions, including Representative Royal Chambers, are also open to visitors. As the director of the Wawel museum announces, the official and ceremonial opening of the Wawel has also been planned and it is to take place between 20 and 23 May.
Wawel misses its visitors and waits for them every day. We are ready to accept them with the WAWEL program. RENEWAL – it is a ceremonial re-opening of the Castle after lockdown in a truly Renaissance style
prof. Andrzej Betlej, director of the Wawel Royal Castle
As part of this event, in addition to exhibitions, meetings with visitors in a unique setting, a publishing fair, as well as meetings for families with children are planned. On the occasion of 20 and 21, the exhibition “All tapestries of the king” can be visited with a ticket for only 1zloty!
Manggha Museum has also something up their sleeve 😉
On the other side of the Vistula, the exhibition “Botanical Searches” at the Manggha Museum of Japanese Art and Technology, which runs until September, features works by contemporary artists presenting the phenomenon of contemporary European and Japanese botanical art. An exhibition devoted to the work of Maria Sibylla Merian, the entomologist who first formulated, illustrated, and documented the appearance of living insects and their four-stage development cycle, is open until June. The Museum now also houses the exhibitions “Paradise 101” and “The End of the World 2011”, movingly referring to the tragedy in Japan 10 years ago.
“Women about Women” under this slogan, selected exhibitions with curators can be visited at the branches of the National Museum in Krakow. The Women’s Day event will take place on Sunday, March 7. Advance terms apply.
National Museum in Krakow is celebrating Women’s Day
The National Museum in Krakow will celebrate Women’s Day with a series of special tours of selected exhibitions. The curators of the exhibitions will tell about female themes and important female figures in the works of Wyspiański and Szymanowski, and about the female painter Olga Boznańska.
Due to sanitary restrictions, the guided tour takes place in small groups – prior reservation is required. Participation in the guided tour costs PLN 1.
Available tours for the 7th of March 2021
“Portraits of Wyspiański’s Women” hours. 11.00, Main Building of the NMK, Wyspiański. Studio space Magdalena Laskowska (1 group of 5 people, collection before entering the exhibition)
“The power of the Museum” h. 13.00, Main Building Anna Grzelak (1 group of 5 people, collection before entering the exhibition)
“Olga Boznańska. Woman-painter “ hours. 11.00, Gallery of 19th-Century Polish Art in Sukiennice Urszula Kozakowska-Zaucha (1 group of 5 people, collection at the “Girl with chrysanthemums”)
“Women’s Collection” hours. 11.00, The Princes Czartoryski Museum Agnieszka Widacka (1 group of 5 people, collection in the courtyard)
Jadwiga Mehofferowa, the artist’s wife. Sketch of a portrait “ hours. 11.00, Józef Mehoffer’s House Beata Studziżba-Kubalska (1 group of 5 people, collection in the hall)
“The more beautiful side of the coin. Images of women on coins and medals” hours. 11.00, Museum of Emeryka Hutten-Czapskiego Agnieszka Smołucha-Sładkowska (1 group of 5 people, collection in the hall)
“Maria Czapska, Josephine daughter, granddaughter Elizabeth – about women with family Czapskich” h. 14.30 and 15.15, Józef Czapski Pavilion Agnieszka Kosińska (2 groups of 5 people, collection on the 2nd floor)
“Angelic Hansel – the story of Jan Matejko, modelkach models and” h. 12.00, House of Jan Matejko Marta Kłak-Ambrożkiewicz (1 group of 5 people, meeting in the hall)
“Stanisława, Leonia, Natalia. Women in the life of Karol Szymanowski “ hours. 11.00, Karol Szymanowski Museum in ATMA villa in Zakopane Agnieszka Gąsienica-Giewont (1 group of 5 people, collection at the ticket office)
Details for the sessions
The event is organized in branches of the National Museum in Krakow and implemented in the sanitary regime:
groups of 5 people + guides (the leader and all participants of the meeting are required to disinfect their hands, cover their mouth and nose and keep a distance)
participation in the guided tour for PLN 1
A limited number of seats, reservations required. If the ticket is not purchased up to 15 minutes before the event, the booking will be canceled and the ticket can be re-purchased at the ticket office. It is possible to buy a ticket on the spot at the ticket office, subject to the availability of free places.
How can I get a spot?
Reservation through the Information and Reservation Center of the National Museum in Krakow, e-mail: rezerw@mnk.pl or tel. 12 433 57 44 (9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. on weekdays)
Reservations at the “Atma” branch by phone at 18 20 20040 or by e-mail at agiewont@mnk.pl
A year under COVID 19 – Coronavirus, what have you done?
Over the month of October, residents can bring souvenirs from the pandemic period to the Krakow Museum, which will be included in an exhibition presenting the year of life of the city and its inhabitants during the pandemic. The people of Krakow can also share their stories about the lockdown and pandemic. The exhibition consisting of souvenirs will be presented next spring.
Unprecedented times under Coronavirus
When this spring pandemic locked us in our homes, an unprecedented image of Krakow and its inhabitants were created – empty streets that had so far been teeming with life even at night, ordinary everyday objects that took on new meaning, words of encouragement presented in the city space, with time on the faces “Homemade” masks and helmets appeared on passers-by – today an ordinary item that should be remembered when entering a shop or a tram, which only a few months ago was in the possession of a few.
Documenting the Outbreak of COVID19
The Museum of Krakow wants to document this special period by creating an exhibition of such souvenirs of residents telling about the “pandemic” Krakow.
“Since April, we have been asking you, Cracovians, for all souvenirs and stories documenting the pandemic, which will later be used in the creation of the exhibition! During the lockdown, our branches were closed for 2 months, but now – with your health and safety in mind, we are able to start our campaign to collect items related to the pandemic!” – informs the Museum of Krakow.
Where will the Expo be held?
The exhibition of the collected exhibits – souvenirs will be held in March 2021 in the Hipolit House as a kind of chronicle of the plague. What will we see on it?
“We have a promised diary that a resident of Krakow keeps from the first day of the pandemic. This particular journal is still being written, so it will only come to us. The exhibition will also include notes by Łukasz Orbitowski, which the writer was keeping at that time, and one of the sculptors from Krakow will donate the sculpture” – lists Krzysztof Haczewski from the Krakow Museum. “The director of the Krakow Museum handed over a helmet made of a PET bottle with his own hands, there will be one of the masks that employees prepared during the lockdown for Nursing Home, we have Vistula masks and a record of home training of Wisła and Cracovia players, and even a jacket made for the needs of the pandemic. We are waiting for all items related to this period, bringing the story of a pandemic”.
Collecting time is on!!!
The mementos of the pandemic period will be collected by the Museum of Krakow until October 23, 2020. Bearing in mind the safety of Krakow residents who want to support the museum with “pandemic” items, in order to deliver them, please contact the museum by e-mail in advance (artefakty@muzeumkrakowa.pl) to arrange a convenient the date for their submission.
In addition to material traces of the pandemic period, the Museum of Krakow also collects stories from Krakow residents about this special period. They should be sent by e-mail to m.zdeb@muzeumkrakowa.pl
Click here to read the Polish version from Gazeta Krakowska.
No matter where you come from if you ever visited Kraków and if you ever saw photos from the city, there are 2 landmarks that this magical place is the most connected to Wawel Castle and the Sukiennice (EN: Cloth Hall). Every resident of the city knows it but might you also know its history?
The term Sukiennice refers to the trade of textiles and fabric, which is why it is also called Kraków’s Cloth Hall. Right now, it is daily visited by thousands of locals and tourists, that just pass through Old Town Kraków or that want to just stay still and enjoy the view. Being one of the biggest tourist attractions in Kraków, you can surely spend some more time on it, buying some souvenirs or enjoying a lemonade at Cafe Szal (on the 1st floor – trust me, the view is WORTH IT!).
Sukiennice – its beginnings and the great fire!
The history of Sukiennice (EN: Cloth Hall) begins with the history of Kraków in the mid-13th century. Part of the process of establishing Kraków was to indicate the place where the most important thing for the city would take place: trading goods. Therefore, a rectangular area was marked out in the middle of the Market Square for stalls in two rows, closed on the shorter sides with bars. Prince Bolesław the Chaste promised to build stalls for the people to sell their goods and he stuck to his word!
This place/area was turned into a brick building in the times of Casimir the Great. In the 14th century, he approved to make it into a real, Gothic market building made of red brick. Fast-forwarding to 2 centuries later: Sukiennice was destroyed by fire and only a few parts survived.
Its Renaissance form, known to all, with a characteristic attic and unique architectural details, is the result of a reconstruction in the 16th century and renovation in the 19th century. The Sukiennice is surrounded by arcades on all sides – giving it an unique look and being the top location to take very Instagram friendly photos. Inside the Sukiennice there is a vaulted ceiling and there are crests of Poland’s cities on the walls.
Not all the original Sukiennice pieces remain
To be noted that before the aforementioned renovation, the Sukiennice had outbuildings that do not exist today, which in the middle of the penultimate century were, like many Kraków buildings, in a deplorable condition. Hence, it was decided to demolish them and restore the Cloth Hall. In addition, it was decided that on the first floor, in a place where various kinds of trinkets were sold in the past centuries, the National Museum will be located.
The branch of the National Museum of Kraków holds the largest permanent exhibit of 19th-century Polish painting and sculpture, in 4 grand exhibition halls arranged by historical period and the theme extending into an entire artistic epoch. It is definitely worth your time and money!
The Sukiennice (Cloth Hall) today
So what does the Cloth Hall look like today? What is its function?
It is difficult to answer with one sentence because its function is multiple. Currently, it is the seat of branches of 2 museums – the Gallery of 19th-Century Polish Art of the National Museum of Kraków and the Underground Market Museum. Sukiennice (EN: Cloth Hall) also has stalls, souvenir shops, restaurants, including one of the icons of Krakow’s café life, the Noworolski Cafe.
It is also a living lesson in history and art because we can see, for example, a symbol of the Magdeburg Law, which was used in Kraków in the past. You can also find out where torches illuminating the darkness in the past centuries were put out (hint: check the side of the Sukiennice, as you enter – a set of small holes in the side).
After more than three months, the people of Krakow and tourists can visit the Princes Czartoryski Museum again. As of today, June 30, the unique collection together with the Lady and the Ermine Leonardo da Vinci is now open to the public.
The Palace of the Princes Czartoryski Museum is the last branch of the National Museum in Krakow (NMK) that has opened up after the break caused by the Coronavirus pandemic. There, the ‘youngest’ permanent exhibition presented by the NMK is presented – in its current shape, it can be seen only from December 20, 2019. From the opening to March 11, it was seen by over 46,000. people.
Visitors of the Palace are attracted to the historical Czartoryski collection, collected since the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries, which contains both masterpieces of painting – for example, the “Lady with an Ermine” by Leonardo da Vinci and “Landscape with the Good Samaritan” by Rembrandt or paintings by Jan Matejko (national painter), as well as numerous memorabilia – priceless historical souvenirs, and testimonies of the past Polish and European culture. Due to the high interest and the limited number of people who can be in the museum at the same time, the number of tickets for each day is limited. They are available for a specific date and time, which is why the best solution is their earlier online purchase or e-mail booking.
The NMK Main Building is also reopened from 30 June 2020. At the beginning the exhibition “Miracle of light. Medieval stained glass windows in Poland ”, while permanent exhibitions will be open to visitors from July 4.
Current visiting hours:
Tuesday to Sunday – 10:00 to 17:00
Regulations for visitors:
covering of nose and mouth while inside the museum
disinfecting hands
keeping the 2 meter distance from other people
I hope you get to visit the Czartoryski Museum. If you do, let me know how you liked it 🙂
Yours truly,
The Twisted Red LadyBug That Loves NMK (National Museum of Krakow)
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