Poland's architecture scene is evolving from brutalism to brand new
In Poland, history and politics are played out in architecture. From the pre-Second World War bullet-marked apartment blocks, and the Communists’ functionalist ideas, to the office high-rises representing those early years of wild capitalism, it’s all there in the built environment.
Warsaw was almost entirely razed during the Second World War, so it’s the brutalist architecture that attracts visitors, says architect Grzegorz Mika, along with the modern avant garde, inter-war period, and the social realism of the 1950s and 1660s. ‘After the war, plans to redevelop the city centre were quite avant garde but in 1949, social realism was introduced and original ideas were abolished', he explains.
Nowadays, shiny corporate towers are still going up in empty plots – because, unlike some Western capitals, Warsaw still has bomb damage – while older areas, like the river bank, and heritage buildings are going through what the locals call ‘revitalisation’
That includes Defilad Square, in front of Stalin’s Palace of Culture and Science. Designed by Russian Lev Rudnev in the 1950s, the art deco complex was loathed for many years by the Poles, but it’s gradually finding favour and its 2,800-seat Congress Hall is now being renovated.
Few big-name internationals have done much in Warsaw, put off, says Mika, by low fees and complex bureaucracy. One exception is Polish-born Daniel Libeskind. His Złota 44 – at 52 storeys Europe’s tallest residential building – completed in 2017. Meanwhile Foster and Partners is working on Varso Tower with local firm HRA. Like Złota 44, it’s near the Palace of Culture. It is due to complete in 2020.
While the city is being developed, many architects bemoan the lack of urban planning and zoning. But among the chaos are gems of good design in the capital and beyond, and these endeavours are now bein supported by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, which promotes design and architecture. As the institute director Krzysztof Olendzki points out, Polish architects don’t only operate at home. ‘Canada, France, Italy, Germany, Africa – they’re everywhere'.
Sprzeczna 4 apartment building, Warsaw, by BBGK
In the four years since it was established, BBGK has grown to be 50-strong, making it one of the most successful ‘new generation’ firms. Co-founder Wojciech Kotecki is out to improve the image of prefabricated buildings. They had a bad name under socialism because of the poor quality of large-panel housing estates. But BBGK’s eight-storey apartment block Sprzeczna 4 was completed in 2017 from components made in Polish factories.
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Clare Dowdy is a London-based freelance design and architecture journalist who has written for titles including Wallpaper*, BBC, Monocle and the Financial Times. She’s the author of ‘Made In London: From Workshops to Factories’ and co-author of ‘Made in Ibiza: A Journey into the Creative Heart of the White Island’.
-
First look: Western Mongolia meets Kew Gardens in John Pawson and Oyuna Tserendorj’s cashmere throws
Architectural designer John Pawson and cashmere designer Oyuna Tserendor have collaborated on a cashmere throw collection inspired by Pawson’s 70m Lake Crossing in the Royal Botanical Gardens
By Scarlett Conlon Published
-
How to buy art: the accessible new market
Thanks to a growing pool of art advisers, digital intelligence and collector groups, buyers are better equipped than ever
By Annabel Keenan Published
-
The coolest design-led coffee shops in Seoul
Seoul counts more coffee shops per capita than any other city in the world – cut straight to our six must-visit spots
By Robert Schneider Published
-
The Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw reinterprets the ‘white box’ in Poland
The Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw opens its minimalist doors to a design by Thomas Phifer and Partners
By Bartosz Haduch Published
-
Gambit elevates the metal tube in this Polish HQ's 'surprising solution’
A Katowice-based architecture studio creates Gambit, a whimsical head office for a Polish plastic piping distributor
By Michael Webb Published
-
Escape to the country with this contemporary Polish farmhouse
BXB studio head Bogusław Barnaś and his team transform a Polish farmhouse into a 21st century rural home
By Ellie Stathaki Last updated
-
Memorial and community centre honour Jewish culture in Poland
Mark Holocaust Memorial Day (27 January) by exploring this recently completed exhibition and education centre by Krakow-based architecture firm NArchitekTURA
By Ellie Stathaki Last updated
-
KWK Promes unveils a house designed around its lush garden
We visit From the Garden House in Poland by architects KWK Promes, a home created from the outside in, taking its cues from the site's lush landscaping
By Ellie Stathaki Last updated
-
The buildings adding a new dimension to Miami’s skyline
As the Florida city’s architecture boom continues apace, here’s what’s next
By Jessica Klingelfuss Last updated
-
Landmark renovation projects and collective regeneration in Rotterdam
While Rotterdam is known for radical architecture and forward-thinking city planning, architects are finding ways to celebrate the city’s history too. Several landmark renovation projects have launched this year, and there’s an ever-growing interest in collective regeneration of city’s 20th century residential fabric led by a new generation of ambitious emerging architects
By Harriet Thorpe Last updated
-
Amsterdam’s progressive architecture scene sees the rise of HQs, hotels and new neighbourhoods
By Ellen Himelfarb Last updated