The most interesting art galleries – buy yourself a work of art.
We live in an era when, with the word “gallery”, we mainly associate shopping, this is especially true for the younger generation. Meanwhile, Zakopane – in this respect – stopped in the per-transformation period. Therefore, the city does not have a shopping gallery (in Poland shopping gallery it is the name for a shopping mall), but there are quite a lot – for such a small city – galleries dedicated to art. The offer is diverse – from traditional handicrafts and folk art, to completely contemporary creativity in its style. We will find here galleries which present works of many artists and those dedicated to one artist, where we can count on a meeting with the creator. We can only admire the exhibition or we can leave the content of the wallet in exchange for the only, the unique souvenir of staying under the Tatras. Autumn and winter are a particularly good time to look for original works of art in Zakopane. It’s worth visiting one of the galleries, or maybe all of them? Below is a list of the most interesting with short overviews.
PRIVATE GALLERIES
YAM Gallery is a place where you can find real pearls among works hung on the walls and standing on the floor which create a colorful mosaic. And it is nice to talk to the hosts.
Gallery of Contemporary Art YAM
ul. Krupowki 63; 34-500 Zakopane
tel: + 48 18 20 66 983, +48 18 20 63 063, mobile: +48 601 54 41 63
Opening hours:
Monday – Saturday: at 11.00 – 14.00 and 15.00 – 18.00
Gallery created by graduates of the Antoni Kenar Art School in Zakopane – Jaga Kozak and Anna Wojak. Their husbands help them in this endeavor. The gallery exhibits works by the most outstanding artists from Zakopane, Krakow and Warsaw. The creators from Belarus and Ukraine are also promoted here. In addition to contemporary art – painting, sculpture, graphics – we can find here folk wooden sculptures and glass paintings, which Podhale is famous for. All the works are available to purchase. It is worth going to the envisage for a unique atmosphere of meeting the best artists of Zakopane.
Entrance to the Yam Gallery is slightly hidden in the second building line, but it is worth finding.
Gallery of Antoni Rząsa
ul. Bogdanskiego 16a, 34-500 Zakopane,
tel. +48 18 206 69 69, mobile + 48 695 482 204
It’s best to call the owners before coming and check if they are present on-site.
Gallery created by Zakopanian artist Antoni Rząsa, today, after his death, in the hands of successive generations of the artistic family. The permanent exhibition includes wooden sculptures of the patrons of the gallery. In addition, there are workshops for families, where you can try your sculpting skills under the supervision of the owners and their friendly artists.
ORSKI Gallery
ul. W. Broniewskiego 4
34-500 Zakopane
phone: +48 18 20 17 171
ryszard@orski.net
opening hours: daily from 11.00 to 14.00 or by phone arrangement.
The author’s gallery of Ryszard Orski presents the entire artistic output of the sculptor, giving a picture of the development, evolution and improvement of his work. It is located next to the artist’s house, so it is possible to talk to him or his family. Sometimes the concerts are held in the gallery, for example during the Karol Szymanowski Days Festival and the Zakopane Academy of Art – apart from the unusual stage design, there is pretty good acoustics there.
unique paintings painted on glass in the Doctor’s House gallery
DOM DOKTORA (DOCTOR HOUSE) Modern Art Gallery
ul. Stanislawa Witkiewicza 19
34-500 Zakopane
+48 18 20 121 76
Opening hours: daily between 11.00 – 14.00 and 16.00 – 19.00, it is worth calling before and making sure that the landlady is present on-site.
A historic villa with history. A gallery run by Magda Kraszewska at the home of her grandfather, a doctor and social activist who rendered great contributions to Zakopane. In the House Museum are presented family memorabilia, medical tools from Kraszewski’s times and documents. The Gallery exhibits works by Zakopane and non-Zakopane artists, including foreign artists.
In addition to traditional painting, there is also a beautiful collection of glass paintings, drawings, jewelry, and you can even find music CDs of the most outstanding artists living in Podhale. There are also organized vernissages, book promotions and chamber concerts.
the piano at the Doctor’s House is sometimes used during concerts, e.g. on the first day of the New Year a famous Warsaw pianist Maria Gabrys performed a recital.
Gallery “Strug”
Antoni Kenar School of Arts
ul. Koscieliska 35
34-500 Zakopane
tel. +48 18 20 124 63
www.zsp-kenar.pl
The STRUG Gallery is located in the building of the Antoni Kenar School of Arts. The works of her pedagogues and students are presented there. It was created on the initiative of the current school director Stanislaw Cukier. The STRUG Gallery is a meeting place for art educators and students from art schools not only from Poland, but also from other countries. STRUG also hosts exhibitions of musical instruments accompanying the International Festival of Mountain Folklore and the International Festival of Chamber Music “Music on the Heights”.
“Mountains (im)perturbable”. Paintings and drawings by Aleksandra Rudzka-Miazga were presented during the exhibition accompanying the “Music on the Peaks” festival at the Doctor’s House.
Gallery of paintings of Wladyslaw Jarocki – Jan Kasprowicz Museum
Association of Friends of the Work of Jan Kasprowicz.
Museum of Jan Kasprowicz
ul. Harenda 12a
34-500 Zakopane
phone: 18 206 84 26
sptjk@interia.pl
opening hours: every day except Mondays, usually from 10.00 to 15:30
The gallery is located in a historic highlander’s house, which was owned by Jan Kasprowicz and his wife Maria. Wladyslaw Jarocki was the son-in-law of the poet, a painter who in his works he was particularly keen to show the beauty of the Hutsul people, their costumes and traditions. In the gallery, at the end of September, there is also an exhibition of paintings by the young artist Julia Tsapurak, who was inspired by his works. The event initiates a series of exhibitions entitled “Generations”, where the work of Wladyslaw Jarocki – a distinguished professor at the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow – will be confronted with the works of living artists having the same roots, derived from the Krakow University. The gallery is also worth visiting because of the Jan Kasprowicz Museum located in the same house – a place of extraordinary beauty and atmosphere, where members of the poet’s creative friends’ association cultivate the memory of him and his wife. The house inside looks inhabited, on the walls they hang, among others, the original portraits of the hosts painted by Witkacy’s hand, also stands the sculpture of Magdalena Abakanowicz. Outside you can rest on the veranda or a bench in the garden. It is also worth visiting an old wooden church with antique poly-chrome on the neighboring property.
Anna Markiewicz
This mirrored building next to the pond on Krupowki is a shopping gallery. Still unused and empty …
… but at the entrance, there is an open-air exhibition – currently passers-by can admire the photographic chronicle of the ten years of the festival “Music on the Peaks”.
Exhibitions dedicated to Zakopane artists are the opportunity to see works of several dozen artists connected with the city in one place.
The works of Ryszard Orski, borrowed from his own gallery, were hung during the group exhibition at the Municipal Art Gallery.
Painting on the glass in a miniature edition. The cross is composed of dozens of tiny, captivating with precision images. Similar, though not identical, of the same author, you can buy at the YAM Gallery.
Czerwony Dwor. In the newly restored interiors furniture, instruments and traditional glass paintings are perfectly displayed.
Municipal Art Gallery provides a very large exhibition space. And for organizing concerts as well – there are numerous musical events here.
