MNK Wyspiański

The National Museum in Kraków holds the world’s largest and most valuable collection of works by a brilliant artist, called the Fourth National Bard. It includes Wyspiański’s paintings, sketches, projects and artistic crafts made according to his projects. This magnificent collection of over 1,100 objects is complemented by personal memorabilia, the artist’s private book collection and archives – manuscripts and photographs.

The artist’s legacy was mostly donated or purchased for collection shortly after his death in November 1907, because the National Museum in Krakow was a natural place for collecting the works of the author of the Wedding [“Wesele”], and the then directorate, with the support of people from the literary and artistic world, planned to create a branch in honour of Stanisław Wyspiański. 

A committee formed for this purpose published a call to Polish society in many periodicals, urging a fundraising campaign to honor the deceased artist with a dedicated museum, “(…) where all artistic works, manuscripts, applied arts, etc., already held by the Museum or to be donated by individuals or institutions, would be collected as a whole (…)”.

The idea of creating a branch or exhibition of Wyspiański’s works in the permanent galleries of the National Museum returned, among others, in the 1930s. In the new building designed at that time at Aleja Mickiewicza, a stained-glass cartoon display was planned in the Stanisław Wyspiański Pantheon. After 1945, there were also projects to create a biographical museum in the artist’s apartments (in the Długosz House at 25 Kanonicza Street or the tenement house at 157 Krowoderska Street). Ultimately, the branch was established in 1983 at 9 Kanonicza Street. In 2004, it was moved to the Szołayski Tenement House at 9 Plac Szczepański.

The current Stanisław Wyspiański Museum is located in the Old Granary, a building constructed in the 18th century outside the city walls. Since the beginning of its existence, the building has performed various functions, including a granary, factory, shop, and the seat of the Association of Architects of the Republic of Poland. After 1945, it was taken over by the National Museum, becoming a warehouse of works of art for many years, and in 2013-2021, the ‘EUROPEUM’ – European Culture Centre.

The concept and arrangement of the current exhibition are determined by conservation guidelines and the adaptive possibilities of the historic Granary building. Pastel paintings on paper – a technique characteristic of Wyspiański – are very sensitive to environmental factors such as microclimate and pollution. They are classified as objects with a high degree of sensitivity to light.

Light affects the process of paper degradation, a decrease in the mechanical strength of works of art and their discolouration. In order to ensure the safety of the collections, the permanent exhibition has been adapted to the needs of these most sensitive objects. The selection of light intensity and exposure time is appropriate to the materials used by the artist. The permanent exhibition is presented in cyclical displays, showcasing a selection of characteristic examples of Wyspiański’s works. The rotation of exhibits makes it possible to show them to the public under conservation guidelines.