The second edition of "Osiedle dla Sztuki" took place in June and July 2023. The theme was "design, art, city." We focused on your favorite guided tours of the estate and workshop activities, in which we encouraged everyone from Wrocław interested in crafts, design, and applied arts to participate!

The event program was developed based on the results of evaluation surveys with the local community. Based on the research cards you completed, we prepared activities that were very popular. From June 7th to July 15th, we walked around the estate and participated in creative workshops on floristry, screen printing, and linocuts, and had portraits taken in a mobile photography studio.

photo: Marcin Szczygieł

During the second edition, we organised a total of 3 events at the Plac Grunwaldzki estate, in which we invited residents of Wrocław to participate, including:

• 1 family walk with Agata Iżykowska-Uszczyk (7.06);
• 1 audio-described walk with Ewa Pluta (15/07);
• 1 outdoor event at Irena Sendler Square, during which we organized, among others: linocut workshops, screen printing workshops, florist workshops, and a mobile photography studio (15/07).

„"Space, oh it's you!" – during this unique family walk, participants explored who else uses the same space as them. Who do they encounter on the street, at traffic lights? What are their needs? Is navigating Grunwaldzki Square easy for them? Do they encounter any difficulties? By answering these questions and learning about the area where Plac Grunwaldzki is currently located and the needs of the people who lived there a hundred, two hundred, or even five hundred years ago, they created a map of best practices to ensure everyone feels comfortable and safe exploring the estate.

photo: Marta Sobala

For the second time, under the guidance of Ewa Pluta, we set out to explore the nooks, stories, and urban legends associated with Grunwaldzki Square, with audio description. This time, we walked a circle around the northern side of the estate. Along the way, we passed, among other places, a building known as "Książka" (Book) and the famous bar under the Golden Column.

The 2023 Art Estate concluded with a pleasant Saturday afternoon dedicated to crafts, design, and applied arts in the green space of Irena Sendler Square in Grunwaldzki Square! We spent time together in an incredibly creative way! Under the guidance of the florist, we prepared floral arrangements in vases straight from the 1970s, when the Wrocław Flower Festival was in its heyday. During linocut workshops, we recreated patterns and ornaments found in public spaces and former German tenement houses in the estate, and we printed a replica of one of the most popular sculptures in Grunwald onto cotton bags. We also captured fleeting memories in a mobile portrait studio, and each participant was able to take home a photo souvenir. We unleashed our imaginations during two workshops, collage and nature prints, co-organized with students from the Academy of Fine Arts. Future designers spent time on creative games and animations.

photo: Marcin Szczygieł

Additionally, as part of the project, we conducted research and excavation activities related to the project's subject matter in the Plac Grunwaldzki housing estate and in Wrocław. As part of these activities, we conducted a survey and individual interviews with picnic participants on July 15th.

We asked those interested three questions, the first of which concerned the best cultural event in Wrocław they had participated in. Alongside the recurring responses about all sorts of walks, art and culinary workshops, and film festivals, including outdoor screenings, there were also isolated responses mentioning art exhibitions in various districts of Wrocław and a Harley-Davidson rally.

The second question allowed us to let our imaginations run wild, as we asked about our dream cultural event at the Plac Grunwaldzki estate. Here, again, creative workshops, whether ceramics or floristry, played a key role, as did walks, themes of which most often revolved around the flora and fauna of Grunwald. Recipients suggested dendrological, ornithological, and even invertebrate walks, among others. They also expressed interest in participating in neighborhood picnics, combined with a flea market or an item exchange, and organizing a neighborhood art exhibition.

photo: Marcin Szczygieł

What did participants enjoy most about the 2023 Art Estate? Most answered without hesitation – the neighborhood atmosphere and the floristry workshops. Other activities offered that day, including linocut and screen printing, also generated considerable interest. Time spent at the neighborhood table also featured prominently and featured prominently in many responses.

Those using the mobile portrait studio were also asked several questions. The first concerned their connection to the Plac Grunwaldzki housing estate. Most respondents were Grunwald residents. Some, if not residents of the area, often visit it for study or work, or because members of their families live there.

The second question focused on the recipients' dream cultural event. Here, again, suggestions were made for creative workshops and all sorts of bonding activities. Many expressed the need for intergenerational meetings that would allow them to get to know their neighbors and work together to care for Plac Grunwaldzki in a friendly atmosphere. There were also responses regarding a food-sharing initiative and organizing a city game to better understand the area they inhabit.

photo: Marcin Szczygieł

This year's edition of the Art Estate also featured successful collaborations with partners. The Katarynka Foundation for the Development of Audio Description ensured the inclusion of people with disabilities. The Student Government of the Eugeniusz Geppert Academy of Fine Arts in Wrocław prepared two creative workshops, and delicious refreshments were provided by fyrtel.market, El Gordito, and On Lemon. Thanks to an editor from Academic Radio LUZ, we were heard on the local radio station.

The „Osiedle dla Sztuki” project is being implemented by Fundacja Ładne Historie thanks to funding from the Municipality of Wrocław (www.wroclaw.pl).

Can art and design be our companions in everyday life? What role do they play in the public space of our neighborhoods, and how do they influence our well-being? Do they transform the reality around us and improve our quality of life, or are they merely supplements to our functioning in the city?

The idea of showcasing artistic activities within the Plac Grunwaldzki housing estate is no accident. Our first experience with the Grunwald community was organizing a neighborhood table in Irena Sendler Square, where you can still admire a remarkable mural, painted as a sign of friendship and a gift to Wrocław from Breda – our partner city in the Netherlands. It was this meeting that allowed us to meet the residents of the estate, whose warmth and openness made us fall in love with this part of Wrocław. Our fondness for murals, sculptures, and artistic objects in public spaces has remained with us to this day, and we pass the mural by Robin Nas every day on our way to our center.

photo: Marta Sobala

In 2022, we returned to the topic of art in public spaces, this time launching a pilot edition of the "Estate for Art" project. Our idea was simple: we wanted to engage residents of all ages in conversations and creative activities around art, and also create another programming axis that would also address people with disabilities and the newly arrived Ukrainian community in Wrocław.

photo: Marta Sobala

The first edition of "Osiedle dla Sztuki" (Estate for Art) was an opportunity for us to return to our roots – as a non-governmental organization, we began by promoting and popularizing culture and art. Our Foundation is largely comprised of individuals who developed their careers in the cultural sector, and the highly social dimension of our activities stems from the need to address the social problems and challenges we observe around us – primarily in the Plac Grunwaldzki estate, but also more broadly in Wrocław and Lower Silesia.

The public space of the estate can be a field for participatory artistic activities – in the case of our estate, primarily due to the lack of an art gallery operating here.

What happened during the pilot edition? As part of this project, we organized ten events for Wrocław residents, including:

• 2 family workshops led by Natalia Jerzak and Agata Iżykowska-Uszczyk.
• 2 family walks – including one with audio description and the other with translation into Polish Sign Language;
• 6 backyard animation events in selected quarters of the estate.

Additionally, as part of the project, we conducted research and excavation activities related to the project's theme and the presence of art and artistic activities within the Plac Grunwaldzki estate. As part of these activities, we conducted a survey of the local community and conducted individual interviews with residents during open events (including workshops conducted as part of the project and, additionally, during a neighborhood picnic on September 10th on the University of Wrocław campus).

photo: Marta Sobala