Craft Days exhibition – accompanying events

The programme of events accompanying the exhibition develops its main narrative, shifting the emphasis from the display towards debate, dialogue, and practice. Here, basketry – inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2025 – becomes a field of contemporary interpretations: from craft to design and critical reflection. Our guest speakers will present different perspectives: from the art world through fashion, museology, design research, and craft practice, creating a many-voiced narrative about material, form, tradition, and significance.

Thursday, 21 May, 5.30 pm
A conversation with artist Frances van Hasselt, moderated by Zuzanna Krzątała

Frances van Hasselt’s work, shown in the Craft Days exhibition, constitutes one of the key international counterpoints to the Polish tradition of basketry. The conversation with the artist will be moderated by Zuzanna Krzątała, editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar Polska. The discussion will focus on contemporary interpretations of craft, the relationship between material, form, and artistic narrative, and the ways in which weaving is employed today in the international art and design circuits.

Friday, 22 May, 12.00
Curator-led tour with Eleonora Bojanowska

Friday, 22 May, 5.30 pm
A conversation with Łucja Cieślar and Paulina Adamska, moderated by Basia Czyżewska

Łucja Cieślar and Paulina Adamska represent the Serfenta Association, which is the co-organiser of the Craft Days workshop programme. One of three Polish organisations accredited by UNESCO, Serfenta is working at the intersection of ethnographic research, education, and a sustainable model for the revival of craft. The discussion – moderated by Basia Czyżewska, deputy editor-in-chief of Vogue Polska Living – will focus on contemporary basketry practice, its social dimension, and the role of craft education in building an awareness of materials and tradition.

Saturday, 23 May, 2.30 pm
A lecture by Kamila Wagner on weaving in fashion

A lecture by Kamila Wagner, head of the features section at Vogue Polska, devoted to the presence of weaving motifs in the history of fashion and their contemporary reinterpretations. She will discuss the ways in which haute couture draws inspiration from craft and why global design trends return to natural structures and materials.

Saturday, 23 May, 4.00 pm
A conversation with Paweł Grabarczyk from the Władysław Wołkowski Museum in Olkusz, moderated by Hanna Rydlewska

Presented at the Craft Days exhibition, three works by Władysław Wołkowski, known as the “Michelangelo of wickerwork”, will be the starting point for a conversation between Hanna Rydlewska, editor-in-chief of Vogue Polska Living, and Paweł Grabarczyk from the Władysław Wołkowski Museum in Olkusz. The session will focus on Wołkowski’s place in the history of Polish design and the relevance of his work in the context of contemporary Polish design and more broadly, the current reinterpretations of his craftsmanship that demonstrate just how timeless his work remains.

Saturday, 23 May, 5.30 pm
A lecture by Dr Anna Feliks on the history of Polish basketry

Dr Anna Feliks, curator of the Museum of Interiors in Otwock Wielki, a branch of the National Museum in Warsaw, will discuss the history of basket weaving practice from traditional techniques to contemporary reinterpretations, highlighting its cultural, material, and identity-forming significance in the context of Polish craft.

Sunday, 24 May, 2.30 pm
A lecture by Marta Kowalewska on the work of Sheila Hicks

Sheila Hicks, whose work is presented in the Craft Days exhibition, is a key figure in contemporary textile art, redefining the relationship between material, scale, and space. Marta Kowalewska, chief curator of the Central Museum of Textiles in Łódź, will situate her artistic practice in the context of experiments with textile matter, also in the fields of sculpture and installation.

Sunday, 24 May, 4.00 pm
A lecture by Dr Krystyna Łuczak-Surówka on the work of Paweł Grunert

Two works by Paweł Grunert presented in the Craft Days exhibition provide an example of the dialogue between classic Polish design and a contemporary approach to craft. Dr Krystyna Łuczak-Surówka, an art historian and researcher of Polish design specialising in the history of design and its cultural contexts, will situate Grunert’s oeuvre within the history of Polish design, focusing on the role of material, construction, and precision of form in his artistic practice.

Admission to accompanying events, includingcurator-led tours, is free; entry passes can be downloaded from the exhibition website. Sign up for the event.

Workshops in collaboration with Serfenta

The Serfenta Association is the expert partner responsible for the presentation and interpretation of basketry at the Craft Days exhibition. As part of this collaboration, Serfenta instructors will lead workshops where participants will have the opportunity to learn about working with natural materials and the basic techniques of basket weaving.

The Serfenta Association, co-created by experts Paulina Adamska and Łucja Cieślar, operates at the intersection of research, workshop-based practice, and the dissemination of knowledge about intangible cultural heritage. It is one of Poland’s leading organisations dedicated to working with basketry as a contemporary practice, not as a “dying craft”, but as a living, dynamic cultural practice combining an anthropological perspective with craft practice and a contemporary approach to education.

Serfenta has received numerous international accolades, including the Europa Nostra Award and UNESCO accreditation.

Straw loops – a craft that helps you unwind

Saturday, 23 May, 1.00–4.00 pm

This craft workshop will introduce participants to the secrets of weaving rye straw using the loop technique. “Hands will work with fragrant materials while the mind takes a break from the daily bustle,” say the instructors, Paulina Adamska and Łucja Cieślar.

Price: PLN 390 per person

Bulrush, reed mace, cattail – weaving with a material from the lake bed

Sunday, 24 May, 1.00–4.00 pm

Once very popular and now almost forgotten, a uniquely Polish material. “We know its secrets and will share them during the workshop,” say the instructors, Paulina Adamska and Łucja Cieślar, who promise hands-on experiments: how far can it be twisted, and what can be woven from it?

Price: PLN 390 per person

Admission to the workshops is subject to a fee; tickets are available from the Serfenta Association website. serfenta.pl

Exhibition opening hours:

May 20, 2:00–7:00 p.m.

May 21–24, 11:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m.