Poland's First National Museum of Contemporary Art, Beside Schindler's Factory

At a Glance

MOCAK (Museum of Contemporary Art in Kraków) sits in the post-industrial Zabłocie quarter. Opened in May 2011, it is Poland's first proper national museum of contemporary art—a long-awaited answer to the country's gap in public institutions for post-1989 art. The neighbouring building is Oskar Schindler's Emalia Factory, now a history museum.

A Minimal Conversion of a Welding Workshop

Italian architect Claudio Nardi with Warsaw's Leonardo Maria Proli kept the factory's saw-tooth roof and concrete envelope, inserting glass and steel only where required. Four thousand square metres of galleries, a bookshop, education space, and library sit on a single flowing floor.

Collection

• "Contemporary Poland", a chronological permanent display from the 1960s to today.
• Mirosław Bałka — memory-driven sculpture in ash, soap, sand.
• Sasnal, Kozyra, Libera — the core of Polish critical art from the 1990s.
• Paweł Althamer — life-size figures and public performance records.
• Ten to twelve thematic shows a year such as "Economy in Art" and "Gender in Art."
• Mediateka library on post-1960 Central European art, open to everyone.

Tips

Twenty-five minutes on foot from Kraków's Old Town, or tram 3/24 to Zabłocie. Around 20 PLN; free on Tuesdays. Plan 1.5–2.5 hours. Combine with the Schindler Factory next door for a history-plus-contemporary afternoon. Closed Mondays.