Autumn is bringing a varied programme of exhibitions to Poznań, from unsettling paintings and contemporary street art to Japanese woodblock prints, local history and the natural world. Several shows are approaching their closing dates, while a new presentation at the National Museum will put the work of one of Poland’s most influential graphic designers in the spotlight.
For anyone looking to make the most of the coming weeks, here are the exhibitions worth adding to the calendar.
Last chance to see Beksiński in Poznań
The exhibition of works by Zdzisław Beksiński at Hala 1A of the Poznań International Fair, ul. Głogowska 18, closes on 18th October.
The display brings together nearly 120 original works, including 76 paintings, 30 photographs and 13 drawings. Beksiński is known for his distinctive, often disturbing imagery, which combines dreamlike landscapes, distorted forms and visions that resist straightforward interpretation.
The exhibition is open daily from 11:00 am to 7:00 pm, with tickets priced at 60 zł for a standard ticket and 45 zł for a reduced ticket.
Roman Cieślewicz arrives at the National Museum
On 16th October, the National Museum in Poznań will open a presentation of approximately 30 works by Roman Cieślewicz, running until 25th October. The launch also marks the arrival of a free online catalogue documenting more than 3,000 works and projects from his career.
The new presentation includes posters, graphic designs and collages, some not previously exhibited in Poland. The accompanying online catalogue will be available free in Polish and English from 16th October at cieslewicz.mnp.art.pl.
Contemporary art, from Rojber to Zbigniew Rogalski
Several smaller exhibitions offer a different perspective on the city’s contemporary art scene.
At Galeria Miejska Arsenał, Stupor presents paintings by Zbigniew Rogalski until 31st October. The exhibition explores how we see and interpret the world, including moments when looking no longer translates into conscious perception. In an interview ahead of the show, Rogalski described his interest in the tension between seeing something and mentally losing sight of it. Admission is free. The gallery is at Stary Rynek 6.
Another exhibition nearing its end is Process by Rojber, a Poznań artist associated with street art and graffiti. Running until 23rd October, the show centres on almost 60 drawings, accompanied by paintings that develop selected motifs on a larger scale.
Recognisable for his pink pig imagery and a palette of pink, black and white, Rojber uses the exhibition to explore a rougher, more instinctive visual language. The works reflect the process of making art without necessarily knowing where the first mark will lead. Admission is free.
At CK ZAMEK, meanwhile, Pakistani artist Qadir Jhatial’s River / درياھ continues until 25th October. Developed during an artistic residency in Poznań, the exhibition connects the Warta in Wielkopolska with the Indus in Pakistan’s Sindh region. Drawings, video and natural materials gathered along riverbanks explore water, memory, migration and the relationship between people and their environment. Admission is free.
Nature, Japanese prints and four centuries of art
Our previous coverage of The World as a Herbarium. Nature in Art from the 17th to the 21st Century highlighted one of the season’s major exhibitions at CK ZAMEK. It remains open until 6th December, bringing together artistic interpretations of nature across more than four centuries.
The selection ranges from botanical illustrations and herbarium traditions to contemporary installations, with artists including Maria Sibylla Merian, Stanisław Wyspiański, Leon Wyczółkowski and Salvador Dalí. Opening hours are 12:00 pm to 7:00 pm, Tuesday to Sunday. Tickets cost 30 zł, or 25 zł reduced.
For a different visual tradition, Japanese wave at the Museum of Applied Arts, Góra Przemysła 1, explores Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock prints from the National Museum’s collection. The exhibition runs until 15th November. Tickets cost 20 zł standard and 13 zł reduced.
The museum is also showing Anna Krzymańska. Medals and plaques, dedicated to the Poznań sculptor and medallist whose public works include the well-known peacock sculpture in Cytadela Park. The exhibition continues until 10th January.
Poza twarzą: Polish masters at Stary Browar
At Pop Culture Gallery in Stary Browar, Beyond the face brings together works from the collection of the Polish Society of Friends of Fine Arts in Kraków. The exhibition features paintings by some of Poland’s best-known artists, including Jan Matejko, Jacek Malczewski, Józef Mehoffer and Stanisław Wyspiański.
Running until 10th February 2027, the exhibition offers an opportunity to encounter works from different strands of Polish art in the contemporary setting of one of Poznań’s best-known shopping and cultural destinations.
The gallery is located inside Stary Browar at ul. Półwiejska 42. It is open from 12:00 am to 8:00 pm, Tuesday to Sunday, with tickets priced at 20 zł.
History, archaeology and the human body
Poznań’s autumn programme also includes exhibitions looking beyond painting and graphic design.
At the Archaeological Museum in the Górka Palace, ul. Wodna 27, Paths to the Past: 30 Years of Polish Emergency Archaeology presents finds recovered during archaeological investigations associated with construction and other investment projects. It runs until 8th November, with standard tickets at 15 zł and reduced tickets at 10 zł.
At Galeria Śluza, ul. Dziekańska 2, Everything was within reach. The history of the Rataje housing estates examines the development, architecture and everyday life of the Rataje housing estates. The exhibition runs until 28th February, and admission is free.
For those interested in the history of art, the National Museum’s centenary exhibition dedicated to its Cabinet of Prints and Drawings is open until 31st October. It offers a selection from one of the institution’s important collections of graphic art and drawing.
Leon Wyczółkowski is the subject of another exhibition, Wyczółkowski. Between Light and Silence, at the Archdiocesan Museum, Akademia Lubrańskiego, ul. Jana Lubrańskiego 1. The presentation continues until the end of January, with tickets priced at 50 zł.
Finally, Body Worlds Vital at Hala 1 of the Poznań International Fair explores human anatomy through more than 160 plastinated specimens. The exhibition runs until 31st December. Tickets cost 60 zł on weekdays and 70 zł at weekends.
