Pilecki's Museum

The overriding idea in designing the museum was to create a place of contemplation, where the past meets the present, creating a harmonious whole. A space was designed that allows the experience of catharsis by providing a provocative, stimulating background for the emotions experienced. A place where the mood is conducive to tranquility and focus on the exposition, as well as encouraging to enjoy the idyllic and magical atmosphere of a traditional Polish home garden.

The main identity element of the establishment is the preserved building – a landowner’s house – the family seat of Maria Pilecka. The basic design intention is to restore its original form and former splendor. The existing building, surrounded by greenery in the character of a traditional Polish country garden, will constitute its strongest accent. In this context, the new part of the museum, takes the form of a low garden pavilion with a farmyard, whose double elevation structure, thanks to the use of a deep arcade and wide glazing, dematerializes the boundary between the old and the new.

The new part of the museum was designed to blend into the green surroundings and contrast appropriately with the existing building. Through the use of natural gray limestone cladding, the pavilion is intended to become part of the garden and a graceful but neutral background for the existing building, without disturbing the perception of its historic form.

The massing of the new bydyn at the junction with the existing building duplicates its shape, acting as a natural extension of it. The extension, however, operates with a contemporary formal language appropriate to its time and purpose. It does not disturb the character or perception of the original Pileckis house, providing an unobtrusive background for it. Minimalist detailing and the neutrality of natural stone and concealed glass in the arcade as the dominant finishing materials, through subtle contrast, expose the qualities of the historic architecture, building a timeless, lasting character to the designed composition.

The architecture of the new part was designed to build tension and create an atmosphere suitable for the museum function. The main entrance leads to a hall covered with a glass roof, signaling the importance of the place. The skylight exposes and emphasizes the location of the exhibition’s “foyer” block at the junction with the existing house, the space of which is limited by solid walls and a multi-pitched roof. This is the only place in the new part of the building with no contact with the surroundings, where there is a unique silence and concentration, preparing viewers for contact with the exhibition.