Where do artists like to live in Poland?

Poland has a few fine art schools, mostly in the major cities (Warszawa, Kraków, Wrocława) but I was wondering what the artist community was like and if there is any city in Poland that where artists (painters, writers, sculptors, etc) gravitate more to. I see Warsaw as more a financial centre and too expensive for someone trying to get by as a writer or painter (please correct me if I'm wrong in this observation). Krakow also isn't that cheap but I guess it also depends on the area of the city. I know moving to a village would be cheaper but you'll be a bit isolated and away from any arts community. Just as an example, I'm Canadian and surprisingly smaller cities like Winnipeg or Halifax have really thriving music and art scenes because the cost of living is cheaper than the big cities. Or is it more hip to move to a place like Berlin or Paris?

Kraków, Warsaw, Wrocław, Trójmiasto, Poznan and Katowice, approximaely in that order.


In Kraków, Nowa Huta and Podgórze, both very interesting neighborhoods, are the places favored by young artists now. Kazimierz has become rather trendy, and artists are moving on from there. In Wrocław, Śródmieście is the place for young artists. In Trójmiasto, Orłowo is the place for serious artists. Not cheap, but beautiful. In Katowice, old, "scenic" neighborhoods like Nikiszowiec are popular among artists.


Au contraire. Thriving artist communities in the smaller cities, especially in Kazimierz Dolny and £owicz. Other good places are Cieszyn and Jelenia Góra. A lot of artists seek out quiet villages, especially in Bieszczady, Suwałszczyzna, Kaszuby and Ziemia Kłodzka. I have an artist friend who lives in Wisła, which on the map, and in real life, looks pretty isolated (but gorgeous), but has excellent transport connections, including a direct express train to Katowice and Warsaw.


Lots of better places than that for younger artists on a budget. Dresden Neustadt, for example, has a fantastic art scene. The festival there in June is a must-do.

I think in Summer they gravitate towards Kazimierz Dolny

There's a very large building across the river in Warsaw, city owned, which is rented out as cheap artists' studios.

+1

You may have a problem finding a studio or place to live, KD is not cheap. May be better to find a place in Pulawy and sell your wares in KD. There would also be a need to speak Polish.

Thanks all for the very interesting and informative info!

Also aware of KD as an artsy destination, but yeah the impression I had was that it was a bit more on the expensive side. Thanks for the list of smaller towns. As a Canadian I forget how close villages or towns are in Europe and that travel isn't as big an issue so a smaller place would also work. I would need to explore Krakow more since I found it to be very touristy (someone I was travelling with who is Polish said it was like Disneyland, selling a tourist's vision of Poland). Kazimierz is lovely and I can see the appeal for artists.

Hope to check out the suggestions in the New Year as soon a the consulate here can process my Citizenship paperwork :)

And did this person explained why he/she thought so?
Kraków is not selling a tourist's vision of Poland. It is selling itself, as the ancient and preserved capital of Poland.
Comparing it to Dysneyland...I find that a degrading comment.

I didn't ask for further clarification since as a tourist myself I didn't want to challenge an off-hand remark by someone who lives in Poland. Who knows. I can only speculate that she had her reasons (maybe wishing for less tourists in the area?). I usually live and let live instead of jumping on anyone who may have a point of view.

Ok that's understandable. Perhaps she was from Warsaw, that would explain it :)

That's funny you say that since I personally LOVED Warszawa and yet so many seem to hate it. She is from Lublin so maybe it was just an off-hand comment and with my poor Polish she wanted to use an English sounding example. Always fun to hear all the different opinions of Poland -- both good and bad -- as they just paint an more vivid picture of an amazing country.

Well, there is long-standing antagonism between Kraków and Warsaw...

Warsaw is now officially, capital of the Arts in Poland.

Art scene in Lubliń is worth checking out.

Thanks! Lublin is on my list of places to visit next trip to Poland as my family is from close by. I read that Lublin was a candidate for the title of European Capital of Culture, but lost to Wrocław. They also seem to have a lot of art galleries so I am guessing the art scene is quite active.

So what do you want from your art, a place to sell it or a place to do it? I live in Lublin and it is fine for me, but I have not been trying to sell anything much.

Houses mostly, there are a few renegades who are cave dwellers, but for the most part, definitely houses.

Wroclaw. I attended a couple Art events/festivals when I was there

Lodz seems to be having an emerging creative scene.

Here's a little overview on a travel website.

as well as some large scale murals (something like Berlin's)
huffingtonpost.com/jaime-rojo-steven-harrington/large-murals-transform-lodz_b_3428241.html

also a Trailer to a documentary about two cities (Detroit and Lodz) and how creative energy is being implemented to reinvent these dying (if not dead) former industrial centers: youtube.com/watch?v=xSpel1mCAlM

I apologize if the trailer to the Documentary isn't very insightful, but I assure you that the documentary as a whole is. The Lodz portion of this film gives insight to what the creative scene is like and shows the many inventive uses of the former hallowed shells of the factories that once housed Lodz's prosperous textile industry (i.e. hotels, restaurant, galleries, artist studios). "After the Factory" currently isn't available (to my knowledge) as it's still in circulation among independent film festivals. I do believe once it's released on DVD it'll definitely be available online somewhere and if not I will upload it to youtube myself once my copy arrives in the mail as a gift for my $35 contribution to the production (via crowd funding). When this happens I'll be sure to post a link on PF if anyone is interested.

this was a great and useful post by the way. I too am looking to move to Poland. I am looking for a developing arts community with a view to buying a property and running my vintage events lighting business from it. Can any one please update on some cool/inexpensive places to live?

Hi thanks for this thread! i am looking to move to poland in the summer and would love to find an artistic creative community there. I love music theatre and visual arts and always gravitate to creative people. any new insights on would would be considered and 'artsy city' in Poland? thanks!

Warsaw certainly, especially Stara Praga where there are plenty of artists' studios. Have a look at Kazimierz Dolny too - there's a small artists' community and many more who travel there on summer weekends to sell paintings.