Well-educated and internationally appreciated – Polish architects of the young generation do not lose ground to their foreign counterparts. What is more, very often they are responsible for creating global trends.
The modern architecture market has been dynamically developing in Poland, with projects prepared by Polish design studios receiving recognition and awards all over the world. Therefore, it is worth taking a closer look at the works of the young generation of architects and finding who is responsible for the success of Polish design.
Naturally, innovatively
NArchitekTURA is a combination of two words: nature and architecture. This interdisciplinary project team was established in 2009 in Kraków by Bartosz Haduch. A year later, the prestigious “Wallpaper” magazine placed it on the list of the 30 most interesting new design studios in the world. Haduch (born in 1978), a graduate of the Silesian University of Technology in Gliwice, achieved his first international award in his third year of studies, by winning in the contest for the design of an Embassy of Europe. He has also published well-received publications, including two monographs on contemporary architecture. NArchitekTURA, of which he is the founder, combines urban planning, design, landscape design and architecture. Of particular importance is the relation between the last one with nature. Among the many innovative designs of the studio, especially worth a mention is the Apartment of the Future in Dobrodzień. Its minimalistic interior with furnishings fully controlled online is a kind of a research laboratory that inspires to develop and independently create trends .NArchitekTURA, of which he is the founder, combines urban planning, design, landscape design and architecture.
City as an organism
Aleksandra Wasilkowska (born in 1978) gives special attention to urban space, which she treats as a place where the imposed order clashes with social chaos. She studied at Warsaw University of Technology and Ecole d’Architecture de Bretagne. Her works have been presented at the famous Guggenheim Museum in New York. Her “Architecture of Shadow” project is dedicated to investigate objects “functioning on the brink of attention”.
The photos of bazaars, marketplaces and public toilets, enriched with interviews with everyday heroes can be seen at shadowarchitecture.org, created in cooperation with Inna Przestrzeń Foundation. The architectural design studio of Aleksandra Wasilkowska is responsible for, among others, revalorization of Bakalarska Market, one of the largest marketplaces in the capital.
Houses of imagination
Bogusław Barnaś is a graduate of Cracow University of Technology and Fachhochschule Münster. He has gained his experience at, among others, British Make Architects design studio. In 2009, he set up BXBstudio in Kraków. In 2014, “Wallpaper” honoured him with the title of “one of the 20 most promising architects in the world”. In his work, he is interested in the relationship between a man and nature, as well as the impact of this relationship on the surrounding space. He combines tradition with modern technological developments. Barnaś devotes considerable space to Polish wooden architecture, and has even referred to it in one of his projects – Polish House. For his other work – the Korean House – the architect was awarded a World Architecture Community Award.
Innovative solutions
Born in artistic family from Warszawa (his great-grandfather was a director of the National Museum, and father helped to restore the Old City), Maciej Jakub Zawadzki (born in 1983), as early as at the age of 29, was awarded by “Wallpaper” a prize for one of the best diploma works in the world. The original building of the Miami Pier Museum of Latin American Immigrants was inspired by, among others, hurricanes occurring in this part of the US. After graduating from Warsaw University of Technology and Sint-Lucas School of Architecture in Brussels,
he continued his practice in design studios in Denmark and the Netherlands.In 2013, he became the CEO of MJZ Architects, and won the main audience award for the concept of a bridge connecting the two most important districts of Atlanta two years later. “Green City Spectator” project gives the bridge an additional function of a park, and thus crossing to the other side allows pedestrians and cyclists to interact with each other.
