“A skiing and mountaineering museum will be established in Zakopane as the 13th branch of the Tatra Museum. For this purpose. a historic building will be purchased from the Zakopane Authorities”, announced Minister of Culture and National Heritage Piotr Gliński.

“There are still some highest-class monuments in Zakopane, for example related to the Young Poland period, and these monuments should be cared for by the Polish State. The Tatra Museum is the most recommended institution to take over the care of such historic places,” said Minister Gliński during his visit to the museum.

The head of the Ministry of Culture did not reveal which specific building had been selected and will be purchased for the future museum of skiing and mountaineering. It is also not yet known how much money will be needed to purchase the property.

“We are tough in negotiations, as we managed to buy the Czartoryski collection, so we will also deal with other challenges. Such a branch must be created here, and I am glad that we are moving in this regard”, Minister Gliński pointed out.

Tatra Museum is an institution co-managed by the Ministry of Culture and the Marshal’s Office of the Malopolska Region. Recently, all branches of the institution have been renovated, including the main building, and a 12th branch dedicated to World War II is under construction.

Minister Gliński’s visit to the Tatra Museum was also an opportunity to present two of the institution’s latest purchases – portraits by Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz – Witkacy. Tatra Museum’s director Anna Wende-Surmiak explained that the institution is gradually collecting portraits by Witkacy showing people associated with Zakopane and the Tatra Mountains.

The Zakopane museum will host two museum workers from Ukraine as part of a ministerial grant. The residency programme for museum professionals from Ukraine is carried out in many museums in Poland.

Arkadiusz Słomczyński