Cricoteka, Kraków

Cricoteka is Kraków’s museum and arts centre for the work of Tadeusz Kantor, set in the former Podgórze power station on Nadwiślańska Street. Founded in 1980, it preserves the legacy of Cricot 2 and presents Kantor’s theatre and visual art through exhibitions and scholarly events. Its current headquarters opened in 2014.

Cricoteka is the museum and arts centre devoted to Tadeusz Kantor, housed here at Nadwiślańska in the former Podgórze power station. Its home is itself part of the story: a place made for generating power now preserves and presents the work of an artist whose theatre deliberately unsettled expectations. The institution began in 1980 and for many years served two purposes at once: it was the base for Kantor’s Cricot 2 theatre and an archive for theatrical material.

After Kantor’s death, its central mission became sharing his achievements in both theatre and visual art, through exhibitions and scholarly meetings. Look along the building’s industrial fabric and its newer additions: Cricoteka brings an archive into the everyday life of the riverside district rather than keeping it hidden away. This Nadwiślańska headquarters opened in 2014, replacing the institution’s earlier Kraków base on Szczepańska Street. The building quickly received major Polish architecture prizes, including awards for the year’s best public building.