60 Years of the Białowieża Open-Air Painting Workshops
Vernisage: January 24, 2025, 4:00 PM
The Białowieża Open-Air Painting Workshops are among the most important artistic phenomena associated with Podlasie – both due to their history and the unique atmosphere of creative coexistence. Their idea was born in 1964 among the Białystok artists, at the initiative of the painter Jerzy Lengiewicz. Mikołaj Wołkowycki’s proposal to locate the workshop in Białowieża linked the event to a place that particularly fosters contemplation, work, and direct contact with nature.
The first Open-Air Workshops, held from 1965 to 1980, quickly gained the status of one of the most important artistic gatherings in the country and, thanks to the presence of artists from many European countries and Japan, also international significance. It was a time of intense exchange of experiences, long conversations, shared life, and creation; A time when art arose from mindful contact with nature and others. Although the event ceased to be a regular event after martial law, its first phase—concluded in 2000—left a lasting mark on the history of Polish open-air workshops.
After a nearly quarter-century hiatus, the Open-Air Workshop returned to Białowieża in 2023, now organized by the MARCHAND Foundation. The contemporary edition continues the original goals: integrating artists, exchanging experiences, and building community through art. While retaining the spirit of past meetings, it also opens up to new sensibilities, techniques, and perspectives.
This exhibition is a dialogue between the past and present, presented by juxtaposing works by participants from the historic Open-Air Workshops with paintings created during the last meeting in October 2025. It is a story of continuity and change, of the constant presence of nature as a source of inspiration, and of the creative power of a community that—despite the passage of time—still manages to create a space for authentic experience and artistic development.
Janusz Żabiuk and Jerzy Hermanowicz
Exhibition Curators
Vernisage: January 24, 4:00 PM, OiFP Exhibition Hall – admission by invitation only – to collect your invitations, please visit the OiFP ticket office from January 15, 2026, during opening hours.
The number of invitations has already been reached.
The exhibition runs from January 25 – February 26, 2026 – ticket: PLN 10
At the vernisage will perfrom Anna Karolska, vocalist, songwriter, and co-author of music.
She has performed at festivals such as Jestem, Kobiety Wschodu, Białystok pełen muzyki. She won two “Blue Microphones” awards from Polish Radio Białystok (Jury and Audience) in March 2025. Her debut album W drodze, is a fusion of jazz and pop. The artist is working on another album featuring electronic music and indie pop.
