Good news if you live in the UK and want to experience more Polish culture locally. For the next year cities all over Britain will participate in an initiative called Polska! Year. According to the organisers’ website,
The purpose of the Year is to bring communities of Poland and Great Britain closer by strengthening cultural relations, establishing new contacts between Polish and British artistic institutions, artists and organisers of cultural events.
Polska! Year is a joint initiative of the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the cultural programme of the Year is coordinated by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, which is responsible for the promotion of Polish culture abroad.
From Perth and Edinburgh to Bradford, Cardiff and London, Polska! Year will offer an opportunity to experience the finer aspects of the Polish culture – from the classical performances of Karol Szymanowski’s music to Tomasz Stańko’s jazz concert in Norwich. From the Wild Poland open-air photography exhibition on the South Bank in London to Kinoteka, the Polish film festival. From contemporary dance performances to the Symbolism in Poland and Britain exhibition at Tate Modern.
It actually sounds really exciting and I’m really hoping this will give people some exposure to the lesser-known aspects of Polish culture.
Hopefully I’ll be able to give you an update as soon as more events are announced, for now all current events are available from their website (in English, of course).
