A little-known Polish collection from Kyiv has arrived in Kraków
There are just a few weeks left to see a collection of Polish art that has spent much of its history outside Poland.
“Roots and Sky. The Polish Chapter in the Collection of the Kyiv National Art Gallery” is currently on display in the Malarnia hall of the Gallery of 19th-Century Polish Art in Kraków’s Sukiennice. The exhibition brings together works by nine Polish painters from the collection of the Kyiv National Art Gallery, many of which have not previously been shown to a wider audience in Poland.
The exhibition opened in June and continues until 18 October 2026, making September and the first half of October the final opportunity to see the works in Kraków.
The project is the result of cooperation between the National Museum in Kraków and the Kyiv National Art Gallery. Together, the two institutions selected works spanning more than a century of Polish painting, from the early Romantic period through to the interwar years.
Nine Polish painters, one Kyiv collection
The exhibition features works by:
Aleksander Orłowski (1777–1832)
Henryk Siemiradzki (1843–1902)
Wilhelm Kotarbiński (1848–1921)
Stefan Bakałowicz (1857–1947)
Jan Ciągliński (1858–1913)
Leon Wyczółkowski (1852–1936)
Leon Kowalski (1870–1937)
Stanisław Żukowski (1873–1944)
Marian Stroński (1892–1977)
The range of artists makes for a varied visit. The works differ considerably in style, subject and period, reflecting the changing character of Polish art between the late 18th century and the first decades of the 20th century.
Several of the artists also had connections with Kyiv and the wider Ukrainian lands. Their presence in the Kyiv collection reflects the long-standing movement of artists, ideas and cultural influences between what are now Poland and Ukraine.
One particularly important figure is Wilhelm Kotarbiński, who was part of the Polish artistic community in Kyiv. His work provides a link between the Polish art world and the city in which the collection was formed. The exhibition also gives visitors an opportunity to encounter artists who are less familiar to today's audiences, including Stefan Bakałowicz and Marian Stroński.
From private Kyiv collections to a national gallery
The Kyiv National Art Gallery was established in 1922 and today holds around 14,000 objects, with painting forming a particularly important part of the collection.
Its holdings were shaped in part by works from prominent private collections in Kyiv that were nationalised during the Soviet period. Among them were collections associated with the Tereshchenko and Khanenko families, as well as that of Oskar Hansen.
Within this much larger collection is a relatively small group of Polish works from the 19th and early 20th centuries. Until this exhibition, that particular part of the Kyiv collection was largely unknown to the wider Polish public.
Bringing it to Kraków therefore offers a different perspective on familiar periods of Polish art. Rather than seeing these paintings only through the collections of Polish museums, visitors can encounter them in the context of a Ukrainian institution that has preserved them for generations.
A Kraków exhibition with a Kyiv perspective
The location adds another layer to the exhibition.
The works are being shown inside the Sukiennice, in the Gallery of 19th-Century Polish Art, alongside one of Kraków's best-known collections of Polish painting. Visitors can therefore see these works within the broader artistic story of the period while also considering how Polish art became part of a major Kyiv museum collection.
The exhibition also comes at a time when Ukrainian museums and cultural institutions continue to protect and present their collections during Russia's war against Ukraine. The Kyiv National Art Gallery has described the project as a way of presenting Ukrainian cultural heritage internationally, while also recognising Poland's support for Ukraine.
For Kraków residents, it is a chance to see an unfamiliar part of Polish art history without leaving the city. For Ukrainian residents and visitors, it offers another connection between Kraków and Kyiv through works that have been preserved in Ukraine.
Plan a visit before the exhibition closes
“Roots and Sky. The Polish Chapter in the Collection of the Kyiv National Art Gallery” is on display at the Sukiennice until 18 October 2026.
Exhibition: Roots and Sky. The Polish Chapter in the Collection of the Kyiv National Art Gallery
Venue: Malarnia, Gallery of 19th-Century Polish Art, Sukiennice
Address: Rynek Główny 3, 31-042 Kraków
Dates: 26 June–18 October 2026
Tickets: 35 zł normal, 25 zł reduced
Admission to the exhibition is included with the ticket for the Sukiennice branch. The National Museum in Kraków currently lists the Sukiennice as closed on Mondays, with visits available Tuesday to Sunday. Check the museum's current visitor information before travelling.
A catalogue accompanying the exhibition is also available in Polish, Ukrainian and English, with essays exploring the coexistence and exchange of Polish and Ukrainian cultures in the historical territories of Ukraine.
For anyone interested in Kraków's museums, Polish painting or the cultural links between Poland and Ukraine, this is an exhibition worth fitting into an autumn visit to the Main Square.
See more: The Story of Hotel Forum, Kraków’s Brutalist Riverside Landmark
Source and image credit: Muzeum Narodowe w Krakowie
