National Museum’s Dialogue Centre, Szczecin

Architect: Robert Konieczny
Text: Edit Pálinkás 
Photos: Jakub Certowicz, Juliusz Sokołowski, Jarosław Syrek

For years, the Solidarności Square had been a square by name only – with vague borders, open frontages, burdensome busy street neighborhood and the absence of a defined function, despite the dominating one – to commemorate the worker protest of December 1970. In 2014, the former Konzerthaus was replaced by a new philharmonic venue. The next initiative, which contributed to changing the perception of the space was the National Museum’s Dialogue Centre, devoted to the history of Szczecin. When designing the museum KWK Promes set their mind humble to the history of the place and the new city icon close by. Thus, the idea to hide the museum underground to create a background architecture. The flattened areas of the square create foregrounds in front of the philharmonic and the church. The quarter forms in opposite corners as elevated square floor. The one elevation houses the museum facility, the other one is an artificial hill, closing up the urban interior and shielding it from the tumult of the busy street. These hills provide an opportunity for discovering new outlooks on the city and the slanted floor inspires various activities.

Architecture: KWK Promes
Author of the square: Robert Konieczny
Building: Michał Lisiński
Entrance: Dorota Żurek, Katarzyna Furgalińska
Collaboration: Aleksandra Stolecka, Piotr Tokarski, Adam Radzimski, Joanna Biedna, Magdalena Adamczak
Exhibition: Piotr Wysocki, Roman Kaczmarczyk, Michał Czasnojć, Kwk Promes
Construction: Proeco
Installations: Cegroup
Investor: National Museum, Szczecin