This is the only chance to modernize the historic building, because the local government would not have the funds for a specialist renovation of the little palace. Only a grant worth PLN 17 million from a project under the Norwegian Financial Mechanism offers a chance to save this unique site on Bolesławiec’s heritage map. The money would make it possible to modernize the neglected Pückler Palace and give it new functions. The condition is that a modern Museum of Ceramics be established there.

Pückler Palace – a brief history

The Neoclassical palace at 28 Zgorzelecka Street in Bolesławiec was built in the mid-19th century and belonged to Count von Pückler, hence the name Pückler Palace. At that time, the park and building formed a single estate. After the nobleman’s death, the palace changed owners several times. In 1920, it was acquired by the Bolesławiec municipal authorities and designated as a youth center (Jugendhaus). It was also home to the municipal library and reading room.

In 1986, the little palace was adapted to house the District Complex of Special Schools and Institutions in Bolesławiec, and in 1999 the county authorities took over the building—from the state—already in very poor condition. In 2018, the county sold the property to the Urban Municipality for almost PLN 2.5 million, and in 2019 the special school was moved to a modernized school building on Bankowa Street. The palace on Zgorzelecka Street was designated as the future home of the Museum of Ceramics.

The special school and the lack of money for its renovation. Remember?

There was never any money for a comprehensive renovation of the palace. The District Complex of Special Schools and Institutions was in a shocking condition. For years, the institution needed a thorough renovation or a new premises. The county authorities took over the building from the state in poor condition and changed very little in it over nearly 15 years. In a 2010 report, the children’s parents said that the school met no standards whatsoever. They described it as a picture of misery and despair. The building did not have a proper gymnasium. According to information from the parents, the county authorities renovated the gym floor only after the wooden boards began coming loose. The children’s caregivers also spoke of an elevator that did not reach the building’s top floor, meaning that children in wheelchairs had to be carried up the stairs.

In 2010, Dariusz Kwaśniewski promised to move the school to the building on Zwycięstwa Street. The county head—then a member of the executive board—said this would happen by 2012, but it did not. In addition, county head Dariusz Kwaśniewski aggravated the problem by proposing that the special school be moved to one of the county’s upper-secondary schools. The parents of the institution’s students protested because they feared their children would be mocked by older pupils and wanted the special school to be located in a separate building. It was not until the end of 2017 that the county and the city began procedures to move the special school to the building on Bankowa Street, formerly Primary School No. 2, and to hand over the building on Zgorzelecka Street for use as the Museum of Ceramics after modernization.

Why do we need a new home for the Museum of Ceramics?

The idea of moving the museum is not new. At the city council session in August 2017, the mayor announced that the Urban Municipality of Bolesławiec was considering purchasing the building on Zgorzelecka Street and moving the Museum of Ceramics there from its building on Kutuzowa Street.

“The museum is suffocating there; there is no space, while the building on Zgorzelecka has great historical value,” Piotr Roman explained. “Besides, we want to make use of the building and the park. It would provide excellent facilities for the museum.” The mayor added that the city wanted to help the county in this way, because the money from selling the building on Zgorzelecka would be allocated to constructing an operating block at the Bolesławiec ZOZ.

Ultimately, this plan was implemented, and a Norwegian partner was also secured for the project, giving it a strong chance of obtaining funding.

The city of ceramics not only deserves a modern Museum of Ceramics—it needs one. Especially since the museum staff know how to develop the institution and manage it effectively.

However, the idea may not appeal to all Bolesławiec residents. Other proposals appeared on our forum. One suggested spending the money on a different purpose rather than on the museum. There was also an idea to invest, among other things, in the municipal swimming facility. Unfortunately for the person making the proposal, the money obtained by the Museum through this project may be used only for the museum. Someone else would rather see a new kindergarten and nursery in the palace. That too is impossible under this project.

As a city, we can secure substantial funding for a renovation that the local government cannot afford, while the state certainly will not support Bolesławiec in this case. That is why it is worth keeping our fingers crossed for the Museum of Ceramics team and hoping that their project wins.

What are our chances of getting PLN 17 million?

Three hundred applications were submitted from across Poland, and only 16 projects will be selected. The good news is that each project must have a partner from Norway, and only 13 such partners applied. Even better, one of the Norwegian partners, Telemark Museum, ultimately chose our museum. This gives the project—titled “Poland and Norway on the European Ceramic Route: Including Bolesławiec and Porsgrunn in an International Network of Cooperation between Cities with Ceramic Traditions”—an excellent chance of success.

The project is about much more than renovating a historic building. Its goals are broader and concern building the brand and prestige of the city of ceramics. Its main elements include training artists and creators and improving their entrepreneurial skills, as well as creating new jobs in culture and cultural management. The new museum would also enable us to create an exhibition presenting the current development of ceramic companies and contemporary Bolesławiec ceramic designs.

At the Museum of Ceramics, as part of preparations for the project, the cultural offering and activities planned under it were presented. Public consultations took place on February 19 and brought together many interested city residents. More than 80 participants included representatives of collectors’ associations, ceramic companies, state institutions, repatriate associations, municipal cultural institutions, senior citizens’ associations, primary and secondary schools, trade unions, the media, the Bolesławiec City Council and Bolesławiec Youth City Council, as well as Bolesławiec artists.

The meeting was the first stage of research, conducted by the IPC Research Institute from Wrocław, into the Museum of Ceramics’ future cultural offering for residents and tourists. The next stage of the consultations will involve field research.

Anyone can take part in the consultation. Those interested in completing a paper questionnaire are invited to either of the Bolesławiec museum’s departments during the institution’s opening hours until March 3. The questionnaire can also be completed electronically. It takes approximately 10 minutes to complete.

The cultural offering prepared by the Museum

  • workshops (e.g. ceramic-decoration workshops inspired by local cultural heritage; for students with disabilities from special schools and Occupational Therapy Workshops; ceramics workshops for children and young people; workshops related to Norwegian culture, archaeological workshops, etc.)
  • lectures for students training to become ceramic technicians and ceramic decorators
  • an archaeological case study—archaeological workshops
  • senior training in creating ceramic forms and decorations
  • competitions, including one for designs of forms and decorations for functional ceramics, and the photography competition “Ceramics Around Us”
  • a series of exhibitions presenting, among other things, the work of Polish and European ceramic artists and functional-ceramics designers
  • a series of meetings with ceramic artists and functional-ceramics designers from Poland or Europe, together with workshops led by them
  • organizing the Polish edition of the Buongiorno Ceramica event: an affordable museum-visiting offer and discounted ceramic purchases
  • a city game with a ceramics theme held throughout the city
  • an Oxford-style debate on modern promotional methods using social media, as well as a strategy for protecting the Bolesławiec ceramics brand
  • an expert panel and a series of lectures on technologies for producing ceramic forms and decorations
  • computer graphics classes—designing ceramic forms and decorations
  • the “Family Mornings at the Museum” event
  • designating a ceramics route in Bolesławiec, covering tourist attractions related to ceramics, workshop locations, ceramic sales outlets, museums and galleries (signage, mobile application)
  • creating and running the blog “Bolesławiec Ceramics Conquers the World”
  • “Bolesławiec Ceramicon”—a website presenting ceramic factories, designers, decorators, technologists and others connected with the industry
  • the “Bodypainting” event
  • a performance about Master Joppe’s Great Pot