Hotels built in Poland in the 1970s and 80s were supposed to symbolize the economic growth and luxury of the socialist state, as well as follow the skilfully aroused consumerist aspirations of the society. The authorities, with Edward Gierek at the helm, announced the construction of a “second Poland”; epitomised by Western-style modern skyscrapers. The scale, form, location and names of the Gierek-era hotels were used to craft a cosmopolitan image, however their economic potential was just as important—considered “hens that lay golden eggs”, the hotels were a means for accumulating foreign currency reserves. Hotel architecture became an area of cooperation—unprecedented in People’s Poland—between Polish and international companies and designers. New buildings were constructed in the late modernist and sometimes brutalist style.
The architectural themes presented in the exhibition are complemented by the political, social, and cultural contexts. The glitz and glamour of the metropolitan “imported hotels” attracted not only the celebrities and stars of the time, but also underworld figures. For the communist authorities, the hotels became an invaluable source of information on the residing guests.
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Novotel Hotel in Gdańsk, 1970s, photograph, digital reproduction,
source: Museum of Gdańsk -
Maria Kiesner, Hotel Victoria in Warsaw, 2024, oil on canvas, private collection -
Hotel Solec, exterior view, photograph by Jan Siudecki, after 1973,
gelatin silver print, digital reproduction,
source: Museum of Warsaw -
Cover of the POLAND ORBIS HOTELS brochure, c. 1975,
published by KAW, digital reproduction,
source: University of Warsaw Library -
Branded beer mug from the Forum Hotel in Warsaw,
manufacturer unknown (Poland), 1970s–1980s,
glazed stoneware,
source: Museum of Warsaw -
Advertisement for the 7th Congress of the Polish United Workers’ Party,
with the Polonez Hotel in the background,
19–20 October 1975, photograph, digital reproduction,
Stanisław Wiktor / cyryl.poznan.pl -
Interior of the Piekiełko Club at the Mercure Gdynia Centrum Hotel (formerly Gdynia Hotel),
photograph by Wojciech Wilczyk, 2024 -
Former Forum Hotel in Kraków, photograph by Wojciech Wilczyk, 2024
Place and dates
University of Warsaw Library
Dobra 56/66, 00-312 Warsaw
Opening: 18 September 2025, 6:00 p.m.
Exhibition dates: 18 September–30 November 2025
Opening hours:
Monday – closed
Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday – 11:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.
Thursday – 12:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m.
Saturday–Sunday – 12:00 p.m.–6:00 p.m.
Admission free
Colophon
Organiser: National Institute of Architecture and Urban Planning, Ministry of Culture and National Heritage
Partner: University of Warsaw Library, University of Warsaw
Curator: Artur Tanikowski
Exhibition architecture and graphic design: Studio Robot (Krzysztof Czajka, Łukasz Wysoczyński, Zofia Janina Borysiewicz – graphic design collaboration)
Visual identity: Marcin Władyka/studio headmade
Exhibition production: IKG/Aleksander Sieklicki
Film presentations: EIDOTECH
Tablet presentations: Piotr Safjan
Language editing: Barbara Milanowska/Lingventa
English translation: Marcin Wawrzyńczak
Copyediting: Urszula Drabińska
Proofreading: Jennifer Tymowska, Natalia Raczkowska
Collaboration: Katarzyna Kucharczuk
Communications: Marta Baranowska, Katarzyna Nestorowicz, Dominik Witaszczyk, Aleksandra Zaszewska
Accompanying programme: Marta Baranowska, Dominika Nowicka, Dominik Witaszczyk
School programme: Katarzyna Domagalska, Hanna Zwierzchowska
Media patronage: Architektura i Biznes, Architektura Murator, TVP Kultura, Spotkania z Zabytkami, Histmag, RMF Classic
The project HOTEL TWOICH SNÓW. Hotel Architecture of Polish Cities During the Edward Gierek Era was co-financed by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage.
