On the ruins of historic buildings, within the city’s former layout, new tenement houses were built. Their high ceramic roofs and plaster-covered façades evoke the area’s splendor as it was in the 17th and 18th centuries ̶ albeit without literally copying the old forms. The intention was for the New Podzamcze to become the heart of Szczecin, combining tourism, services, and entertainment ̶ full of galleries, antique shops, pubs, and restaurants, with stylish lanterns illuminating the streets.

“Retroversion” is most often associated with the reconstruction of the Old Town in Elbląg that had been destroyed during World War II. In this exhibition, however, it becomes a starting point for reflection on the post-war fate of Szczecin’s Podzamcze district, once known as the Lower Town. This is a proprietary monument conservation method developed in the 1980s by Professor Maria Lubocka-Hoffmann. Its goal is to restore a former, lost image of the place. The goal is not to faithfully reconstruct the past, but instead to recreate the spirit and the character of a historic site through contemporary reinterpretations. The newly designed architecture is an attempt to translate historical forms, ornaments, and details into a contemporary language. As a result, buildings rooted in tradition and history are being built on post-war ruins – erected on former foundations, in accordance with the original urban layout, with a historical scale and silhouette. Their form, which is rooted in postmodernism, does not directly reconstruct the past but reinterprets it.

The exhibition presents an approach to the reconstruction of Podzamcze, similar to, yet distinct from, the Elbląg model. The process takes on particular significance in the context of the Recovered Territories, where the restoration of the old town complexes was both an architectural and a social challenge – an element in shaping the area’s new identity.

The tale of restoring the atmosphere and character of Podzamcze district is told through historical materials: archival architectural designs, films, artifacts, and photographic documentation. Simultaneously, the exhibition presents works by contemporary artists and creators who examine the process of rebuilding this part of Szczecin and demonstrate how the vision for this both oldest and youngest district of the city came into being.

The exhibition was created in collaboration between the Polish National Institute of Architecture and Urban Planning (NIAiU), TRAFO Szczecin, and the EL Gallery Art Center, with the participation of local experts, architects, and researchers. It is another presentation from the “Retrowersje” series, initiated by NIAiU in 2023.

Artists: Maciej Cholewa, Centrum Centrum (Małgorzata Mazur and Łukasz Jastrubczak), Zuza Golińska i Trin Alt, Krzysztof Maniak, Małgorzata Markiewicz, Gizela Mickiewicz, Dominika Olszowy, Dominika Skutnik, Zuzanna Skurka, Wiktoria Walendzik
Space/architecture: Zuza Golińska in collaboration with Trin Alt
Curators: Mateusz Włodarek, Stanisław Ruksza, Emilia Orzechowska
Conceptual collaboration: Zuzanna Mielczarek
Organizer: Narodowy Instytut Architektury i Urbanistyki
Co-organizers: TRAFO Center for Contemporary Art in Szczecin, Galeria EL Center for Art in Elbląg
Research queries: Zuzanna Mielczarek, Mateusz Włodarek
Visual identification: Katarzyna Nestorowicz
Exhibition graphic design: Marcel Kaczmarek
Coordination and production: Mateusz Włodarek, Magdalena Breńko, Ada Kusiak, Andrzej Witczak
Communication: Dominik Witaszczyk, Aleksandra Zaszewska, Anna Konopka
Coordination of accompanying events: Ada Kusiak, Andrzej Witczak
Editor: Urszula Drabińska
Translation: Dorota Wąsik
Production: Artpath, Adam Dzidziszewski

Archival materials: ARCO, Archiwum Architektury i Budownictwa Urzędu Miasta w Szczecinie, Archiwum Katedry Historii i Teorii Architektury ZUT, Archiwum Państwowe w Szczecinie, Archiwum Szczepana Bauma, Instytut Archeologii i Etnologii PAN w Szczecinie, Książnica Pomorska, Miejska Biblioteka Publiczna w Szczecinie, Muzeum Narodowe w Szczecinie, STUDIO A4, TVP Szczecin, Urbicon, Wojewódzki Konserwator Zabytków w Szczecinie

Collaboration: Tatiana Balcerzak, Marek Dworaczyk, Izabela Kubicka, prof. Zbigniew Paszkowski

Acknowledgements: Michał Dębowski, prof. Piotr Fiuk, Przemysław Głowa, dr Małgorzata Gwiazdowska, Elżbieta Koc-Wiśniewska, Krzysztof Kowalski, Jacek Lenart, Narodowy Instytut Dziedzictwa, dr Grażyna Nawrolska, Małgorzata Peszko, SARP Szczecin, Ewa Stanecka, Tomasz Wolender, Aleksandra Wilde Maciej Włosiński, Piotr Zaniewski, Zrzeszenie Kupców w Szczecinie

The exhibition features works originally prepared for the first iteration of the show at the Galeria EL Centre for Art in Elbląg in 2023. The curators of that edition were Zuzanna Mielczarek, Mateusz Włodarek, Emilia Orzechowska, and Maciej Olewniczak.

We have made every effort to identify and contact all holders of copyright to the works presented in the exhibition

Financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage (Poland)