The longest night in the world – Night of Culture 2021 is slowly approaching its end.  If you haven’t visited yet, this is your last chance to see the yard of a thousand balloons, partake of the mad tea party, rest in feng shui gardens or discover the Dominikańska street bats. Only for one more week, the streets of the Old Town wait for you to discover fantastical, relaxing, touching, and sometimes surprising installations.

This year’s long-awaited Night of Culture takes place between 4 June and 21 July. This special edition will last several weeks and take the form of strolls in search of installations hidden around Lublin’s Old Town.

The reasons are clear. Workshops of Culture want to ensure the safety of visitors by extending the display of installations beyond one night. While wandering around the streets and back alleys, and going through gates in the Old Town, we will look for magic and beauty. The installations will change every week. We will show you objects that couldn’t appear last year, and reveal brand-new pieces. We will soon present the complete programme at nockultury.pl

This year’s theme is Might of Culture. Might is potent and powerful. The word can also mean forceful spiritual energy. Motivating and rallying others to combine their strength and work together. We’re stronger when we’re together. Might is in the people! We want to invite everyone to rediscover Lublin and continue to treat it tenderly. As it is your presence that inspires and drives our activities.

Might of Culture be with you!

Feng shui gardens (8-21.07, Próba Cafe, patio. Grodzka 5A)

Small gardens with elements of living plants will soothe us and allow us to relax. Every work surrounds a tiny fountain, whose burbling will allow you to relax.

Authors: landscape architecture students from the Catholic University of Lublin under the supervision of Agnieszka Kułak

GMO (8-21.07, Grodzka 7, gate)

This is a collection of phantasmagorical creatures created by the members of the Club of Unique Ceramics and Spatial Forms at Maria Curie-Skłodowska University. The forms were created from clay and fire and drawn from imagination. Each object shows how much human imagination influences the depicted world, and how different people can perceive one base form. By repeating a shape from a single mould, each young artist discovers inspiration in it and ‘mutates’ the clay into figures from dreams, and myths… Meeting unusual creatures in familiar urban spaces, the audience will be able to see to what extent the entire reality around us is made by human hands and how much we can influence it. Pristine landscapes are rare today. The power of reason, care and imagination can help us enrich or destroy the world around us. Art has creative power.

Authors: students from MCSU’s Faculty of Art students under the supervision of Oliwia Beszczyńska

What stays?

The yard of a thousand balloons (1-21.07, Gate, Grodzka 3)
Follow us into a charming courtyard and see it transformed into a wonderland, all thanks to 1500 colourful glass balloons. Authors: Agata Zwierzyńska / Workshops of Culture

In a distorting mirror (1-14.07, The Hartwig Alley)
Items of everyday use covered with mosaic mirror pieces will cast a completely new light on one of the most charming corners of Lublin’s Old Town. Authors: Workshops of Culture

European Hamster (1-21.07, Błonia)
The European hamster used to inhabit the entire territory of Poland. Farmers fought it because it caused damage to farmland. Currently, the animal is rare and belongs to protected species. The installation depicting a scale model of the hamster’s skull, made by the students of landscape architecture at the Catholic University of Lublin, is meant to draw attention to this strongly Lublin-related dying species, still encountered in Czechowskie Hills The only question is, how long will it survive there?

Lilliputian Houses (1-14,07, Ku Farze street)

Come to the street of the Lilliputs! Let’s step into Gulliver’s shoes and walk along tiny, colourful buildings inspired by buildings in the Old Town. The models were made by children from “Pod Akacją” Youth Cultural Centre under the supervision of Katarzyna Niedźwiadek.

I will tell you a story without words (1-21.07, Grodzka 7 – patio)

Autism is not blue, it’s colourful. Let’s get to know the work of the 18-year-old Ola Leśnik who uses colourful paintings to communicate with the world. Ola paints when she feels like it and when the moment is right for her. She has had a few important exhibitions, her art accompanies texts by famous authors, while her home in Gliwice is starting to look like an art gallery thanks to her supportive parents.

Mad Tea Party (1-21.07, Grodzka 7 – patio)
A teapot with three spouts, a teacup with a handle inside, cupcakes sprinkled with clock hands are ceramic wonders which convey the atmosphere of a mad afternoon tea party. Alice, Mad Hatter and Dormouse would certainly sit at a table filled with such curiosities. Authors: Joanna Kowalska-Wolszczak/ Żywioły Ziemi

Object speak (4.06-21.07, Old Town)

There are many challenges during the pandemic. The time of isolation served as a pretext to look differently at objects of daily use. Every item has its story; it’s enough to listen to hear the story of a seemingly silent object. The exhibition “Object speak” consists of static illustrations that come to life with the help of the Artvive app to show an animated film presenting the thoughts and reflections of people forced into distance learning during the most creative period in their lives. Watch out, however, as this is not an ordinary exhibition. Look out for static illustrations all over the Old Town. Start your journey at Dominikański Square and make sure to download Artvive.

Authors: Students of Maria Curie-Skłodowska’s University’ Faculty of Arts and New Media students from the Polish – Japanese Academy of Information Technology under the supervision of dr Joanna Polak

Night of Culture’s fish memories (04.06-21.07, Bramowa street)

We have been collecting mementoes from the past editions of the festival, and this year, we’re bringing some of them out. Any day is good for fishing…two fantastic fish will be hung above our heads. The energetic, colourful fish by Jarosław Koziara and the monochromatic one by Francois Monnet.

Author: Workshops of Culture

Intro (until 21.07, Złota 1)

A fascinating place awaits your viewing – on the one hand, it’s inconspicuous, almost hidden from view, but on the other, it compels you to take a look!

Authors: Students of MCSU’s Faculty of Arts under the guidance of Jarosław Koziara

CityTender: maple and black Locust (4.06-21.07, Wróblewskiego, Radziwiłłowska st.)

We have concluded that one of the most beautiful ways of giving the city affection is to plant new trees. We proudly present Norway maple and black locust.

Author: Workshops of Culture

Dominikańska street bats (4.06-21.07, Dominikańska street)

“There are no mice in the air, I’m afraid, but you might catch a bat and that’s very like a mouse, you know”- said Alice in Lewis Carroll’s book. Are mice like bats? We will find the answer in Dominikańska street when we look up.

Author: Jarosław Koziara

Cats on the Roof (4.06-21.07, Zamkowy Square/rooftops)

Rooftops will be decorated with a dozen or so black and white flags depicting cats. The cats are made of fabric and are based on designs by Andrzej Kot, an outstanding visual artist, calligrapher and illustrator from Lublin.

Author: Jarosław Koziara

The map of available attractions  is available at nockultury.pl in the section FESTIVAL MAP. The map will mark attractions you can see, and it will be updated every week. All events are outdoors, and admission is free. You do not need to register; simply go out on a stroll around the Old Town.

All events are available in the public space and admission is free and unlimited. You do not need to register, just go for a walk around the Old Town.

Night of Culture

4 June – 21 July

Old Town in Lublin

Organisers: Workshops of Culture, the City of Lublin
The Mayor of Lublin, Krzysztof Żuk, has assumed honorary patronage

Media patronage: TVP 2, TVP Kultura, TVP 3 Lublin, Gazeta Wyborcza Lublin, Radio Lublin

Sponsor: Perła – Browary Lubelskie S.A.