What do we love the Royal Łazienki for? A new exhibition at the Officer Cadets School shows what moves thousands of visitors to this site most. The leitmotif is delight – the emotion that arises during an encounter with the beautiful and the unexpected. The exhibition can be explored through many senses: sight, hearing, touch and scent.
The exhibition is open from Tuesday to Wednesday from 09.00 to 16.00, from Thursday to Saturday from 10.00 to 18.00, and on Sunday from 10.00 to 16.00. Last entry 30 minutes before the exhibition closes. Admission fee: 30 PLN – normal ticket, 15 PLN – reduced ticket, 20 PLN – adults with a Large Family Card, members of the Friends of the Royal Łazienki Museum Club – free of charge; in November admission is free of charge as part of the ‘Free November’ campaign. Tickets can be purchased at the ticket office and the ticket machine in the Officer Cadets School and online (the link will be available soon).
AUDIO GUIDE TO THE EXHIBITION
What visitors will see at the exhibition?
‘The Marvels of the Royal Łazienki’ was designed in collaboration with members of the team of curators and researchers, educators and volunteers, as well as the public, involved in initiatives the results of which can be contemplated at the exhibition.
The exhibition is divided into ten thematic spaces: scent, visual arts, literature, theatre, music, relations, dream, eating, nature and movement. They reflect what delights thousands of visitors to the Royal Łazienki. The individual spaces are filled with works mainly from the Museum’s collection and objects prepared especially for the exhibition, including installations by contemporary artists. Some exhibits may already be very well known to you, whereas others will be seen for the first time.
►SCENT
The Royal Łazienki is a place which resonates with many of the senses – it delights with images, sound, light and scent, the latter being harder to grasp. The exhibition is an opportunity to feel it. Take a look at the censer – a scented fountain in the form of a miniature ancient temple, on display every day in the elegant boudoir at the Myślewicki Palace. Open one of the flaps in the wall next to the exhibit. The aromatic composition emanating from there is the result of the work of the perfume creator, Michalina Samborska, and more than two hundred people – guests and employees – who told us what scent they associate the Royal Łazienki with. An unusual scent, composed of natural oils and resins, among other things, came to existence.
►VISUAL ARTS
The paintings, sculptures and decorations form the identity of the Royal Łazienki, inspiring delight at the same time. In this part of the exhibition you will see, among other things, drawings of the royal residence furnishings, including a sketch of the balustrade of the balcony of the Palace on the Isle, designed by King Stanisław August. There are also drawings that are a record of the personal delights of contemporary amateur and professional artists who created works of art in bathroom interiors and gardens.
The space is complemented by an installation by visual artist Alicja Bielawska. The work consists of two parts: The first, entitled ‘Soft Reveals’, enables contact with art through multiple senses. The author was inspired by the materiality of decorative fabrics from the Palace on the Isle. Draped fabrics conceal the ceramic work ‘Between the Folds’.
►LITERATURE
The Royal Łazienki have for centuries fascinated writers and poets, who admired the local nature, art and architecture. Contemporary artists, invited by the Museum, have created pieces inspired by the royal residence. They expressed their delight in poems, referring to selected exhibits: the secretary desk of Stanisław August, a painting by Gabriel Metsu ‘The Washerwoman’ and a mantel clock from the bedroom of the royal butler, Franciszek Ryx. All of these pieces can be read at the exhibition.
►THEATRE
The theme of this part of the exhibition is metamorphoses, which constitute an integral part of the Royal Łazienki. You will see reproductions of six prints from the collection of King Stanisław August. These are engravings from the French edition of Ovid’s Metamorphoses, telling the story of mythological heroes and their transformations.
Here, you will also have the opportunity to watch the 20-minute etude ‘Metamorphoses’. The play features the transformation of a person on the brink of life and death. The performance was created with the participation of high school students from the private IB High School No. 1531 at Raszyńska Street and adults from the ‘Nowolipie’ Centre for Intergenerational Activity.
►MUSIC
This part of the exhibition is dedicated to the Chopin Concerts, thanks to which the music of Fryderyk Chopin has resounded in the Royal Łazienki for several decades. In a film lasting several minutes, listeners of the concerts talk about their unique memories of the summer recitals at the Chopin Monument.
The sculpture ‘Nocturne’ by Janina Barcicka is an example of how the sensations of listening to music can be translated into the visual language in an abstract bronze form. The work, which is part of the Museum’s collection, is being presented to the public for the first time.
In the central part of the space stands one of the most valuable musical instruments in the Łazienki collection – a quadrilateral piano, also known as piano carré, made in 1790 by the master luthier Adam Beyer. It used to be not only a musical instrument, but also a sign of status and good taste. At present, it is a valuable testimony to the history of music, craftsmanship and social life during the Enlightenment.
►RELATIONS
In the context of the exhibition, the word refers to the Museum’s wider circle – visitors, friends, supporters, volunteers and donors to the Community Archive. These are people in whose lives the Royal Łazienki played a special role and who wanted to share their memories. Among other things, you will listen to stories from graduates of the State High School of Visual Arts, located in the Officer Cadets School between 1957 and 1977. You will also see photographs and sheets from the annals showing what the interiors of the building looked like when the art school was operating here.
►DREAM
In this space, on the ceiling, you will see a print with a reconstruction of Marcello Bacciarelli’s painting ‘Solomon’s Dream’, which once adorned the Salle de Solomon in the Palace on the Isle. The original, created by a royal painter, was destroyed during the Second World War. The present-day version is a digital colour reconstruction, developed by conservators from archive photographs. The painting illustrated the biblical story. According to it, King Solomon made an offering to God, who appeared to him in a dream and asked him what gift he would like to receive. The biblical ruler asked for wisdom. His request pleased God. He received not only wisdom, but also wealth, fame and the promise of a long life provided he remained faithful to God’s commandments.
►EATING
The kitchen is a feast for the senses. In this part of the exhibition, you will learn about some of the recipes of Stanislaus August’ court cook. Although Paul Tremo prepared exquisite food on a daily basis, he was interested in cooking to survive periods of famine and to feed the army. His recipes were used to create jars of pasteurised sorrel, nettle soup and elderflower syrup. Come up and smell the salt with wild garlic and floral confetti. Take a look at the copper jam frying dish, the ice cream tureen and the hot chocolate teapot. You will also find cards with recipes inspired by Paul Tremo’s cuisine to take home with you.
►NATURE
In the sensory area, you will discover the nature of the Łazienki with all your senses. Touch models of animal to discover details of their anatomy. Take a look at the cucumber green spider to overcome the fear of spiders. Look through the microscope to explore the micro-world of the Łazienki nature. Pay attention to the niche, put your hand in the darkness and guess what creature is hiding in it. Swipe your pen to hear it cut the air.
Also on display here are the results of the ‘BioBlitz’ project, a study of organisms carried out by, among others, ornithologists and arachnologists with the active participation of the public. You will find out the number of species of birds, nocturnal butterflies, lichens and fungi that have been recorded in the Łazienki gardens.
At the exit of the space there is an art installation depicting lichens, which you can modify as you wish.
►MOVEMENT
You will learn which physical activities dominated the Royal Łazienki in the past and which are popular today. Here you will see exhibits referring to elegant balls and dance evenings in the palace interiors, including the sculpture ‘Dancer’ by Frigyes Janzer.
This part of the exhibition also features horses, once a distinctive feature of the Łazienki landscape. You can explore: a model of a rider’s room, equipped with a unique set of miniature stylish furniture with a horse’s head motif and equestrian accessories, as well as a miniature stable with a horse – a replica of a 19th century toy. In addition, there are two carriage lanterns from the 20th century and a contemporary saddle in which you can sit.
One of the elements of this thematic space is also a sculpture depicting an Arabian mare – the work of Anna Dębska (1929-2014), a well-known Polish sculptor and owner of a stud farm in Łazy.
The whole is complemented by archive photographs, including those from international horse competitions held in the Royal Łazienki Park in the inter-war period.
Interactive installation
At the exit of the exhibition is a room with an interactive installation by Jan Pfeifer, ‘To See the Imperceptible’. This work is inspired by the ornamental rosettes from the Palace on the Isle and the Myślewicki Palace, reproduced using 3D printing technology. By touching the models and the typhlographics of one of the chandeliers, you can feel the shapes and evoke the effect of illuminated rosettes.
Programme accompanying the exhibition
The exhibition is accompanied by an extensive programme of events for children, young people and adults. Events that also accompany the exhibition: an open-air exhibition by nature photographers ‘The Royal Łazienki As a Place To Meet Nature’, an art installation ‘The Pavilion of Time Captured in Colour’ by Alicja Bielawska at the Officer Cadets School, the ‘Workshop of Marvels’, i.e. the creative space in the Old Guardhouse, podcasts for children ‘Where the Peacock Says Good Morning’ and the publication ‘Mosaic of Marvels’.
