Museum of Art MS1

The Łódź art collection is effectively spread across three sites. MS1 is located in a grand urban palace and largely features work from the 20th century, spread across seven floors. The building itself is an impressive post-industrial reworking of a period building and a highlight is the Neoplastic Room, Władysław Strzemiński’s groundbreaking experiment in displaying avant-garde art.

Museum of Art MS1

Incredibly, the original 1931 International Collection of Modern Art in Łódź, organised by the a.r. group of artists, was the first in Europe to focus exclusively on modern art. The collection moved from its plac Wolności location to the Maurycy Poznański’s Palace in 1948, where much of it still resides. The 1896 building itself is one of the city’s fine Neo-Renaissance palaces, based on Venetian architecture and owned by one of the Poznański industrialists. One of the highlights, aside from the art, is the way the galleries have adapted and modified the original interiors. Much of this is actually reconstruction, as most of the features had been removed.

The contemporary gallery remains true to its heritage with a restoration of the 1948 collection with its Neoplastic Room. This is a strong overview of early 20th century art movements. But the gallery also remains true to the spirit of the a.r. group with temporary exhibitions that capture late 20th and early 21st century work. The range and mix of different shows means there’s always plenty for everyone to see.

I recommend you buy a two-day carnet and visit all three locations if possible. These are all architecturally stunning buildings and the collection gives a crash course in Poland’s significant contribution to modern art.

Early 20th century Polish art

What To See In The Museum of Art MS1

The art collection of the city is spread across three venues. MS2 features a deep exploration of two or three contemporary artists, whilst the Old Masters gallery at the Herbst Palace Museum focuses on the late 19th century and early 20th century, as well as earlier works. MS stands for Muzeum Sztuki which simply translates as ‘art museum’.

MS1 has a few contemporary exhibits but mainly straddles the 20th century period between the other two galleries. As such, you get a greater variety of work spread across what feels like a much larger space – there are gallery spaces on four of the eight floors in the building. There should be something to appeal to everyone here, which may not always be the case with MS2.

All the same, the museum is housed within a palace building and has been carefully reconstructed so that parts of the original splendour break through into the contemporary gallery spaces. It’s an apt analogy for the relationship Łódź itself has with its history.

The upper floors are highlights for me, with the Neoplastic Room from 1948 and accompanying gallery of early 20th century styles. It makes sense to start at the top of the building and work your way down.

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What To Expect When Visiting The Museum of Art MS1

As with the Museum of Łódź, MS1 is located in another Poznański Palace – belonging this time to Maurycy, the youngest son of industrialist Izrael. The building looks a bit cramped, located on the corner of Gdańska and Więckowskiego. It can be reached by walking directly south from Manufaktura and MS2.

The entrance to the museum is back from the road behind a row of square columns. Enter through the glass doors and look immediately right for the ticket office. The whole building is very compact, including on the ground floor, so it’s easy and intuitive to find everything. You can also access the building and courtyard without buying a ticket. There are places to sit and a few works on the ground floor.

I’ll walk through some of the highlights in the following sections:

MS1 foyer with Wall of Light to the left

Foyer Works

The ground floor has a smattering of works such as Antoni Starczewski’s Wall of Light, a recreation of a piece originally designed for the Stefan Jaracz Theatre in 1970. Starczewski was a local post-war artist who refused to separate fine and decorative art, using a broad range of materials to create his often systems-based work, including textiles. In this case, the work is made from ceramics. Happily, the museum offers a generous amount of free leaflets in English and Polish to help contextualise the work.

Lergon / Olekszy exhibition – note the ceilings

Daniel Lergon / Maciej Olekszy

Roughly a third of the gallery space in MS1 is given over to temporary exhibitions. Although Flow, the joint show by artists Daniel Lergon and Maciej Olekszy will be finished by the time you visit, it’s included here as an example of the work you may encounter at the museum. Again, each gallery has an introductory text and leaflets with high-quality reproductions of some of the work.

This show occupies a single room, compared to the more extensive galleries on the upper floors. Of note is how features of the original palace building erupt through the contemporary redesign in delightful and unexpected ways. The museum is worth a visit even if the art is not to your taste.

Prints by Andrzej Marian Bartczak

Andrzej Marian Bartczak

There are two spaces on the third floor. The larger section contains BREVI MANU.: How not to turn everything into a book…, another temporary exhibition covering a retrospective period of about four decades in a number of sometimes dramatic rooms. This floor has creaky wooden floors and ornate doors and lighting. The title of the exhibition translates as something like ‘without delay’ and speaks to the restless, inventive nature of the work, and the fact that the artist has created something like 10,000 pieces. From the Beuysian readymades to gorgeous graphics, you could easily spend a few hours in here alone.

Zygmunt Krauze archive room

Zygmunt Krauze

Also on the third floor is the permanent artistic archive of contemporary composer Zygmunt Krauze. Looking at the graphic scores, it is immediately obvious that Krauze works somewhere between music and visual art. In fact, a section of his music is directly inspired by the paintings of Władysław Strzemiński, which can also be seen on display. You can also watch performances of Krauze’s work. The display is set against a very fine interior space.

The Neoplastic Room

The Neoplastic Room

The final permanent gallery space is up on the sixth floor and a highlight of the museum. A fairly extensive area, largely based on the original Modern Art Gallery, features a mix of mostly Polish work from the 20th century. You’ll recognise a lot of key trends from European Modernism, such as Cubism and Impressionism, but also some less derivative paintings. There’s a lot to admire here.

The gallery finishes with the innovative and influential Neoplastic Room, designed in 1948 by Władysław Strzemiński for the original Modern Art Gallery in the Poznański Palace. With bold geometric colours reminiscent of Bauhaus or De Stijl, it was specifically conceived to showcase avant-garde art, originally an international cast including Sophie Taeuber-Arp.

I really enjoyed my visit here. There was a really helpful guard on duty who showed me around and let me look at the stained glass on a staircase normally out of bounds to visitors. The museum as a whole is an excellent introduction to Polish modern art.

The reading room

The Reading Room

There is one final floor above the Neoplastic Room, with a library and reading room in the mezzanine above. It was extremely warm on the day when I visited but I loved the retro sofas and quiet chatter wafting up the spiral staircase from the archive below. There is also usually a temporary exhibition in this space.

Courtyard seating

The Courtyard

There is a courtyard and grounds behind the music, which can be accessed on the ground floor. The space has all sorts of wacky furniture and there are little rooms and bits of artworks tucked away. It’s a shady space to shelter on a hot day and can be accessed for free even if you don’t intend to visit the galleries.

MS1 entrance

How To Visit Museum of Art MS1

MS1 is an 11-minute walk down Gdańska from Manufaktura and MS2. You can also reach the museum via the 73 bus, stopping at Więckowskiego – Gdańska or the 83, 86, and Z13 buses, stopping at Gdańska – Zielona. Altenatively, you can get the 15 tram to Gdańska – Zielona or the 2, 3, 6, 11, and 19 trams stopping at Zachodnia / Więckowskiego. Use this official Łódź timetable to plan your journey.

Museum of Art MS1 address: Gdańska 43, 90-734 Łódź, Poland

MS1 is open from:

• Tuesday: 9am-4pm
• Wednesday-Sunday: 12noon-6.30pm
• Monday: closed

Last entry is 30 minutes before closing.

The museum is closed on New Year’s Day, Epiphany (January 6), Easter, Independence Day (November 11), Christmas (December 24-26), and New Year’s Eve, as well as a handful of other public holidays. Check the official MS1 museum page for clarification.

Tickets for the Zygmunt Krauze permanent exhibition cost 20zł (10zł) and the Neoplastic Room costs 15zł (10zł reduced). The cost of temporary exhibitions currently costs 20zł (10zł reduced). Children and students under 26 get entry for 1zł for each exhibit. Children under 7 are free.

However, you can also buy a carnet for 45zł (30zł reduced), which last two full days and gives you access to both the MS1 and MS2 art galleries, as well as the Herbst Palace museum. This carnet is also 1zł for children and students under 26.

Advance tickets are available online from the official MS ticket site or you can just buy one at any of the three branches. These will be stamped as you visit each museum.

All times and prices are subject to change, and opening hours may be different during public holidays.

Stained glass on the staircase

Tips For Visiting The Museum of Art MS1

• Duration depends on what you decide to see. It would be possible to focus on the upper gallery for an hour or to engage with most of the exhibits and spend three hours or more. This will also be impacted by which temporary displays are showing during your visit.
• The museum offers infrequent guided tours in English, see the official MS1 website for the latest details (English underneath the Polish description). MS1 has also been experimenting with VR goggles, available on Wednesdays from 2pm to 5pm. Ask at the front desk for details.
• There is a free cloakroom on the ground floor.
• Personal photography is allowed, without flash or tripod, as long it does not interfere with the exhibits or spoil the enjoyment of other visitors.
• Although the museum has an outreach programme and kids will enjoy the funny furniture in the courtyard, most of the exhibits might be a bit boring for children.
• The museum is wheelchair accessible and all but the very top floor can be reached by elevator. However, the doorways are narrow and require navigation of some narrow doorways. The layout plans and toilets have Braille signage. The museum also leaves a bowl out in the courtyard for assistance dogs. There is seating on a number of floors.
• The museum is crying out for a permanent courtyard cafe but this is a nice space to eat a packed lunch. There is a coffee machine in the Neo Room, a colourful space designed for parents with small children, including sofas, places to eat, and baby facilities.
• There is a small bookshop on the ground floor.
• You can pay with a card or with cash.
• You’ll find the toilets on the ground floor.
• Get your ticket stamped at the desk to the left of the main entrance when you first arrive. Due to the modular way entry to the different exhibitions is sold here, you will be asked to show your tickets as you enter every show. So make sure you keep it handy.
• My advice is to start at the top of the museum and work your way down or at least to look through the leaflets in the foyer and decide what you like the look of in order of preference.