Warsaw
Observatory
of Culture

At the Warsaw Observatory of Culture we aim to explore the processes of contemporary culture and share our findings with the wider community. We believe that connecting art and artists with scholarship affords us a better understanding of the world and the tools to engage with and contribute to the future.
About Us
Activity
On the WOK.radar
How do the people of Warsaw participate in culture?
The Warsaw Observatory of Culture (WOK) has developed a new research approach to better understand how people use the city's cultural offer.
Art(Work) Studio, or how to work creatively in Warsaw in diverse ways
Every year, over 200 people graduate from art schools in Warsaw. To continue their artistic practice, they need a place to work, however, access to spaces and tools that would enable creative work is limited. New spaces to create art are becoming increasingly rare in Warsaw. That is why we at the Warsaw Observatory of Culture (WOK) are looking for solutions and new ways of thinking about the role of art studios–and artistic work–in the urban environment. In collaboration with the Puszka Foundation, we are running research and mentoring activities aimed at developing new ways of thinking about artists' studios and models of creative work, bringing together stakeholders and providing young artists with the knowledge they need to practice their art without restraints in Warsaw.
“To read or not to read? How to support young adults reading in the midst of a digital revolution”. The release of the Warsaw Observatory of Culture’s Guide
The guide can be explored linearly or selectively – like a map or a dictionary, which can be returned to as needed. From the PISA 2000 report and Joanna Dobkowska’s article featured in the publication, we learn that “reading for pleasure has a greater impact on children's future than their economic status.” New technologies, enormous social pressure, ubiquitous short forms and instant gratification – these constitute the revolutionary nature of changes in the lives and development of children and young adults. The digital revolution, although increasingly transparent, should not disappear from the radar of contemporary culture researchers. It is through the lens of the digital revolution that we see scenarios that will help books find their place in a world of constant change.

ARTICLE: Rabigül’s Story – the story of an Uyghur woman who chose Warsaw to escape persecution by the Chinese government

To broaden the knowledge of dance and choreography, WOK is preparing a series of conversations with dance practitioners entitled What will dance make of us? developed by Joanna Leśnierowska. The aim of the series is to find answers to the question: What can regular contact with dance, and experiencing and practising it, offer us, each of us individually, and us as a community?

More about: ARTICLE: Rabigül’s Story – the story of an Uyghur woman who chose Warsaw to escape persecution by the Chinese government

Communicating with Flow. A Workshop-Laboratory with Rivca Rubin

A two-day invitation to the verbally tangled, the relationally curious, and the communally ambitious. Whether you move with your body, your words, or your eyebrows—you’re welcome. Open to all, including those outside the dance world and the young people who may well be the wisest in the room.

More about: Communicating with Flow. A Workshop-Laboratory with Rivca Rubin

Facilitation of Co-Thinking: Self-Examination and Creating Alliances

The first meetings of the ‘Co-thinking’ project, which were networking sessions for people involved in artistic research, paved the way for self-examination and self-organisation activities, which we intend to develop as an informal group. This text is, therefore, not a summary of a completed project but an account of an ongoing process. It is also a snippet of a heterogeneous, polyphonic archive of cooperation and a preview of our future activities.

More about: Facilitation of <em>Co-Thinking</em>: Self-Examination and Creating Alliances

REPORT: Automation in culture. How are cultural institutions coping with technological change?

2025 is another year in which digital technology occupies a prominent place in public discourse, capturing imaginations and challenging long-held beliefs and behaviors. The emergence of Large Language Models (LLMs), such as Gemini and ChatGPT, means people now have access to tools that can support their work and creativity. However, these tools can also stifle creativity and take over difficult and often tedioustasks that require reflection, patience and time.

More about: REPORT: Automation in culture. How are cultural institutions coping with technological change?
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