MBA Kraków 2023

The International Biennial of Architecture (MBA) has been held in Krakow cyclically since 1985, each time providing a unique forum for meeting and exchanging ideas and experiences for architects from all over the world. The MBA includes competitions, exhibitions, presentations or lectures, which are a unique attraction in this part of Europe for all those interested in architecture.

The competitions held during the previous editions of the MBA were a great opportunity for both beginners and experienced architects from all over the world to make their presence felt and to present their opinions and visions. Projects were judged by eminent personalities such as Wojciech Leśnikowski, Pekka Salminen, Julia Bolles, Peter Wilson, Francesco Purini, Eckhard Feddersen, Günter Schlusche, Hildebrand Machleidt, Armando dal Fabbro, Lennart Grut, Oana Bogdan or Jan Kleihues, and there was no shortage of native luminaries such as Ewa Kuryłowicz, Marta Sękulska-Wrońska, Przemo Łukasik or Wojciech Małecki. Guests of honour at exhibitions and seminars once included Frei Otto, architects Herzog & de Meuron, Zvi Hecker, David Mackay, Dietmar Eberle, Peter Butenschøn, Claudio Nardi, Giovanni Multari, Viviana Muscettola, Andor Wesselényi-Garray and Rainer Mahlamäki. The winning entries received international publicity, while the prize-winning entries and all others were documented in MBA publications.

Krakow is a city recognised throughout Europe, which adds to the uniqueness of the event. The value of the place lies primarily in its historical heritage, of which architecture is the most significant part. This city is the place where the old and the new, the historical and the contemporary, the conservative and the avant-garde constantly coexist. Architectural discussion seems to be embedded in the very essence of the city.

The MBA Kraków 2015 conducted under the theme ‘The human dimension of urban spaces’ started the debate on urban spaces, and the MBA Kraków 2017 with the title ‘The courtyard – a field of imagination’ showed that this systematic dialogue should be continued and developed – opening it up to new environments. The MBA Krakow 2019 edition allowed us to see more clearly the potential of the river’s existence in the city, and also showed how this river, and more so water, could be shown and brought out more widely within the Old Town. Symptomatic was the consistency in the selection of the 1st prize in Competition A as well as the MBA Grand Prix, in the form of the same work by Karolina Chodura and Joanna Rozbrój, under the title Reflection of the past – Odzwierciedlenie przeszłości. It was a year that also proved that the introduced multimedia competition is an important voice for society, as confirmed by the first Grand Prix in the Biennale’s history for the film ‘Krakowska sztuka chaosu’ by Janusz Bartkowicz and Marcin Koszałka.

The opportunity to continue the long-standing tradition of a general and community-oriented discussion addressing the current problems of contemporary architecture is also a chance for intellectual “ferment”, fostering sensitisation of our city to the problems of creating a friendly, built urban environment, open to people and their needs. This is the mission of MBA Kraków. Continuing the tradition, it is intended to be an arena for interdisciplinary activity of creative circles, influencing the level of architectural culture in Poland, popularising Polish architecture abroad and learning from the achievements of other countries.

The last edition of MBA Kraków 2021 did show how the condition of the world has changed profoundly over the past few decades. The division of the environment into natural and transformed is beginning to show a galloping diminution of the reserves of the former and an alarmingly burdensome growth of the latter. The exploitation of natural resources has exceeded capacity on a global scale to such an extent that the prospect of their imminent exhaustion is no longer in doubt. The keyword ‘RE-USE’ has also gained particular relevance in a period of ongoing pandemonium, when social and economic changes are forcing a change in the function of buildings and public spaces. The search for new sources and the reduction of demand are becoming the main guidelines for the remodelling of most areas of human life. The workshops, panel discussions, lectures and talks held over the two days showed how dialogue between communities is needed to achieve a common goal.