As the Guest of Honor Country of the Valencia Design Fest, which will be held from September 12 to October 31, 2026, at Pasaje 94 (calle de los Trinitarios, 13, Valencia), Poland presents an ambitious exhibition that showcases the experimental, critical, and sustainable character of its contemporary craft scene.
According to the Instituto Polaco de Cultura, this autumn, Poland will seek to redesign our connection with the world and imagine new ways of inhabiting it through the exhibition Crafting Reality: in search of alternative habitats. Presented within the Time + Matter program, this proposal invites us to understand Polish craft avant-garde as an aesthetic and conceptual response to ecological uncertainty, technological acceleration, and the challenges of the present.
Curated by Dr. Alicja Głuszek, the exhibition questions the anthropocentric view of the environment through disciplines such as ceramics, blown glass, textiles, cabinetry, metalworking, paper, and embroidery. The proposal presents an immersive experience where the material becomes a bearer of meaning, inviting the visitor to imagine new ways of inhabiting the world and relating to nature and non-human environments.
This discourse is articulated through three interconnected thematic chapters: We Are Earth, which brings together works of ethical and sustainable origin to resist the Anthropocentric cataclysm with respect for raw materials; We Are Roots, focused on creators who rescue ancestral knowledge – from weaving to carpentry – to transform it into a living and contemporary practice; and We Are Path, a space dedicated to experimentation and innovation, highlighting creative processes that challenge the physical limits of craftsmanship and, at the same time, open new paths for the future.
The exhibition brings together the work of 19 leading creators from the Polish scene: Jan Ankiersztajn, Agnieszka Bar, Monika Dąbrowska Picewicz, Formsophy, Maciej Gąsienica Giewont, Huba Studio, Justyna Kosińska, Zofia Kusch, Agata Marchlewicz, Agnieszka Mazur, Olga Milczyńska, Beata Momot, Aleksander Oniszh, Monika Patuszyńska, Jakub Przyborowski, P55 Mirror, Studio REST, Beata Wietrzyńska / In Weave and Aleksandra Zawistowska.
The project is completed in Valencia with a public program curated by Marisa Santamaría, which will activate a direct dialogue between figures of Polish and Spanish design – such as Clap Studio, Ana Illueca or David Places– through round tables and the presentation of the Crafting Reality White Paper. After its stop in Valencia, the exhibition will move to Matadero Madrid at the end of the year.
Organized by the Creative Industries Institute (IPK), Poland, in collaboration with the Instituto Polaco de Cultura in Madrid, the exhibition is co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland within the “Inspiring Culture” program.
