The National Museum in Kraków has been honoured in Japan with the 22nd Western Art Promotion Foundation Award – the Academic Award – for the exhibition ‘Young Poland – Polish Art. 1890–1918’ (Japanese title: ‘Young Poland. Song of the Soul and Poetry of Colours 1890–1918’) and the accompanying catalogue. The exhibition, curated by Yuko Ikeda of the National Museum of Art in Kyoto (currently Director of the Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum in Tokyo) and Urszula Kozakowska-Zaucha of the National Museum in Kraków, was on display at The National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto (MoMAK) from 25 March to 29 June 2025.
The exhibition, part of the programme of events accompanying the Polish Pavilion at EXPO 2025 in Osaka, was the first presentation in Japan of Polish art from the Young Poland period on such a large scale. Thanks to the collaboration between the National Museum in Kraków, MoMAK, other Polish museums and private collectors, over 130 works were displayed – primarily paintings, but also prints, furniture, textiles and arts and crafts – showcasing the richness and uniqueness of Polish art, which flourished at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.
The works on display included pieces by the most outstanding artists of the period, such as Józef Mehoffer, Władysław Podkowiński, Józef Pankiewicz, Jacek Malczewski, Olga Boznańska, Stanisław Wyspiański and Wojciech Weiss. Special attention was also given to the significance of Japanese art as an inspiration for the development of Young Poland art.
The award jury recognised the pioneering nature of the project, its proposed comprehensive approach to the Young Poland phenomenon, and the exhibition’s importance in deepening knowledge of Polish culture and art, as well as in fostering cultural exchange between Poland and Japan.
The catalogue accompanying the exhibition was also recognised; it is an exhaustive study of Polish art around 1900, which introduced the Japanese public to its most important movements, artists and the historical contexts so vital to understanding Polish art.
The National Museum in Kraków is the first non-Japanese winner in the history of this award.
