Warsaw Revolution
Street Art
 Warsaw Revolution
Street Art

History of the Revolution

There’s always been extraordinary things that have drawn people to Warsaw. Whether it’s the city’s thousands year
history or the growing wave of modernity as Varsovians look to the future, it is clear Warsaw is a city which has been
long on the rise.

Rapid development has been the goal of the city authorities over the years, and the change is evident with fancy
buildings, trendy restaurants, and posh clubs popping up like dandelions. There’s a lot to see and do, but you don’t
have to be fancy, trendy, or posh for every visitor or local alike, to appreciate a phenomenon that has been going on
since the Uprising…Street Art.

It is human nature to explore, to appreciate our surroundings even if we are surrounded by buildings and Warsaw’s
Street Art makes fulfilling that innate drive easier than almost any big city in the world due to the proliferation of
Street Art.

Not only Warsaw, but Poland in general has long embraced the fact that large scale artwork and design motifs can
be a fascinating and creative option for advertising or, more recently, as an outlet for the artistic visions of local and
international street artists.

World War II

Anyone who has ever visited or lived in Warsaw is familiar with the kotwica, a wartime symbol meaning 'Polska Walcząca', translated as 'Poland continues to fight’. Originally painted in 1944 and painted over in 1945 after the Warsaw Uprising, these symbols were uncovered during renovation works and can be found all over the city.

Cold War

During the communist era huge advertisements were often painted onto the gable ends of buildings and factories. With the current fashion for all things retro and the undeniable coolness of Polish design from the 1960s-80s those murals which have survived are a window into a bygone era.

Modern Era

With Communism in Poland fading faster than the murals it created, who has been responsible for the street art and mural explosion of the last decade? While international such as Italy's BLU, the Netherlands Loesje, or Belgium's ROA, it is Polish artists and especially Varsovians who have sparked and fanned the flame of this revolution.