Institute of Solidarity and Valor named after Witold Pilecki – architectural photography session
In 2025, I completed a full architectural photography session in Warsaw in collaboration with the studio Bogumił Kidziak Architekci. The commission focused on the building of the Institute of Solidarity and Valor named after Witold Pilecki, located at 82 Sienna Street. The session included exterior architectural photographs taken during the day and in the evening, drone photography, and interior images, allowing for a comprehensive presentation of the building’s character and function. The new headquarters of the Institute was designed as a contemporary public space that refers, through its architectural language, to the aesthetics of Poland’s interwar period. The project was developed by an interdisciplinary team of architects, interior designers, historians, and exhibition specialists. The building combines office functions with publicly accessible spaces, including a reading room, library, concert hall, and a permanent exhibition. The façade, interpreted as a metaphor of blank pages waiting to be written, forms a symbolic backdrop to the Institute’s mission of preserving and documenting history.
Architecture, detail, and urban context
During the photo shoot, my goal was to present the building as an open and welcoming place, while at the same time firmly rooted in the historical context of Warsaw. While photographing the interiors, I focused on the relationship between architecture, detail, and light, as well as on artistic elements such as metalwork and sculptural furniture inspired by interwar art. An important aspect of the project is also the presence of contemporary design solutions, including elements created with the use of artificial intelligence, which subtly connect the past with the present. Drone photography made it possible to capture the building’s form within the urban fabric and to emphasise the dialogue between the adapted existing structure and the newly added, minimalist architectural elements. The final photographic series forms a visual narrative about architecture that, through restraint, functionality, and symbolic expression, creates a meaningful place of culture and memory on the map of Warsaw.