The Wroclaw Institute of Culture’s activity is situated between artistic institutions, focused on creating and animating art, and cultural centres main task of which is artistic and cultural education. We want to become a bridge between the institutional field of culture and active citizens, creators, artists and the non-governmental, business or public sector. We create opportunities for cooperation, test new formats of activities, identify and research trends and support niche, non-commercial initiatives.  

We want to support your initiatives, develop your competences, create networks and organise events rooted in our experimental practices. And even though we have just started, work is in full swing – stay with us and see how we do it! 

How it all started?  

We may be at the beginning of the road, but we start with a lot of experience. The establishment of the WIoC is directly rooted in Wrocław’s role as European Capital of Culture 2016 and the development of the organisational office and its specialisation process in the following years. Since 2018, the programme continued now by the Institute was part of Culture Zone Wrocław’s activities. At the end of 2021, it was decided to create space to strengthen the two parts of CZW’s programme that were becoming increasingly clear: the production component (further realised by the previous institution) and the competence and animation one, which will be developed by us.  

The Institute is being established in a completely unusual way: the first months are a testing ground for our team, where we are putting all our previous activities under the microscope. It will therefore be a kind of “institution under construction”, which will take shape before your eyes and with your participation. We will fully present ourselves to you in June this year.  

The head office of the Institute is Barbara (Świdnicka 8b) located in the city centre, but we are willing to go beyond our own walls – apart from projects in Wrocław districts we will also organise projects beyond the borders of Wrocław.  

Our activities  

We want to be an institution with a flexible and agile programming structure which can be easily adapted to the challenges posed by a dynamically changing world. In our programme we will focus on four areas: competences, support, networking and events: 

→ one of our tasks is to stimulate the development of the cultural field. With our activities, we want to enable practitioners to raise their competences and together explore trends that will allow us to spread our cultural wings. More information about this field.  

→ the second area is to support your initiatives and ideas. We are here to help you realise smaller, local projects as well as those reaching far beyond the borders of our city and even our country. Read more about the support you can receive at the Institute. 

→ we will also be involved in the networking of the cultural sector. We have experience in cooperation with a diverse group of organisers – from local and regional partnerships with, among others, associations, foundations and institutions, to nationwide and international cooperatives. More about our networking ideas. 

→ the last, most extensive part of our programme consists of events that will be the result of the Institute’s experimental profile and at the same time an opportunity to test in action fresh ideas for the spreading of culture. Here we will put into practice the ideas and concepts developed in other areas of our activity. More about the events organised by the WIoC.