Let Them See Us!
Image, Attire, Body
October, 10, 2025 – February, 8, 2026
Buy a ticket
Attire is a language. From royal robes to the extravagant creations of contemporary fashion visionaries, it constantly signals identity, power, social status, taste, and convictions. It can speak directly, yet also reveal more than we might wish. It can serve as both a tool of oppression and a symbol of liberation. It reflects social change while at the same time connecting with tradition, which it sometimes transforms with irony. Discover an exhibition that, through outstanding works of painting, sculpture, and decorative arts, traces the hidden signs encoded in attire—inviting us to read it like a book.
Attire as Communication
Ever since nudity became problematic for our distant ancestors, attire has served not only a practical but also a symbolic purpose. Royal ermine draped across shoulders, hunting trophies at one’s feet, flowers adorning 18th-century gowns—each of these motifs points to ideas, myths, and archetypes, and we absorb their messages both consciously and subconsciously.
What You'll See
The exhibition features around 250 precious and varied objects spanning centuries—from the 16th century to the present day. Highlights include remarkable works on loan from leading national and international institutions, such as the Louvre, the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, and the Old Masters Picture Gallery in Dresden, as well as treasures from private collections.
The Exhibition's Story
Through figures such as the ruler, the knight, the hunter, the adorned woman, and the philosopher, the exhibition reveals the wealth of meanings embedded in attire across the ages. It also shows how certain motifs reappear after centuries, now charged with radically different meanings. Did you know that the corset—once a tool of patriarchal oppression—is today seen as a symbol of women’s empowerment?
The exhibition presents fashion as a grand social game, where persuasion is the instrument and the stakes are prestige, allure, and power. It leaves us with a question: am I playing this game consciously, or merely acting out the role imposed on me?
Opening Hours:
Tuesday–Sunday: 10:00 AM–5:00 PM (last admission at 4:00 PM)
Monday: Closed
Ticket Prices:
Standard – PLN 30
Concession – PLN 20
Special (with the simultaneous purchase of a ticket for any permanent exhibition, available only at the ticket office) – PLN 1
EXHIBITION
Curator
Monika Przypkowska
Exhibition producer
Paweł Martosz
Exhibition coordinator
Magdalena Jaroć
Set design production coordinator
Anna Rosochacz
Set designers
Elżbieta Szurpicka, Jan Przedpełski
Assistant set designer
Katarzyna Targońska
Graphic designer
Barbara Bugalska Studio Projektowe
Visual identity designer
Jakub de Barbaro
Exhibition Department
Robert Gruszka, Marzena Kanclerz, Piotr Kubiak, Jan Łoziński, Rafał Mroczek, Kamil Nowiński, Krzysztof Nowiński, Grzegorz Siatkowski, Dariusz Zgiet, Franciszek Wolf
Conservation Department
Zuzanna Adamiec, Tomasz Buźniak, dr Katarzyna Garczewska, Piotr Halski, dr Dorota Iwaniuk, Bogumiła Krajewska, Teresa Mackiewicz, Grażyna Mittag, Anna Pituch – Sawicka, Magdalena Rogowska-Machulec, Klaudia Sobierajska, Maria Szczypek, Paulina Zalewska.
Promotion and Communication Department
Anna Buczyńska, Mateusz Kaczyński, Bartosz Kolczykiewicz, Mikołaj Krupa, Szymon Majcherowicz, Dorota Parzyszek, Dorota Piskorska, Monika Siadak-Wereda, Paulina Szwed-Piestrzeniewicz, Anna Żak
Education Department
Tomasz Drapała, Dominika Jackowiak, Paulina Jasny, Agnieszka Lichacz, Wojciech Siwek, Michał Sobieraj, Sławomir Szczocki, Marta Tarnawska - Banaszek
Research and Museum Projects Department
dr Ewa Włoch
Protocol and Events Department
Grzegorz Grzegorzek, Paweł Gutt, Lesław Krzewski, Regina Lubelska
Strategic Partnership Team
Katarzyna Grabowska, Marta Smolińska, Elżbieta Tararuj
Construction Department
Sebastian Burzyński, Jan Całka, Dariusz Janus, Piotr Kaczmarczyk, Mariusz Lachowski, Mariusz Przybysz, Mariusz Przybysz, Mirosław Rudniak, Józef Rulka, Józef Sobkowicz, Kacper Spólnik, Henryk Zelek
Electrical Department
Dominik Bojar, Janusz Duczman, Marcin Grodkowski, Grzegorz Pietrzykowski
Sanitary Department
Maciej Danis, Grzegorz Gawrysiak, Paweł Gebler, Marcin Mazur
Translator
Grażyna Waluga
Set producer
P.P.H.U. JAREN Jan Nowocin
Perfect Events Rafał Krauze
GM-POS Grzegorz Marczak
Kreator Ścian
Art transport
Renesans Trans International Exhibitions sp. z o.o.
Art Logistic sp. z o.o.
Kunsttrans Spedition GesmbH
EXHIBITION PUBLICATION
Academic editor
Monika Przypkowska
Managing editors
Monika Baranowska, Anna Wlaźnik
Editor
Anna Gaudy-Piątek
Proofreading
Ola Kalinowska, Michał A. Zieliński
Coordinating editor
Tatiana Hardej
Photo Editors
Anna Bukowska, Jan Łoziński
Graphic Design, layout, typesetting
Barbara Bugalska
INSTITUTIONS, COLLECTIONS AND INDIVIDUALS LOANING OBJECTS FOR THE EXHIBITION
Bielsko-Biała, Kolekcja Sztuki Galerii Bielskiej BWA
Bielsko-Biała, Muzeum Historyczne w Bielsku-Białej
Drezno, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister
Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, London - Paris - Salzburg - Milan - Seoul
Gdańsk, Muzeum Narodowe w Gdańsku
Jędrzejów, Muzeum im. Przypkowskich w Jędrzejowie
Kielce, Muzeum Narodowe w Kielcach
Kraków, Muzeum Narodowe w Krakowie
Kraków, Parafia Archikatedralna św. Stanisława B.M. i św. Wacława M. (Katedra na Wawelu)
Kraków, Zamek Królewski na Wawelu – Państwowe Zbiory Sztuki
Łódź, Muzeum Sztuki w Łodzi
Orońsko, Centrum Rzeźby Polskiej w Orońsku
Paryż, Luwr
Płock, Muzeum Mazowieckie w Płocku
Poznań, Fundacja im. Raczyńskich przy Muzeum Narodowym w Poznaniu
Poznań, Muzeum Narodowe w Poznaniu
Szczecin, Zachęta Sztuki Współczesnej w Szczecinie
Warszawa, Fundacja Sztuki Polskiej ING
Warszawa, Fundacja Teresy Sahakian
Warszawa, Fundacja Zbiorów im. Ciechanowieckich w Zamku Królewskim w Warszawie
Warszawa, Kolekcja Galerii Studio w Warszawie
Warszawa, Muzeum Karykatury im. Eryka Lipińskiego
Warszawa, Muzeum Narodowe w Warszawie
Warszawa, Muzeum Pałacu Króla Jana III w Wilanowie
Warszawa, Muzeum Sztuki Nowoczesnej w Warszawie
Warszawa, STARAK COLLECTION
Warszawa, Zamek Królewski w Warszawie – Muzeum
Wiedeń, Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien
Wrocław, Krupa Art Foundation
Wrocław, Muzeum Narodowe we Wrocławiu
Kolekcja Adama Leja/Adam Leja's collection
JRcollection
Kolekcja Agnieszki Szumielewicz
Kolekcja Bettiny Bereś
Kolekcja prywatna Marcina Szałańskiego oraz Adama Malinowskiego @a.m.artcollection
Kolekcja Sylwii i Piotra Krupów
Kolekcja Wojciecha Fibaka
Agata Agatowska
Iwona Demko
Ida Karkoszka
Paweł Kowalewski
Monika Mamzeta
Piotr Mlącki
Olga Mokrzycka
Agnieszka Rożnowska
Ala Savashevich
Justyna Smoleń
Łukasz Stokłosa
Michał Zawada
