Public-Social Partnerships. Cooperation between Society of Friends of Warsaw and the Historical Museum of Warsaw 1963 – 2002

Abstract

By the end of the 1960s, cooperation between museums and associations could be noticed in Poland, today we would call it a model public-social partnership. An example of this is the cooperation between the Society of Friends of Warsaw (TPW) and the Historical Museum of the Capital City of Warsaw, which took place from 1963 and lasted uninterrupted for many years, even after the death of prof. Stanisław Lorentz, director of the National Museum in Warsaw, co-founder and first president of TPW. The result of this cooperation was cultural, research and educational activity. In the field of this cooperation, a branch of the Historical Museum of the Capital City of Warsaw − the Museum of Wola - was founded. The establishment of this facility was initiated by the members of the Wola branch of TPW. Another cultural event organized in cooperation between the museum and the association was the organization of not only collector's exhibitions, but also the holding of symposia, scientific sessions and lectures. From the very beginning, one of the basic tasks of the museum and the goals of the Society of Friends of Warsaw was to spread knowledge about Warsaw's turbulent past. This article presents the undertaken and implemented projects in a chronological manner, finding a common space of activity so as to consolidate the community of Warsaw historians, art historians, museologists, Varsovianists and collectors. Cooperation in the public and social field contributed to the enrichment of the cultural offer in the city, thanks to which the majority of residents and tourists visiting the capital could take advantage of it. Cooperation between TPW and the Historical Museum of the Capital City of Warsaw developed significantly and went beyond the city. Museum employees and social activists from TPW passed on to the next generations knowledge about the material and nonmaterial heritage of the capital. To this day, many exhibits made available for exhibitions by private persons remain in the collections The Museum of Warsaw.