Polish museum’s gallery impressive

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 18/11/2014 (3985 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In St. Johns, there are many important cultural treasures that celebrate the traditions, art and history of those who built our city.

One such treasure is Ogniwo Polish Museum, the impressive gallery of which is hidden behind a modest Main Street storefront.

The Polish word ogniwo means “links to the past.” True to its name, the museum reveals these historical links through fascinating exhibits that explore the evolution of Polish-Canadian culture.

The care taken to preserve donated artifacts and the high quality of the exhibits belies the fact that this non-profit organization was created and is operated by dedicated volunteers.

The idea for a Polish museum in Winnipeg began in the early 1980s with a mission to preserve historical artifacts from the Polish immigrants who began arriving in Canada almost 200 years ago. Things really took off in 1985 when the Polish Museum Society incorporated and embarked on a very successful fundraising campaign. In 1992, with the help of the Polish Women’s Federation, the society had enough funds to buy the building at 1417 Main St. and move from a temporary location.

By the year 2000, the museum was well established and has since been able to expand the scope of its mission to not only include local displays, but also travelling exhibits, and even a very successful lecture series. A great example of this thematic diversity is their current exhibit called “Artsplosion – The Dynamism of Contemporary Polish Artists in Winnipeg”.

Manitoba’s Community Museum Grants Program helps Ogniwo with annual operating costs allowing the museum to focus on a wide variety of collections and exhibits. Next year, due in part to the province’s Heritage Grant Program and bingos staffed by museum volunteers, funding is now in place for two exciting new exhibits. The first, opening early in the new year, will be the emotionally powerful travelling exhibit “The Face of the Ghetto: Photos Taken by Jewish Photographers in the Litzmanstadt Ghetto 1940–1944”. The second, “In My Words: The Polish Immigration Experience to Manitoba,” is a locally-curated show that is sure to educate and entertain museum visitors in the fall of 2015.

Ogniwo is the only place of its kind in Canada. Congratulations to the museum’s amazing volunteers for keeping these links to the past alive and for helping to strengthen not only Polonia in Canada, but our community as a whole.

For more information on the Polish Museum please contact my community office at 204-582-1550 or e-mail me at Gord.Mackintosh@yourmanitoba.ca.