Muzea: Śródmieście

Museums in central Katowice: the Katowice History Museum, the Upper Silesian Pantheon, contemporary art galleries and the Ptak couple's apartment museum.

The centre of Katowice has a dozen or so museums, galleries and exhibition spaces, mainly in historic townhouses. Most are visited indoors, so they suit a rainy day.

What are the best museums to see first in central Katowice?

Begin with the Katowice History Museum, the Upper Silesian Pantheon and the Barbara and Stanisław Ptak Museum. Each tells the story of the region differently: through the history of the city, through life stories and through one apartment.

The main seat of the Katowice History Museum, at number 9 on ulica Szafranka, is a bourgeois townhouse dating from 1910; the institution also has branches, among them one in Nikiszowiec. Its holdings feature the portraits of the Asymmetrical Lady, twenty-six painted by Witkacy. The Upper Silesian Pantheon, beside Christ the King Cathedral, tells of the region's last hundred years through the lives of important figures, and also has a bishops' crypt and a viewing terrace. At ulica Kopernika 11 you can see the two-level apartment of the set designer Barbara Ptak and the actor Stanisław Ptak, preserved in its original form; it belongs to the Theatre and Film Department of the Katowice History Museum.

Which smaller museums and rooms are in the centre?

Two small museums linked to music and radio make a good addition to a longer walk around the centre.

The Polish Radio Museum Room at ulica Jana Ligonia 29 shows radio sets, microphones and studio equipment from the history of radio in Katowice. The Museum of Silesian Organs is in the basement of the main building of the Academy of Music, on the ulica Wojewódzka side, and collects instruments, parts and documents connected with the organs of Upper Silesia. The Archdiocesan Museum at ulica Jordana 39 is a museum of religious art, the only one of its kind in the Silesian Voivodeship; the museum suspended its work in 2024, so find out whether it has reopened before you go.

Where can you see contemporary art in the centre?

Galleries are the most numerous here, and some occupy townhouses.

The BWA Contemporary Art Gallery is housed in a pavilion at aleja Korfantego 6 and began work in 1949. It has 800 square metres of exhibition space and organises the Polish Poster Biennale. The Parnas Gallery at ulica Kochanowskiego 10 shows painting, prints, sculpture and unique glass. The Fra Angelico gallery, at the same address, Jordana 39, presents contemporary painting. In a historic townhouse at 3 Maja 25 the Ateneum Gallery displays set designs and puppets, while the SARP Architecture Gallery at ulica Dyrekcyjna 9 organises exhibitions and lectures on architecture.

What else is worth seeing nearby?

Some places here are not classic museums but are tied to the culture and history of the centre.

The Katowice Neon Depot at plac Sejmu Śląskiego 2 is an open-air gallery of neon signs saved from demolished buildings, so the weather matters here. The Centre for Science and Music Education Symfonia at ulica Wojewódzka 33 is a building of the Academy of Music with a 470-seat concert hall. The building at aleja Korfantego 3, a former Grand Hotel, housed the Silesian Museum in 1984-2018, but today it serves technical functions and is not open as a museum. More places are listed under things to do in Śródmieście, while the museums category gathers museums from the whole voivodeship.

Frequently asked questions

Which museum in central Katowice tells the story of the city?

The Katowice History Museum, housed in a townhouse on ulica Szafranka. Branches elsewhere complement the main building.

Is the Silesian Museum open at aleja Korfantego 3?

No. It was housed in the former Grand Hotel in 1984-2018, and today that building serves technical and back-office functions.

Where are the contemporary art galleries in central Katowice?

For example BWA on aleja Korfantego, Parnas on ulica Kochanowskiego and Fra Angelico on ulica Jordana.

Is there a radio museum in Katowice?

Yes, the Polish Radio Museum Room at ulica Ligonia 29, next to the Polish Radio Katowice studios.