The PZU Group’s concern for cultural goods builds social identity, respect for tradition, a sense of belonging to the community and its history.
For years, the Group has supported major cultural institutions and events, collaborating with them to promote culture and national heritage. This includes primarily patronage over the cultural institutions in Poland:
Thanks to the PZU’s support, the Warsaw Rising Museum carried out a number of significant projects in 2022, notably the August celebrations of the 78th anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising outbreak. Community singing of uprising songs at Piłsudski Square, the concert of Kwiat Jabłoni & invited guests, theater play “Kwatera bożych pomyleńców” [Lodging of God’s Cranks], the educational meeting for families, the Commemorative Cycle Rally “Rowerowa Masa Powstańcza” – these are just some of the events prepared by the Museum to mark the occasion.
The Royal Łazienki Museum held exhibitions of exceptionally valuable artifacts this year. Special mention should be made here of one of Rembrandt’s most recognizable works and one of only two known horse portraits by this Dutch artist – “The Polish Rider”, once in the collection of King Stanisław Augustus, and now in the New York’s Frick Collection.
The National Museum in Warsaw celebrated its 160th anniversary in 2022. The celebrations started with the exhibition “Chagall”. The events prepared to mark the anniversary included also concerts, educational projects, meetings and publications devoted to the Museum’s history and collection.
The National Museum in Kraków, among many outstanding exhibitions, presented the works of one of Poland’s most recognizable artists, Tamara Łempicka. The exhibition featured 35 paintings from museums and private collections in Europe and the United States.
Events organized by the Fryderyk Chopin National Institute included the Fryderyk Chopin Birthday Concerts, with a notable performance by Bruce Liu, the winner of the 18th Chopin Piano Competition
The Grand Theatre – National Opera held over 220 events in 2022, including four premiers, repertoire plays and educational projects. The theater was visited by nearly 200 thousand guests: spectators of plays and exhibitions, and participants of educational projects.
The Polish Royal Opera celebrated its fifth anniversary in 2022. During these five years, under the patronage of PZU, it held 580 events for the public, 25 premiere operas and 145 premiere concerts, which were attended by over 180 thousand spectators.
Bank Pekao, which aims to promote Poland’s cultural heritage at home and abroad, made its art collection available to the general public in November 2021 through Bank Pekao S.A.’s virtual Art Gallery. pekao.com.pl/galeria-sztuki.
Three publications promoting art were prepared and issued in 2022. These are: „Żubr na Wall Street” [Bison at Wall Street] – an album documenting the poster competition held as part of celebrations commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Bank Pekao’s Private Banking; “Zabytkowe kamienice Banku Pekao S.A.” [Historic Tenements of Bank Pekao S.A.] – a publication documenting the architectural monuments where the Bank’s branches are located; and “Między sztuką a komercją” [Between Art and Commercialism] – an album showing archival advertising materials authored by prominent Polish visual artists. The materials on the subject will soon be available in the Bank Pekao S.A.’s virtual Art Gallery
In 2022, under its new project called “When Art Creates Business”, Bank Pekao decided to return to the model of promoting the brand through art (art branding), also in the virtual environment. The idea revives a decades-old tradition, the times when the Bank’s promotional materials were prepared by artists associated with the Polish School of Posters, such as Waldemar Świerzy or Wiktor Górka. This approach became a key to create new compositions for printed advertisements: the collage figure of a cyclist and the accompanying slogan “Be Home Free” appeared in display windows, leaflets and the Internet. The new graphic line, in a modern way, draws on the Bank’s design from years ago. Further, with the reference to the poster and, above all, to the work of Wojciech Fangor, the Bank moves away from communication in which stock photos are the dominant image. Moreover, in 2022, Bank Pekao became the first universal financial institution to tokenize art. NTFs with elements of Rafał Bujnowsk’s painting composition are linked to 440 Unique payment cards introduced jointly with MasterCard. Each card will have a piece of the painting “Ściana pracowni” [Studio Wall] printed on the front, with a non-exchangeable token associated with this piece. In the same year, Bank Pekao unveiled the NFT project in the metaverse. Tokens with works by Kaja Renkas, made for the 25th anniversary of the Bank Pekeo’s Private Banking, will be on display in the PeoPay Gallery, that is virtual environment localized in ESKA World – Poland’s first metaverse. In addition to NFTs, there will be animations and an interactive game.