Poland’s Katyń Museum in the running for top EU architecture prize

Warsaw’s Katyń Museum is among the finalists for the Mies van der Rohe award, one of the most prestigious prizes in contemporary architecture.

Dedicated to the memory of more than 20,000 Polish nationals executed at Katyń by the NKVD (a Soviet secret police organisation) in 1940, the Katyń Museum moved to a new home in the impressive Warsaw Citadel in 2015 and was designed by local firm BBGK Architects.

Also in the running for the prize are Ely Court in London (UK), Kannikegården in Ribe (DK), Rivesaltes Memorial Museum in Salses-le-Château (FR) and deFlat Kleiburg in Amsterdam (NL).

“Our instincts could be summed up by the words of Peter Smithson: ‘things need to be ordinary and heroic at the same time’. We were looking for an ordinariness whose understated lyricism is full of potential’,” said the chairman of the jury, architect Stephen Bates.

The winner will be announced on 16 May, with the successful finalist taking home 600,000 euros ($640,000).

Source: It’s Nice That