Realized by Italian architect Claudio Nardi, the museum takes in some 10,000 square metres of space, incorporating the lion's share of what was once the enamel factory of Oskar Schindler, the German entrepreneur now so universally known due to Stephen Spielberg's World War II film, Schindler's List.
Referring to “the blaze of war,” Komorowski expressed that it is “not so easy for us to compensate for the huge losses to our national heritage.”
However, he affirmed that “we can effectively strive for Poland to be associated with contemporary art... catching up and competing with the modern world.”
The president's sentiments were echoed by Mayor of Krakow, Jacek Majchrowski, who was an instrumental figure in getting the project off the ground.
“We are entering a new phase for museums in Poland,” he said, adding that he believed that as a creative force, MOCAK “will not only radiate across Poland.”
The inaugural director for the museum is Maria Anna Potocka, a veteran of the counter-culture scene of the last years of communist Poland, and more recently the director the Bunkier Sztuki gallery in Krakow.
“The mission of the museum is to bring contemporary culture to the widest possible audience,” she said in a statement to tie in with the opening.
Hundreds descended on the venue for the launch yesterday evening, including Polish and foreign artists whose works are being exhibited in the inaugural exhibitions.
Amongst those whose pieces were present were Kataryzna Kozyra, Miroslaw Balka, Csaba Nemes and Shingi Ogawa, all taking part in the “History in Art” show.
All in all the museum cost 70 million zloty (25 million euro), half of which came from EU funds.
The project is part of an ongoing programme of regeneration for Krakow's former industrial district of Zablocie. Last summer, the city launched a state-of-the-art museum in what had been the administrative offices of the Schindler factory, chronicling the Nazi occupation of Krakow, 1939-45.
MOCAK opens to the public today. (nh)