Workshops for adults

Meridian

workshops for adults

07.11.2026 13:00

This event is part of the “ART-Bridge (Art, Resilience & Togetherness – Bridging Cultures Through Contemporary Art)” project

LOCATION

Auditorium

LANGUAGE

Polish

ADMISSION

Free thanks to a partnership with Audi Polska

A black-and-white sketch depicting the new headquarters of the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw. A bold, bright yellow line runs across the minimalist facade and the sidewalk in the foreground. In the corner of the drawing is the artist’s signature and the year 2026.

The “Meridian” workshop is an invitation for adults from Ukraine, Belarus, and other countries, as well as for Polish women and men with migration experience, to jointly create a large-format, three-dimensional map of our new paths. The event is creative in nature and explores the idea of building a new community from distinct, seemingly mismatched fragments.

The starting point for our project is the extraordinary history of the Struve Geodetic Arc. Between 1816 and 1855, an international team of scientists led by astronomer Friedrich Georg Wilhelm Struve carried out the first such precise measurement of a long section of a meridian (known as the meridian). Using the triangulation method, the researchers established a chain of over 260 measurement points stretching 2,820 kilometers—from the icy coasts of Norway all the way to the Black Sea. These individual points, marked in the field by holes drilled into rocks, iron crosses, or obelisks, are located today within the territories of ten different countries. Although physically separated by vast distances, when connected by an invisible line, they allowed humanity to precisely determine the true shape and size of the Earth.

For the artists of the ART-Bridge group , this historical, cross-border grid has become a powerful metaphor for contemporary experiences of migration. We, too, by crossing borders, have been scattered across the world like survey points. Each of us carries a different baggage of experiences and comes from a different culture. However, in the ART-Bridge project (where the word “bridge” signifies connection), our separate paths converged in Warsaw. The title “Meridian” represents, in our view, a line that connects all these separate points of human stories. We do not seek to erase our differences or force our experiences to be alike—each point retains its complete uniqueness. Instead, we aim to capture the line that unexpectedly brought us together.

What exactly will the workshop be like?

The workshop focuses on hands-on work using the techniques of assemblage (creating

three-dimensional compositions from various, often unexpected objects) and mosaic.

Personal Point: The basis for the work will be a map of Warsaw. Participants will have access to a wide variety of materials: fragments of ceramics, fabrics, stones, small found objects, textures, and colors. Using these elements, each participant will create their own symbolic point on the map—an artistic interpretation of their personal microcosm, a safe corner in a new neighborhood, or a route they travel every day.

A Shared Line: At the end of the workshop, all individual works will be collected and arranged within the Auditorium space. We will use them to build a single axis, physically connected by a yellow line—the visual symbol of our “Meridian.”

In this way, we will create a shared system that demonstrates how isolated, unique fragments from different places can be combined to form a new, cohesive whole.

No prior artistic skills are required to participate in the workshop.

Event concept: Sviatlana Baeva, Volha Safronova, Dzmitry Shulhin, Anna Naumova (ART-Bridge group)

Facilitators: Sviatlana Baeva, Anna Naumova

Sviatlana Bayeva

Anna Naumova

ART-Bridge (Art, Resilience & Togetherness – Bridging Cultures Through Contemporary Art)

This event is part of the “ART-Bridge (Art, Resilience & Togetherness – Bridging Cultures Through Contemporary Art)” project (grant agreement no.: 2025-1-PL01-KA122-ADU-000328966), co-funded by the European Union under the Erasmus+ program (Adult Education sector).

The ART-Bridge (Art, Resilience & Togetherness – Bridging Cultures Through Contemporary Art) is an initiative of the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw (MSN), built on the museum’s experience in working with marginalized and migrant communities (including through the “Słonecznik” Solidarity Cultural Center). The program’s main goal is to transition from short-term assistance to long-term integration, professional development, and social inclusion. The ART-Bridge group consists of adult residents of Warsaw with migration experiences from Ukraine and Belarus who are co-creating this program.

ART-Bridge participants: Sviatlana Bayeva, Yaraslau Kirvel, Liubov Malygina, Lizaveta Maslionchanka, Anna Naumova, Volha Safranova, Dzymitry Shulhin, Varvara Sudnik, Mykyta Vasyliev, Yelyzaveta Yedelieva.

A group photo of a dozen or so people posing in front of the glass facade of a bright building. Some people are standing in the center, others are crouching in the foreground, and still others are sitting on wooden tables and benches on either side of the frame. — Art-Bridge Group

Co-Funded by the EU. The views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the European Union or the Foundation for the Development of the Education System. Neither the European Union nor the Foundation for the Development of the Education System is responsible for them.

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Meridian