Zakopane

This past Saturday I took a bus out of Krakow to the Tatra Mountains. They are the highest mountains in Central Europe. I went to a town called Zakopane which is a tourist haven especially for skiers in the winter months. There is a rich collection of museums and houses that show off the Zakopane Style of wood cutting/carving and architectural design and decoration with wood. This decorative style, the motifs represented in the museums and throughout the town, had me captivated. The beautiful hand carved decorative touches add an extra level of personality and warmth to already beautiful buildings. I was struck by the use of positive and negative space in the designs and how the light played in and around the designs within the buildings. I went in for a lot of close up photos but I also couldn't help but take exterior photos so that you can get a sense of what the overall buildings looks like. There are garden photos too so that you can see how the flowers and plants outside some of the homes look while mingling with the lines and dimensions found in the fine wood designs. I went to the Villa Koliba Museum, which was a highlight for me. It was created in the Zakopane Style by artist, Stanislawa Witkiewicza.  I also went to a renovated traditional Tatra highlander house which houses the collection of Marii i Bronislawa Dembowskich. Their collection was the source of inspiration for Witkiewicza from which the idea of pure Polish style in architecture called Zakopane Style was born. Please enjoy...

All the above photographs were taken in this house, Stanislawa Witkiewicza, Zakopane Style Museum, The Villa Koliba Museum.

 Above are a collection of shots I took while walking around the town looking at the interesting sights.

The last three photographs were taken at the traditional Tatra Highlander House which houses the collection of Marii i Bronislawa Dembowskich.