Museum of Fantastic Art
Muzeum Sztuki Fantastycznej
Location
What to expect
If you know one Polish painter beyond the classics, it is probably Zdzisław Beksiński - the self-taught master of dystopian, nightmare-tinged landscapes whose work has a global cult following. The Museum of Fantastic Art is the only permanent space in Warsaw devoted to him and to the wider current of Polish surrealism and fantastic art. Alongside Beksiński you will find Jerzy Duda-Gracz, the sharp-eyed satirist of Polish life, and Wiesław Wałkuski, one of the great poster painters, set against a roster of contemporary successors - among them Maksymilian Novak-Zempliński, Tomasz Alen Kopera, Dariusz Zawadzki and Zbigniew Bielak, a printmaker known internationally for his intricate album covers. The museum’s stated formula is exactly that confrontation: acknowledged masters shown next to the generation following them.
The strongest reason to come: the museum states that the large majority of the works on display are being shown publicly for the first time - pieces from private collections you will not see at the National Museum or any state gallery. The programme runs as a series of changing exhibitions; past shows have included monographic displays of Duda-Gracz, Jacek Szynkarczuk and Dariusz Zawadzki, group editions of “Fantastic Art in Warsaw”, and two editions of “Beksiński in Warsaw”, the second with 44 paintings and 9 drawings. Until 30 August 2026 the current show is “Kod wyobraźni” (The Code of Imagination), tracing the line from Beksiński to Bielak.
Set your expectations right: this is a compact, independent gallery-museum inside the red-brick Koneser complex, not a large institution with audio guides and a cafe. But if Beksiński’s paintings impress you on a screen, they hit several times harder in person - reason enough to cross the river to Praga.
Tips
- Prices depend on the current exhibition. The “Kod wyobraźni” show costs 40 PLN regular / 30 PLN reduced (about 9 EUR / 7 EUR), though the museum’s general information also lists 50/40 PLN - check the official site before visiting.
- Reduced tickets are available to students and pupils with ID, pensioners, visitors over 65, and visitors with disabilities.
- Buy tickets at the museum reception or online via the eBilet platform (Polish-language).
- The entrance is from Plac Konesera, the central square of the complex, not directly from Ząbkowska street - head into the main courtyard.
- Open daily 11:00 AM-7:00 PM - unusual for Warsaw, where most museums close on Mondays. A good pick for the day everything else is shut.
- Combine it with the Polish Vodka Museum in the same complex for a full Koneser afternoon.
Getting there
The museum sits inside Centrum Praskie Koneser, a revitalised 19th-century vodka distillery complex at ul. Ząbkowska 31 in the Praga-Północ district, on the right (east) bank of the Vistula. The entrance faces Plac Konesera, the complex’s central square.
Metro: line M2 to Dworzec Wileński, then a 10-minute walk south along Targowa street and left into Ząbkowska.
Tram/bus: stops Ząbkowska or Kijowska, then a few minutes on foot to Plac Konesera.
By car: underground parking beneath the Koneser complex, entered from Białostocka street.
Nearby museums
Nearby museums
SciencePolish Vodka Museum in Warsaw
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Polish Vodka Museum in Warsaw - 500 years of vodka history in a 19th-century distillery at the Koneser Praga Centre. Tickets, opening hours, …
Praga Museum of Warsaw
ul. Targowa 50/52, 03-733 Warszawa
Praga Museum of Warsaw - pre-war Warsaw on the right bank. Jewish prayer room murals, oral histories, observation deck. Hours, tickets.
ScienceMuseum of Printing in Warsaw
ul. Ząbkowska 23/25, 03-736 Warszawa
Warsaw's Printing Museum on Ząbkowska Street. Working 18th-century press, hands-on workshops, Praga district gem. Hours, tickets.
Nearby museums
SciencePolish Vodka Museum in Warsaw
Centrum Praskie Koneser, pl. Konesera 1, 03-736 Warszawa
Polish Vodka Museum in Warsaw - 500 years of vodka history in a 19th-century distillery at the Koneser Praga Centre. Tickets, opening hours, …
Praga Museum of Warsaw
ul. Targowa 50/52, 03-733 Warszawa
Praga Museum of Warsaw - pre-war Warsaw on the right bank. Jewish prayer room murals, oral histories, observation deck. Hours, tickets.
ScienceMuseum of Printing in Warsaw
ul. Ząbkowska 23/25, 03-736 Warszawa
Warsaw's Printing Museum on Ząbkowska Street. Working 18th-century press, hands-on workshops, Praga district gem. Hours, tickets.