International Cultural Centre

The International Cultural Centre in Krakow is an institution specializing in the issues of culture and heritage of Central Europe. Established on the initiative of the government of Tadeusz Mazowiecki in 1991. It was founded by its long-term director, Professor Jacek Purchla. The institution formed by him from the very beginning focused its scientific and research interests on the issues of broadly understood cultural heritage in active dialogue with Poland's neighbors and with the world..

Thanks to the ICC's contribution to the international debate on the role of heritage and through developed contacts, the Center implements the mission of public diplomacy to consolidate Poland's position as an important player in the international community (UNESCO, V4, Barcelona Process, Berlin Process) and an important partner in cultural and intellectual cooperation.

The ICC was created on the basis of an experimental and original formula developed by Professor Jacek Purchla. It allows the Centre to employ an interdisciplinary and comprehensive approach to analysed problems, and – on the other hand – to present and popularize them in an attractive form.

Extensive intellectual achievements of the ICC (e.g. its 5000 publications) allowed the institution to build its brand as a research centre that conducts professional, highest-level research on cultural heritage and issues of Central and Eastern Europe, recognizable by intellectuals, scholars, and practitioners of heritage protection in Poland and beyond.

The ICC is located in the historic “Ravens House” in Krakow’s Main Square, which after several stages of renovation and modernization (from 1998 to 2009) was adapted to house the institution and serve its mission. The venue offers office space for the ICC team, but it is primarily a space for dialogue with the public; it houses a conference room for c. 200 people, smaller seminar rooms (including historic cellars that are also used as exhibition spaces), a modern library with a reading room, and a gallery adapted to museum purposes. The ICC’s venue communicates the institution’s mission as a laboratory of modern approach to heritage – the historic structure was integrated with modern architecture, while the entire building was adapted to the use by the disabled.