Marek Wolynski

🎤 Building More Than Buildings: Culture as Civic Infrastructure

I had the pleasure of giving a keynote at Culture at Work — a three-day congress in Malta that brought together policymakers, cultural leaders, philanthropists, designers, and urban thinkers to critically examine the role, impact, and responsibilities of culture and creativity in shaping society.

In my keynote, I focused on how placemaking becomes truly transformative when culture is treated as as the connective tissue that binds civic, commercial, consumer, and community ambitions together. 

From immersive sound art in prehistoric caves to brainwave-responsive installations, and placemaking strategies for Heathrow, Wembley Park, and Belfast’s Maritime Mile, I reflected on how culture animates the built environment, brings added value, and shapes how we live, connect, and belong. These themes run through my work at @futurecity_culture , where we put culture at the heart of urban transformation.

Huge thanks to the incredible @meiamalta team led @mariagalea__mg and everyone who made this such an inspiring, generous, and timely space for dialogue.

MUNTADA 2024. I was honoured to speak at the inaugural cultural forum organised by the Ministry of Culture @mocsaudi in Riyadh last year, where thought leaders across art, culture, and innovation gathered to explore The Role of Contemporary Art Practices in a Time of Change.

The second edition of the forum is approaching, which makes me reminisce about the 'Cultural Hubs: The Emergence of Art Districts in Saudi Urban Centers' panel, for which I had the pleasure of joining Basma Alshathry (Director of Curatorial Department, Misk Art Institute) and Sybel Vazquez (Director of Public Programs, Diriyah Biennale Foundation), expertly moderated by Haya Shaath from the Ministry of Culture.

Our discussion explored how cultural hubs can act as catalysts for creativity and community engagement, contributing to Saudi Arabia’s evolving cultural narrative. It was a joy to contribute perspectives on cultural placemaking and strategic development of districts that foster innovation and sustainable community connections.

Many thanks to the brilliant Fenaa Alawwal team, Dr. Abdulaziz Alajaji, Myriam Ryzk Sioufi, Murtada Al Ramadhan, and Mikey Muhanna of afikra for organising such a forward-looking platform for dialogue and bringing together 24 speakers across five days. I’m truly grateful for the generosity of spirit that we all felt from all the participants and audiences at the forum. Looking forward to seeing what MUNTADA 2025 at @samocamoc brings. Deep appreciation to @fenaaalawwal @mocsaudi @academicyogi @myriam_sioufi @myoccupationalhazard @hayashaath @mikey_mu @murtadar_ @afikra_

🎙️Meet Marek Wolynski — Director of Innovation at Futurecity @futurecity_culture A curator and cultural strategist focused on cultural infrastructure, urban development, and public policy. At Futurecity, Marek leads projects that integrate arts and culture into everyday life through placemaking, public art, and creative strategy. His work connects heritage, sustainability, and innovation through exhibitions and site-specific installations across Europe and the Middle East. Having collaborated with the European Commission, United Nations, British Council, and Royal Commission for Riyadh City, Marek’s work envisions how culture can drive transformation in cities worldwide. 💬 He will be joining Culture at Work to explore how creative placemaking can shape sustainable futures. 👉🏻 Join us 19–21 November in Malta and be part of the conversation shaping our cultural future. Register now at cultureatworkmeia.com #linknabio . . Main Partners: @artscouncilmalta @visitmalta @equipp.mt @weareinvent3d Strategic Partners: @culture.venture @arcrc.eu Sponsors: @hsbc Foundation @stilla.mt @farsons_group @bolt_malta @ecabsmalta @creativeeuropemalta @rupture.mt @theatrenext.door @brillace_cafe Km Airlines @showshappeningmalta @kmmaltairlines Media Partners: @vibe887 @newsbook.com.mt @rtk.103 #CultureAtWork #MEIA #Unconference2025

Cherishing memories from Desert X AlUla, a breathtaking site-responsive exhibition fostering dialogues on culture, nature, and art. 

Special thanks to @moustafaaeldeeb for the portrait 📸

Heritage and Innovation, Public Art and the Built Environment, Design and New Technologies, Urban Planning, Art and Wellbeing – just a glimpse of many enriching panel talks that happened during Tuwaiq Sculpture 2024 under the Riyadh Art umbrella. It was a joy to devise a public programme exploring the multifaceted world of three-dimensional art and its role within the public realm. Thank you to everyone who participated in these dynamic discussions, and to all who engaged in inspiring on- and off-stage conversations, continuing to shape the future of public art together. #RiyadhArt #TuwaiqSculpture #PublicArt #ArtTalks

Tuwaiq Sculpture 2024 brought together 30 artists from 20 countries across 5 continents to create monumental artworks in a setting fully accessible to the public in Riyadh. Led by Sarah Alruwayti @sarahalruw with exceptional dedication and enthusiasm of the @riyadhartofficial team, the 5th edition of Tuwaiq Sculpture welcomed thousands of visitors to witness large-scale artworks come to live in the Saudi captial. Themed ‘Dimensions of Movement’ and curated by yours truly and Dr Fahad Jebreen @jebreen , Tuwaiq Sculpture 2024 as part of Riyadh Art significantly contributes to transforming the city of Riyadh into a gallery without walls, enriching the urban cityscape for generations to come. #publicart #sculpture #sculpturesymposium #art #TuwaiqSculpture #contemporaryart #riyadhart #riyadh #saudiarabia

Memories from Noor Riyadh 2023, the third edition of a unique festival where art and light synergies, transforming the city of Riyadh into a luminous public art gallery. Thank you for making us look at the brightest side of the desert moon, @nouf.almoneef @miguel.bc @cultural_crossroads_ @afatgram @pinacoollady__ @jeromesans @trucatriche @actuallylala @fahadnalsaud @ror.fs @yasmeensabrii and many, many more @noorriyadhfestival light magicians #noorriyadh #noorriyadhfestival #lightart #immersiveart #desert #contemporary #publicart #riyadh #saudiarabia #riyadhart

James Turrell’s Second Wind, magical sky, and peacocks

@montenmedio_contemporanea - a hidden art gem in the Andalusian forests. The Montenmedio Contemporary Foundation is a unique open air non-profit institution championing contemporary art in perfect harmony with natural environment. Inaugurated in June 2001, the foundation’s main objective is to offer a vision of contemporary art in which the natural landscape and social environment, including the historical background, are determinants in the creation of the works. To date, more than 40 artists have undertaken site-specific projects at the foundation, of which 26 are permanent projects of collection, open to the general public every day. The Foundation is a cultural reference in the south of Europe not only for its collection, but also for its educational and cultural programme. #nmac #fundacionnmac #montenmedio#contemporarypark #olafureliasson #shenyuan #gunillabandollin #sculpturepark #sculpturenetwork #nature #art #andalusia #spain

Punchdrunk is widely recognised as as the world’s leading immersive theatre company and the spark that ignited the immersive entertainment industry. Today, The Burnt City, Punchdrunk’s latest show, closes after 18 months of non-stop run in London. Last year, I talked with Felix Barrett, Founder and Artistic Director of @punchdrunkint , about pioneering interactive forms of storytelling, game-changing productions, and merging intimate experience with epic spectacle. Our conversation titled ‘Rewarding the Curious’ got published by @contemporarylynx . In a typical Punchdrunk production, audience members are free to roam the performance site, which can be as large as a five-story industrial warehouse. They can either follow the performers and themes (there are usually multiple threads at any instant), or simply explore the world of the performance, treating the production as a large-scale art installation. Inspired by Aescylus' Agamemnon and Euripedes' Hecuba, The Burnt City transports the greatest of Greek tragedies to a sprawling neon metropolis. A completely unique dream-like experience, brought to life through physical performance, dance, sound and light. Between the neon-drenched backstreets of Downtown Troy and the menacing shadow of Greece, a sprawling labyrinth hides secrets not even prophecies could foretell. VisitorscChoose your own fate in a colossal playground of 100+ rooms across two mythic cities. As night falls, Gods, mortals, dreamers, and lovers come alive  – one last time. #punchdrunk #immersiveart #theatreproduction #storytelling #theatre #performance #immersivetheatre #sleepnomore #theburntcity

Memories of a studio visit with @stefanbruggemann1975 at his new place and a creative retreat in Ibiza. Spanning—and sometimes combining—sculpture, video, painting, and drawing, Stefan Brüggemann’s work deploys text in conceptual installations rich with social critique and a post pop aesthetic. Born in Mexico City and working between Mexico and London, the artist’s oeuvre is characterised by an ironic conflation of Conceptualism and Minimalism. In this way, Brüggemann’s practice sits outside the canon of the conceptual artists practicing in the 1960s and 1970s, who sought dematerialisation and rejected the commercialisation of art. Instead his aesthetic is refined and luxurious, whilst maintaining a punk attitude. The philosophy of language is a crucial tenet in Brüggemann’s practice, in which text functions as a fluid medium, utilized for both form and meaning; his choice of words typically provocative, acerbic and topical. Brüggemann’s masterful wordplay and conceptual rigour coalesce to create a bold and pertinent body of work focusing on themes of appropriation and displacement. #contemporaryart #studiovisit #stefanbruggemann #art #gold #conceptualart #minimalism #punk #allowaction #residency #ibiza

Where are we headed? London Design Biennale 2023 Highlights: WOVEN - Saudi Arabia Woven is a collaborative installation where the future is interwoven with the fabric of humanity. Originating in the delicate hands of powerful women in the Arabian desert practising the artisanship of Al Sadu – a traditional weaving technique performed using a simple and portable loom before which women gather to socialise and alternate roles to support each other. ‘Woven’ is a representation of Saudi Arabia’s welcoming nature, inviting the visitor to invest in building a better future for humanity. By collaboratively designing the textile on display throughout the Biennale, visitors contribute to ‘weaving the future’. Each thread represents a different avenue of development and possibility. See how the organic pattern builds and progresses throughout the exhibition. Designers and Curators: Ruba Alkhaldi, Lojain Rafaa POETICS OF NECESSITY - Poland (LDB2023 Medal Winner) In times of need, urgency and uncertainty begin to enter the creative process, while architecture and design mix with social activism. Those are the days of change, adaptation and hope – new sources of creativity. The exhibition explores how unexpected objects such as reclaimed windows emerge from the world of reuse, and crisis collaboration. The installation is inspired by the WINDOW project – a call to action to collect reusable windows, given by Poles to Ukrainians stripped of dignified living conditions as a result of war. When donors give windows, they are connected to the receiver who may be thousands of kilometres away – there is a fascinating trajectory of a window from home to home. The window installation at the heart of the pavilion is just as shapeshifting and open as the collective images of Europe’s fate. In this world of shaken fundamentals, there is still space for empathy, new collaborations and ‘new poetics’, which attempt to grasp the complex emotional temperature and logic of our times. Curators: Zofia Jaworowska, Michał Sikorski, Petro Vladimirov Designers: Nicolò Signori, TŁO Michał Sikorski Architects #londondesignbiennale #design #art #alsadu #woven #windows #poeticaofnecessity