“MIŁA – STATE OF AFFAIRS”
Warsaw Ghetto Uprising Museum
The event drew a distinguished audience of cultural and academic figures, public institutions representatives, and numerous officials, including members of the diplomatic corps.
During the official opening, attendees had the opportunity to learn about the exhibition’s concept and historical context. Dr. Katarzyna Person, Director of the Warsaw Ghetto Museum, discussed the significance of the research conducted at the Miła and Dubois intersection and also explained the role of material traces of the past in telling the story of the former Muranów district. The curators, Dr. Aleksandra Janus and Dorota Kulawik, then outlined the exhibition’s creative vision. Further addresses were delivered by Karolina Jakoweńko, President of the Board of the Cukerman’s Gate Foundation, and Dr. Piotr Rypson on behalf of the Department of Cultural Heritage.
Magdalena Kruszewska-Polak, archaeologist and head of the “Miła 18” project, talked about the history of the tenement houses that once stood at this location. She also presented the current state of the research and shared numerous fascinating details on the uncovered artifacts, which offer a deeper understanding of the everyday lives of those who hid in the basements of the destroyed buildings.
The exhibition tells the story of the material traces of life in the Warsaw Ghetto, taking as its point of departure the findings of archaeological research at the “Miła 18” site in Warsaw’s Muranów district. There, the basements of 19th-century tenement houses were uncovered, along with thousands of everyday items linked to domestic life and the religious practices of ghetto inhabitants. The display juxtaposes these discoveries with the remains of the Jewish Fighting Organization bunkers unearthed in 2025 in Będzin, connected to the events of 1943 and the figure of Frumka Płotnicka, a close associate of Mordechaj Anielewicz. Though geographically distant, both sites are presented as material evidence of civilian and armed resistance, as well as the sheer will to survive.
The installation takes the form of an open-air presentation integrated into the archaeological site—an accessible space that invites visitors to enter, pause, and experience the history embedded in this location.
The exhibition “Miła – State of Affairs” will remain open to visitors at the intersection of Miła and Dubois Streets in Warsaw until September 2026.
On 20 April 2026, the outdoor exhibition “Miła – State of Affairs” was officially opened at the “Miła 18” archaeological site, located at the intersection of Miła and Dubois streets in Warsaw. The display was organized by the Warsaw Ghetto Museum in cooperation with the Cukerman’s Gate Foundation.
26