Salwator Square | Kraków Poland | Land-Arch Partnership

This area is located in one of Krakow’s historical districts, though not directly in the city center. This pleasant, neighborhood required an eye-catching space that would reflect it’s original charm. Salwator district was based on the garden-city concept and now still is one of the more pleasant places in Kraków.

Between old, historic buildings public space was a little bit neglected.  The designers organized the space in a simple way,  creating a modern square whilst referring to the history of the surroundings. Though the design is in a public space, the idea and finances came from a private investor. Central to creating this memorable elegant public space is using a variety of natural materials, combining textures and forms to produce the sublime.

The team wanted to create a clear concept that would be compatible with the surrounding neighborhood.   Within this symmetrically compatible space with its surrounding environment, an ‘island’ was created. This  focal point featured a wooden elliptical-shaped platform, which was an easy way to blend the traditionally used stone and the overall linear pattern.



All elements used are minimalist in form, yet modern, with the only exception being, the wooden benches. These organically designed benches are the strongest design element within the square.

The introduced greenery matched the simplicity of the other design elements. Only two species were used, the easily adaptable birches and extensively growing miscanthus.  Decorative grasses compliment the elliptical-shaped eyes in the stone surface.

Salwator Square | Kraków Poland | Land-Arch Partnership

IMAGE CREDIT | Karolina Bober

About Damian Holmes 3253 Articles
Damian Holmes is the Founder and Editor of World Landscape Architecture (WLA). He is a registered landscape architect (AILA) working in international design practice in Australia. Damian founded WLA in 2007 to provide a website for landscape architects written by landscape architects. Connect on Linkedin at https://www.linkedin.com/in/damianholmes/

Comments are closed.