For years, the Association of Polish Architects has been awarding the "Bene Merentibus" medal, a distinction for contributions to both the development of Polish architecture and the association. Laureates of the medal can be not only architects, but also people who are not designers, and even institutions that actively work for Polish architecture. This year's recipients of the "Bene Merentibus" medal are journalist and culture promoter Bogna Swiatkowska, Ukrainian architect Aleksander Baranowski and entrepreneur Wladyslaw Grochowski.
On December 12 this year, during a gala ceremony at the headquarters of the SARP General Board at 2 Foksal Street in Warsaw, the Association of Polish Architects awarded the most important honors in the world of Polish architecture - the SARP Honorary Award, whose recipients this year were Kozień Archite cts - Marek Kozień, Magdalena Kozień-Woźniak and Katarzyna Kozień-Kornecka, and the "Bene Merentibus" medals.
The medal chapter was composed of Marek Chrobak (President of the SARP General Board, chairman of the chapter), Agnieszka Kalinowska-Sołtys (President of the SARP General Board in 2022-2024), Rafał Dominik Eymonnt (Secretary General of the SARP), Katarzyna Wiosna-Osóbka (Secretary of the Governing Council), Prof. Ewa Kuryłowicz (winner of the "Bene Merentibus" medal 2015) and Janusz Sepioł (winner of the "Bene Merentibus" medal 2016). Honorable mention was given to:
Bogna Swiatkowska
Bogna Swiatkowska laureate of the "Bene Merentibus" medal 2025
Photo: Adrian Grycuk | Wikimedia Commons © CC BY 3.0 en
Employer, founder and president of the Board of the Bęc Zmiana Foundation, with which she has carried out dozens of projects devoted to public space, architecture and design, as well as competitions aimed at architects and designers of the younger generation. She is the initiator and editor-in-chief of the "Notes for 6 Weeks" magazine.
Her practice has an interdisciplinary and popularizing character. The projects she creates usually act as platforms that combine the knowledge of experts and professionals with the approach of amateurs, architecture enthusiasts.
The author of many texts, interviews, radio and television programs on contemporary popular culture, the shape of public spaces, she is the curator and originator of the project Happiness Research Laboratory. Life after Comfortocene.
Graduate of Management and Leadership at SWPS University in Warsaw, scholarship holder of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage in 2014, member of the Social Council of Culture to the President of the City of Warsaw 2012-2015, the Council of Architecture and Public Space of the City of Warsaw 2015-2018, as well as the expert team for programmatic issues of cultural and art institutions: TRAFO Trafostacja Sztuki in Szczecin, Rondo Sztuki Gallery of the Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice, Art Center EL Gallery in Elbląg. Member of the Public Program Council at the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw, member of the Council of the Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice, mentor in the Mentors for Starters program, juror in architectural competitions such as the Architectural Award of the Mayor of Warsaw, the Stefan Kurylowicz Foundation's Theory competition, in SARP competitions for architectural objects such as the expansion of the Museum of Architecture in Wroclaw.
A person whose work allows us to see architecture as an important part of culture
- we heard in the laudation read by Marek Chrobak.
Aleksander Baranowski
Aleksander Baranowski laureate of the "Bene Merentibus" medal 2025
© private archives
The chapter of the SARP "Bene Merentibus" medal is honored today to present this award to a person who, despite many adversities, conflicts, difficult times, stands on the side of good, building bridges between the culture, art and architecture of the Ukrainian and Polish peoples. Alexander Baranovsky is a man whose history and professional path is intertwined with the history of both nations.
He was born in Kyiv and graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts there with a degree in architecture. For many years he has been active as a project coordinator and architectural liaison officer in Poland within the National Association of Architects of Ukraine. Thanks to his efforts, experience and commitment, it has been possible to build bridges, understanding and cooperation between the architectural communities of both countries. At a time when the need for solidarity and understanding was and is particularly important.
Alexander Baranowski has been actively involved in the development of young talents and the integration of the architectural community since the 1980s. As coordinator and secretary of many competitions , he promotes good quality, sustainability and aesthetics of architecture and urbanism. It is in this activity that we understand his contribution to shaping a space where architecture has a chance to exist through people and their ideas and dreams. When Russia's invasion of Ukraine triggered a multi-scalar war in 2022 and shattered the previous order of our continent, Alexander Baranovsky did not hesitate - he immediately got involved in relief and volunteer work, supporting fellow architects, organizing reconstruction initiatives, inspiring the creation of a new, safe and dignified space for those affected. His work shows that architecture is not just about shapes and materials, but above all it is about people. They are homes, meeting places, identity and hope. Hope for a better tomorrow.
Today, it is with great honor that we present the SARP "Bene Merentibus" medal to Aleksander Baranowski, whom we appreciate, whose work to promote architecture and dialogue between nations is very important to us. Aleksander, your attitude reminds us that architecture makes sense when it serves humanity, when it is an open window to the future, to the community, to shared responsibility. Let this medal also be a symbol of our solidarity with those who rebuild cities, homes and dignity. And with those who, through architecture, give tools for a better tomorrow. We congratulate you from the bottom of our hearts and thank you for your passion, courage and constant effort.
- Agnieszka Kalinowska-Sołtys said, reading out the laudation.
Wladyslaw Grochowski
Wladyslaw Grochowski laureate of the "Bene Merentibus" medal 2025
photo: Wikiwikiphoto | Wikimedia Commons © CC BY-SA 4.0
We would like to honor a man who, with his courage, vision and deep sensitivity, has given a new dimension to the concept of revitalization in Poland - in space, history, but also in the way people think and perceive it. With his work, Mr. Wladyslaw Grochowski proved that responsible business, care for our heritage and social sensitivity, which is often lacking, can go hand in hand. The SARP "Bene Merentibus" medal awarded to him is the highest recognition of his contribution to the preservation and revival of architectural heritage, as well as his pioneering model of investment activity, which is in line with European standards.
Mr. Grochowski heads the Arche Group, which has been implementing its investments for years. For years, the activities of Mr. Wladyslaw Grochowski and the Arche Group have focused on rescuing dilapidated, historic and post-industrial buildings, which are often considered by the market to be unpromising. Mr. Grochowski has made this mission a pillar of his business, preventing the degradation of valuable heritage and creating new centers of life. As a result, hundreds of historic, often deteriorating buildings have regained their former glory and gained a new function as cultural and socially necessary places.
Examples such as the Żnin Sugar Factory, Łochów Palace and Farm, Janów Podlaski Castle, Tabaco Hotel Łódź, Wrocław Monastery, the former Nałęczów militia sanatorium and Uphagen Manor in Gdańsk show the scale of the commitment and ambition of this mission. In recent years, Arche has announced other major projects, including the revitalization of former buildings such as the Bojarów Manor near Warsaw, the adaptation of the industrial complex of EC Szombierki in Bytom and the historic oil mill in Szczecin.
The mission of heritage preservation, which Mr. Grochowski has adopted as his life goal, is long-term in nature. These are systemic activities, planned and consistently implemented. The Arche Group does not limit its mission to architecture alone. Through the Lena Grochowska Foundation, which has been running since 2014, it gives real support to people with intellectual disabilities, employs them, enables their development, professional activation and social integration, which deserves additional recognition.
The combination of business, care for history and social activities makes Mr. Grochowski a unique figure, a leader for today's challenges, who combines pragmatism with empathy, profit with responsibility, development with humanity. This pioneering combination of concern for architectural substance with deep social sensitivity deserves the highest praise and is consistent with acting for the public good, serving as a model for the entire investment and architectural community. The actions of Mr. Grochowski and the Arche Group do not go unnoticed.
Projects such as the Żnin Sugar Factory have been awarded prestigious honors, including the Property Design Awards 2022 in the hotel, solid and interior categories, and the SARP Award of the Year in the Architecture in Heritage Space category. The company was also ranked in the Forbes Diamonds 2022 as one of the fastest-growing companies in Poland, a testament to the strength and scale of these ventures. Mr. Grochowski also won the title of Man of the Year of the Polish Hotel Industry, awarded by an industry monthly, and the jury recognized him as the person with the greatest influence on the Polish hotel market of the last decade.
Another activity of our laureate is undoubtedly worth highlighting. President Grochowski is actively working to improve the legislative environment, architects' projects, the dysfunctionality of which has been bothering us so much. Wladyslaw Grochowski has proposed excellent legal solutions, known from the media campaign Save Polish Monuments. These actions, part of the deregulation package for the Polish economy prepared by Rafal Brzoza, could dramatically change the fate of Polish monuments and the architects working to protect them.
The awarding of the medal to Mr. Wladyslaw Grochowski is recognition he has earned through decades of consistent work, courage in undertaking difficult projects, perseverance in pursuit of his goal, and above all, a real, lasting contribution to the protection and restoration of Poland's architectural heritage. His actions are systemic in nature. These are not individual projects, but a whole philosophy: saving monuments, revitalizing cities and communities, creating vibrant places, restoring dignity to spaces and people. Mr. Grochowski is an example of a businessman aware of his social responsibility, who is able to combine economics with ethics, investment with empathy, success with long-term commitment to heritage and people.
By awarding the SARP "Bene Merentibus" medal to Mr. Wladyslaw Grochowski, we pay tribute to his creative and courageous vision, which shows that in Poland it is possible to combine investment with heart, that business can be a force for good, and that revitalization can be an act of remembrance and hope. Mr. President, thank you for your steadfast work, for your passion and determination, for the fact that where others saw ruins, you saw the future and hope for a better tomorrow
- emphasized on behalf of the chapter, Katarzyna Wiosna-Osóbka.
