Archival materials on the figure of Stanislaw Denieka are published in connection with the premiere of a film about the architect, organized by the Malopolska Chamber of Architects of Poland.
The mention comes from A&B 02/2022.
Between 1980 and 1990, the Academic Architecture Studio operated in Cracow. This small institution, headed by Stanislaw Deńka, became a kind of business incubator, from which many of Krakow's architectural firms originated.
Stanislaw Denieko gathered talented young people around him. Thanks to his professional attitude and personal commitment, the studio became a place of creative work, international competitions and ambitious architectural projects were realized here. The charisma of the leader and the whiff of the big world made working on these projects an unforgettable experience for all involved. The APA opened up for students and young architecture students unusual professional prospects and realization opportunities for the time. The studio's logo - a simple block resembling a stool inscribed in a cube - took its name from a 1982 competition design for a building set in La Defense square in Paris.
In the first period of activity at APA, in addition to competition works, implementation architectural projects were created, including the revaluation of the Marfi palace with simultaneous adaptation to the Cooperative Craft Bank (R. Aleksandrowicz, A. Fedak and B. Podhalanski, 1982) and an infill building on the corner of Jakub and Warszauer streets, in Kazimierz (A. Jasinski and W. Oktawiec, 1984/1985). The culmination of this period of the studio's activity was the Grand Prix of the 1st Architecture Biennial in Cracow, in December 1985, for the project of rehabilitation of the Old Gasworks in Kazimierz (S. Deńko, R. Kuzianik, L. Matlawska-Patyk, W. Oktawiec, M. Patyk and P. Wróbel). It was a work characteristic of that period: heavily outlined, artistically rich and full of historical references.
Creative rehabilitation of a degraded part of downtown Krakow - the Old Gasworks in Kazimierz.
© Private Archive
In 1986, the studio entered a new stage of development: full-time teams were created to carry out design tasks. Projects from this period include the design of a school in Lubomierz and the adaptation of the Zucker synagogue on Węgierska Street into the Studio Television Theater. In 1986-1988, projects for the Dębniki-Zakrzówek area were also developed at APA. The authors of the coordination plan were Krzysztof Bojanowski, Stanisław Deńko, Marek Dunikowski and Wojciech Miecznikowski. The idea was to recreate the process of spontaneous growth of the city by differentiating the character of individual buildings, so, following the example of Berlin's IBA, many Krakow architects were invited to participate in the development of individual projects.
Residential and commercial complex "Zakrzówek" in Cracow - Debniki
design: 1986-1988
urban planning concept authors: Krzysztof Bojanowski, Stanisław Deńko, Marek Dunikowski, Wojciech Miecznikowski authors in teams: Aleksander Böhm, Wojciech Chmielewski, Janusz Duliński, Witold Gawłowski, Małgorzata Gruszka, Dariusz Gruszka, Janusz Ingarden, Maria Misiągiewicz, Piotr Kałuża, Wojciech Kosiński, Dariusz Kozłowski, Marek Kuszewski, Robert Kuzianik, Krzysztof Kwiatkowski, Krzysztof Lenartowicz, Andrzej Lorenc, Anna Mróz, Stanisław Niemczyk, Zofia Nowakowska, Bogusław Piechnik, Jan Rączy, Wacław Seruga, Barbara Setkowicz, Krzysztof Skoczyński, Wacław Stefański, Janusz Trojanowski, Andrzej Wyżykowski, Iwona Zuziak, Zbigniew Zuziak
Photo: Stanislaw Deńko
Undoubtedly, the studio's greatest success from the period in question was winning a closed architectural competition for the building of the new terminal of the Balice airport (S. Deńko, D. Gruszka, J. Duliński and P. Wróbel, 1988). This project became the beginning of a whole series of airport terminals and facilities realized by architects originating from APA.
One can quarrel over who was the pioneer of the free market of architectural services in Poland, but regardless of the point of view and the criteria chosen, it must be admitted that the Academic Architecture Studio operating under the direction of Stanislaw Deńko was an efficient incubator of architectural entrepreneurship. A number of well-known Cracow design offices originated from it, among them: APA Czech-Duliński-Wróbel, Wizja Stanislaw Deńko, DDJM, Artur Jasiński i Wspólnicy, KKM by Marek Kozień, Q-Arch by Robert Kuzianik and Path Architecture by Wojciech Oktawca.
John Paul II International Airport Kraków-Balice
design and implementation: 1989-1994
Authors: Wizja, Akademicka Pracownia Architektury SSP "Żaczek", Stanisław Deńko, Janusz Duliński, Dariusz Gruszka, Piotr Wróbel
design team: Małgorzata Gruszka, stud. arch. Malgorzata Hodbod, stud. arch. Marek Trela
Photo: Stanislaw Deńko
