BABski WEEKEND

BABski WEEKEND • 5-7 June 2026

BABski.... began with a film.

When an opportunity arose to celebrate Polish Heritage Days, our first thought was simple: let's bring a Polish film to •cosy cinema•. After all, •nook's• founder Gosia moved from Poland to Birmingham almost twenty years ago and has spent most of her adult life here. It felt like the perfect excuse to share a small piece of Polish culture with the city she now calls home.

But one idea quickly led to another.

Over the last few years, it has felt like there is a real moment for Polish creativity. In 2025, the UK/Poland Season brought hundreds of events, exhibitions, screenings and cultural collaborations to venues across both countries. Major institutions including the Tate, Barbican, BFI and V&A celebrated Polish artists, designers, filmmakers and makers. Tate Modern recently presented a landmark exhibition of Magdalena Abakanowicz, one of the most influential artists of the twentieth century. Earlier this year, The Photographers' Gallery showcased the extraordinary work of Zofia Rydet, while Collect - the UK's leading fair for contemporary craft - featured a significant presentation of contemporary Polish makers. This feels new, feels fresh. 

Across design, photography, craft, visual arts and culture, Polish creatives are increasingly finding international audiences. Poland itself has become an increasingly popular cultural destination. Yet despite being one of the UK's largest migrant communities, how often do we get to see Polish creatives celebrated on their own terms?

How many Polish artists, makers, designers, photographers, filmmakers, architects, writers and cultural organisers do you know who help shape Birmingham's creative landscape? And when do we ever get the chance to see them all in one place - not talking primarily about migration, identity or heritage, but about the contemporary creative work they are making right now?

A few messages, conversations and introductions later, a plan emerged.

BABski Weekend is a celebration of Polish creatives living and working in Birmingham and beyond. Through a showcase, film screening and social gathering, we wanted to create a space where artists, makers and cultural practitioners could share their work, ideas and ambitions. Not as representatives of a community, but as creative people whose practices contribute to the cultural life of this city every day.

And then there was the name.

BABski is a little nod to being a BAB with a distinctly Polish -ski attached. A Brummie-Polish hybrid that felt perfectly at home in the second city. Even better, the word babski in Polish carries associations with women, girlhood, female-led spaces and feminine energy. Not that this event is exclusively about women!

Yet it feels particularly fitting. In Poland, out of the 10 official Patrons of 2026, nine are men and the tenth is a nun, celebrating contemporary BABski creativity feels doubly important. 

This isn't an attempt to define Polish identity, speak for a community, or wrap everything in red-and-white flags. It is simply an invitation to discover the incredible range of creative practices that exist around us, often unnoticed, and to celebrate the people helping shape Birmingham's cultural landscape while carrying a little bit of Poland with them.

Welcome to BABski Weekend.

BABski WEEKEND • 5-7 June
CREATIVE SHOWCASE  5-7 June
FRIDAY SOCIAL Fri 5th June 7-9pm / Lets mingle! Everybody is welcome / BYOD
COSY CINEMA special film screening My Nikifor (2004) - more about the film & tickets here