WOŚP Heart in Łódź

Before it reached Łódź, it sailed some 12,000 nautical miles – from Tianjin in China to the port of Gdańsk. The mirror-polished, 3.5-metre WOŚP Heart stands on the square named after the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity (Wielka Orkiestra Świątecznej Pomocy, WOŚP), on the corner of Zachodnia and Ogrodowa streets, directly opposite Izrael Poznański's palace. Its gleaming surface reflects the palace façade, the sky and passers-by, making it one of the most photographed spots near the Manufaktura complex.

History: a heart from Tianjin

The sculpture, shaped like the charity's heart logo, was made by the Sino Sculpture Group art collective in Tianjin near Beijing. After the voyage to Gdańsk it went to a warehouse on Puszkina Street in Łódź, where it was polished for several days to remove every trace of the journey, before a crane set it on its foundation in front of the palace. It was officially unveiled on 20 July 2022 in the presence of WOŚP founder Jurek Owsiak and volunteers from the local fundraising teams; the evening ended with the charity's traditional "light to heaven".

Installing the Heart completed a makeover of the square itself. It had been laid out a few years earlier when the Puro hotel was built, but turned out too stony – some of the granite slabs were replaced with trees, shrubs and flowers.

Why a heart

The shape echoes the logo of the charity, which for three decades has raised money for hospital equipment and medical programmes in Poland. According to estimates quoted by Łódź city hall, one in five pieces of equipment in Polish hospitals was paid for with money raised by WOŚP.

Nearby

• Izrael Poznański's palace – the textile magnate's residence across the street, home since 1975 to the city's history museum,
• Manufaktura – Poznański's former mills, reopened in 2006 after restoration as a 27-hectare shopping and cultural complex with the Factory Museum,
• WOŚP Square – a small, green square between the palace and the hotel.

Tripto tip

The Heart stands in open public space, so you can see it free of charge at any time; a quarter of an hour is enough for the sculpture itself. The best shot is when the palace façade is reflected in the mirror – stand on the square, not on the busy junction. It makes a good starting point for a walk around Manufaktura and the palace museum.