Charity concert "Łódź of Love" (Boat of Love)– we play, help // February / March / June
The idea for the charity concert Łódź of Love was born in 2017 out of the need to help the people of Syria during the conflict that had been going on there for several years. The initiators of the concert are artists from Łódź: Ola Kozioł and Suavas Lewy. So far, we have organized several editions of the event with the participation of many singers and bands from Łódź. We always organize a fundraiser together with Polish Humanitarian Action, allocating the collected funds to the most needy in the world.
In 2017, artists played for Syria. During the evening of February 11, 2017, our volunteers conducted a fundraiser to help victims of the conflict in Syria, including the evacuated residents of Aleppo. PHA helps refugees in camps in Syria by providing access to safe water, food and medical care.
During the "Łódź of Love" the following artists performed: 19 Wiosen, Alles, Demolka, Diabubu, Dzikie Jabłka, Kozioł / Lewy, Ted Nemeth, Łukasz from Bałuty band. We collected 5,473.40 PLN and 10 Euro.
On March 23, 2018, we organized the second edition of "Łódź of Love" as part of our cyclical event, Colourful Tolerance. The concert was held in cooperation with Fabryka Sztuki (The Art Factory) and the initiators: Ola Kozioł and Suavas Lewy. Once again we collected money for PHA activities in Syria. At the beginning of 2018, reports circulated around the world of further tragic events and the drama of Syrian civilians in Eastern Ghouta. Then, within a few days, more than 600 people were killed in bombing, the inhabitants of the city were deprived of medical assistance, and there was a shortage of food and water. The situation was also difficult in the north of the country. In early January 2018, more than 200,000 people left their homes due to the escalation of fighting in the region.
During Łódź of Love # 2, the following artists performed: Przepraszam - 18 Rzek, Bielas i Marynarze, Wieże Fabryk, Niebiescy i Kutman. During the concert, an auction of works donated by artists from Łódź was also held.
We collected PLN 3,653.85, Euro 30.70, 1 Czech crown and 3 Canadian dollars.
The next, third edition of "Łódź of Love" took place on June 7, 2019. The Łódź (Boat) of Love flows on! Musicians from Łódź played for charity for the third time - this time for South Sudan.
South Sudan gained independence in 2011 after the end of over 20 years of civil war. Unfortunately, as a matter of fact, the country is still in conflict. The situation is also hampered by the difficult climatic conditions and the economic crisis in the country. All this causes the inhabitants of South Sudan to migrate to other parts of the country or beyond its borders in search of safer shelter, water and food.
Polish Humanitarian Action has been operating in South Sudan since 2006. The priority is to provide people with access to clean water and safe hygienic conditions. There is also a wide range of food security activities. Internally displaced people, returnees and local communities are supported by the distribution of necessities and shelters.
PHA builds and repairs wells, latrines and hand washing stations. It takes care of proper sanitary conditions in schools. It educates in the field of good hygiene practices and distributes packages with products necessary to ensure proper hygiene safety for families.
The Dialogue Center together with Łódź artists once again showed that Łódź has a big heart, and despite the incoming bad news, despite the overwhelming hate speech, we organized a concert whose main slogan was love and whose aim was helping the needy.
During the Łódź of Love # 3 concert, the following artists performed: Łukasz Lach, Ted Nemeth, Soniamiki, Mona Polaski, Łódzka Grupa Kuaedza (Łódź Kuaedza Group)
Once again, the auction of works donated by artists from Łódź was held. We collected PLN 4,316.73.
Helenów - family picnic in the historic park // June
Since 2013, we have been organizing cultural picnics in Helenów Park to restore the former glory of this place. Each year, the event takes place under a different slogan, and the park turns into a place of cultural entertainment for the old and the young. Artists from Łódź perform on the main stage. In addition, there are workshops, vintage car shows, dance lessons, exhibitions, shows, handicraft fairs, games and activities throughout the park. Culinary attractions are also present.
Helenów Park is located between Źródłowa and Północna Streets. It is one of the most beautiful parks in Łódź, created at the end of the 19th century by Łódź brewers. One of the beloved places. It was, is and will be!
Our picnics are very popular among the inhabitants of Łódź, and although due to financial reasons in 2019, and due to the pandemic in 2020, the picnic in Helenów did not take place, everyone misses it and it will definitely come back!
23.06.2013 - Midsummer night in Helenów with Tuwim in the background
The most famous Łódź poet, Julian Tuwim, and his sister Irena, often visited Helenów as children, so the first picnic which took place in the Year of Julian Tuwim was dedicated to him. Peony petals, which the whole audience enjoyed, became a wonderfully colourful and attractive element of the event. After all, it was Midsummer night ...
On the main stage, performed:
"Classics in the Park" - Maciej Łabecki Orchestra
Reading "Polish Flowers" by Julian Tuwim - Pinocchio Theatre
The Washing Machine group
"Let's go back as in the old days ..." - hits of the Musical Theatre in Łódź
22.06.2014 - Swinging Helenów // The beginning of summer in Helenów
There is nothing more pleasant than light jazz listened to in good company and beautiful natural surroundings - such was the second Helenów picnic. There were also peony and rose petals.
On the main stage performed:
Dixie Friends
Jazz in Łódź
Samokhin Band
Stan Breckenridge
21.06.2015 - Theatre in Helenów. How nice, how blissful...
2015 was celebrated as the 250th anniversary of public theatre in Poland, which is why our Helenów Picnic was devoted to theatre and co-organized by Music Theatre among others.
On the main stage, the following artists performed:
"Classics in the park" - concert of the trio: Maciej Łabecki, Adam Manijak, Robert Stefański
"They are playing your song ... A thing about Andrzej Włast - a musical spectacle by the Warsaw Artistic Group" Bagatela 15 "
"Operetta Helenów" - concert of students of the Music Academy named after G. and K. Bacewicz in Łódź
In the world of musical - concert of the Łódź Music Theatre artists (Emilia Klimczak and Piotr Płuska accompanied by Magdalena Brzezińska)
26.06.2016 - Film Helenów // Did you know that the centre of the Earth is in Łódź?
The first Lodz screening using a Thomas Edison projector took place on August 1, 1896 in ... Helenów Park. That is why the picnic held on the 120th anniversary of this important event in Łódź had a very specific character. There was a lot of film music and even an open air cinema.
On the main stage, performed:
"Jazz Nights and Days" - a concert inspired by film music performed by a quartet of Kądziela brothers: Marek Kądziela, Radosław Bolewski, Maciej Kądziela, Paweł Puszczało
"Oh, how nice ..." - a concert of film and series music performed by a trio of students from the Music Academy named after G. and K. Bacewicz in Łódź consisting of: Martyna Henke, Ewelina Kisiel, Tomasz Wojen and pianist Marta Sobczak
"Italian-French Dangerous Liaisons" - a concert of Italian and French film songs performed by the group “Przyjaciele” (Friends): Lewartowski / Gwadera / Zabrocki
"Singin' in the Purple Rain" - concert by Julia Hołówko and Mateusz Szymczak
"Song Studio" - fragments of a spectacle inspired by the film "Forbidden Songs" by the Powszechny Theatre in Łódź
There was also an open-air film screening "From the Lumière brothers to Aleja Gówniarzy" - a set of films by the Lumière brothers, Georges Méliès, and selected fragments of films made in Łódź: "Kingsajz", "Vabank", "Aleja Gówniarzy" and others.
The event was hosted by the only and unique actor Karol Strasburger. It is a pity that the weather was not good, but the audience never let us down in Helenów!
25.06.2017 - Artistic Helenów with the avant-garde in the background
In the year of the Centenary of the Avant-garde, it could not be otherwise. It was avant-garde both musically and visually - we showed avant-garde works by Łódź artists.
On the main stage performed:
„Wiejskie rapsy, czyli avant żonglerki i skoczne oberki” - concert of the group Odpoczno: Marek Kądziela, Piotr Gwadera and Marcin Lorenc
"Modern jazz ... and jazz" - a dance show performed by students of the Urban Dance Zone dance school
"Patrice, I don’t know" - concert of Sonimika - Zosia Mikucka with the participation of Aga Gruczek and Marcin Ścierański
„Ćwiczenia z absurdu” - costume show of Tomasz Ciesielski - student of the Academy of Fine Arts in Łódź
"Awangarda Disco" - concert by Electric Eel (Elektryczny Węgorz)
"Podróż w nieznane” (“A journey into the unknown") - premiere performance of songs from the upcoming album by Iza Lach
17.06.2018 - Sports Helenów
The 21st World Football Championship was held in Russia from June 14 to July 15, 2018. When the whole world was excited about the World Cup, we invited the inhabitants of Łódź to the Sports Helenów, where there was a lot of recreation: we had zumba training, deep work and yoga and music including fans' hits.
"Friends have been training there for years" - a sports concert by: Piotr Gwadera, Marcin Zabrocki, Adam Lewartowski
"Great P-E Class" - Deep Work training - conducted by: Maciej Woźniak and Agnieszka Łanowa
"A healthy mind in a healthy body" - concert by Julia Hołówko
Zumba show - hosted by Kasia Królak
"Dance Half Marathon" - concert by Electric Eel
The symbol of our sports picnic in Helenów became the Strongman from Helenów, who was Michał Adamiak from the Dialogue Center.
Come for a walk. It's Tuesday / Summer
We have been walking around Łódź every Tuesday in July since 2013. The walking routes are very different, over the past seven years we have visited almost all of Łódź - walks always tell us about the multicultural past of Łódź. We talked about Bałuty, Łódź parks, Jewish, German, Polish and Russian Łódź. We visited cemeteries, many districts, we got to know stories about literary, theatre, sports and avant-garde Łódź. On the 100th anniversary of Bałuty, we explored various nooks and crannies of Bałuty. The inhabitants of Łódź love our walks and accompany us in great numbers. It happens that we have guests from various towns near Łódź and from abroad.
Our guides around Łódź are the employees of the Dialogue Center, and we are often accompanied by invited guests - Łódź experts, or simply Bałuty residents. Our guests were among others, Marcin Gortat, Łukasz from Bałuty, Krzysztof Kowalczyński.
For participation in the walks, guests receive special coupons or stamps, which entitle them to receive a surprise gift.
City of Bałuty // August
On August 18, 1915, the village of Bałuty with over 100,000 inhabitants (and others, such as Widzew, Radogoszcz, Chojny, Rokicie), were attached to Łódź by the order of the Imperial-German Police President von Oppen. In 2015, the inhabitants of Łódź and us celebrated the 100th anniversary of this with a series of events and projects under the slogan City of Bałuty, which included, among others, a great picnic "Bigiel na Żytniej” (Party in Żytnia Street).
On the very anniversary, on August 18, 2015, Joanna Podolska led a walk around Bałuty and there was also the opening of the exhibition "Bałuty XXI" consisting of works by students and graduates of the Academy of Fine Arts in Łódź. The curator of the exhibition was Artur Chrzanowski, and the works were placed on the facades of tenement houses in Wojska Polskiego Street in Bałuty (between Łagiewnicka and Marysińska Streets). In the evening, there was a review of the reportages broadcast on Radio Łódź and a presentation of photos from the "PhotoBałuty" workshop organized for kids from Bałuty, as well as a meeting with the Bałuty residents: Symcha Keller, Andrzej Berut, Łukasz from Bałuty and Wiktor Skok, entitled "My Bałuty" .
In addition to these events, we also organized workshops for children in Bałuty, led by Justyna Jakóbowska, and film workshops for children and young people, which were conducted in Bałuty schools by Łukasz from Bałuty. The kids shot films about their housing estates, and then Łukasz Cieślak edited one film about Bałuty from them.
An accompanying event was Anka Leśniak's exhibition "Invisible inVisible" / „Niewidzialne widzialnego”, in which the artist prepared site-specific works on three Łódź tenement houses (including the Bałuty tenement house at 2, Drukarska Street), dedicated to three female characters connected with Łódź, whose lives are mostly forgotten today: Eugenia Steinbart, Michalina Ta-tarkówna-Majkowska and Fifi Zastrow.
More information about the project is available at:: www.invisiblewomen.info
Throughout the year, the Dialogue Center also hosted lectures on selected issues related to the Bałuty region. On August 13, 2015, the inhabitants of Łódź were able to enjoy themselves at a Bałuty party, also called in the local jargon "Bigiel na Żytniej” (“Party in Żytnia Street") .
sznytka – sandwich, slice of bread with topping
leberka – pasztetowa, pate sausage
zajzajer – alkohol, kwas, alcohol, acid
galancie – fajnie, very well
klińcówka – gra w chowanego, hide and seek
hajs – pieniądze, money
majcher – nóż, knife
bigiel – impreza, potańcówka, party
ryczka – mały taboret, small stool
The above words can be found in the "Bałuty dictionary" published by us in autumn 2015, which was created on the basis of conversations with people met during walks around Bałuty.
You can download it in the form of an e-book in the PUBLICATIONS tab:
www.centrumdialogu.com/ebooks/balucki
Sign language version:
We have also decided to continue the Bałuty events in the coming years. On September 11, 2016, we organized "Bigiel in Młynarska Street", a historic street in the heart of Bałuty. On that day, we unveiled a mural at 2, Młynarska Street, a project by the artist, Stormie Mills, which was carried out in cooperation with the Urban Forms Foundation. On the main stage, which was located at the end of Młynarska Street, the following artists performed: Łukasz from Bałuty, Julia Hołówko and Mateusz Szymczak, and Little White Lies. At the same time, attractions for the youngest took place along the whole street, including street art or a show by the theatre group "Mirror" from the Extracurricular Activity Centre No. 1. The residents themselves helped us a lot, especially the owners of the tenement house at 32, Młynarska Street.
Another important project in Bałuty was the publication of the second edition of the highly successful Bałuty Dictionary, devoted to places of key importance for Bałuty and their etymology, as well as a memory game.
The e-book is available in the PUBLICATIONS tab:
www.centrumdialogu.com/ebooks/balucki2
The presentation of the dictionary was a part in the programme of the evening devoted to Bałuty held at the Dialogue Center. Other events included: presentation of the results of the workshops "My Bałuty", lectures "Bałuty residents about Bałuty": Krzysztof Kowalczyński - "Where are the borders of Bałuty" and Marek Cybulski - "The Lodz and Bałuty languages" and a mini concert by Łukasz from Bałuty.
Hanukkah//December
Getting to know other traditions and beliefs is one of the most important activities of the Dialogue Center. We introduce the inhabitants of Łódź to holidays from various religions. A permanent point in our calendar is the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah, known as the Festival of Lights. It commemorates the historical events described in the Books of Maccabees, and it usually falls in December, around Catholic Christmas. The most important element of Hanukkah celebration is lighting candles every day for the eight days of the festival. Candles are lit in a nine-branched candlestick called a chanukiah or a hanukkah menorah. Apart from lighting candles, during Hanukkah fatty delicacies are traditionally eaten such as donuts or potato pancakes, called "latkes". Children play the Drejdel game usually for chocolate coins.
Every year, together with the inhabitants of Łódź, we celebrate Hanukkah at the Dialogue Center and introduce them to the traditions associated with this holiday. During the holiday, we usually host the Rabbi of Łódź who lights candles and talks about Hanukkah customs. There is also singing and other attractions. Łódź inhabitants love Hanukkah and come to our celebration in large numbers every year.