October 1, 2026–March 27, 2027
Presented in collaboration between the National Institute of Architecture and Urban Planning in Poland and The Center for Architecture this exhibition showcases the work of Stanisława Sandecka-Nowicka and Maciej (Matthew) Nowicki, two significant figures in the history of American and Polish architecture.
Named for a concept developed in the 1940s by architects Maciej (Matthew) Nowicki and Stanisława Sandecka Nowicka, Humanist modernity explores their vision of modernism as a human-centered approach to design—one concerned with understanding who a building is really for, and how it binds a human being to the space around them. The exhibition follows this idea across their work and asks what their architecture offers us today.
The first exhibition to present the Nowickis as equal partners in a shared body of work, it explores a practice that bridges drawing, building, graphics, and structure, across Europe, America, and India. While Nowicki died tragically at age 40 when his plane crashed as he returned from a job site in India, several years later Sandecka-Nowicka went on to become the first woman in the United States to be appointed as a full professor of architecture when she was appointed as such at the University of Pennsylvania in 1963. She taught fundamental design principles until her retirement as Professor Emeritus in 1977 and received the American Institute of Architects medal in 1978 for her lifelong influence on the profession.
Humanist modernity opened at the United Nations Headquarters in New York in January 2024, then traveled to Raleigh, North Carolina, the city of the Dorton Arena (2024); to the ZODIAK Warsaw Architecture Pavilion (April to July 2025); to the Museum of Architecture in Wrocław (from March 2026); and to the Government Museum and Art Gallery in Chandigarh (May to July 2026). Its presentation at the Center for Architecture returns the Nowickis to the city where so much of their American story took place.
Artists participating in exhibition: Centrala (Małgorzata Kuciewicz and Simone De Iacobis), Alicja Bielawska, Diana Lelonek
Curator: Kacper Kępiński / Curatorial collaboration: Karolina Częczek, Grzegorz Piątek.
The exhibition is organized by the National Institute of Architecture and Urban Planning, Warsaw, Poland, and co financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.
Exhibition is supported by The New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of Governor and the New York State Legislature
Program is supported by Polish Cultural Institute New York.
