Industrial-style event venues are an increasingly popular choice for organising an event away from stuffy conference rooms and hotels dripping with opulence. A raw atmosphere is increasingly attracting event organisers as well as newlyweds looking for a place for their wedding.
I started my adventure with photography by shooting industrial and abandoned places and doing sessions there. Some of them no longer exist: they were bought and then demolished by developers, or are in danger of collapsing. But there are still places in Warsaw that have had a second youth and often serve as atmospheric event venues.
A common motif in these places is old facades or walls covered in red-orange brick, and that’s what I focused on when putting together this list of event venues.
Industrial-style event venues with soul
Often as a photographer, and sometimes as a guest, I’ve had the chance to visit many places that charmed me with their atmosphere. I’ll show you the ones that stuck in my memory the most and that I think are worth a look if you want to organise an event in an atmospheric place with soul. I think that despite its bad reputation, Warsaw’s Praga district leads the way when it comes to venues with an unconventional style. This is where my grandparents and my father grew up, and now I live here myself with my fiancée and we have nothing to complain about. Maybe only the loud night-time “parties” in the Praga gateways now and then, but that’s the vibe here. Concerts in the gateways and partying until morning.
List of industrial event venues
The order is completely random, because every place has its own atmosphere and space. Some are smaller and some larger, and it’s worth keeping that in mind when planning your event. You can often rent just part of a space, but it’s always worth making sure your event won’t be disrupted by another party or celebration. It’s hard to run a conference when there are dance parties going on behind a partition wall and the attendees, instead of taking notes, are tapping their feet to the beat.
Some suggestions may also refer to more general places such as “Koneser“, where you can find several different venues, so I’ll start with it.
“Koneser” Vodka Distillery
- address: Plac Konesera, 03-736 Warsaw
- website: https://koneser.eu/
Koneser is the site of an old historic vodka distillery in the heart of Warsaw’s Praga district. Today it is home to restaurants, shops, art galleries and event spaces.
On the Koneser website, in the event spaces section, you will find, among others:
- Butelkownia – 1500 m²
- GAMA – 1000 m²
- Scena Kotłownia
- Cinema room
- Akademia
- Echo Sfera
The floor areas are taken from the Koneser website. For current availability and rental prices, check with the venue manager: koneser.eu/powierzchnie-eventowe.
Kultura Wysoka
- address: Szwedzka 2, 03-419 Warsaw
- website: kulturawysoka.com
Another place in Warsaw’s Praga, quite close to Koneser, is Kultura Wysoka on Szwedzka Street, about 100 metres from the Szwedzka metro station. According to the venue’s website, the rental price includes two halls, a garden and a cloakroom.
I photographed a conference here and I was really taken by the raw space of the tall hall with a wooden roof, where the morning sun streams in through huge windows from early on. The venue’s website mentions windows of almost three metres and a 120-year-old wooden roof, so it’s not just my impression.
Mała Warszawa
- address: Otwocka 14, 03-759 Warsaw
- website: https://www.malawarszawa.pl/
These are more factory buildings in Praga that have survived to this day and offer performances, concerts, galas and company events.
Mała Warszawa is divided into many different spaces. Outside there is a patio of 517 m², and inside:
- theatre auditorium – 330 m²
- concert hall – 250 m²
- conference room – 250 m²
- training room – 45 m²
- “Piec” club room – 190 m² (about 70 seated, about 100 at a cocktail reception)
- catering room – 70 m²
- restaurant – 200 m² (up to 80 people)
- gallery – 200 m²
The floor areas and capacities are taken from the Mała Warszawa website (“Nasze sale” tab). It’s worth asking about the current availability of the rooms.
Artbistro Stalowa 52
- address: Stalowa 52, 03-429 Warsaw
- website: artbistro.pl
Stalowa 52 is a space that combines art and cuisine with the atmosphere of old Warsaw Praga. The restaurant has a glazed, modern patio set into the brick walls of a restored tenement house in Praga Północ. A treat for lovers of brick interiors.
Next to the restaurant there is a boutique hotel, Arthotel Stalowa 52, with 19 rooms. For the availability of the patio and the hall for groups, and for rental terms, check directly with the venue.
Brick venues, and not only in Praga
If you’re looking for brick venues outside Praga too, it’s worth taking a look at the fort in Żoliborz.
Forteca Kregliccy
- address: Zakroczymska 12, 00-225 Warsaw
- website: kregliccy.pl
Forteca Kregliccy is in the historic Legions Fort, built of brick and surrounded by a moat. Around the central courtyard there are additional halls and chambers that can be used for an event, a conference or a wedding.
History of the Legions Fort
In 2000 the fort was bought by restaurateurs from the Kręglicki family, who renovated it and opened the Fortress in it. Check the rental terms on the kregliccy.pl website.
Already have a venue and looking for a photographer for your event? I do event photography under the Marcin Krokowski brand: conferences, galas and company parties in Warsaw.
