Production Aesthetics Supervision Bureau, Warsaw [Biuro Nadzoru Estetyki Produkcji BNEP]

The BNEP was created in 1947 by Poland’s Ministry of Culture and Art, replacing the previous Production Division (1945–47). The initiator and director of both institutions was the artist Wanda Telakowska (1905–85), who, after the war, devoted herself primarily to educational and organisational tasks and the promotion of cooperation between art, crafts, and industry. The aim of the institution was to provide new aesthetic and functional designs for everyday objects. The BNEP initiated collaborative projects with factories and provided designs for the needs of industry, which was still recovering after the war. It organised experimental workshops that produced models, prototypes, and test series, while collaborating with prominent Polish artists to prepare fresh designs. In 1950, the BNEP was transformed into the Institute of Industrial Design (IWP).