The museum in the Opolanka house occupies four rooms of the Makuszyńskis’ former flat. The collection includes successive editions of Makuszyński’s works, in addition to historical-literary studies on his oeuvre and diaries. Besides the writer’s own manuscripts, his archives also embrace an ample set of letters from outstanding writers, painters, musicians, theatre people, scholars and politicians, as well as numerous letters from his readers. To complement the archives, there are also press cuttings and photographs.
The art collection embraces works by famous Polish artists (paintings by Julian Fałat, Władysław Jarocki, Fryderyk Pautsch, Kazimierz Sichulski, Władysław Skoczylas, Stanisław Wyspiański et al., and sculptures by Konstanty Laszczka, Henryk Kuna et al.). There are also designs for illustrations to Makuszyński’s books, antique furniture mostly in the Biedermeier style, miniatures, antique art weavings (eastern rug, Persian prayer carpet and Japanese screen), and numerous utility antiques: lamps, clocks, Polish and French glass articles, and Chinese, English, Saxon and Meissen porcelain.
Historian of literature Jacek Kolbuszewski aptly describes the mood of the museum interiors: ‘... there was something essentially joyful in Makuszyński’s attitude towards the world and people, those in his closest surroundings and others. Kornel Makuszyński looks very serious in Schabenbeck’s photograph in the corridor of his museum. Yet there are cheerful sparkles in his eyes, and there is a smile in the corner of his mouth. The smile has not been catalogued, but it is part of the Kornel Makuszyński Archives and the Museum’s, too. Come and see if you do not believe...’
