This is the second year of the Great Exhibition of Bees. The Great Exhibition of Bees premiered on August 8, 2023, at the Institute of Industrial Design. It was initially planned to last for 30 days, but it extended to six months! Here, you can revisit the exhibition’s premiere.

This year, during the Great Bee Day, another online edition of the exhibition was launched in two languages, as more and more artists are joining from around the world. The project Let’s Do It Together for Bees also has an English name: Together for Bees! The project has also gained a new logo featuring the first artistic bee created in 2020 by the artist Natalia Olbiński.

The Great Exhibition of Bees 2024 can be viewed on the websites: togetherforbees.com

During the Great Exhibition of Bees, 107 artistic bee works were presented (compared to 82 works in 2023). The number of bee patrons, i.e., responsible brands supporting the project, also increased from 7 companies in 2023 to as many as 16 by August 8 🙂 More artistic projects and patrons will soon join, so the exhibition continues to grow.

The scientific work behind the Great Exhibition of Bees was overseen, as last year, by biologist Martyna Walerowicz in collaboration with Pasieka24.pl. As you explore the artists’ works, you will also read many fascinating facts about the lives of bees.

But that’s not all the good news, as the Great Exhibition of Bees will be showcased live in Switzerland! On October 27, during Education Day and Teachers’ Day, the exhibition will be inaugurated with the support of the Polish-Swiss Institute of Culture and Education. During this event, guests will learn about the origins of the project, discover all the artists’ works, and explore the products of the bee patrons.

On the occasion of the Great Bee Day and the online exhibition’s launch, I asked several experts in bees and nature what we can do to benefit bees. Here’s what the experts had to say:

The first thing that comes to my mind is what NOT to do: don’t start a beekeeping operation.

What you can do involves various actions, which could be discussed at length, but ultimately boil down to one thing:

creating a safe habitat for various species of bees, one that meets all their needs and where they can live and reproduce.

– Justyna Kierat, PhD in Biology

 

Don’t start a beekeeping operation. Currently, there are too many honeybees in Poland. Environmentalists emphasize that forage resources should be used both by wild pollinators and honeybees, and that there should be a maximum of 1 hive per hectare.

Veterinarians state that for bees to remain healthy, there can be a maximum of 4 hives per hectare. Currently, in Małopolska, there are 12 bee families per hectare. The situation is no better in other regions of Poland…

– Martyna Walerowicz, biologist and author

Martyna has prepared all the educational facts for the Great Exhibition of Bees, which you can read online at togetherforbees.com.

 

Talk about bees with others: your family, friends, coworkers. Say things like: “Mom, your flowers on the balcony are food for bees!”

Ask your neighbor to wait before mowing the lawn.

Remind your friend that the blueberries in her dessert are there thanks to bees.

Simply notice these insects in your everyday life.

– Ewa Mazur, veterinarian specializing in insect diseases, beekeeper, and beekeeping technician

 

Pay attention to what we already have: all the trees, shrubs, and less frequently mown corners of gardens are invaluable habitats for wild bees.

Avoid using insecticides in your gardens.

Take care to ensure plant diversity as well as variation in textures.

Some bees prefer sand, others stones or pieces of wood.

– Maciej Podyma, President of the Meadow Foundation

 

For the good of bees, it is possible and even necessary to educate others about the fact that there are more species than just the honeybee. Moreover, it’s important to teach that pollinators aren’t limited to bees alone.

For bees—and, of course, other pollinators—we must protect their habitats, which means preserving nesting sites and ensuring a reliable food base. Naturally, the best food sources are native plants, as they are the most valuable for insects found in Poland, including bees.

I also encourage combating invasive alien species, as they, alongside habitat loss, are the main causes of biodiversity decline, including the disappearance of bee populations.

– Mikołaj Siemaszko, specialist in pollinating insects and invasive alien species, naturalist

In 2024, the Together for Bees project will donate all funds from bee patrons to the Meadow Foundation, which will take care of biodiversity and wild bees. Together, we will sow more flower meadows and prepare educational materials.

I invite you to join us and contribute to the creation of the Great Exhibition of Bees! Let’s do it together for bees!

Best regards,
Diana Dyba