The Loesje mural in Zgierz plays with words, Polish spelling and references to the city’s identity. Its slogan, “UwJEŻ w siebie, tuptaj dalej”, is a playful twist on the Polish phrase “Uwierz w siebie, tuptaj dalej” — roughly meaning “Believe in yourself, keep shuffling forward.”

The word jeż means “hedgehog” in Polish, and it replaces part of the word uwierz (“believe”). This deliberate spelling mistake turns the slogan into a reference to the hedgehog, a symbol of Zgierz. The second part of the slogan, “tuptaj dalej”, literally means something like “keep shuffling along” and refers to the characteristic way a hedgehog moves.

The message is a playful metaphor for perseverance: you don’t have to move quickly to reach your goal — what matters is that you keep going. Take your time, keep moving forward, and get there in your own way, just like a hedgehog.

The mural was created during a workshop in November 2019 as part of the “Zgierskie Loesje” project. The initiative was started by local activist Michał Fałak as part of the National Centre for Culture’s “Dom Kultury+ Local Initiatives” programme.

Before the slogan was painted on the wall of the tenement building, Zgierz residents were invited to participate in open creative-writing workshops. The mural was the result of this process — combining wordplay, humour, local identity and the creative energy of the community.