SLOVENIA'S TREASURES
There are few cities on which an artist has left such a strong personal impression as the architect Jože Plečnik (1872-1957) has done to Ljubljana, his birthplace. For a whole three and a half decades this former provincial city was systematically altered to become the capital of the Slovene nation. By offering monumen-tality and beauty he attempted to nurture the feeling of self-confidence in its inhabitants.
In Ljubljana Plečnik planned many parks and squares one after another. As in Prague, he characterized the urban development of Ljubljana with high obelisks, columns and pyramids, laying broad stairways and paving large expanses. The existing monoculture of wild chestnut trees was systematically replaced with better selected vegetation. The monuments he constructed are only a modest part of his vision for the great Ljubljana;the National and University Library, |
 Križanke (photo: B. Kladnik) |
Church of St. Michael on the Marsh (Barje), Žale cemetery, central food market, banks of the river Ljubljanica, Tromostovje (The Triple Bridge), Križanke summer theatre, etc. |
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In the eighties the work of the architect Jože Plečnik (a disciple of Otto Wagner) became a true discovery for Europe and the world. Besides the extraordinary high quality of his work Plečnik has also been attributed abroad with a high degree of originality and innovation in the use of historical, regional and even local features, rounding each in new authentic collections containing a multitude of items, from fine details, monuments and architectural motifs to large urban features.
After thorough preparation carried out by a team of experts (Boris Podrecca, François Burkhardt, Damjan Prelovšek and Lojze Gostiša) and two institutions: the Georges Pompidou National Cultural Centre from Paris and Ljubljana Museum of Architecture a large retrospective exhibition on Jože Plečnik opened in 1986. The Paris exhibition subsequently saw extraordinary success in Ljubljana, too. In a truncated form it then moved to Madrid, Vienna, Munich, Karlsruhe, Milan, Venice, New York and Washington. Jože Plečnik became a top cultural theme chiefly among professional circles. Within the USA he is the only Slovene artist to experience world promotion of such an impact. The Georges Pompidou Centre decided to bestow its contribution of Plečnik's exhibition to Ljubljana. To mark the following significant anniversaries: the 120th anniversary of Plečnik's birth, the 35th anniversary of his death and the 20th anniversary of the foundation of the Museum of Architecture a permanent exhibition comprising most of the works of Plečnik's Paris exhibition was opened to the public in a renovated wing of the classical early Renaissance Fužine Castle on the banks of the river Ljubljanica in Ljubljana.
Museum of Architecture - Fužine Castle
Studenec 2a, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Tel: 00 386 61 1409 798, Fax: 00 386 61 140 97 98
Permanent collection: the Paris exhibition
of Jože Plečnik
(a comprehensive display of the life work of this great Slovene architect)
Museum of Architecture - Plečnik's
Collection
Karunova 4, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Tel: 00 386 61 213 008, Fax: 00 386 61 335 067
A permanent display of Plečnik's works as well as a commemorative collection in the residence where the architect lived and worked. The old and new part of the house with the garden he designed and the preserved authentic ambience of his residence are other attractions.