A new bust of dance maestro Adolf Jenko now stands before classicist Ljubljana building Kazina, which in the 19th century was the centre of Ljubljana high-society social life.

The memorial, arranged by the Slovenian Professional Dance Teachers’ Association in partnership with the City of Ljubljana, was unveiled on Saturday 25 August 2012 to mark the 110th anniversary of the birth of dance maestro Adolf Jenko.

The bust is the work of academic sculptor Meta Kastelic, who has led sculptural workshops at Pionirski dom in Ljubljana for many years. The Jenko dance centre, which for many years has preserved and developed maestro Jenko’s dance tradition, is also part of the City of Ljubljana-founded Pionirski dom.

Dance maestro Adolf Jenko was born in Ljubljana on 10 June 1902. Although he started to dance in ballet in Ljubljana, in 1926 he graduated as a dance teacher from the Royal Dance Academy in Paris, and was known for being the first to bring us a range of popular dances such as the shimmy, black botton, Charleston and so on. In his glittering career as a dance teacher he taught dancing to around 220,000 people. He also took part in the training of over 100 dance teachers and trainers in Slovenia and abroad. He led dance events for many years in the former ‘Soča’, now the Festival Hall in Ljubljana, at which he introduced group dances and also led live the dancing quadrille. He was the first signed-up founding member of the Slovenian Association of Dance Teachers which this year celebrates the 56th anniversary of its foundation.
 

The bust of Adolf Jenko was unveiled by Deputy Mayor Aleš Čerin and the President of the Slovenian Professional Dance Teachers’ Association Zoran Kljun.
The unveiling of the bust of Adolf Jenko was also attended by the former Mayor of Ljubljana Viktorija Potočnik.