The Cukrarna (sugar factory) renovation project received the first prize in the architecture category at the 5th Balkan Architectural Biennial.

Over 350 works by authors from all over the Balkans were presented at the biennial, 21 of them from Slovenia.

The winning project, the renovation of Cukrarna, was conceived by the architectural bureau Scapelab. The authors Marko Studen, Boris Matić and Jernej Šipoš based the project on the history of Cukrarna, the planned new program and the orientation into the future, as well as the poor condition of the existing structure.

»We are genuinely pleased with how both historical and modern coexist in the new Cukrarna.They are defined by the distance between the internal volumes and the circumferential wall, with proper dimensions and proper ratios.The visitor unconsciously gets the feeling that something completely new has found a place in something very old.Just as contemporary art will.« (Marko Studen, Boris Matić, Jernej Šipoš)

Cukrarna – new contemporary art centre

The comprehensively renovated Cukrarna, which opened its doors last September, is one of the most monumental examples of industrial architecture in Ljubljana, a source of inspiration of four modernists, a modern exhibition space as well as an urban attraction that invites you to walk along the Ljubljanica River to the eastern edge of the city centre.

With the reconstruction of the existing building and the design of the surroundings, we have improved the urban environment and further revitalized the wider city centre. We also removed the physical barrier that hindered mobility in this part of the Poljane Embankment and thus obstructed the most optimal connection between the city centre and urbanized areas in the east of the city.

We have also improved the social aspect of space use, namely, with the implementation of the project, the new contents and arrangements made the area dynamic with a rich programme and social life, also making it safer and more pleasant as well as interesting so that the citizens and visitors to Ljubljana would keep coming back.