Monday, 24. 1. 2022

Ljubljana proudly marks the Plečnik Year

On 23 January 2022, on the 150th anniversary of the birth of the great architect Jože Plečnik, we entered the Plečnik Year, in which we will highlight the immense importance of the architect for the development of modern Ljubljana.

On the anniversary of his birth, we restored the inscription on Plečnik's grave, and on the occasion, Deputy Mayor Prof. Janez Koželj laid flowers on his grave on behalf of the City of Ljubljana.

UNESCO World Heritage List

We are proud that since last year, selected Plečnik's works in Ljubljana, which we renovated in the spirit of this great master, have been included in the UNESCO list of world cultural and natural heritage. With its inclusion, Plečnik's Ljubljana became important for all humankind and has a so-called exceptional universal value.

 »The inclusion of Plečnik's Ljubljana in the UNESCO World Heritage List is evidence that we are designing the city in Plečnik's spirit, thus preserving and respecting his works and traditions. This is primarily due to the long-term work of Deputy Mayor Prof. Janez Koželj and our colleagues at the City of Ljubljana. The registered projects are important not only for Ljubljana but also for the cultural heritage of all humankind,« said Mayor Zoran Janković at the inclusion in the UNESCO list.

Seven elements of Plečnik's Ljubljana are included in the UNESCO list, five of which were renovated during the current management of the City of Ljubljana.

We renovated the following Plečnik's works: Trnovo Quay, Congress Square with Park Zvezda, the arcades at the central market, the famous Triple Bridge, the Roman Wall, Šance, Navje and the architect's house in Trnovo. We redesigned public spaces and built bridges following his idea along the water axis of Ljubljana: Petkovšek, Cankar, Hribar and Gallus Embankments, Krakovsko Embankment, Maternal Bridge, Fabiani Bridge, Butcher's Bridge and Hradecky Bridge, Šuštar Embankment, Grain Bridge, Fish Footbridge and Gruber Footbridge.

Plečnik Year stars in Plečnik's House

As an introduction to Plečnik Year, we have prepared an exhibition Plečnik and Period in Plečnik's House, which sheds light on the creation of an original biographical comic about Plečnik. The exhibition will be on display until 8 May 2022 and shows the process of creating a biographical comic about Jože Plečnik, the work of historian Dr. Blaž Vurnik, who prepared a comprehensive script, and comic book artist Zoran Smiljanić, responsible for the comic book depiction of Plečnik's life. He displays all the phases of creating a comic book novel, from the script, through drawing drafts to the final author's tables.

Interactive tour of Plečnik's unrealised projects and boutique Plečnik experience

Can you imagine what Ljubljana would look like if Plečnik implemented all his visionary projects?

Plečnik envisioned Ljubljana as modern Athens. And although today's Ljubljana bears a strong mark of his genius, some of Plečnik's projects remain unrealized. You can learn about them with the interactive audio tour of Plečnik's vision of Plečnik's unrealized projects with the Nexto Ljubljana application. Along the path, full of puzzles prepared by the Ljubljana Tourism, you will be guided by the master himself. With the help of augmented reality and 3D images, you will get to know how he imagined Prešeren Square, the Butcher's Bridge, the City Hall and more. The Nexto Ljubljana application is available free of charge for Android and iOS operating systems. Those who would like to get to know Plečnik's exclusive locations, to which not everyone has access, are invited to participate in the unique experience of Ljubljana Tourism Master Plečnik on Thursdays.

Varied events will continue throughout the year

Plečnik's Year will also be marked in other public institutions in the field of culture, including the Ljubljana City Library, where in February, a series of events is starting at which this exceptional architect and his significance for Ljubljana will be presented from different points of view.

We are also preparing a photographic exhibition on Plečnik Year at the Ljubljana Castle, on display from 3 February to 10 April in Gallery »S« presenting Plečnik's UNESCO heritage in Ljubljana through photographs.

In mid-June, the City Museum of Ljubljana is opening the central exhibition Plečnik 150 Years, illuminating Plečnik's complete architectural works and revealing many innovative ideas and techniques used by this versatile artist in his diverse design.