This year we are marking the 145th anniversary of the birth and the 60th anniversary of the death of the greatest Slovenian architect Jože Plečnik. On the occasion the City of Ljubljana published a booklet in the Portrait of a City series with the title Plečnik’s Ljubljana.

Jože Plečnik – architect, town planner, designer and pedagogue left his mark on three capitals, namely, Vienna, Prague and most of all Ljubljana. His wide artistic scope is described as unique and timeless.

The publication presents Plečnik’s life and many decades of his creations, with special focus on the presentation of his vast creative opus of ambitious urban architecture planning in Ljubljana, including everything from designing embankments of the Ljubljanica River, streets, squares and parks to the monumental buildings which transformed Ljubljana into a national capital and enriched it to such a degree that it is simply known as »Plečnik’s Ljubljana«.

The contents of the publication also emphasises the great effort Ljubljana is putting into the maintenance and renovation of the architect’s heritage and designing city spaces according to his visions. In his spirit the embankments of the Ljubljanica River and the bridges crossing Ljubljanica were comprehensively renovated in the past decade, earning the city and the authors of the designs the prestigious European Prize for Urban Public Space in 2012 awarded by the Centre for Contemporary Culture of Barcelona. Most of his work, at home and in the international environment, is gaining in value, supported by the project of Slovenia and the Czech Republic, namely, their joint nomination for his works to be entered into the UNESCO’s World Cultural Heritage List.

The publication is rich with photographs brining the beauty of Plečnik’s works much closer to us and at the same time inviting us to explore them on three walks across Ljubljana: alongside the Ljubljanica River, from Trnovo to the South Square and Plečnik’s works beyond these paths.

Since 2014 four booklets have been published in the Portrait of a City series comprehensively presenting the most notable historical architectural and town planning periods in Ljubljana: Ljubljana, Emona, Fabiani’s Ljubljana and the most recent Plečnik’s Ljubljana.

You are invited to read the Portraits of the City!

• Portrait of a City - Plečnik's Ljubljana (pdf, 12 MB)