Viktor Kovačić (1874–1924) was a

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

and is often called "the father of modern Croatian architecture".

Life

He was born in 1874 in Ločendol near

Rogaška Slatina Rogaška Slatina (; german: Rohitsch-Sauerbrunn''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 4: ''Štajersko''. 1904. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 248.) is a town in eastern Slovenia. It is the large ...

, present-day

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

.The Zagreb City Museum, Donation to the City of Zagreb: The Collection and Flat of the Architect Viktor Kovačić
/ref> After graduating from the Crafts School in

Graz Graz (; sl, Gradec) is the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria and second-largest city in Austria after Vienna. As of 1 January 2021, it had a population of 331,562 (294,236 of whom had principal-residence status). In 2018, the popul ...

in 1891, at age of seventeen, he came to

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...

where he was as a trainee in local construction firms. He studied architecture the

Akademie der bildenden Künste The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna (german: link=no, Akademie der bildenden Künste Wien) is a public art school in Vienna, Austria. History The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna was founded in 1692 as a private academy modelled on the Accademia di Sa ...

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

and opened a studio in Zagreb in 1899. He was co-founder of the Club of Croatian Architects in 1906. He worked at the Engineering College (Technical High School) in Zagreb from 1920, attaining a professorship in 1922. Viktor Kovačić died in Zagreb on October 21, 1924.

Work

The modern Croatian architecture appeared with Viktor Kovačić who was the first to speak against

historicism Historicism is an approach to explaining the existence of phenomena, especially social and cultural practices (including ideas and beliefs), by studying their history, that is, by studying the process by which they came about. The term is widely u ...

and represented the idea that architecture must be individual and

modern Modern may refer to: History * Modern history ** Early Modern period ** Late Modern period *** 18th century *** 19th century *** 20th century ** Contemporary history * Moderns, a faction of Freemasonry that existed in the 18th century Phil ...

, but also practical and comfortable. From the thirties the works of “Zagreb school of architecture" can stand alongside the best world architecture. They are especially interesting because of merging of two opposite directions in architecture of those days – functionalist and organic. His projects are marked with subtle purity of reduced elements of

, like in monumental Stock Exchange Palace ( hr, Palača Burze, today the

Croatian National Bank The Croatian National Bank ( hr, Hrvatska narodna banka or HNB; ) is the central bank of the Republic of Croatia. HNB was established by the Constitution of Croatia which was passed by the Parliament of Croatia on 21 December 1990. Its main res ...

headquarters) in

, 1924. His most important works in Zagreb are: the Church of St Blaise (1910-1913); the Stock Exchange Building (1923 - 1927); the Villa Frangeš (1910 - 1911); the Frank House (1913 - 1914); the redevelopment of Jesuit Square (with Hugo Ehrlich); the Villa Frölich (1919 - 1920); and the ''Slaveks Palace'' (1920).

Slaveks Palace

Slaveks Palace is a residential house built in 1920 in

by Kovačić. House is located on Svačićev trg 13,

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

. The house is registered as protected cultural asset by Republic of Croatia Ministry of Culture and media.

Awards

In 1925, a year after his death, he was posthumously awarded a Grand Prix in Arts and Crafts on the ''

Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes The International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts (french: Exposition internationale des arts décoratifs et industriels modernes) was a World's fair held in Paris, France, from April to October 1925. It was designed by the Fren ...

'' in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

Legacy

After the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

the Life Achievement Award for architects in Croatia was named "Viktor Kovačić". Kovačić's atelier in 21 Masaryk Street is exhibited to the public under the auspice of

Zagreb City Museum Zagreb City Museum or Museum of the City of Zagreb ( hr, Muzej grada Zagreba) located in 20 Opatička Street, was established in 1907 by the Association of the Brethren of the Croatian Dragon ( hr, Braća hrvatskoga zmaja). It is located in a ...

. As of 2021, it is temporarily closed due to the damage caused by the

2020 Zagreb earthquake At approximately 6:24 AM CET on the morning of 22 March 2020, an earthquake of magnitude 5.3 , 5.5 , hit Zagreb, Croatia, with an epicenter north of the city centre. The maximum felt intensity was VII–VIII (''Very strong'' to ''Damaging'') o ...

References

Bibliography

Biography

Detalji:MUO-020606: Kuća Slaveks, Zagreb, Svačićev trg: fotografija
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kovacziczz, Viktor 1874 births 1924 deaths Architects from Zagreb Burials at Mirogoj Cemetery Academy of Fine Arts Vienna alumni