Exhibition concept: Goran Arčabić
Exhibition, poster and catalogue design: Bilić_Müller Design Studio
A study exhibition is the mainstay of the second phase of the project The Zagreb Industrial Heritage: History, Condition, Perspectives.
In terms of concept, the exhibition is devised around four themes. The focus is on Zagreb as industrial and financial centre of the Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, or Yugoslavia, as it later became, and the industrial heritage of the inter-war years. The impact of industry on the development of the city, of its economy and urban design and planning, is presented, as is the way in which rapid industrialisation led to demographic growth and changes in the structure of the population.
In the concluding theme, eight industrial complexes and structures the building of which dated originally to the period between 1918 and 1945 are introduced. The selection criteria were the degree to which the buildings are preserved, their importance in the historical context, the intrinsic worth of the architecture, the extent to which original interiors and machinery are still in existence, and the danger that the heritage features will be destroyed as a result of many years in which the buildings have deteriorated or in consequence of aggressive change-of-purpose planning. The structures presented have characteristics of the architectural heritage, and their current condition is indicated, together with their likely future, according to the currently valid documents and the system in place for their protection.
Part of the former Arko complex
The former metal foundry of the Ševčik Bros
The former municipal abattoir
The five-year project The Zagreb Industrial Heritage: History, Condition, Perspectives (2009–2014) researches into, evaluates and presents the industrial past and heritage of the city. The intention is, through the activities that form part of the project, to mould public opinion in a positive way about the industrial heritage, as well as to draw attention to the danger that valuable industrial structures at attractive sites will be ruined.
The second phase of the project (2011–2013) focuses on the period between the two wars, when Zagreb was the economic centre of Yugoslavia and a significant industrial city in SE Europe.
The activities during 2012 and 2013 were financed not only by our regular sources of funding, the City of Zagreb and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Croatia, but also by the firm Pliva Croatia, the main patron of phase two of the project as well as by media patrons and sponsors.
Goran Arčabić
Pictures from the exhibition
photo Miljenko Gregl, ZCM
