Twentieth-century art in Croatia

Vienna Secessionism

. In secessionist style was the works of Robert Frangeš Mihanović, and his famous work is unique "equestrian monument of King Tomislav" done in 1928-38. He meets every traveller that comes to Zagreb from Train station.

Medulić Society and Munich Circle

(who Meštrović met on several occasions).

Unfortunately vary fast Meštrović lost his intimae humanistic connection of youthful expression, and he put his talent in service of monumentality and promotion of actual politic ideas. During the World War I he was developing unique “heroic style” in which he doses the themes of epic literature and the myths of South Slavs.

Painter Emanuel Vidović from Split with his friends (sculptor Ivan Meštrović, painter Miroslav Rački and graphic artist Tomislav Krizman) founded first important society of artists – "Medulić Society" in Split in 1908. Their works were extremely monumental as seen in billboard of their exhibition by Rački according to sculpture of Marko Kraljević (mythical fighter against the Turks) by Meštrović. Surrealistically large horse and extremely muscular horseman are symbolic representation of “forgotten” heroism of South Slavs.

Miroslav Rački is remembered in world art by his unique visual presentations of "Dante’s Hell".

In Croatia during that time there was one more group of painters – so called "“Munich circle”" - intimae, but visually strong painters (Josip Račić, Miroslav Kraljević, Vladimir Becić and Oskar Hermann). They all studied in Munich with professor Habermann and had new and modern, anti-academic stand toward art.

Avant-garde

From numerous works of art that reached high quality with symbolic ideology original is painting "“Black Flag”" dedicated to disintegration of Austro-Hungary by Ljubo Babić in 1919. The black flag, like guillotine hangs over graceful crowd in cheerful colored dresses. Babić is often linked with expressionism and writer Miroslav Krleža, best seen on his cover of magazine “Plamen” (The Flame) in 1919.

In twenties the Croatian painters have reached the envious level of original style under direct influence of European avant-garde movements. Architect "Josip Scissel" (Jo Klek) is original with his cheerful dada aquarelles and first Croatian abstract paintings. Cubistic compositions can be fined in works of Vlado Gecan, Sonja Kovačević Taljević, and surrealistic are works of Krsto Hegedušić, Vanja Radauš, Anto Motika etc.

Image of the period is best shown through aspirations of two opposite art groups: "“Spring Salon”" group (Vjekoslav Varlaj, Đuro Tiljak etc.) and group called Zemlja (The Land) (Krsto Hegedušić, Oton Postružnik, Miroslav Detoni, Edo Kovačević, Đuro Tiljak and naïve artists Miroslav Virius and Ivan Generalić).On the exhibitions held every spring at the Art Pavilion in Zagreb (“Spring Salon”) the paintings represented nature of strong masses like it was made out of ceramics, while houses reminiscent early cubistic works. The world on those paintings was still, lifeless and petrified. Instead of misty formal approach of Spring Salon group, the Earth group searched for answers of social issues. Architect Drago Ibler founded the group in 1929, and it had clear program: independency of visual expression, oppression of uncritical taking of foreign styles, dilettantism and art that has purpose in it self (L’art pour l’art) while it reflected the reality of life suitable to needs of modern community.

Architecture before The War

The modern Croatian architecture appeared with Viktor Kovačić who was the first to speak against historicism and represented the idea that architecture must be individual and modern, but also practical and comfortable. His projects are marked with subtle purity of reduced elements of historicism, like in monumental Palace of Burse in Zagreb, 1924.

From the thirties the works of “Zagreb school” of architecture can stand alongside with the best world architecture. They are especially interesting because of merging of two opposite directions in architecture of those days – functionalistic and organic.

Drago Ibler has published a manifest of group “Earth” in which he says: “We should live in the spirit of our age and create accordingly; … The modern life is full of social ideas and questions considering everybody and an artist can’t stand outside that collective because art and life are one.” Most of his projects were rejected, and out of the ones that were actually done extraordinaire is the building of "Social Security" in Mostar. Today the simple ambulance, build in 1930, have a beautiful convex half-ring shaped entrance with a porch, and dynamical balance of short office building and tall volume of resident part and stairways.

Stjepan Planić, also a member of group “Earth”, with his numerous buildings have made a makeover of Zagreb and earned a place in Anthology of Modern Architecture. Every project of his is marked with some new idea: "Villa in Kozarčeva street" from 1931 is gradually accommodated to the hillside, "“Tomislav Home”" in Sljeme from 1935, made out of wood and stone, has unique plane in the shape of letter Y, circular "villa on the Prekrižje", also from 1935, has radial inner walls, while "“Napredak” building" from 1936 has unique oval plan. He fought for the architectural freedom to plan the buildings accordingly with climatic conditions, the sun, the wind and the sightings, and for the affirmation of new social and human ideas in habitat culture.