Plečnik Awards 2026: A Medal for the Plečnik House

In its statement, the jury emphasised that the book opens up a new and highly relevant perspective on Plečnik’s legacy by highlighting the often overlooked landscape-architectural elements of his designs for Ljubljana’s open spaces. It also noted that “through in-depth research and many years of conservation experience, the author establishes professional foundations for the restoration, management and maintenance of these spaces. The work makes an important contribution to understanding the comprehensive nature of Plečnik’s architecture and enriches spatial culture through a timely reflection on the relationship between built and natural space.”

Published by the Museum and Galleries of Ljubljana in December 2024, Plečnik’s Green Ljubljana offers a pioneering study of 54 known, lesser-known and newly discovered examples of Plečnik’s open-space interventions in Ljubljana. The introduction was written by Dr Peter Krečič, who described the publication as a fundamental work that had long been missing from studies of Plečnik’s oeuvre.

Upon receiving the award, Darja Pergovnik referred to Plečnik’s thought: “It is not about creating something new, but about presenting things anew.” She added:
“This award is a great recognition of my many years of research and also of the persistence that was not always well received. It represents an important acknowledgement by the architectural profession that Jože Plečnik was not only an architect, but also a complex designer of open space.
The book, with its landscape-architectural focus, is therefore a pioneering work that at least partly corrects the injustice of this aspect of Plečnik’s extraordinarily important creative work having been overlooked. I would sincerely like to thank the MGML team, who trusted me and made the book possible, as well as my colleagues at IPCHS, who encouraged me throughout the process. At the same time, the book also serves as an encouragement for further research into a field which, in Plečnik’s case, can never truly be considered fully explored.”

Maja Kovač, editor of the publication and Head of Programme at Plečnik House, MGML, highlighted:
“More than ten years ago, we already worked very successfully with Darja Pergovnik and the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia on the comprehensive renovation of Plečnik House and its garden. When she later approached us with the idea that Plečnik’s designs od open spaces deserved special attention, we immediately recognised the relevance of the project.
Our shared goal was to create a readable publication that would present Plečnik’s green interventions in Ljubljana’s open urban space to both professional and wider audiences in an accessible and engaging way. We are delighted that we achieved this and that the book also brought a number of new discoveries to light. The Plečnik Medal now adds the finishing touch to our efforts.”

In addition to author Darja Pergovnik and editor Maja Kovač, the publication involved curator Ana Porok, who provided expert support, designer Bojan Lazarevič, and photographer Matevž Paternoster, while extensive archival material was sourced from numerous Slovenian institutions.

The president of the jury, Andreas Ruby, described this year’s selection of Plečnik Award and Medal recipients as a “shift” towards a more restrained, empathetic and thoughtful architecture that does not seek to overshadow what already exists, but rather to use it as the basis for its own transformation.

This year’s Plečnik Award was presented in the category of Public Space to the project Boathouse Zaka at Lake Bled. In addition to Plečnik’s Green Ljubljana (Plečnik Medal for the Enrichment of Spatial Culture), the Plečnik Medals were also awarded to House B2 (Small-Scale Architectural Realisation), the Layout of Glavni Square in Vipava (Large-Scale Architectural Realisation), and the book Enfilade: The Life of the Apartment (Publication). The Plečnik Scholarship was awarded to Nika Jeromel and Erika Slovša for the project Anton, a Slovene Apiary in an Urban Environment.