PLEČNIK AWARDS 2024

The Jože Plečnik Fund is presenting the Plečnik Awards for the fifty-first time. On Monday, May 20, 2024, the Jože Plečnik Fund held a ceremony to present the 2024 Plečnik Awards in the garden of the Plečnik House on Karunova Street in Ljubljana.

The awards were presented to the recipients in the pleasant and relaxed garden atmosphere of Plečnik House by the president of the jury, Matej Vozlič. The ceremony was graced by the presence of the keynote speaker, the President of the Republic of Slovenia, Dr. Nataša Pirc Musar, who gave an inspiring and principled speech, followed by a stage greeting from the former deputy mayor of Ljubljana, Prof. Janez Koželj, with his always inspiring words. The event was hosted by Timon Šturbej in the intimate and friendly atmosphere of a May evening. Prof. Boštjan Vuga, President of the Board of Directors of the Jože Plečnik Fund, addressed the guests and award winners with the following words: "The mission of the Plečnik Awards is to be forward-looking, to show the way forward and, with their excellence, uniqueness, and inventiveness, to influence the work of architects and the development of a wide range of architectural practices. The Plečnik Awards are given for completed, realized works. Here, the past and the present come together to provide material for the future. This is the significance of the Plečnik Awards, in their influence on architectural practices and future production. Today, the fund awards prizes to works that combine artistic imagination with contemporary social, political, economic, technological, and environmental developments and that demonstrate that their authors are not only active creators of space but of society as a whole.

The award ceremony opened with an introductory presentation of last year's scholarship recipients' projects, followed by the formal presentation of awards for the most outstanding realized architecture. This year's award winners were also presented in film format through a documentary by director Dominik Mencej and director of photography Rok Kajzer Nagode. The two-day program of awards, exhibitions, and round tables took place at three locations: Plečnik House, the atrium of the City Museum, and the DESSA Gallery.

The expert jury consisted of Matej Vozlič (chairman), Blaž Babnik Romaniuk, Matjaž Bolčina, Luka Javornik, and Mia Roth Čerina selected one Plečnik Award, four Plečnik Medals, and one student scholarship in the award categories (for large-scale architectural realization, small-scale architectural realization, public space, professional journalism, and enrichment of spatial culture).