Experiencing the Sanctity of Life in Josef Plecnik's Architecture

In the continuity of time and space, those artists who touch the human essence with their works and/or ideas, continue to serve and influence all human life and enrich the actual art scene, even when the time of their own actuality has already passed. Among these artists, there are some who, although valuable, have not been granted sufficient recognition or are almost forgotten in our current time. The Slovenian artist Josef Plecnik (1871-1952), who touched on the essence of the human being and the sanctity of life through his architecture, is one of these. The poetry of Plecnik's interpretations of humankind's varied social activities reflects itself also through his choice and usage of materials. As a result, Plecnik's architecture passes beyond the borders of time and space and helps enrich today's architecture, art and social life. This article, which analyzes Plecnik's sacred and profane buildings in comparison with ancient and Renaissance architecture, and Gottfried Semper's 'Style Theory', also aims to be a starting point for the re-actualization of Plecnik's body of work, through which the observer and the user touch the sacred dimension of universal life.