Gorenjska Museum

Founded in 1963, the Gorenjska Museum in Kranj collects, houses, researches and represents the movable cultural heritage of the wider Gorenjska (Upper Carniola) region. It supports the formation and maintenance of regional and local identities and seeks to serve as an inspiration for people in finding solutions to contemporary cultural issues.

History

The idea of establishing a museum in Kranj was born before the First World War. In 1953 the Municipal Museum of Kranj was founded and had its seat in Prešeren House, the former residence of Slovene poet France Prešeren. In 1957 a second museum was established in Kranj: the Gorenjska Regional Museum, which was renamed to the Museum of the People's Revolution in 1961. Gorenjska Museum, Kranj was established in 1963 by the merging of the Municipal Museum of Kranj and the Kranj Museum of the People's Revolution. The following locations in Kranj were assigned to the new museum: Town Hall on Glavni Trg (Main Square), Prešeren House, and a Baroque Palace in Tavčarja Street. In 1993 the Baroque Palace was returned to its original owners. The Gorenjska Museum acquired new spaces in the Khislstein Castle, where its headquarters, administrative and service spaces were located until 2008, when the museum moved to a new location on Savska cesta, Kranj.

Programme and mission

The mission of the Gorenjska Museum has been built on the basis of fundamental collections, such as the archaeological and ethnological collections of folk art and ancient, cultural and modern art history, as well as modernity, a department of Slovene photography, the creative art of Gorenjska and "Prešereniana" – the study of the work and life of France Prešeren. The museum's collections and work are presented through exhibitions, publications, workshops, study circles and lectures. The museum provides a meeting place for people who are interested in discovering the common elements that connect Slovenes to other nations and cultures as well as appreciating the treasures of Slovene cultural heritage that are completely unique.

From the outset Gorenjska Museum has taken a keen interest in contemporary art and events in Gorenjska, which are continuously reflected in its gallery activities. The museum is also an active publisher, especially of the cycle Gorenjski kraji in ljudje [Places and People of Gorenjska].

The museum's academic library is a valuable research facility for many in-house and outside scholars and interested parties, as it covers all the areas of the museum.

Branches

Today in addition to the Prešeren House the Gorenjska Museum also oversees the Kranj Town Hall, Khislstein Castle, Kranj Archaeological Site, the Museum of Alpine Dairy Farming, Stara Fužina, Oplen House, and the Tomaž Godec Museum. All the major museum branches are represented in the museum, along with a series of auxiliary services (a restoration and conservation workshop, historical archives, a photo-laboratory, a picture library, and a library).

Departments and collections

There are multiple collections in the main and branch units of the museum, divided and arranged according to the policy of each museum department: the Ethnological Collection currently consists of 7,800 inventoried items notable collections include those of embroidery, wraps, and horse hair sieves; the Ancient History Collection contains artefacts dating from the 18th, 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries, the Present History Collection collection and keeping of materials showing events and life in the Gorenjska region over the last century; the Recent History Collection; archaeological exhibition The Iron Thread in the Kranj Town Hall, the art history collection: it encompasses numerous sculptures and paintings by masters of the 15th through to the 18th Centuries, as well as works by Leopold Layer (1752–1828) and his contemporaries, and the realists of the 19th Century; the collection of Slovenian Modern Art is also extensive and includes works by Gorenjska artists and by the recipients of the Prešeren Award; cultural history collection, looking primarily after the Prešeren House; a photography collection.

In addition, twenty years ago after the completion of excavations at the Kranj Parish Church an archaeological monument was arranged in which the visible remnants of the late Roman octagonal baptistery, remnants of the late 13th century baptistery, and other finds are visible.

Exhibitions

There are numerous permanent and temporary exhibitions related mainly to Gorenjska region topics, held in the main and branch units.

In 2009 the exhibition The Future of Banknoteswas held in the Kranj Town Hall. Another exhibition dealt with Slovene independence: Ne čujem dobro [I Barely Hear].

In 2010 a new permanent exhibition in the renovated Khislstein Castle: Prelepa Gorenjska, ponos si mi ti [I am Proud of Thee, Gracious Gorenjska] is to be opened.

Projects

Gorenjski muzej participates in the Iron Route, the Interreg III B project for the Alpine area, which connects different and remote Alpine lands through a common history of mining and iron manufacturing. The 15 years long archaeological research in the East Julian Alps was conducted in collaboration with the Triglav National Park and the Institute of Archaeology of the Scientific Research Centre (ZRC SAZU), Slovene Academy of Science and Arts. Iron Route reveals the early settlements in the high-mountains from the bronze age to the early middle ages. The in situ display panels were installed on the five different trails above 1,500 metres of altitude. The discoveries are presented also in a temporary exhibition in the Gorenjska Museum.

Awards

The museum's long-standing (1965–1972) director Cene Avguštin (1923–2010), the first museologist of the Gorenjska region, won the Stele Award in 1999 for his lifetime achievements.

External links

Gorenjska Museum website

Gorenjska Museum

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