Folk Museum Rogaška Slatina

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Ljudski muzej Rogaška Slatina

Cvetlični hrib 1A, SI-3250 Rogaška Slatina

anin.dvor@turizem-rogaska.si

Phone386 3 620 2651

The Folk Museum Rogaška Slatina is made up of a curious and highly diverse collection of historic artefacts and stories, as gathered and curated by Nani Poljanec. Nani, a very colourful persona in his own right, has been working on this collection for the better part of his life and currently it is made up of more than 40 different sub-collections. Its three focal points, however, are the Karađorđević dynasty, local studies and philography (collecting of autographs, especially those of famous persons).

Since 2012 the better part of this collection is publicly displayed at Ana's Mansion [Anin Dvor], a newly built exhibition venue (that also holds a display of art graphics) in the spa town of Rogaška Slatina. The exhibition was enlarged and renovated in 2017.

Background

Rogaška Slatina is a well known Spa resort ever since the early days of the 19th century, thus naturally leaving a mark on the region and its people. Its heritage is one of the leitmotivs in Nani's collecting passion, which he has been indulging in ever since he entered his teens.

In 2005 the so called Folk Museum of Nani Polajnec (1968–2069), then still located at his home, had its first truly public presentation in the Old Post Office building of Rogaška Slatina. The collection also got partly exhibited in Ljubljana, in the Cabinet of the Domestic Research Society (2006), and in the Celje Museum of Recent History (2009). An integral part of the exhibition, especially when still held at Nani's house, were Nani's stories about each individual piece.

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Collections

Historic artefacts in Nani's vast collection are freely coupled with the more prosaic, even intimate pieces. One can find political documents, hair samples, money, autographs and photos of famous people, oil paintings, sculptures, old Josip Pelikan photos, family pictures, poem collections, old books and old watches, objects by celebrities, etc.

Of the three thematically rounded sets, the most recent one (in the making since 2008) is the so called King's collection. It is the biggest private collection (letters, documents, oil paintings, photos, clothes,...) of the Serbian and later old Yugoslav royal family of Karađorđevićs (1903–1941).

The local cultural heritage collection features a variety of stories on the locale, from photographic material, documents (like old spa development plans) and books to local glassware products, bottles and labels of mineral water (dating back to mid-19th century).

The philography sections mainly offers autographs (among them one can find ones by Tito, Mussolini, Arafat, Gadafi, Donald Trump, Bud Spencer and Jurij Gagarin), coupled with some related objects.

Nani Poljanec

Nani Poljanec is an alias of Aleksander S. Jurkovič. Besides being a collector he is (among other things) also a photographer, a fashion designer, an impersonator (he impersonated Don Vito Corleone at a satiric evening programme on Slovenian National Television, a singer (he almost won in the 2007 competition to represent Slovenia at Eurovision), a poet (he released a book of poetry called The Tryptich of Folk poetry, with a print run of two), an ethnologist (he published the first Slovenian book on philography and an album with regional songs and dialects) and a music manager (for a time representing Teofil Milenković, a wunderkind violinist).

He has set up literally hundreds of cultural events; though most of them took place in his local town, some were also done in Ljubljana, Vienna and Belgrade. A notable one from his early days is the first concert of the group Laibach in Rogaška Slatina in 1993, accompanied with a set of public performances called Blacksmiths of the Future.

Nani acts as Rogaška Slatina's cultural attaché and has close relations with descendants of the Serbian royal family of Karađorđevićs. In 2009, on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the murder of King Alexander Karađorđević (1934), he exhibited his collection as a guest of honour in the family's mansion in Oplenac, Serbia.

Nani Poljanec - ljudski ustvarjalec by maresok on YouTube

KunstHaus Top Sekret Gallery

In 2011 with a group of friends and collaborators, Nani Poljanec established the exhibition space called KunstHaus Top Sekret Gallery, held at a secret location (it is suspected that this was actually his toilet). KunstHaus published its own fanzine, featuring absurd-tinged contributions in various languages.

Folk Faculty

Nani Poljanec established his own educational system, the Folk Faculty, where he is simultaneously the only student, professor, and rector. After every project he publicly gives himself a grade. He aims to get a Majgisterij (as opposed to Magisterij, the master's degree) for Folk Art and Creation. He plans to conclude his studies and end his life project in 2069, when he will be 101 years old and will become a Ph.D. on Folk Art and Creation.

See Also

• Rogaška Slatina Municipality
• Domestic Research Society
• Radio-Television Slovenia (RTV Slovenia)

External links

• Nani Poljanec and his Folk Museum on YouTube (in Slovene)
• Ljudski muzej Nanija Poljanca in the Cabinet of the Domestic Research Society (in Slovene)
• Hri-bar Show web pages (in Slovene)
• Poljanec performing at the contest for the Eurovision Song (2007)
• A short biography of Nani Poljanec
• An article on the museum
• An archive of KunstHaus Magazine

Gallery

Nani Poljanec, alias Don V. Corleone, in the Hri-bar Show, a satirical evening programme on Slovenian National Television, 2007

Nani Poljanec alias Aleksander Stanislav Jurkovič (1968 – 2069)

The unveiling of the portrait of Petar II Karađorđević painted by Ivanka Bukovac in 1936. The picture was purchased for the Folk Museum Rogaska Slatina collection by Nani Poljanec and 250 donators, January 2010. (From left to right: Manca Izmajlova, Attanasie Milenković, Nani Poljanec and Predrag Filipov, the Ambassador of the Republic of Serbia in Slovenia)

Nani Poljanec and Jani Pirnat, art historian (Domestic Research Society), presenting the first volume of the KunstHaus fanzin at Račka Gallery in Celje, 2011

Nani Poljanec, owner and author of the local cultural heritage collection, presenting the museum installation of Ivan Zagoda's shoemaker tools to the donator Milan Zagoda, Folk Museum Rogaška Slatina at Ana's Mansion, 2012

Nani Poljanec with the guests of the 24-hour piano playing marathon with 50 participants, coorganised by Poljanec at the Cristal Hall of the Rogaška Hotel, July 2012.

An autograph of Stefan Milenković, a Serbian child prodigy and famous concert violinist, his first violin and a frock coat. Part of the Philographic Collection of the Folk Museum Rogaška Slatina at Ana's Mansion, 2012

A display cabinet with healing mineral water bottles (the oldest ones made of clay) and old bottle labels. Folk Museum Rogaška Slatina at Ana's Mansion, 2012

Corleone brajdovec penina, a sparkling wine produced in cooperation with the company Vina Mijošek. The money from the sales of it was given to the victims of the Železniki flood, Folk Museum Rogaška Slatina

The Crown Prince Aleksandar Aleksandrov Karađorđević, Hereditary Prince Petar Aleksandrov Karađorđević, and the collector Nani Poljanec (of the Folk Museum Rogaška Slatina) at the State Funeral (in which the remains of the Serbian and Yugoslav Royal House of Karađorđević were buried in Oplenac Mausoleum in Topola, Serbia), 2013.

Some artefacts from the Folk Museum of Nani Poljanec, Rogaška Slatina, as displayed in 2006 in The Cabinet of the Domestic Research Society

For a long time, the Folk Museum of Nani Poljanec, Rogaška Slatina was more or less a privately-held collection. In 2006, a part of it was displayed in The Cabinet of the Domestic Research Society.