Art in a city at the crossroads
Old, modern and contemporary masters, they all share the same feeling in Maribor: that they were and are creating in a special place at the crossroads of spaces and nations. “When I was studying in England, I dreamed of becoming a Slovenian cultural worker,” says Jure Kirbiš.
Today, he is a curator at the Maribor Art Gallery. In the video, you can join him for a walk through Maribor as he knows and loves it. The focus falls on the monumental Hutter’s block of flats by the architect Saša Dev, an interwar landmark inspired by Central European residential design, and on the Spekter exhibition at the Maribor Art Gallery.
We, the people of Maribor, love our city deeply and take pride in its heritage, cultural history and art. This devotion inspired the creation of the Slovenian compound Mar (“to care”) i (“and”) bor (“to fight for”) nearly 200 years ago, during the Austrian Empire, meaning “I care and fight for my city”.
A few decades later, more than 120 years ago, the Maribor Regional Museum was founded, followed in time by all 7 independent cultural institutions of Maribor. On Castle Square, you can see the city seal, which is over 700 years old, as well as the slightly younger Maribor Synagogue, located in the Židovska Cultural Quarter and today also home to the Media Nox Gallery, showcasing works by young artists. The National Liberation Museum Maribor focuses on the 20th century, from the founding of the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs to the Second World War. It was in this period that the famous Hutter’s block of flats was built, a project initiated by Josip Hutter, a Maribor textile industrialist.
Maribor’s must-sees for art lovers
Slovenia's second largest museum of modern and contemporary art, with a collection of more than 10,000 works by Slovenian artists and an international focus.
Puppetry art amidst the heritage of the former Minorite Monastery and the tradition and creative imagination of Maribor puppetry workshops and theatre.
Slovenian Styria in the 20th century, from the May Declaration of the Yugoslav Club members in the Vienna National Assembly to the Second World War, the story of the Pohorje Battalion and the skate culture of the 1980s.
Once a Minorite Monastery between the river Drava and the city centre, today it is a kaleidoscope of cultural venues. Attend a puppet show or explore an exhibition at the Puppetry Museum, enjoy the summer cinema at the Auditorium, listen to a concert in the Judgement Tower, or experience an event in the Minorite Church.
A centre for contemporary art, culture and creativity, blurring the boundaries between creativity, science and education.
A mural by the contemporary Slovenian artist Petra Varl on the wall of the parking lot of the Faculty of Law.
Members of the Fotoklub Maribor photography club set up a gallery with a photographic archive, permanent and temporary exhibitions in the former tower of the medieval walls.