THE SHADOW IS SEEN BY MY EYES, THE LIGHT IS SEEN ONLY BY MY HEART
“The shadow is seen by my living eyes,
The light is seen only by my heart, that looks to the future …”
Ivan Cankar, The White Chrysanthemum, 1910
The global events of recent years have highlighted the serious consequences of the systemic crisis of neoliberal capitalism and revealed the exhaustion of traditional philosophy in meeting the challenges of the new reality.
The beginnings of the Tivoli City Park were the ornamental gardens beside Cekin and Podturn Mansion (now Tivoli Mansion, home to the International Centre of Graphic Arts). The first large public promenade in Ljubljana was the Lattermann Avenue, which connected the city centre with Podturn Mansion, where the well-to-do people of Ljubljana met. On 8 June 1835, the Casino Association of Ljubljana (Casino Verein Laibach), which took care of the entertainment for the German part of the Ljubljana bourgeoisie, opened a wooden summer inn called Lokal Tivoli above the mansion with a brass band and fireworks. In 1852, the Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph I bought the entire Tivoli Mansion property from the provincial estates for the Austrian Field Marshal Joseph Radetzky, who had the building renovated and the park landscaped and opened to the public. Next to the existing inn, he built a Swiss-style house with a restaurant, the so-called Švicarija (Schweizerhaus). In 1864, the City of Ljubljana bought Tivoli Mansion from the Emperor and took over the management of the park. In 1881, two pavilions connected by a pergola were built in front of Švicarija. Fourteen years later, Ljubljana was hit by a devastating earthquake, and the mayor Ivan Hribar (1851–1941), who placed great emphasis on national identity and is credited for rebuilding the city after the earthquake, included Švicarija in his vision for the construction of a modern city.
At the eastern foot of Tivoli Peak, a modern hotel in the style of Gorenjska folk architecture began to be built on the same site in 1908. The established architect Ciril Metod Koch (1867–1925) looked for planning ideas in the Slovenian countryside, including Bohinj, Kropa and the area around Kranj. He designed the Tivoli Hotel with stone window frames on the ground floor, wooden balcony railings, wooden gables with the motif of hearts and shamrocks, as well as the Gorenjska carnation motif. The new building began to function on 9 November 1909, although the construction work was not completed until a year later. The enterprising innkeeper Ivan Kenda (1877–1936), who had run the restaurant and café of the old Švicarija since 1904, was also involved in the planning of the hotel and proposed the construction of a new building in view of the growing number of visitors. Kenda, who later became Mayor of Bled, was one of the first Slovenian professionals to start systematically training restaurant staff. In 1909 he organised a cooking course for the first time at Tivoli Hotel. Ivanka Potočnik also took part in one of these courses and in the exhibition, you can see the certificate she received as well as her notebook of recipes.
Tivoli Hotel, which retained the name Švicarija due to its popularity, soon became a meeting place for the citizens, artists and bohemians of Ljubljana. In the winter of 1909 and 1910, one of the greatest Slovenian writers, Ivan Cankar (1876–1918), resided in a room on the second floor. Here he wrote part of his polemical essay The White Chrysanthemum, in which he pointed out the precarious and tormenting position of the freelance artist in bourgeois society. He finished it in 1910 when he moved to the top of Rožnik in the immediate vicinity. In the peasant room, which was warmer than other parts of the house because of the stove, Cankar got together with contemporary writers and artists (including Vladimir Levstik, Ivan Lah, Cvetko Golar, Anton Verovšek, Hinko Smrekar, Maksim Gaspari, Viktor Zalar and others). The high expectations that the hotel would offer guests relaxation in the midst of nature soon turned into banter, revelry and debauchery, which is why Cankar called Švicarija the “refuge of sinners”.
In the first quarter of the 20th century, socialising in coffee shops was an important aspect of social life in the city. In the atmosphere of cafés, social changes were discussed and hence public space was democratised. Tivoli Hotel was no exception. In addition to cultural events organised by various interest groups and associations, important political events also took place there. On 21 and 22 November 1909, the assembly of the Social Democratic Party of Yugoslavia, which advocated the cultural and linguistic integration of the South Slavs, i.e. Serbs, Croats, Bulgarians and Slovenes, took place in the hall. At that time, the so-called Tivoli Resolution was signed, which Cankar strongly opposed, as he wanted the people to preserve their culture and language. Four days before 1 May 1917, 3000 people gathered in Ljubljana for a peace rally in a landscaped garden in front of Tivoli Hotel and Švicarija. The people of Ljubljana began to celebrate Labour Day in front of Švicarija, and later this tradition was moved to Rožnik, where it is still held today. Between the two world wars, meetings of Slovenian workers and some political parties were held on the ground floor of the hotel, whereas on 11 April 1920 the Communist Party of Slovenia was founded there.
As quickly as the hotel became a lively place of activity, so quickly did the tenants change. Due to numerous changes in management, it was poorly maintained and became less and less suitable for guests, let alone as a permanent place to stay, so it ceased to operate in 1930. Gradually, various communities settled in the building, including Russian emigrants. In 1934, the Russian Colony rented the former hotel for Russian war refugees from the October Revolution who had previously been housed in the St. Peter military headquarters. This included craftsmen, artists and intellectuals who converted the hotel rooms into modest flats without permanently destroying the historical elements you can see. One of the most famous artists of Russian descent, the actress Marija Nikolajevna Borislavska with the stage name Marija Nablocka (1890–1969), lived in Švicarija for a while. She travelled to Ljubljana to join her husband, the actor and theatre director Boris Putjato, who invited her to become a member of the Slovenian National Drama Theatre Ljubljana, where she impressed audiences with her extraordinary stage charisma.
Since the building of the former Tivoli Hotel was not yet fully inhabited, the rooms were gradually occupied by the socially disadvantaged: families with many children, widows with small children, working-class families and the unemployed. Access to drinking water was in the corridors and the rooms were dark and damp. For many, the temporary accommodation became permanent. Because of the poor living conditions, the building was called “cockroach castle” or “pigeon house”.
Shortly before the Second World War, a new turn occurred on the premises of the former Tivoli Hotel. Sculptor Ivan Zajec (1869–1952), the creator of the Prešeren monument beside the Triple Bridge, set up his studio in one of the rooms. After the end of the war, other established Slovenian sculptors followed suit (Zdenko Kalin, Karel Putrih, Alojzij Kogovšek, Ivan Štrekelj, Stojan Batič, Drago Tršar) and Švicarija became known as the cradle of post-war Slovenian sculpture. The famous painter and printmaker Miha Maleš, who had his studio in the area from 1933 to 1957, worked in the neighbouring building Pod turnom 5. Many artists were distinguished professors at the Academy of Fine Arts in Ljubljana, and some provided studio spaces to their students. Thus, the former hotel became a creative hub where various artists worked: Dušan Tršar, Dragica Čadež, Tone Lapajne, Lujo Vodopivec, France Gruden, Sergej Kapus, Janez Lenassi, Boris Prokofjev, Boštjan Putrih, Jakov Brdar and many others. Over time, they formed a diverse community with the Russian emigrants, their descendants and other residents.
On the initiative of Lujo Vodopivec, the Tivoli Gallery was opened on 19 September 1980, modelled on the self-organised art communities in New York, and operated for four years. The sculptor transformed his studio into a temporary exhibition space that allowed visitors to interact directly with the artists. The studios were used until 2012 when the City of Ljubljana began to vacate the building as part of its renovation. It also provided alternative accommodation for the residents of Švicarija and alternative working spaces for the artists.
In preparing for the renovation, the conservation plan showed that most of the authentic elements of the building of the former Tivoli Hotel, such as windows, doors, plaster and stencil paintings with Art Nouveau motifs, are still hidden under the layers of repair. Many materials such as the wood panelling, the balconies and the ceiling of the ground floor are still original. Judging by old postcards, the lamps on the platform have been reconstructed and the plants placed in four beds connected by an invisible lattice with an Art Nouveau pattern reminiscent of the former pavilion. The renovation of the building lasted until May 2017, when the construction and refurbishing work was completed. It was then handed over to the administration of the International Centre of Graphic Arts, which is re-establishing a unique creative, educational and social centre in the former hotel. Today, the building houses working and living studios as well as international residencies. The Stojan Batič Memorial Studio is on display in memory of Švicarija’s rich sculptural heritage.
Švicarija has always known how to surprise, connect and boldly reshape its purpose. Many individuals have taken diligent care that the light in it has never been completely extinguished. The unique past of Švicarija, which was granted the status of a cultural monument of local importance in 2013, is summed up by the guiding principle of community, art and nature, which will continue to illuminate its work in the future.