[EXHIBITION] Jakov Bratanić 1912 – 2001


Jakov Bratanić 1912 – 2001
Dear visitors, friends and associates of the Stari Grad Museum,

we are pleased to invite you to the opening of the retrospective exhibition Jakov Bratanić 1912 – 2001 on Saturday, 7 August 2021 at 9pm in Stari Grad Museum’s Juraj Plančić Gallery.

The exhibition presents a total of 50 paintings by Bratanić from the artist’s studio legacy, kept by the heirs in Zagreb. Stari Grad Museum, which takes care of the promotion of the cultural and artistic heritage of the town and which extends this care to Bratanić’s home-town Vrbanj and surrounding places, is organizing an exhibition on the 20th anniversary of the painter’s death. Conceived as a small retrospective, we believe that this exhibition significantly enriches the museum’s programme dedicated to artists with local roots.

Curated by Biserka Rauter Plančić, the exhibition will be open until September 30, 2021.

Jakov Bratanić, a prominent intellectual among artists, was born on March 26, 1912 in Vrbanj, where he finished elementary school. He continued his education in Split at the classical grammar school. After graduation, he went to Zagreb for further studies. He never practiced the law he studied and graduated at the University of Zagreb, because he was already seriously interested in painting during his studies. At the same time, he studied and graduated in art history at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, and he has been seriously engaged in this part of his professional expertise for many years. Bratanić’s first permanent job was as a curator of the Graphic Collection of the National and University Library in Zagreb, where he was eventually promoted to director of the collection. He later worked as a lecturer in art history at the Academy of Theatre, Film and Television in Zagreb (1950-1983) and at the School of Applied Arts (1957-1973), so until his retirement he was forced to organize his work and life of his family according to the teacher’s calendar. They spent the summers in Vrbanj and the nearby Basina bay, where they built a house, and the rest of the year in Zagreb. On rare days off and the occasional summer week, he undertook study trips to Paris, Rome, Florence, Venice, Madrid, London, Vienna… to name just the biggest art meccas.

During five creative decades, he collaborated with eminent museums, galleries and curators, most often with Tonko Maroević, who in 1996 organized an extensive retrospective in the Zagreb Art Pavilion, as well as a series of monographic exhibitions throughout Dalmatia and continental Croatia. He left us forever on October 15, 2001, and at his request he was sent to eternal rest on October 17, 2001 in his native Vrbanj.

The exhibition is supported by the Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia, Stari Grad Municipality, Split-Dalmatia County and Stari Grad Tourist Board.

We look forward to your visit!


In accordance with the current necessary epidemiological measures for the prevention of COVID-19 infection for the Split-Dalmatia County, the opening of the exhibition will be held in the museum garden, and the opening can be attended by a maximum of 50 visitors. We therefore invite all interested visitors to come to the Museum on time, as entry will be limited, in accordance with the measures and the Approval for the event issued by the Civil Protection Headquarters of the Stari Grad Municipality.
Maximum number of visitors who can be in the gallery at the same time is 20. Furthermore, the use of face masks indoors and when it is not possible to maintain a physical distance of at least 1.5 m outdoors is mandatory.
Visitors are kindly asked to adhere to all epidemiological measures and to be responsible to themselves and to others.

SHARE