Contemporary
Contemporary architecture is the architecture of the 21st century. No single style is dominant. Contemporary architects work in several different styles, from postmodernism, high-tech architecture and new references and interpretations of traditional architecture to highly conceptual forms and designs, resembling sculpture on an enormous scale. Some of these styles and approaches make use of very advanced technology and modern building materials, such as tube structures which allow construction of buildings that are taller, lighter and stronger than those in the 20th century, while others prioritize the use of natural and ecological materials like stone, wood and lime. One technology that is common to all forms of contemporary architecture is the use of new techniques of computer-aided design, which allow buildings to be designed and modeled on computers in three dimensions, and constructed with more precision and speed.
Edo Šen (1877–1949) is credited with laying the foundation of modern Croatian architecture. In the 2010s, the dual, elliptically shaped business tower Sky Office Tower was completed in Zagreb by Croatian born architect Ante Anin.
In 1998, the decision to build a new museum of contemporary art at 17 Avenija Dubrovnik, Zagreb, was made by the Croatian government. This resulted in a tender, won by Igor Franić, who thus became the architect of the modern Museum of Contemporary Art building (completed in 2009), with a total 14,609.65 m2, of which 3,500 m2 are for permanent exhibition, and 1500 m2 for temporary exhibitions.
In 2015, the 25-floor high Strojarska Business Center was completed in Zagreb by a team of Croatian architects.
In the late 2010s architect Bruno Juričić became the author of a hotel complex estimated at 100 million euros, the Xia Ke in Haining. The entire complex covers 200,000 m2, and the hotel complex about 35,000 m2, with a cultural center dedicated to Haining native writer Jin Yong, who also inspired the construction of the complex, which is informed by wuxia. The design of the Xia Ke is said to blend science fiction and fantasy, with elements of Chinese national pride, which “explain its expressive swirling forms and mysterious steel mesh cubes.” Juričić is the first Croatian architect to win a tender with his own project. He had represented Croatia at the 2018 Venice Biennale, presenting Croatia’s “Cloud Pergola / The Architecture of Hospitality”, which is said to be “one of the world’s largest and most complex 3D-fabricated structures.”
In the 2010s, Otto Barić became the architect of the neo-futurist Dalmatia Tower, the tallest building in Croatia. The project received an International Property Award for the best office high-rise in Europe. The tower is part of a project that consists of two towers; the first has been the seat of the Management Board of Splitska banka since 2016. The tower is completed in 2022.
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