The Meaning of Architectural Detail in the Work of Viktor Kovačić

Autorica govori o posebnosti detalja u arhitekturi i način na koji oni tumače cjelovitost djela. Viktor Kovačić na poseban je način kroz detalje pokazao svoju arhitektonsku kulturu.The text is devoted to a discussion of the use of details in the opus of Viktor Kovačić, and, in particular, the relation between details and the whole, as well as to the way the detail participates in an interpretation of the architect\u27s idea. The changes which occur at the watershed between the 19 and the 20 century have had their impact on Kovačić\u27s refined style. He treats the detail in an imaginative way and this is the only area where he is completely free of historical associations. In spite of his predilection for the classical, cubic form, he does not exclude refined questioning of details. His composition of masses is dynamic based mainly on the concept of space. The portal of the church of St. Blaise in Zagreb has been conceived as a stone frame set in front of the wall surface, making it a space modifier. The wall, as an architectural element, centers on the portal which becomes the point of gravity. As many of his contemporaries throughout the world (e. g., Mackintosh\u27s Art Academy at Glasgow) Kovačić bans ornament. The effect is achieved by contrasting rigid elements and lyrical softness. The radical step of elimination of ornament has been achieved just by the rhythm of facade surfaces, as the mass is not broken up by projecting balconies. Kovačić also pays a special attention to the choice of material, good execution and finishing