Cooperative Bank

The business-residential building of the Cooperative Bank is an attempt to find a national style, which, like in fine arts, was also reflected in architecture. The time after the First World War was marked by a pan-European search for national identities. Architect Ivan Vurnik, together with his wife Helena, who was a painter, found the source of the national architectural expression in the floral decorations of Slovenian embroideries and in its colors. On the facade of the building, they used stylized motifs of carnations and Slovenian landscapes in strongly contrasting ‘Slovenian’ colors. The building is an important part of Vurnik’s prefunctional opus. Due to the large size of the plot, it was designed in two parts: offices on Miklošičeva Street and residences in the courtyard. Both are connected through the ground floor hall.