Stepping into Martićeva street today was a new experience for everyone. A quiet street in a quiet neighborhood on any given day has came alive as local shops, crafts, design and architectural studios, creative agencies and ateliers, bars, pastry shops and diners moved out to the streets for the grand opening of Zagreb’s first Design District.
Statues have became stages, parks were turned into art installations, squares into open air book shops, street were closed for traffic and turned into creative zones, hidden backyards into chill gardens with classical musicians playing, old abandoned shops into galleries of local retro design. As we’ve mentioned before, Martićeva and streets adjacent to it have, for a long time, been on decline in content and venues, mostly due to shifts in consumer preferences following the introduction of capitalism in the 90ies. It didn’t help that the population living there was mostly old and uninterested in doing anything about it.
When the real estate market bubble popped after the global financial crisis in 2008 and venue prices dropped, a generational shift occurred with younger people moving in, opening businesses and starting creative agencies around the neighborhood that was always a very important and rounded urban zone right next to the city’s strict center. Those same people and businesses have now come together to create new values in the neighborhood, consolidate and galvanize the community, and reinvigorate its neglected parts.
A year long effort is now coming to fruition with a four day celebration happening at different points throughout the neighborhood, starting from Croatian Design Superstore at the beginning of Martićeva (when you go from the mains square, past Jurišićeva street). The street in front of the store is the central meeting point where different project, workshops and events will occur during the festival.
Free tours of architectural landmarks in the district will start from there each day, with the tours on June 18th (6pm) and 19th (10am) being held on English language.
Right next to it is the iconic Ibler’s building (aka. the wooden building) where the organizers have set up a rooftop garden for the tenants that will be opened to public during the festival, where you can chill and get a nice view of the city, and where daytime parties will be held during the weekend.
The next point is Ratkajev prolaz, a passage that connects Martićeva and Vlaška streets. The passage was turned into a big chill bar with pop up bars from local cafe shops, diners and other venues offering their services during daytime, and at evenings different events and parties will happen there (a VJing competition opens the festival evenings on June 16th).
The old abandoned military hospital on the Vlaška side of the passage will be the home to different art and spacial installations, while on the Martićeva side, at the park in front of concept cafe bar Booksa (one part literary NGO, one part cafe bar, one part book store) there will be book sales, DJ parties, workshops and architecture/design based lectures.
Free films will be shown at the open air neighborhood cinema from 9 pm at the corner of Vojnovićeva and Brešćenskog streets, while local studios and agencies throughout the district will have an open door policy during the festival.
The final focus point in the neighborhood is the 100. brigade Hrvatske vojske park, where Numen For Use collective’s famous NET installation is set up for people to explore.
Design District Zagreb festival will be happening from June 16th until June 19th, and we’ll bring you all the interesting details and events you can attend in those days.