The concept of reconstruction is central to any retrospective presentation of an artist’s body of work, but in the case of Kažimir Hraste’s retrospective, its significance takes on a particularly subtle dimension. From his early work in the 1970s to the present day, Hraste has been primarily concerned with exploring the spatial relationships within his sculptures and their interactions with the surrounding environment, with construction always forming the basis of his creative process. While critics have noted clear connections to the tradition of Constructivism, Hraste’s approach resists rigid categorisation and is defined by a distinctive poetics, through which he uncompromisingly asserts the freedom of his artistic vision.

The retrospective at the Museum of Fine Arts reconstructs, for the first time, Hraste’s artistic career through nearly eighty works, including sculptures, reliefs, installations, and drawings. The exhibition showcases his earliest pieces – documenting public art interventions in Omiš in the early 1970s, as well as the initial portraits that marked the start of his exploration of this demanding genre. His portraits, figures, and wooden reliefs from the 1980s are now considered seminal works in Croatian sculpture. The same applies to his iron-and-glass sculptures from the 1990s, the impressive iron New Builds of the early 2000s, and his large-scale spatial installations and sculptures, which have continued to captivate gallery and public spaces for more than fifty years.

Kažimir Hraste’s boundless curiosity, deep knowledge of and respect for the traditions of his medium, along with his drive to engage dynamically with the contemporary world, mark him as one of the most intriguing sculptors of his generation. He treats the creative process as a challenge, approaching public sculptures, drawings, or works made from wooden slats with the same dedication, constantly probing the creative possibilities of the world around him. This is reflected in his own words: “Any material can become a sculptural medium… The more ambitious the idea, the greater the challenge in discovering new materials. With traditional sculptural materials, it is difficult to break away from familiar solutions, as if the ideas they hold have already been used up… Today, there is no dominant style to follow, and that is precisely why this era suits me.”

Kažimir Hraste was born in 1954 in Supetar on the island of Brač. He obtained a degree in sculpture from the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb in 1978, in the class of Prof. Valerije Michieli. In 1984, he completed his postgraduate studies in sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Ljubljana, studying under Prof. Drago Tršar. As a recipient of an Italian government scholarship, he spent a semester in Rome for advanced professional training. Hraste is one of the founders of the Arts Academy in Split, where he worked in the Department of Sculpture until his retirement in 2024. He has exhibited consistently since 1972, presenting over fifty solo exhibitions and participating in numerous group shows both in Croatia and abroad. He has been awarded numerous prizes and national honours. He has created many sculptures and monuments in public spaces, including: The Risen Christ on Visovac (1988); the monument to Don Frane Bulić in Solin (1991); the Fountain in Marmont Street, Split, Pirija (1998); the Monument to King Petar Svačić in Miljevci (2002); the Monument to the Fallen Defenders of the Homeland War in Omiš (2004); the Biblical Garden Stomorija in Kaštel Novi, Apple (2008); the Monument to the Fallen Defenders of the Homeland War in Ploče (2009); the Monument to Dražen Petrović in Šibenik (2011); the Monument to the Fallen Defenders of Croatia in Bol on the island of Brač (2017); Boy with an Umbrella in Šibenik (2020); and the Horn Monument in Sali on Dugi Otok (2023), among others. His works are held in major private and public collections across Croatia. From 2012 to 2022, he collaborated with the Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, and in 2022 he became its full member.

Exhibition set-up: Kažimir Hraste, Jasminka Babić

Visual design: Viktor Popović

Translation: Robertina Tomić

The exhibition has been made possible with the financial support of the City of Split and the Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia.