How and when did you come into contact with restaurant restoration and furnishing? I made my first bar at the age of 19, with very little resources. But who would give a mule anything more at this age? I gave the place the name Hawaii Club and the thing came to life and took off
How and when did you come into contact with restaurant restoration and furnishing?
I made my first bar at the age of 19, with very little resources. But who would give a mule anything more at this age? I named the place the Hawaii Club and the thing took off and continued. But when it comes to restoration, I am consistent and use traditional materials and techniques with modern additions. I mostly prepare substances in my own laboratory according to my recipes.
Where do you get ideas for your creations?
Basically, everything has already been done, we are only observers and beneficiaries of the past, which left behind great works in the field of creativity and art. By combining them with today's techniques and materials, we get new possibilities in the field of interior design and applied art.
Does every interior have its own story?
It always starts with a customer who has a wish or request and only then does the story develop.
You pay a lot of attention to the rustic, traditional style. Are you not interested in modern art?
Only now I am slowly combining modern art in new projects that are on the horizon - especially glass.
Which project are you particularly proud of?
I could list as many as three "sugars" that mean a lot to me in a creative way, and the moments I experienced on projects: Gušt in Izola, Casa Nostra in Ljubljana's BTC and the rustic wooden house of the Malek family near Graz.
In which bars can we see the results of your creation?
Listing all the bars and facilities would take a long time, as there are almost 56 of them in the 12 years of work, so I will mention a few more interesting ones: Pizzeria Piazza in Ljubljana, Kavarna Devil in Bled, Grajska gostilnica in Radovljica, Ejga restaurant in Jesenice, Mexican restaurant Imperio Mexicano and many others.
Can we see your creations abroad?
Somehow, I was also actively creative "outside", but more in the interior of private houses and wine cellars in Italy and Austria.
Your great passion is glass design. Where did you first encounter artistic architectural glassmaking?
I think I had my first encounter with glass as a spectrum of thousands of colors on a church stained glass window during one of the masses as a six-year-old child somewhere in Gorenjska. I have never forgotten the effect created by the light and the colored glass. Throughout my life, I have been drawn by the desire to get to know this noble material, which, like an endless story, draws you into the discovery of the secrets of processing and the usefulness of glass in art and architecture.
How do you realize your "experience" over glass?
I mainly create glass for architectural and artistic use, in various techniques, such as: casting technique in wax with a seamless mold, three-layer enamel glass, Luce Floreo technique, Dalle de vere - the technique of making art windows from glass blocks, stained glass technique - painting glass and multi-stage firing, Pate de vere – technique with glass and enamel paste, various sandblasting techniques, Chipping glass – peeling, glass-ice flowers...
Is there a glass you prefer to work with?
Recently, in collaboration with a small glass factory from Germany, I developed glass for casting in special molds for low temperatures (glass has a melting point of 820 degrees Celsius), which offers me unlimited possibilities in the design and execution of the casting process.
Are there foreign artists you admire?
Masters of mastery of glass that I know and admire are Dale Chihuly - an American artist of large format, Graham Jones, Guy Kemper and William Cochran.
In Kozjansko, in the village of Buče, you have found a corner for your studio. Why in the village?
A combination of circumstances brought me to these beautiful places of Kozjan on the business side, but my soul reacted too personally and so I decided to settle here and set up my own studio. I was looking for a place where I could combine all the years of research and development of magic glass, which is also at home in these places. The municipality of Kozje, headed by the mayor, was a great help to me, and they listened to my desire to buy a building in the village of Buče.
The studio is located in a 180-year-old school. Did you also restore and design this space according to your wishes?
From the first visit to the building, I felt the space and the layout concept was made.
Can we attend an exhibition in the future where we can see your products?
I have arranged for an exhibition in the gallery of the Institute for Cultural Heritage of Slovenia, which is next to Križanka, in November, where I will present myself with guests from Europe.
Is creating your hobby or do you relax with some special techniques?
To be honest, since I started renovating the old school building, projects and renovations have left me less time for hobbies. After all, this is not my job, but a way of life that I have chosen for myself.
Where in Kozjansko would you invite us for good food?
I can boast of a good restaurateur and friend that I met during these years in Kozjansko. He has a very good Šempeter inn in Bistrica ob Sotla with excellent food and drinks, which I can safely recommend to others who will visit these beautiful places. Sometimes it's good to wake up a little and drink a bunch of beer and listen to the Kozjan stories that made me stay in these places.
