Božidar Jakac Art Museum

Top choice


This is an unexpected treat: superbly varied art in a magnificent setting, surrounded by a garden full of sculptures. The museum's galleries showcase the works of Slovenian artists.

About 1.5km southwest of town, this former Cistercian monastery was a very wealthy institution in the Middle Ages, but abandoned in 1786 when monastic orders were dissolved. The beautifully painted main entrance through two squat, candy-striped towers leads to an enormous courtyard enclosed by a cloister with 230 arcades across three floors.

To the west stands the disused Church of the Virgin Mary containing elements from the 13th to 18th centuries; it is now used to great effect as an exhibition space. Upstairs is an exhibition on the monastery's history and its masterful restoration.

The galleries of the museum itself exhibit the works of eight Slovenian artists, encompassing paintings, drawings, graphic art and sculpture. Chief among the artists is the expressionist Božidar Jakac (1899–1989) and brothers France (1895–1960) and Tone Kralj (1900–75), who painted expressionist and surrealist-cum-socialist-realism canvases respectively. France Kralj was particularly prolific and his sculptures are captivating. There's also a permanent collection of old masters from the Carthusian monastery at Pleterje.

The grounds of the Božidar Jakac Art Museum are home to more than 100 large wooden sculptures from Forma Viva, sculptural symposia that were held in several places in Slovenia from 1961 to 1988 and have been revived in recent years. At these symposia, sculptors work with materials associated with the area. Here it was oak, in Portorož stone, iron at Ravne in Koroška and concrete in Maribor.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Lamut Art Salon

0.77 MILES

Within a 15th-century manor house, the Lamut Art Salon, a branch of the Božidar Jakac Art Museum, hosts temporary exhibitions by contemporary artists.

2. Church of St Nicholas

0.79 MILES

This tiny late-Gothic structure has a presbytery containing brightly coloured frescoes of scenes from the Old and New Testaments painted in 1931.

3. Old Town

0.82 MILES

No one's going to get lost or tired touring the itsy-bitsy Old Town island of Kostanjevica – walk 400m up Oražnova ulica and 400m down Ulica Talcev and…

4. Parish Church of St James

0.89 MILES

This 13th-century Romanesque building has a mostly baroque interior. Above the carved stone portal on the western side are geometric designs and…

5. Kostanjevica Cave

0.95 MILES

This small cave, about 1.5km southeast of town, has 40-minute tours in spring, summer and autumn. The guide will lead you 250m in, past a small lake and…

6. Pleterje Monastery

3.11 MILES

Located 10km southwest of Kostanjevica na Krki, the enormous Pleterje Monastery belongs to the Carthusians, the strictest of all monastic orders. The…

7. Open-Air Museum Pleterje

3.31 MILES

The little Open-Air Museum Pleterje, to the west of the Pleterje Monastery car park, has thatched peasant houses, hayracks, a pigsty and even an outhouse…

8. Otočec Castle

8.67 MILES

Perched in the centre of the Krka River and reached via a wooden bridge, Otočec Castle, 1.5km east of Otočec village, showcases both late-Gothic and…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "slovenia/kostanjevica-na-krki/attractions/bozidar-jakac-art-museum/a/poi-sig/1259254/1325418",
      "position": "superzone"
    }