La chiesa di Nostra Signora di Lourdes a Zagabria di Jože Plečnik. Analisi Grafica

Jože Plečnik (Ljubljana, 23rd January 1872 - Ljubljana, 7th January 1957) was, without any doubt, Otto Wagner's most brilliant pupil. During his tireless activity as an architect, he manages to touch a variety of absolutely heterogeneous themes, masterfully reworking the consolidated syntax of traditional architecture. In this survey we consider a relevant – although little investigated – aspect of the architect's work, that is the one linked to the typological innovations brought about by his work. In the case under examination – the work never done by the church of Our Lady of Lourdes in Zagreb – this innovation consists of the unusual arrangement of the four rows of columns that separate the naves of the church, almost as if they are arranged in a casual manner. The first phase of this work deals with the graphical analysis of the plant. It has shown that the unusual design choice is, in truth, a functional-typological expedient linked to purely visual necessities. The theory has been corroborated through the digital reconstruction of the building and the perspective restitution of the interior spaces. A graphic comparison with other Plečnik buildings – in the second part of the contribution – frames the case of Our Lady of Lourdes within the much broader experimentation pursued with constancy by the architect. On the one hand, especially in ecclesiastical buildings, the preference for types of unitary internal spaces makes its appearence again; on the other hand there is a mastery of drawing in perspective that often becomes – as in the case studied – pure design tool. A constant research that culminates, in the most known and mature projects like the parliament of Ljubljana, with the construction of real "accelerated" perspective devices. In conclusion, Plečnik's work significantly summarizes the symbiotic bond – extremely alive – between design and project.