Architecture competition proposals in the body of work of the KKK Group (1931–1939) in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia

Abstract

Jovan Korka, Đorđe Krekić and Georg Kiverov are important protagonists of modern Croatian architecture. The three architects worked together in the KKK Group (name derived from their last names) between 1931 and 1939 in Zagreb. During this period, “the group” produced an impressive mass of work including the realisation of public and residential buildings in Croatia and the region; participated in competitions in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia with brilliant design solutions; held exhibitions and published several professional papers. Famous from the beginning of their professional work in Croatia's capital, in the second half of the 1920s, they were forgotten after WWII. Their names emerged in almost every compilation or architectural guide of modern Croatian architecture due to the built edifices that were the outcome of the member's efforts in competitions, and yet for a long time, very little was known about the authors and especially about the KKK Group. Only recently is their body of work being studied systematically. This article deals with competition projects, the unexplored body of work of the Group, and a crucial part in their success. In twenty instances of participation in competitions currently known, in only eight years of collaboration, the group was awarded 14 times (individually and jointly), often with one of the first three awards. A chronological overview of competition participation and a more detailed analysis of five available joint competition entries was carried out as a contribution to the valorisation of the body of work of these important and yet forgotten protagonists of modern architecture in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and especially in Croatia.