Galerija Božidar Jakac

On the northern side, bounded by the remains of the former monastery halls with a cloister is the courtyard of expansive monastery buildings alongside the most important constituent of the former monastery, the church. The church and the cloister are the only remaining components of the original building dating back to 13th century, when Carinthian Duke, Bernard of Speinheim, built the monastery to fortify his property near Krka river for strategic and economic reasons.
The church which was built shortly after the establishment of the monastery, in 1234, as a three-nave basilica with transversal nave and a couple of chapels at the presbytery which, at its end, has the shape of the square. This suits the ideal of Cistercian architecture, i.e. the bernardinian architectural style. The viewer is attracted by sheaved columns with capitals that carry groins of cloister and are decorated by richly sculpted plant motives of sprouts, palms and wreaths. During the baroque era, the church and monastery as a whole had been radically renovated. In the present time, the architectural elements remain as a fundamental component of this extraordinarily setting, even more so because the church had lost its original function when monastery was dissolved in 1786. Later, the equipment of the church was lost. After demanding restoration and renovation works the Former Convent Church in 1971 was reimagined. As such it represents one of the most beautiful examples of early Gothic (later baroqueized) architecture in Slovenia. Božidar Jakac Art Museum is now used as an exhibiting space where notable artists (Slovene as well as foreign) present their site-specific installations / temporary exhibitions which often receive great attention of experts and wider public alike.