Designers & Creators Directory
Želimir Janeš
(ZHELL-eh-meer YAHN-esh)
Birthplace: Sisak, Croatia
Heritage: Croatian
Date born: December 12th, 1916
Date deceased: January 23rd, 1996
Education: Acad. of Fine Arts, Zagreb (grad. 1941)
Biography
Born in Sisak, Croatia in 1916, Želimir Janeš was one of Croatia's great sculptors while also being considered one of region's most important medalists creators. He was trained in sculpting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb, where he studied under renowned Croatian sculptors Frano Kršinić and Ivan Mestrović. After graduating in 1941, he apprenticed with a number of different sculptors for the next ten years, aiding in the production of their sculptural creations while also focusing in on refining his own personal style. While concentrating on stone sculpture and bronze medal making, he also experimented with plastics, clock making, jewelry and incrustations. Over his career, he put on over 20 solo exhibitions. Much of his work revolves around combining unlike materials and textures into unique visual combinations while extending the boundary of sculpture and medal making into a single discipline. In 1956, he settled into a teaching position at the Zagreb School of Applied Arts. Janeš received numerous awards during his life, not only for his sculpture and medal making, but also his passionate teaching. However, he is most often remembered for the grand WWII Partisan monument he created in the Brezovica Forest outside of his hometown of Sisak, which he titled 'Thick Elm'. In 1988 he was given the "Vladimir Nazor" Award for lifetime achievement. He passed away in Zagreb in 1996 at the age of 79.
Spomeniks by this Designer:
This is a listing of a number of memorials, monuments, cultural centers and other notable Yugoslav-era civic works by Želimir Janeš. Those sites listed in the upper part of this section have profile pages, while those listed in the lower part do not yet have completed profile pages. This list is not exhaustive and will be added to over time.
Yugoslav Works with profile pages:
Click photos to go to page
Sisak, HR
Name: Monument to the 1st Partisan Unit
Year: completed 1961
Vukovar, HR
Name: Monument to Fallen Fighters
Year: completed 1955, expunged 1990s
Yugoslav Works without profile pages:
Hum, HR
Name: The Glagolitic Alley Sculpture Park
Year: 1977-1985, w/ Josip Bratulić
Location: N45°21'09.8", E14°02'44.8"
Novi Vinodolski, HR