Description

Haludovo Palace (The Penthouse), limited edition giclee print (of 50) on 300gsm fine art paper.

This is a fine art limited edition giclee print of the original painting Haludovo Palace (The Penthouse). It has a white border of 4cm and is signed and numbered at the bottom by the artist. The border allows for various framing and mounting options. This will be rolled and shipped in a tube.

The original works is an acrylic painting of a concrete utopia, which is based on the Haludovo Palace Hotel. The Brutalist style architecture of the hotel was designed by Boris Magaš.

When the hotel opened it was known locally as The Penthouse Hotel. The hotel had a casino and club (funded by the Penthouse Magazine’s Bob Guccione, who invested $43 million into it).

The Penthouse Adriatic Club (casino) opened in soviet Yugoslavia (Croatia) in 1972. It attracted and hosted celebrities, the super rich and world leaders across the globe.

“Penthouse Pets” served champagne and lobster to guests. These “Pets” were young women, dressed in corsets and high heels. Guccione poured money into the casino and hotel, but within a year, the casino went bust.

The hotel went on to serve as a luxury holiday resort until after the Balkan wars in 1991. Later, it would become a shelter for refugees. It closed for good in 2002.

In its currents state there is a beautiful melancholy to it. With its damaged interior and largely covered in graffiti, the incredible concrete structure (a point of architectural relevance) is almost as it was, if not a little scruffy. It survives and endures like a war veteran with its scars and tattoos.