March 12, 2021 – Prostoria, one of the leading regional furniture design companies and most innovative platforms that unites Croatian product designers, has introduced an interesting new project – a Kontrapunkt armchair, as an homage to Zagreb's Modernist architecture heritage.

Within the project, their Kontrapunkt armchair, designed by the architects Marijan Haberle, Minka Jurković, and Tanja Zdvořak, was photographed at the Vatroslav Lisinski Concert Hall, one of Zagreb's iconic buildings that represent Croatian Modernist architectural heritage.

"The Kontrapunkt armchair is only one of the products that are yet to be photographed in spaces where they can put their Modernist heritage or the contemporariness of the product or both in the spotlight," said Dora Lončarić from Biro architects, the project's art directors.

Biro / Marko Mihaljević

Although more than half a century stands between the Modernist architecture and current products by Prostoria, they speak a similar designers' language and communicate among themselves naturally, given their complementary and uncompromising character.

"The point is not returning to the past, but rather the exploration and convergence of the values. Through this symbiosis of the Modernist architectural heritage and contemporary design by Prostoria, a synthesis is being achieved," theoretician of architecture Maroje Mrduljaš stressed.

As Croatia's capital, Zagreb is one of the rare cities in the world with such a deeply rooted tradition of Modernism in architecture. This heritage is a root and an inspiration for the design language of their products. The photographs of the Kontrapunkt (design: Neisako) are part of a larger editorial-work in progress, taken at different buildings from that period of the Croatian architectural past.

The whole project will be presented extensively during 2021. It has been realized in close cooperation with the Zagreb Tourist Board and the public institutions where the editorial will take place.

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November 2, 2020 - Contrary to the first impression and the sound of it, Neisako is not a Japanese brand or a variety of sushi. It is a Croatian design brand made of two creative people – namely – Sanja and Neven Kovačić who have developed an innovative reclining chair by the name Kontrapunkt, which was launched a few days ago in the already famous furniture shop/brand – Prostoria.

Kontrapunkt is an elegant minimalist armchair that easily transforms into a chaise longue and can be found in Prostoria’s flagship stores in Split, Zagreb and Rijeka. With Kontrapunkt, one actually gets two equally valuable and supremely comfortable pieces of furniture in one product, as an ideal solution for all those who admire comfort and good design.

While Kontrapunkt was designed by Neisako (Neven & Sanja Kovačić) a very demanding process of its technical development was in the hands of Prostoria's engineering team and craftsmen. By joining two functions in a single object characterized by compact proportions and visual balance, the Kontrapukt armchair-chaise longue is an ideal space-saving solution for any interior and a smart alternative to regular bulky recliners.

It took two years to develop it – since the main goal was to achieve a harmonious transformation from one typological function into another, without the use of any electrical mechanisms: the end result was successful transformation that is designed so that the armchair turns into a chaise longue simply by raising the armrest.

The name Kontrapunkt takes its origin from music and means "two opposite points". This resonates with its design as it denotes the principle of composition in which two parallel melodies merge into one harmonious whole. Kontrapunkt is a product that reflects skills, knowledge and high technology that Prostoria has been developing for 9 years in its factory located in Hrvatsko Zagorje.

Creating comfort has become the central domain of Prostoria’s expertise, so that Kontrapunkt, in addition to functionality, also provides the user with an almost hedonistic resting experience thanks to its excellent ergonomics, elasticity of construction materials and masterful manufacturing of upholstered furniture.

So, it seems that except for great food, superior athletes, sun&sea, and, of course - wines – Croatia has interesting design ideas to offer to the world. We’ll be following closely!

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The hotel has 37 rooms, opened under a month ago in a lively Singapore area previously known for smuggling and other underworld activities