After Moro Beach Stupe broke Instagram last year, this year a somewhat different sequel comes to another one of islets near Korčula, Vrnik, where the emphasis will be on tradition. Vrnik Arts Club unites the museum, art gallery and a “konoba” with traditional dishes.
Written by Nika Borovac for punkufer.dnevnik.hr
On the small islet of Vrnik near Korčula, known for the “white gold”, a famous white stone that fed the generations since the Greek times, the final pages of preparation for the exciting story of culture, art, heritage and gastronomy are being written. The islet from which the cold and windy winters have banished all of the permanent residents still feels like the rich past it had, as well as the views of the Pelješac Channel and the beaches that remind most people of Korčula of their childhood.
Vrnik Arts Club is the reception area of the islet, and it’s located in the former building of the old school, to which you will arrive from Krmača near Lumbarda, over the Ježevica strait. “Art Club” opened its doors by an exhibition by Charles Billich, famous Croatian-born (in Lovran) Australian artist.
“Vrnik Arts Club will give the guest the basic information on what the islet has to offer. There you will be able to buy a souvenir by the local artists, with real value, or see the short film about the history and the people of the islet in a room that’s meant to represent an old classroom. Vrnik has a special energy: it’s a nursery garden for the artists you’ll hear about, as well as the stone which leaves the clear signs of its being in the most beautiful buildings around the world”, Pero Lozica says about the “younger brother” of the famous Moro Beach Stupe restaurant – self-sustainable hedonistic oasis aimed at the millenials, as he describes it as a go-to paradise for nautical tourists and day-trips from your dreams.
And it’s the well thought-out details, such as a swing in the sea or the picture frame framing the best beach view managed to conquer the social media, and the installations that are recognized as the part of the trend of art sculpture by the sea will soon be joined by another one, which will be talked about.
Vrnik will be quite different than Moro. In a restaurant with limited number of seats traditional dishes prepared with a modern twist will be served. The music will come from the record players or violins, but only during special moments, like the sunset, which is, as Lozica explains, appropriate for such a historic location. Vrnik and the village with the same name are the oldest and the best known of all of the quarries of Korčula. The “stone age” of the fragrant islet is witnessed by the tangible evidence that helped frame its face. You can see 10-meter high cliffs there, which will make you feel very small in comparison, as well as walkways and corridors and overgrown rails that used to carry full carts of Vrnik stone.
The stone was removed from the quarries, but also worked on and mastered ever since the ancient times. That “stone treasure” was used in famous building, such as Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey, Vienna Parliament, Stockholm City Hall, as well as the pearls of architecture in closer places, like Hvar and Dubrovnik. Famous Croatian architect Otto Barić, also permanently in love with Korčula, explains how Vrnik doesn’t have the urban structure of streets and a centre. The clusters of houses were growing without rules through the centuries, and the new centre could be exactly in that area between the old local school and the church of the Virgin Mary.
Those wanting to explore the islet for a bit longer, or enjoy the beach all through the sunset will be able to spend the night there as well, in one of the luxury suites in the loft of the former school, with the view that’s impossible to forget.
