Josipina Bogomila
(Pipa) Arko née Tavčar (1891–1974) was the daughter of the lawyer, politician
and writer Ivan Tavčar (1851–1923) and Franja Tavčar née Košenini (1868–1938),
the central representative of the bourgeois-liberal women's movement in
Slovenia.
Pipa married
Vladimir Arko (1888–1945) in 1914, who was of Slovenian origin but born in
Zagreb. Vladimir was the son of the well-known Zagreb winemaker and cognac
producer Mijo Arko, from whom he took over the factory and over the years
expanded the business into other products such as liqueurs, rum, rakia,
sparkling wine, etc. He was one of the most influential organisers of Zagreb's
economic life, co-founder of the Zagreb Stock Exchange (1918) and President of
the Chamber of Commerce and Crafts (1923–1928).
Together with
his wife Pipa he collected and supported fine and decorative arts and had a
library of more than 4000 books. They furnished their home with Old Master
works, Viennese and Asian porcelain, silverware, carpets and chilims, with
family portraits by Vlaho Bukovac, Bela Čikoš, Julius Meissner and others, and
with art from contemporary painters, including paintings by Ivana Kobilca.
6 June – 4
September 2024
National Gallery
of Slovenia
Prešernova 24
1000 Ljubljana