Regenerator Zabok Urban Culture Center

The Regenerator Zabok Urban Culture Center is a cultural venue in Zabok, a small town in Hrvatsko Zagorje, Croatia, about thirty kilometres north-west of Zagreb. It occupies a former textile factory, one of the industrial buildings that shaped the town in the 20th century, when Zabok's mills and workshops employed thousands of people. After the decline of the textile industry, the empty building was given a new life as a place for art, music, learning and community events.

The centre is run by the Regenerator Association, a local organisation, and its architecture respects the industrial past while adding contemporary elements. The design is by the studio MVA, known as Mikelić Vreš Architects, and the complex is made up of several parts that can work separately or together: Regenerator, Silos and Inkubator. Large spaces with high ceilings and exposed structure suit exhibitions, concerts and workshops, and the layout allows different events to happen at the same time. The visual character is that of a reworked factory, with brick, steel and glass combined.

The programme is varied. The centre has two stages, a music studio, a gallery and the town library, and a club area that can hold around five hundred guests for concerts and parties. Exhibitions of contemporary art, workshops for young people, film screenings and talks fill the calendar, and the centre also hosts festivals. Among the annual events are the HGF music festival, KiKi, the international children's film festival, and the Days of Ksaver Šandor Gjalski, which honour the 19th-century writer from the Zabok area, one of the leading figures of Croatian realist fiction. Because the schedule changes, it is best to check what is on before you go.

Zabok has more to offer around the centre. The Pump Track and the Vučak Motocross Track appeal to cyclists and motorsport fans, and the surrounding Zagorje landscape of castles, hills and vineyards is easy to explore by car. The Tuhelj thermal springs, Veliki Tabor castle and Krapina are all within easy reach, so the centre can be part of a longer trip.

The venue suits young people, families, culture fans and travellers interested in how industrial towns reinvent themselves. A visit takes an hour or two for the gallery and library, and an evening if you attend a concert. It is an easy stop by train or car from Zagreb.