Scientific, professional and educational activity
Research Center for Mediterranean Landscapes

Since its foundation, the Center has acted as a research center of the Department of Ornamental Plants, Landscape Architecture and Garden Art and has been engaged in researching the historical heritage, primarily of the Dubrovnik area, but also of the entire Croatian coastal belt, collecting material on historical gardens and orchards, as well as cultural and natural landscapes. In addition, landscape design studies and projects, restoration studies of historical gardens, scientific and professional works were published. Bruno Šišić (until his death in 2015) and his colleagues are responsible for the establishment, development and creative work of the Center.

The Center is responsible for publishing about a hundred professional and scientific articles and studies in the field of landscape design, landscape protection, research into historical gardens and historical urban planning.

The following books were published (author Bruno Šišić, PhD.):

Restoration of the Dubrovnik Renaissance garden
IC, Split, 1981.

The framework of the book is Bruno Šišić's master's thesis entitled "Restoration and Revitalization of the Dubrovnik Renaissance Garden" from 1973. The author deals with the development and design peculiarities of Dubrovnik Renaissance garden heritage. He also gives an insight into the theories of restoration of historical buildings, and on the example of Sorkočević's garden in Komolac it shows the procedure of recording, inventorying, analyzing and valorizing findings on the ground and proposes a design basis for its restoration. The text on the research of the components and elements of the garden space is accompanied by the blueprints of the renovation project. At the end of the book there is a summary of the four chapters of the book translated into English and French.

Dubrovnik Renaissance Garden - Genesis and Design Characteristics
ZPZ HAZU, Dubrovnik, 1991.

The book, after the introductory presentation, contains chapters in which the following are discussed in detail: (1) factors with a particular influence on the genesis and development of the Dubrovnik Renaissance garden, (2) the relationship of Dubrovnik country complexes to the natural environment, and an analysis of the design characteristics and peculiarities of the Dubrovnik Renaissance garden. The book is illustrated with 62 black and white photographs, six drawings of Italian Renaissance garden models are taken from the literature for comparison, and twelve author's drawings of Dubrovnik garden models are shown. It is also accompanied by three folded sheets of Austrian maps of the garden suburb of the City and the Gulf of Gruž from 1837. and the axonometry of the restoration project of Sorkočević's garden in Komolac (designer: Bruno Šišić, 1971/72). The introduction and summary have been translated into English.

Garden areas of the historical suburb of Dubrovnik - From Pile to Boninovo
ZPZ HAZU, Zagreb – Dubrovnik, 2003.

The book processes all relevant identification and descriptive data for more than a hundred gardens and other open spaces from Brsalje, below Donji Konal towards the sea all the way to Boninovo. It is divided into ten segments. The types of garden spaces and their evaluation are shown on three double-page and thirty original one-page maps. The book is intended for experts, but also for a wider interested public with the aim of better understanding and preservation of the historical garden, landscape and ambient values of Pile and Konali, which are expressed as a unique phenomenon in the Croatian urban and urbanistic heritage.

Dubrovnik Renaissance Gardens – Genesis and Design Characteristics
ZPZ HAZU, Zagreb – Dubrovnik, 2008.

The main goal of the English edition of the book is the presentation of the Croatian Renaissance garden heritage that developed in the area of Dubrovnik to the general public. The book represents the restored, refined and upgraded material published in 1991. in the book "Dubrovnik Renaissance Garden - Genesis and Design Characteristics ".

Recently, the Center has participated in several projects:

Landscape conservation study as basis for Urban development plan of Koločep Donje Čelo and Urban development plan of Koločep Gornje Čelo, 2019.
Landscape study for the administrative area of the City of Dubrovnik, 2019.-2022.
Landscape conservation study as basis for Urban development plan of settlement of Trsteno, 2020.
Landscape conservation study as basis for Urban development plan of Jakljan, 2020.
Landscape study as basis for the amendments to the Spatial plan of the City of Dubrovnik, amendments to General urban development plan of City of Dubrovnik and amendments to Urban development plan for Babin Kuk, 2020.-2021.
Green infrastructure Study of the City of Rijeka, 2020.

The educational activity of the Center is planned in the form of renewal, maintenance and expansion of relations with domestic and foreign scientific and professional institutions and prominent individuals. In addition to creating adequate conditions, the Center will participate in organizing field and cabinet classes for students of the study of Landscape Architecture at the Faculty of Agriculture in Zagreb, as well as opening the possibility of holding joint classes of studies from other faculties.