David Hrvatin was born in Koper, Slovenia, on November 28th, 1979. In 1981, at the age of 2, he moved with his family from Piran to Korte, a small village above Izola, where is also his current residence. After attending the elementary school in Izola and the Gimnasium in Piran he passed the admission exams on the Academy of fine Arts in Ljubljana in 1998, but the unfavorable combination of circumstances forced him to change the study program. In 2003 he received the University B. Sc. Degree Technology of Traffic from the Faculty of Maritime Studies and Transportation, University of Ljubljana. Continuing on postgraduate study he obtained a Master of Science degree (M.Sc.) in 2009. He was attracted to boats, ships and shipbuilding since the elementary school, when he used to build ship models. Medieval ships were his main topic for his paintings in oil on canvas technique while he was 12. In the following years his passion for ships decreased a little bit but returned even intensified at the postgraduate study, when he began to dedicate his interest to the reconstruction of the venetian carrack. In 2010/11 he devoted himself completely to the project Batana Koštanca. Beside books, boat plans and old postcards depicting small watercraft, the sources of information were also found on photos that he took to all remaining batanas in slovenian harbors or marinas. For this project he made every effort including his knowledge on traditional boatbuilding, designing skills, creative talent and sense of aesthetics.
Marino Hrvatin, David's father, was born in Koper, on February 6th, 1956. He attended the secondary Technical School for metallurgy and the secondary Technical School for Traffic in Koper. As a turner on metalworking lathe he worked with many private employers as well as at Piran's shipyard and Izola's shipyard. Although he later left the metallurgy branch and worked as a guard in Koper's prison, he continued on developing his manual, technical and metalworking skills at home. Fishing was his primary occupation and free-time hobby as early in his childhood, while he lived in Piran. As a reward for finishing the elementary school at the age of 14 his father Stanislav Hrvatin bought him a boat named Zora (eng. Sunrise), which was also a batana and a creation of the dalmatian boatbuilding master Mihić. After that Marino and his batana Zora were inseparable until the age of 25, when he begun building a new house in Korte. From then on spare time became almost unknown to him. There was always work waiting to be done at home or at field so he went fishing very rarely. In 2010 he retired and he soon became affected by boredom. After his friend's suggestion he realized, that he can build a new boat instead of renovate the old one. The project Koštanca also gave him the unique opportunity to proof himself in the technical and manual skills.
Marino Hrvatin, David's father, was born in Koper, on February 6th, 1956. He attended the secondary Technical School for metallurgy and the secondary Technical School for Traffic in Koper. As a turner on metalworking lathe he worked with many private employers as well as at Piran's shipyard and Izola's shipyard. Although he later left the metallurgy branch and worked as a guard in Koper's prison, he continued on developing his manual, technical and metalworking skills at home. Fishing was his primary occupation and free-time hobby as early in his childhood, while he lived in Piran. As a reward for finishing the elementary school at the age of 14 his father Stanislav Hrvatin bought him a boat named Zora (eng. Sunrise), which was also a batana and a creation of the dalmatian boatbuilding master Mihić. After that Marino and his batana Zora were inseparable until the age of 25, when he begun building a new house in Korte. From then on spare time became almost unknown to him. There was always work waiting to be done at home or at field so he went fishing very rarely. In 2010 he retired and he soon became affected by boredom. After his friend's suggestion he realized, that he can build a new boat instead of renovate the old one. The project Koštanca also gave him the unique opportunity to proof himself in the technical and manual skills.
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| David (left) and Marino Hrvatin (right) in front of batana Koštanca. |
David & Marino Hrvatin
Korte 27a
6310 Izola
Slovenia
e-mail: david.hrvatin.art@gmail.com
