THE HOUSE OF JEVREM GRUJIĆ Precious haven of tradition and avant-garde
Serbia’s cultural heritage map. Jevrem Grujić had the house built for his family back in 1896, according to the design project of architect Milan Kapetanović, on land owned by his father-in-law, Teodor Herbez, who had served as minis- ter of finance in the government of Prince Miloš and gifted the land to his daughter, Jelena Grujić, as her dowry. Belgrade was expanding rapidly at that time, changing and transforming into a European capi- tal. During the 19 th century, the city’s modern urbanisation included the participation of foreign urban plan- ners and engineers, but they were soon joined by Serbian architects who’d been schooled abroad, such as Milan Kapetanović, who brought Eu- ropean architecture to Serbian lands, modelled on the examples of Vien- na, Budapest and Paris. Such a grasp of aesthetics and construction principles are actu- ally evident in the example of the house at 17 Svetogorska Street, lo- cated next to the building of the At- elje 212 theatre, which highlighted both the social status and economic power of the family, as well as their acceptance of a new cultural orien- tation. At the time of its construc- tion, it represented a typical city vil- la designed to reflect the spirit of 19 th century Western European ar- chitecture. e main façade’s paint- ed decoration was the work of Italian master of decorative painting Do- menico D’Andrea and renders the house unique in the architecture of Belgrade. Alongside its material values, the House also demonstrates the impor- tance of the individuals who, direct- ly or indirectly, built the family tradi- tion, but also the history of Serbian society at the turn of the 19 th and 20 th centuries, and later at the turn of the 20 th and 21 st centuries. at’s why this house is simultaneously a symbol of the constructing of a new social reality, a new state and a new cultural matrix at the dawn of the modern age. You can interpret all of this when you step into its salons, along with the interesting story of the museum’s curator and today’s
The house of Jevrem Grujić, at 17 Svetogorska Street, has been captivating passers-by with its beauty for more than a century, while it also represents an architectural gem for connoisseurs and lovers of Belgrade antiquities and is the first designated heritage building in the Serbian capital
T he House of Jevrem Gru- jić has a history dating back to the 19 th century and is connected to sem- inal events in the history of the nation, involving actors who were members of the families of the statesmen and diplomats who we have to thank for the passing of the first law on the National Assem- bly. Despite Belgrade having been bombed on numerous occasions during more recent times, and at- tempts to have the house demolished to make way for the constructing of modern buildings after World War II, it has remained in place and under private ownership to this day. is is thanks to the efforts of the then
newly established Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments of Belgrade in 1961, which stood in defence of this edifice and saved it from being permanently erased from
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