struction of the city of Skopje based on Kenzo Tange’s Metabolist design, to the new city of New Belgrade, with its ex- pressive large-scale housing blocs and civic buildings, the exhibition examines the unique range of forms and modes of production in Yugoslav architecture, as well as its distinct yet multifaceted character. Speaking in an exclusive interview for portal Ključaonica.com that we are republishing here, the chief curator of this exhibition talks about how it orig- inated, but also the lessons of the Yu- goslav example that were drawn by the creative team in order for them to be presented to the world this summer. Did you get a chance to visit any of the former Yugoslav countries? - I started thinking about and work- ing on this exhibition roughly three years ago. In the course of the preparations, my co-curator Vladimir Kulić and I trav- elled extensively throughout the region, visiting all of the countries that used to form Yugoslavia, including many of their major urban centres. What came across as the biggest surprise for you and your team dur- ing that process? - The biggest surprise for me was the discovery of an abundance of ab- solutely fantastic material (original ar- chitectural drawings mainly) in a large number of private collections, much of which had never before been shown in public. I am confident that our exhibition will be a revelation for audiences from the region, as well as internationally. How did you come up with the ti- tle reference to concrete utopia? - The title was generated in the cu- ratorial team over many conversations and many months. It references philos- opher Ernst Bloch’s concept of a “con- crete utopia”, meaning the process of re- al social transformation. This, I believe, was at the foundation of Yugoslavia’s so- cialist system of “self-management.” In a double entendre, the “concrete” also relates to the building material, which played such a prominent part in Yugo- slav architecture. To us locals, it all seems quite fa- miliar, but how would you describe this exhibition, and the heritage that it presents? - This exhibition is intended as a critical re-examination of the canon of modern ar- chitecture, which is heavily biased toward architecture in North America and Western Europe. We argue that Yugoslavia was by no means a backwater on the periphery, but that it produced significant work that is wor-
T he incredible monuments and buildings created after World War II on the territory of the former Yugoslavia are often presented around the world as works from another world. It is rare for people to deal with the stories of these monu- mental buildings that testify to a spe- cific period, choosing instead to main- ly concentrate on their futuristic look. For Martin Stierli, chief curator of ar- chitecture and design at New York’s fa- mous Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), there is no doubt that Yugoslav sculp- tors and architects devised a particularly expressive, memorable and photogenic formal language for their monuments. - However, the significant contri- bution of these monuments – many of them commemorating battles against fascism, sites of concentration camps, and other World War II atrocities – has been grossly misrepresented. This exhi- bition will showcase these monuments in their respective historical contexts and explain their societal relevance as sites of collective commemoration, says Stierli. The exhibition he is referring to is called “Toward a Concrete Utopia: Archi- tecture in Yugoslavia, 1948-1980”. When it officially opens this 15th July, it will be the first major exhibition dedicated to the architecture of socialist Yugoslavia to be shown in the United States. Until Jan- uary next year, visitors to the third-floor gallery of this museum, one of the most important in the world, will be present- ed with more than 400 exhibits, photo- graphs, sketches, architectural models and videos addressing the urbanisation of Yugoslavia and the global reach of Yu- goslav architecture. From the sculptur- al interior of the White Mosque in rural Bosnia, to the post-earthquake recon-
Berislav Šerbetić i Vojin Bakić, Spomenik ustanku naroda Korduna i Banije, Petrova gora, Hrvatska Berislav Šerbetić and Vojin Bakić, Monument to the Uprising of the People of Kordun and Banija. Petrova Gora, Croatia
Svetlana Kana Radević, Hotel Podgorica , Podgorica
Svetlana Kana Radević, Podgorica Hotel, Podgorica
Branko Žnidarec, Hotel Adrijatik II . Opatija, Hrvatska Branko Žnidarec, Hotel Adriatic II. Opatija, Croatia
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