Belgrade's Cultural Renaissance: New Museums, Grassroots Movements, and Urban Transformation
Belgrade is undergoing a notable cultural and urban evolution marked by the reopening of the National Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art (MoCAB). The National Museum, curated by Jelena Stefanović, houses a collection that covers 5,000 sqm, while MoCAB, which focuses on Yugoslav avant-garde artists, reopened in October 2017 after ten years of renovations. Active grassroots groups such as Remont and KCGrad are contributing to this transformation. In municipal elections, the political movement Ne da vidimo Beograd secured 3.44%. Prime Minister Ana Brnabić endorses cultural initiatives, including the Friendship Park project. Additionally, the City of Water initiative will introduce a Museum of 21st-Century Art. Belgrade has been listed among Lonely Planet's top seven destinations, with an anticipated 7% economic growth, alongside the $3 billion Belgrade Waterfront project currently in progress.
Key facts
- National Museum and MoCAB reopened after long closures.
- MoCAB reopened in October 2017 after restoration since 2007.
- Marina Abramović retrospective toured six European cities.
- Ne da vidimo Beograd won 3.44% in municipal elections.
- Fearless Cities conference held in Belgrade in June 2019 with over 60 movements.
- City of Water project covers 90 hectares, includes museums and aquarium.
- First Art Weekend Belgrade took place in October.
- Belgrade ranked among Lonely Planet's top seven destinations.
Entities
Artists
- Jelena Stefanović
- Igor Stepančić
- Irena Stepančić
- Ivanka Raspopović
- Ivan Antić
- Zoran Erić
- Marina Abramović
- Slobodan Nakarada
- Danilo Prnjat
- Svetlana Subašić
- Vladan Jeremić
- Ada Colau
- Ramon Pop
- Yanis Varoufakis
- Ska Keller
- Ana Brnabić
- Milan Pališaški
- Ranko Radović
- Ljiljana Pekić
- Marija Lalošević
- Daniel Libeskind
- Jan Gehl
- Milica Zorić
- Rodoljub Čolaković
- Petar Dobrović
- Olga Dobrović
- Gunnar Kvaran
- Danielle Kvaran
- Ilaria Marotta
- Andrea Baccin
- Olafur Eliasson
- Anselm Kiefer
- Hito Steyerl
- Takashi Murakami
- Yoko Ono
- Cindy Sherman
- Ana Adamović
- Dušica Dražić
- Biljana Đurđević
- Vladimir Veličković
- Dušan Otašević
- Đorđe Ozbolt
- Ivan Grubanov
- Ivana Basić
- Marija Calić
- Vuk Ćuk
- Maja Đorđević
- Aleksandra Domanović
- Nina Ivanović
- Marta Jovanović
- Tijana Kojić
- Jelena Mijić
- Branko Milisković
- Nemanja Nikolić
- Katarina Zdjelar
- Emir Šehanović
- Hou Hanru
- Davide Scalmani
- Zara Audiello
- Giulia Mura
Institutions
- National Museum (Belgrade)
- Museum of Contemporary Art Belgrade (MoCAB)
- Remont
- KCGrad
- U10
- Blok Galerija
- DeMaterijalizacija umetnosti
- Ne da vidimo Beograd
- Diem25
- European Greens
- Fearless Cities
- Galleria Legat Čolaković
- Petar Dobrović Gallery
- Salone del Museo di Arte Contemporanea
- Eugster || Belgrade
- Laufer Art
- X Vitamin
- Drina
- B2
- O3one
- Zvono
- Art Weekend Belgrade (AWB)
- October Salon
- Podroom
- Artget
- KCB Cultural Centre
- Gallery of the Faculty of Fine Arts (Belgrade)
- Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts (SANU)
- Historical Museum of Serbia (IMUS)
- Luka Beograd
- Eagle Hills
- Gehl Architects
- Studio Libeskind
- Istituto Italiano di Cultura di Belgrado
- Lonely Planet
- Artribune
Locations
- Belgrade
- Serbia
- Novi Beograd
- Ušće
- Friendship Park (Prijateljstva Park)
- Kalemegdan Fortress
- Sava River
- Danube River
- Dorćol Marina
- Pančevo Bridge
- Barcelona
- Spain
- Berlin
- Germany
- Abu Dhabi
- United Arab Emirates
- Balkans
- Europe