Status of monument -> National monument
Published in the “Official Gazette of BiH” no. 94/09.
Pursuant to Article V para. 4 Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Article 39 para. 1 of the Rules of Procedure of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, at a session held from 27 May to 2 June 2008 the Commission adopted a
D E C I S I O N
I
The historic property of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina building (First Provincial Government Building) in Sarajevo with movable heritage is hereby designated as a National Monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina (hereinafter: the National Monument).
The movable heritage referred to in para. 1 of this Clause (hereinafter: the movable heritage) consists of:
a) a collection of 59 paintings:
1. SCENE FROM MOSTAR; Artist: Franz Leo Ruben
2. LANDSCAPE FROM BRIDGE; Artist: Franz Leo Ruben
3. SCENE FROM PARIS; Artist: Peđa Milosavljević
4. PORTALS; Artist: Nada Pivac
5. BELOW THE MOUNTAIN; Artist: Đoko Mazalić
6. LANDSCAPE; Artist: Stojan Aralica
7. CANDLESTICK; Artist: Franjo Likar
8. SNOW IN VRDNIK; Artist: Petar Tiješić
9. WINDOWS; Artist: Mustafa Pezo
10. BUILDING; Artist: Radenko Mišević
11. REMINISCENCES; Artist: Ibrahim Ljubović
12. DARK CORNER; Artist: Ibrahim Ljubović
13. IGMAN; Artist: Boško Risimović
14. UNA; Artist: Enver Krupić
15. SUTJESKA; Artist: Ismet Mujezinović
16. PORTRAIT OF A FRIEND; Artist: Fehim Avdić
17. COW; Artist: Sead Musić
18. IN THE STUDIO; Artist: Ahmet Karić
19. OLD BRIDGE; Artist: Mirko Kujačić
20. PARTISAN TRAIN; Artist: Franjo Likar
21. GIRL ON BALCONY; Artist: Ljubo Lah
22. STILL LIFE; Artist: Franjo Likar
23. STILL LIFE; Artist: Nusret Pašić
24. STUDIO; Artist: Mario Mikulić
25. SUTJESKA Nr. SUHA; Artist: Ivo Šeremet
26. BREAKTHROUGH; Artist: Ismet Mujezinović
27. HUNTING SCENE; Artist: Vojo Dimitrijević
28. PARK; Artist: Vojo Dimitrijević
29. KORČULA; Artist: Sabahudin Hodžić
30. SUTJESKA; Artist: Branko Šotra
31. STILL LIFE; Artist: Ljubo Lah
32. DUBROVNIK; Artist: Ivo Šeremet
33. FROM POČITELJ; Artist: Salim Obralić
34. UNTITLED; Artist: Ratko Lalić
35. VIEW THROUGH A WINDOW; Artist: Vera Čohadžić
36. STILL LIFE; Artist: Aleksandar Kumrić
37. THE MAGIC OF THE UNA; Artist: Enver Krupić
38. MARINA; Artist: Mario Mikulić
39. BAŠČARŠIJA; Artist: Rizah Štetić
40. JELENA; Artist: Mersad Berber
41. YOUTH LINE; Artist: Rizah Štetić
42. VRATNIK; Artist: Petar Šain
43. LANDSCAPE; Artist: unknown
44. SKETCH OF BATHERS; Artist: Zdenko Grgić
45. PEASANTS LOADING GRAIN; Artist: Ivan Radović
46. REFLECTIONS IN THE UNA; Artist: Enver Krupić
47. CHAIR; Artist: Salim Obralić
48. BORAČKO LAKE; Artist: Vojo Dimitrijević
49. IN BLUE; Artist: Milorad Ćorović
50. IN MEMORY OF THE ROUTE TO THE NORTH POLE; Artist: Mehmed Zaimović
51. ROMANTIC PLACE; Artist: Mehmed Zaimović
52. TROGIR; Artist: Cata Dujšin Ribar
53. PEASANT WOMEN; Artist: Špiro Bocarić
54. SCENE FROM THE SAVA; Artist: Sabahudin Hodžić
55. POČITELJ; Artist: Ksantipa Gorgoljatos
56. OLD OLIVE TREE; Artist: Oton Postružnik
57. NOBLEMEN II; Artist: Dževad Hozo
58. NOBLEMEN II; Artist: Dževad Hozo
59. ALONE; Artist: Dževad Hozo
b) geodetic documentation of the Geodetics, Property and Legal Affairs Authority of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The National Monument is located on a site designated as cadastral plot no. 1607 (new survey), cadastral municipality Sarajevo IV, corresponding to c.p. nos. 11, 279 and 280 (old survey), cadastral municipality Sarajevo L, Land Register no. L/65, Centar Municipality, Sarajevo, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The provisions relating to protection measures set forth by the Law on the Implementation of the Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, established pursuant to Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Official Gazette of the Federation of BiH nos. 2/02, 27/02, 6/04 and 51/07) shall apply to the National Monument.
II
The Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (hereinafter: the Government of the Federation) shall be responsible for providing the legal, scientific, technical, administrative and financial measures necessary for the protection, conservation, restoration and presentation of the National Monument.
The Commission to Preserve National Monuments (hereinafter: the Commission) shall determine the technical requirements and secure the funds for preparing and setting up signboards with basic details of the monument and the Decision to proclaim the property a National Monument.
III
To ensure the on-going protection of the National Monument on the area defined in Clause 1 para. 3 of this Decision, the following protection measures are hereby stipulated:
- all works are prohibited other than conservation and restoration works, routine maintenance works, and works designed to display the monument, with the approval of the Federal Ministry responsible for regional planning and under the expert supervision of the heritage protection authority of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina;
- the façades facing the inner courtyard shall be refurbished after conducting a detailed survey of the current condition and an examination of the original methods of treatment of the façades, using original materials;
- the repair project shall cover the dilapidated and damaged elements of the property (roof, façades, guttering and downpipes, etc.) and provision shall be made to replace them with new elements matching their original condition.
The following protection measures are hereby stipulated for the movable heritage:
- the Government of the Federation the movable heritage;
- the display and other forms of presentation of the movable heritage in Bosnia and Herzegovina shall be carried out on the basis of conditions to be stipulated by the Federal Ministry responsible for culture;
- supervision of the implementation of the measures to protect the movable heritage shall be carried out by the Federal Ministry responsible for culture.
IV
The removal of the movable heritage from Bosnia and Herzegovina is prohibited.
By way of exception to the provisions of paragraph 1 of this Clause, the temporary removal from Bosnia and Herzegovina of the movable heritage for the purposes of display or conservation shall be permitted if it is established that conservation works cannot be carried out in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Permission for temporary removal under the conditions stipulated in the preceding paragraph shall be issued by the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, if it is determined beyond doubt that it will not jeopardize the movable heritage in any way.
In granting permission for the temporary removal of the movable heritage, the Commission shall stipulate all the conditions under which the removal from Bosnia and Herzegovina may take place, the date by which the items shall be returned to the country, and the responsibility of individual authorities and institutions for ensuring that these conditions are met, and shall notify the Government of the Federation, the relevant security service, the customs authority of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the general public accordingly.
V
All executive and area development planning acts not in accordance with the provisions of this Decision are hereby revoked.
VI
Everyone, and in particular the competent authorities of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Canton, and urban and municipal authorities, shall refrain from any action that might damage the National Monument or jeopardize the preservation thereof.
VII
The Government of the Federation, the Federal Ministry responsible for regional planning, the Federal Ministry responsible for culture, the Federation heritage protection authority, and the Municipal Authorities in charge of urban planning and land registry affairs, shall be notified of this Decision in order to carry out the measures stipulated in Articles II to VI of this Decision, and the Authorized Municipal Court shall be notified for the purposes of registration in the Land Register.
VIII
The elucidation and accompanying documentation form an integral part of this Decision, which may be viewed by interested parties on the premises or by accessing the website of the Commission (http://www.aneks8komisija.com.ba)
IX
Pursuant to Art. V para 4 Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, decisions of the Commission are final.
X
This Decision shall enter into force on the day following its publication in the Official Gazette of BiH.
This Decision has been adopted by the following members of the Commission: Zeynep Ahunbay, Amra Hadžimuhamedović, Dubravko Lovrenović, Ljiljana Ševo and Tina Wik.
No: 06.2-02-249/07-9
28 May 2008
Sarajevo
Chair of the Commission
Amra Hadžimuhamedović
E l u c i d a t i o n
I – INTRODUCTION
Pursuant to Article 2, paragraph 1 of the Law on the Implementation of the Decisions of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments, established pursuant to Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, a “National Monument” is an item of public property proclaimed by the Commission to Preserve National Monuments to be a National Monument pursuant to Articles V and VI of Annex 8 of the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina and property entered on the Provisional List of National Monuments of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Official Gazette of BiH no. 33/02) until the Commission reaches a final decision on its status, as to which there is no time limit and regardless of whether a petition for the property in question has been submitted or not.
The property in question is on the Provisional List of National Monuments of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments (Official Gazette of BiH no. 33/02), numbered as 546, as part of the Urban Townscape of Sarajevo.
Pursuant to the provisions of the law, the Commission proceeded to carry out the procedure for reaching a final decision to designate the Property as a National Monument, pursuant to Article V para. 4 of Annex 8 and Article 35 of the Rules of Procedure of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments.
II – PROCEDURE PRIOR TO DECISION
In the procedure preceding the adoption of a final decision to proclaim the property a national monument, the following documentation was inspected:
- Data on the current condition and use of the property, including a description and photographs, data of war damage, data on restoration or other works on the property, etc.;
- The current condition of the property;
- Copy of cadastral plan;
- Historical, architectural and other documentary material on the property, as set out in the bibliography forming part of this Decision.
The findings based on the review of the above documentation and the condition of the property are as follows:
1. Details of the property
Location
The building of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (the First Provincial Government Building) is at no. 16 Marshal Tito street in Sarajevo, and forms part of the townscape ensemble of Tito street in Sarajevo. It is in the southern part of Marshal Tito street, between the Ali Pasha mosque to the west and the Second Provincial Government Building (the Railways Building) to the east. To the north of the property, on the opposite side of Marshal Tito street, is a city park.
The building of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (the First Provincial Government Building) is a detached property with three street fronts: the north façade facing Marshal Tito street, the east façade facing Musala street, and the west façade facing Reis Džemaludin Čaušević street. The south façade looks onto a park with Mis Irbina (Miss Irby) street beyond. The property has four main entrances, the first from Marshal Tito street (used on formal official occasions), the second from Musala street, the third from Reis Džemaludin Čaušević street, and the fourth from the park; the tradesmen’s entrance is also on this side.
The National Monument is located on a site designated as cadastral plot no. 1607 (new survey), cadastral municipality Sarajevo IV, corresponding to c.p. nos. 11, 279 and 280 (old survey), cadastral municipality Sarajevo L, Land Register no. L/65, Centar Municipality, Sarajevo, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Historical information
The Austro-Hungarian period in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which lasted from 1878 to 1917, saw the transformation of Sarajevo into a modern European city. It was the centre of the Provincial Government, the Supreme Court, and the principal institutions of the country's religious communities. Institutions such as the Provincial (now the National) Museum, the Provincial Hospital, the Railways Directorate of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Provincial Financial Directorate, the Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina and so on were established. An important part in the modernization of Sarajevo was played by the Provincial Government and the City Authority.
It was thanks to the Provincial Government that Provincial Government buildings I, II and III, the Shariah Judges' School, high schools and teacher training colleges, the Provincial Hospital, the Provincial Press, the Law Courts, the Provincial Museum, the tobacco and carpet factories, and a branch of the Austro-Hungarian Bank were erected. In addition, the Provincial Government was responsible for laying out the city park and building numerous military facilities. The Municipality of Sarajevo also made a major contribution, including regulating the river Miljacka, laying mains water and sewerage, installing street lighting, introducing the city's tram services, and building the railway station, the central market hall, and the City Hall.
The first administrative buildings to be erected in Sarajevo were monumental structures in the neo-Renaissance style. The forms of the high and late Renaissance were applied in a variety of forms and complex compositions.The finest examples were achieved on public buildings of national and universal importance (Kurto, 1997, 52).
The First Provincial Government Building in Sarajevo, the first government building to be erected, was built between 1884 and 1886 to a design by the architect Josip Vancaš(1). This was not only the first state-level administrative building, but also one of the largest and finest buildings in Sarajevo.
In early 1879, following a brief period of military rule, the Provincial Government for Bosnia and Herzegovina began its operations. Preparations for the Provincial Government Building began when Benjamin Kállay became minister in the Joint Finance Ministry in Vienna in 1882. On visiting Sarajevo that year, Minister Kállay saw the conditions in which the government was working, and took a personal interest in the construction of the new building. He agreed that Musala was the most suitable site for such a building, and ordered the leader of the Provincial Government, Wurtemberg, to purchase the site from the Gazi Isabeg vakuf (waqf, pious endowment). The vakuf received the sum of 4,000 florins. Kállay convinced the emperor of the need for a Provincial Government Building by citing the political reasons for such a move. Given the shabby and somewhat disgraceful premises of the central government bodies, the people of this country will conclude that the new authorities are of a merely temporary nature. Anyone who might wish to seek the protection of the Government would have trouble finding it, since the various government departments are dispersed throughout the city; this too, in Kállay's view, is detrimental to the standing of the authorities (Madžar, 1985, 251).
Kállay hired the architect Josip Vancaš as chief designer on the recommendation of his senior civil engineering adviser, Schmidt. Vancaš received a fee of 16,000 florins. Once the emperor's approval had been received, in December 1883, work began on compiling the technical documentation and preparing for the building works.
Vancaš submitted an initial design with three stylistic variants: early Renaissance Florentine, Italian Gothic, and Italian late Renaissance. The decision was made to opt for the simpler, and therefore cheaper, early Renaissance style on account of the limited funds available for the project. On Vancaš's insistence, the entrance front, originally intended for the south side, was designed to face Ćemaluša street (now Marshal Tito street). In 1883/48, the working designs were drawn up in Vancaš's Vienna studio for both the Provincial Government building and the Cathedral of the Heart of Jesus in Sarajevo. Vancaš's first designs were characterized by European historicism, in which he drew on every historical style from the Romanesque to the Baroque. This was true, too, of the First Provincial Government Building, which was Vancaš's first design to be built in Sarajevo.
With the arrival of architect Josip Vancaš in Sarajevo in 1884, the development of western European architecture began; thanks primarily to him, it was to be of the same standards as in other central European countries. He lived and worked in Sarajevo for 37 years, achieving an unequalled architectural and artistic opus. Sarajevo's Austro-Hungarian architecture is thus directly or indirectly inseparable from the name and work of Josip Vancaš (Kurto, 1998, 292).
From Vienna came the suggestion to appoint Karlo Schwarz as works contractor, while the bricks were procured mainly from Braun's brickworks in Sarajevo and from the Sarajevo-based firm of Finci and Banić. The building works began in March 1884, and Vancaš moved his studio from Vienna to Sarajevo. The Provincial Government also entrusted him with the professional oversight of the building works. The entire progress of the works on the Provincial Government Building was monitored by a specially appointed buildings committee, thanks to which the works were completed thirteen days ahead of the contractual deadline, and with final costs reduced from the contractual figure of 400,000 florins to 393,000 florins. After a year and a half under construction, the property was handed over to the Provincial Government in October 1885.
It was the largest building in Sarajevo, consisting of a basement, ground floor and two upper storeys, with an overall footprint of 70.00 x 62.50 m and an inner courtyard measuring 48.00 x 16.00 m. The building was about 3,082 m2 in area, with a total of 180 rooms on the ground, first and second floors, and 32 in the basement. The property was purpose-built to house the administrative bodies of the Provincial Government for Bosnia and Herzegovina: the ground floor housed the national exchequer, cadastral records office, various political department services, the postal and telegraph office, and the caretaker's flat. The first floor housed the Grand Hall and the government offices, and the second floor was designed to house the remaining government departments and the Supreme Court. Initially the ground floor housed the Museum Society and the editorial department of Sarajevski list, while the Provincial Press was in the basement. As the administration grew, so there was a need for more space, and in 1911 a third floor designed by architect Karl Pařik was added to the entire First Provincial Government Building (Kurto, 1997, 52).
Ten years after the first government building was erected, the Austro-Hungarian authorities in Sarajevo began building another. The Second Provincial Government Building(2), which now houses the Foreign Ministry of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Railways Directorate of the Federation of BiH, was erected in 1896 immediately to the east of the First Provincial Government Building. It was designed by Carlo Panek, an architect in the civil engineering department of the Provincial Government. In 1905 the Third Government Building was erected (now housing Centar Municipality and the Sarajevo Canton government), just to the west of the First Government Building.
From 1929 to 1941 (during the time of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia), the Provincial Government Building housed the headquarters of the Drina banate. From 1945 to 1963, under the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, it was the seat of the Presidency of the Government of the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and from 1963 it was the seat of the Presidency of the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Executive Council of the Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The constitution of the first complement of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina in October 1996 meant that the building continued to house the members of the collective head of state. The First Provincial Government Building now houses the offices of the members of the Presidency of BiH, the Constitutional Court of BiH, the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of BiH, the Archives of BiH, the Geodetics, Property and Legal Affairs Authority of BiH, the President and Vice-President of the government of the Federation of BiH, the Geodetics, Property and Legal Affairs Authority of the Federation of BiH, the Archives of the Federation of BiH, and the Joint Services of the institutions of the Federation of BiH.
2. Description of the property
The First Provincial Government Building in Sarajevo is the most striking example of neo-Renaissance architecture in Bosnia and Herzegovina, based on the Florentine palaces of the 15th century (the Palazzo Pitti, Palazzo Rucellai), from which the rustication, graduated weighting of the different storeys, and articulation of the façades by string courses and windows were borrowed (Krzović, 15).
Built in the historicist spirit, like the majority of official buildings of that time in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, it is a typical example of a neo-Renaissance palace, faced with rustication (bossage).
The First Provincial Government Building is a detached property with a basement, ground floor and three upper storeys. It originally had only a basement and three storeys: the third floor was added in 1911.
In plan the building is a rectangle measuring approx. 70.00 x 62.50 m, with a central inner courtyard serving as a light well. This courtyard originally measured approx. 48.00 x 16.00 m, but has been reduced to 48.00 x 9.00 m by the addition of two annexes on the north side of the courtyard.
There are two entrances to the building to the west and east; to the south, another was added later and is now used as the official entrance to the Presidency. On the south side, too, is the tradesmen's entrance, from which a passageway large enough for vehicles leads to the courtyard.
The basement occupies the entire area of the property, and houses the archive holdings. The ground and upper floors contain offices, conference rooms and reception halls, toilet blocks, halls and corridors, staircases and lifts. The offices, conference rooms and reception halls face out onto the street or onto the inner courtyard, with long corridors between them. Originally, the building had a total area of approx. 3,082 m2; with the addition of the third floor and the annexes in the inner courtyard, the usable area of the building was increased to its present level of approx. 4,262 m2.
The main, formal entrance to the building is on the north side, leading into a spacious hall from which rises the grand staircase. This triple-flight staircase is of stone with elaborate stone balustrades, and leads to the first floor where the Grand Hall and offices are housed. The Grand Hall, which rises through two storeys (approx. 10.00 m in height), is the only part of the building other than the grand staircase that is elaborately decorated. It is the principal formal reception hall, measuring approx. 16.50 x 9.00 m. Located in the middle of the first floor, it is reached via the grand staircase and a large entrance lobby that leads into the Grand Hall through large double-valved solid wood doors. Side doors to the east and west lead from the Grand Hall into conference rooms and smaller reception rooms. To the north are three pairs of round-arched windows with balustrades, over which at second-floor level are three circular windows in round-arched frames. The walls of the Grand Hall are decorated with pilasters with capitals and a band approx. 35 cm wide running round all four walls, decorated with relief floral motifs. Above this band is a conical section with geometric decoration connecting the walls and the ceiling. The ceiling is elaborately decorated with geometric and floral motifs executed in wood. The flooring consists of oak parquet. The lighting is provided by wall lights and a magnificent central chandelier. In addition to the Grand Hall, the first floor also has another two reception halls, main and other offices, linked by wide corridors and staircases. Four double-flight staircases on the east and west sides of the building lead from the ground to the third floor.
The building materials used in the Austro-Hungarian period were mainly high quality industrial products. The basic building materials were stone, brick, tile, iron, asbestos cement, wood and sheet metal. Stone was used in the foundations in the form of rubble in mortar, and for the exterior and interior steps and staircases. The First Provincial Government Building was designed and executed with a massive structural system, using traditional materials. The basic structural system consists of the bearing walls, built of Austrian-format bricks, rendered with lime cement plaster.
The walls vary in thickness from the outside walls, 45 and 30 cm thick, to the partition walls, which are 15 cm thick.
The height of the basement is approx. 3.00 m, of the ground and first floors approx. 5.00 m, and of the second and third floors approx. 4.00 m.
The roof of the Provincial Government Building is complex, with several different roof panes, but basically consisting of four steep gabled roofs over the parts of the building along the outer façades, with four somewhat taller hipped roofs at the corners and two rounded hipped roofs at mid point on the north and south sides of the building, forming the highest roof level. The gabled roofs are approx. 3.80 m in height from the roof cornice to the eaves. The hipped roofs are approx. 5.10 m in height from the roof cornice to the ridge. The central rounded hipped roofs form the highest point of the building, at approx. 30.00 m from ground to roof ridge; these roofs themselves are approx. 8.20 m high from roof cornice to ridge. The annexes have pent roofs. The massive roof frame of the building is of timber. The attic space is of usable height but is not used for any purpose. The roofs are clad with asbestos cement tiles.
Sheet metal was used for the flashings, window sills and guttering. The ceilings over the basement are of brick blocks; on the other storeys, steel girders form the ceiling joists, with a secondary timber structure and wooden floors.
The First Provincial Government Building has a clear and functional layout, with a harmonious composition of space and mass, and the features of an early Renaissance palace, making it the finest example of 19th architecture in Sarajevo. The composition of architectural and decorative elements creates a clean, well-proportioned frontispiece, given rhythm by its evenly-spaced windows and the Renaissance articulation, by means of string courses, into the rusticated ground floor and the upper storeys, terminating in a massive, markedly projecting roof cornice on consoles. This pronounced horizontality is balanced by the verticals of the central projections of the south and north wings, terminating in corner projections with their own separate roofs, suggesting towers and, with the emphatic rustication of the ground floor and corners, adding to the overall impression of solidity, severity and massivity of the palace (Božić, 1989, 136).
Appropriately to the use of the building, the façades are grand, elegant and unfussy. On the central projecting section of the north entrance façade, the central feature of the symmetrical composition is accentuated by symmetrically arrayed arches at first and second floor level, also indicating the location of the building’s most important space, the ceremonial Grand Hall.
The façades of the First Provincial Government Building are flawlessly proportioned in line with the Renaissance rules of proportion. Apart from the third floor, the finish is rustication, the finish of which indicates that the third floor is a later addition. At each corner of the building is a projection approx. 11.65 m wide, standing proud of the wall face by approx. 45 cm. The south and north façades each have a central projection approx. 17.5 m wide and standing proud of the wall face by approx. 90 cm, also rising from the ground floor to the roof cornice. All the windows are wooden with moulded stone frames; the rows of windows are separated by moulded stone string courses.
The roof cornice is stone with mouldings, decorated with consoles.
The main, north façade of the building faces onto the city's principal street, Marshal Tito street. This frontispiece is an architectural composition consisting of a central projection and lesser corner projections at each end. At ground-floor level in the central projection is the main entrance portal, consisting of massive double-valved wooden doors and two double-casement wooden windows. Three stone steps lead up to the portal, which is about 50 cm above ground level. The portal is approx. 2.00 m wide and 4.00 m high. The rectangular doors are composed of three panels with a semicircular fanlight above. The entire portal is set in a moulded stone frame. The rusticated blocks around the fanlight form a semicircle echoing the line of the portal. The fenestration is purely neo-Renaissance: biforate windows at first-floor level, a row of three triforate windows on the central projection at first and second floor level and triforate windows at third-floor level, by way of variation as well as to harmonize with the design of the original part of the building. The exterior lunettes of the biforate windows contain oculi with moulded frames. Balustrades are used as a parapet feature on all the first-floor windows, and above the roof cornice is balustrade further accentuating the horizontal articulation of the façade. Both flanking wings of the north façade have six groups of wooden double-casement windows on each floor, those of the first floor with stone balustrades.
The south façade of the building faces onto a small park. Symmetry is again achieved here by means of a central projecting section and “corner” projections. At ground floor level in the central projection is a double-valved wooden door serving as the tradesmen's entrance to the open courtyard; this door is 2.80 m wide and 5.00 m high. On either side of this door in the central projection is a single rectangular double-casement window measuring 1.70 x 2.70 m. At first and second floor level the central projection has rows of three biforate windows with stone balustrades; the later addition of the third floor has three smaller triforate windows on the third floor. Another doorway was later added to this façade, now used as the official entrance to the building. Each of the flanking wings of the south façade has six groups of wooden windows: six double-casement rectangular windows on the ground floor, double arched windows with stone balustrades on the first floor, and arched windows without decoration on the second and third floors.
The east and west façades of the Provincial Government Building are almost identical. At ground floor level is an arched double-valved wooden entrance door, with seven rectangular windows on either side. The fenestration on the first floor is identical but the windows are arched, and the endmost windows are double-casement arched windows with pilasters and balustrades. The second and third floors each have 16 double arched windows arranged in the same way as on the lower storeys.
Collection of paintings
In the early 1990s, experts from the Art Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina compiled an inventory, and photographed, repaired and conserved the works of art housed in the buildings of the Presidency, City Council, Parliament and Parliamentary Group of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. This was followed by the preparation for the press of material intended to present the works of art of these institutions. However, all the material so prepared disappeared or was destroyed during the 1992-1995 war (Husedžinović, 2007, 99). In a review of that period, Meliha Husedžinović provides a retrospective view of state attitudes to art, reminiscing on the artists whose works were assembled in these institutions. She notes that during the Austro-Hungarian period a number of works by different artists were purchased that formed the nucleus of the holdings of the Gallery set up as part of the Provincial Museum (now the National Museum), which was to become a separate institution, the Art Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina, after World War II. At that time, she writes, the Provincial Government invited artists to come and paint “our part of the world and our people,” and allocated scholarships to artists to attend art school or specialist training. The first decade after World War II was marked by efforts to supplement the collection by further acquisitions. Artists were commissioned to produce works commemorating the War of National Liberation, as well as works of which the subjects were specific events of the war.(3) During a guest visit by the Šestorica group (Group of Six), paintings by Stojan Aralica, Nedeljko Gvozdenović, Peđo Milosavljević, Ivan Radović, Miljan Šerban and Ivan Tabaković were purchased. In the 1970s, paintings by local artists were purchased – works that heralded a change of taste, for in addition to works from the classical repertoire, still lifes and landscapes, paintings by Nada Pivac, Afan Ramić, Mehmed Zaimović and Franjo Likar were acquired. In the early 1980s, a Federal-level Law Prohibiting Investment in Non-Commercial Activities was passed, and responsibility for the acquisition of works of art was transferred to the SIZ (“self-managing communities of interest”) and their procurements committees. This brought an end to official additions to the holdings of the state authorities; nonetheless, works by Mersad Berber, Afan Hozić, Zdenko Grgić, Boško Kućanski and Dževad Hozo were purchased at that time. In the early 1990s, graphics and paintings by Ljubomir Perčinlić, Edin Numankadić, Silvo Kvasina and Zlatko Melcher were purchased, and almost the entire auction exhibition of which part of the income from the sales of works went to the artists and part as aid to Dubrovnik under siege (1991) was purchased. It is not known where the works so purchased are now located (Husedžinović, 2007, 103).
During an on-site visit to the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina the following works of art were recorded and photographed:
1. SCENE FROM MOSTAR
Inventory no.: 0368
Artist: Franz Leo Ruben (1842, Prague to 1920, Munich)
Date: between 1878 and 1914
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 200x130 cm
Signature: none
Description: The painting depicts Donja mahala (Lower Mahala) in Mostar, with the Sevri Hajji Hasan mosque. The mosque is surrounded by a stone wall, and its courtyard is full of greenery, flowers and a few nišan tombstones. On a nearby hill is a village with low-built houses and one tall structure, a tower, possibly belonging to a church. Opposite the mosque is a street with a row of houses with jutting oriels and high walls. A shepherdess in a long white dress is walking along the street, carrying a bundle wrapped in a white kerchief, and with a white scarf on her head. She is followed by a laden pack mule and a flock of sheep, behind which is a shepherd in a blue shirt, with a turban on his head, trying to herd the sheep together. The flock is passing by two women dressed in the same way as the shepherdess; by one of them is a laden pack horse. The women are portrayed in conversation. Further down the street are a few passers-by wearing oriental-style costume; one of them is carrying a water pitcher, and making her way towards the street fountain in the bottom right-hand corner of the painting, beside which a man is standing, drinking water, also wearing oriental-style costume. Beside him is a grey horse. A boy in blue čakšire (baggy, tight-legged trousers), a red ječerma (short waistcoat) and white shirt with a red belt, and a red fez on his head, is queuing for water. He is holding a pitcher on his shoulder, and another pitcher is standing beside him.
2. LANDSCAPE FROM BRIDGE (the bridge at Plandište?)
Inventory no.: 0367
Artist: Franz Leo Ruben (1842 to 1920)
Date: between 1878 and 1914
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 200X130 cm
Signature: none
Description: The painting depicts a summer landscape with an old stone bridge with four arches in the middle of the picture. A group of peasants are crossing the bridge. One is a man wearing traditional folk costume – white čakšire and a white shirt, with a bensilah (a leather belt with several pockets) around his waist, and a red ječerma over his shirt. He is turbaned, and is followed by a horse. In the middle of the bridge is a horse-drawn vehicle – two horses harnessed to a covered cart, on which two men in traditional folk costume are seated. Behind the cart another can be seen, with a horseman and a pedestrian, a peasant wearing folk costume with a grey horse walking alongside him. The background of the painting is of the landscape around the bridge, the winding river, green fields, trees with large crowns, cottages painted white and roofed with shingles, and in the distance a mountain range.
3. SCENE FROM PARIS
Inventory no.: 0322
Artist: Peđa Milosavljević(4) (1908 to 1989)
Date: between 1937 and 1956(5)
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 92x73 cm
Signature: bottom left PEDIA
Description: The painting depicts a scene in Paris, with the Arc de triomphe at the top centre of the picture and below it, to right and left, buildings with large windows. The entire width of the foreground is taken up by an elaborately-whorled wrought-iron fence. The painting is mainly in soft pastel shades of blue, pink, ochre and green.
4. PORTALS
Inventory no.: 0318
Artist: Nada Pivac(6) (1926. do 2008)
Date: 1958
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 53x39 cm
Signature: bottom right Pivac
Description: The painting is divided by thick, dark layers of paint into six sections, in each of which is a semicircular element. The painting is mainly in dark brown and green tones and ochre.
5. BELOW THE MOUNTAIN
Inventory no.: 0373
Artist: Đoko Mazalić(7) (1888 to 1975)
Date: between 1918 and 1975
Technique: oil on lessonite
Size: 60x50 cm
Signature: bottom left Mazalić
Description: The painting depicts a landscape of a plain at the foot of a mountain, with some trees, a brook, and a flowery meadow.
6. LANDSCAPE
Inventory no.: 0321
Artist: Stojan Aralica(8) (1883 to 1980)
Date: between 1914 and 1980
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 75x65 cm
Signature: bottom right Aralica
Description: The painting depicts a church with a tall tower, seen through the branches of tall trees. The churchyard has a high boundary wall. To the right of the painting are some houses. The painting is mainly in various shades of blue, ochre, green, pink and violet.
7. CANDLESTICK
Inventory no.: 0325
Artist: Franjo Likar(9) (1928)
Date: 1962
Technique: oil on board
Size: 75x45 cm
Signature: top left LIKAR 62
Description: The middle of the painting is taken up by a tall candlestick with a single candleholder. The painting is dark-toned, apart from the candlestick, depicted in shades of dark ochre and orange.
8. SNOW IN VRDNIK
Inventory no.: 0344
Artist: Petar Tiješić(10) (1928)
Date: 1962
Technique: oil on board
Size: 70x66 cm
Signature: bottom right PP
Description: The painting depicts a lowland landscape, a market town street under snow, with the wheel marks of a vehicle. On either side of the street are rows of single-storey houses with high fences between them. The houses are painted in various colours – yellow, red, green and orange. Part of a church and a tall bell tower can be made out at the end of the street, with a tall tree opposite the bell tower. The blue sky is full of threatening, swirling grey clouds.
9. WINDOWS
Inventory no.: 0326
Artist: Mustafa Pezo(11) (1927 to 1987)
Date: 1964
Technique: oil on board
Size: 66x82 cm
Signature: bottom left Pezo 64
Description: The painting, in sombre shades of grey and ochre, depicts part of the façade of a building, with a large double-valved door at ground-floor level and two arched windows above, on the first floor. The arch of one of the windows is filled in in blue and the other in red.
10. BUILDING
Inventory no.: 0353
Artist: Radenko Mišević(12) (1920 to 1995)
Date: between 1948 and 1964
Technique: oil on lessonite
Size: 42x62 cm
Signature: bottom right R. Mišević
Description: The painting is a bird’s-eye view of a building site – the foundations for a house being excavated. It shows several men at work, digging or pushing carts laden with soil. Part of the original soil level remains above the foundation pit, with a number of trees growing on it. The painting is mainly in sombre shades of ochre with touches of dark red.
11. REMINISCENCE
Inventory no.: 0303
Artist: Ibrahim Ljubović(13) (1938 to 1995)
Date: 1978
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 130x65 cm
Signature: bottom right Ljubović 78
Description: The foreground depicts an old Bosnian tower with a hipped roof, rendered in pastel shades of green and ochre. The façade of the tower is damaged in places, revealing courses of brickwork under the white surface. The half-length figure of a lady in a hat can be seen in a round-arched window facing the observer. The side wall has three windows near the top of the tower, the outer two rectangular and the middle one round-arched. Outside the tower is the flat, sandy bank of a river, along which two people are walking. A forest can be seen on the opposite side of the river. A flock of birds is flying across the dark blue and green sky.
12. DARK CORNER
Inventory no.: 0319
Artist: Ibrahim Ljubović (1938 to 1995)
Date: 1963
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 56x42 cm
Signature: bottom right Ljubović 63
Description: The painting is mainly in shades of ochre. A rectangular table stands in the corner of a room, with a green dress on it (with the outlines of a body, so that someone seems to be seated there). Opposite the dress is a tie, one end of which is lying over the table.
13. IGMAN
Inventory no.: 0319
Artist: Boško Risimović
Date: 1951
Technique: oil on plywood
Size: 63x51 cm
Signature: top right B. Risimović jun 1951 IGMAN (Cyrillic)
Description: The landscape, level ground at the foot of the mountain, is depicted with thick layers of paint. At the edge of the level ground is a number of houses with red-tiled roofs. The painting is mainly in shades of green.
14. UNA
Inventory no.: 0311
Artist: Enver Krupić(14) (1911 to 1992)
Date: 1975
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 78x118 cm
Signature: bottom right Enver Krupić 1975
Description: A landscape of the river Una with its rapids and small cascades. In the middle of the river bed are a number of trees with yellow crowns.
15. SUTJESKA
Inventory no.: 0350
Artist: Ismet Mujezinović(15) (1911 to 1992)
Date: 1961
Technique: oil on board
Size: 51x79 cm
Signature: bottom left Ismet 61
Description: The painting depicts a mountain scene of a bare rock face partly clad with forest. The painting is mainly in shades of green and ochre.
16. PORTRAIT OF A FRIEND
Inventory no.: 0366
Artist: Fehim Avdić(16) (1911 to 1992)
Date: 1975
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 78x118 cm
Signature: none
Description: The painting portrays a seated girl with long dark shoulder-length hair and a fringe, wearing a dark dress, her hands in her lap.
17. COW
Inventory no.: 0359
Artist: Sead Musić
Date: unknown
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 180x130 cm
Signature: none
Description: In terms of colour palette, the painting is divided diagonally into two sections, the lower in light green and the upper in various shades of orange. A cow is depicted in the top half of the painting.
18. IN THE STUDIO
Inventory no.: 0358
Artist: Ahmet Karić(17) (1926)
Date: mid 20th century
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 55x68 cm
Signature: none
Description: The painting depicts the artist’s study in somewhat geometric terms. The central figure is a dark-haired woman standing at an easel, with an open door behind her.
19. OLD BRIDGE
Inventory no.: 0342
Artist: Mirko Kujačić(18) (1901 to 1987)
Date: c. 1960
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 100x133 cm
Signature: bottom right Mirko Kujačić
Description: The old bridge in Mostar is depicted with a degree of geometric stylization as seen from the left bank of the Neretva. The painting is mainly in shades of ochre and green.
20. PARTISAN TRAIN
Inventory no.: 0312
Artist: Franjo Likar (1928)
Date: mid 20th century
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 125.5x104 cm
Signature: none
Description: The painting depicts a train consisting of an engine and a single carriage, with a column of partisans making their way to it through fog.
21. GIRL ON A BALCONY
Inventory no.: 0354
Artist: Ljubo Lah(19) (1930)
Date: after 1949
Technique: oil on plywood
Size: 121.5x57.5 cm
Signature: top right Ljubo Lah
Description: The painting portrays a dark-haired girl standing on a balcony, arms crossed and resting on the wrought-iron railing.
22. STILL LIFE
Inventory no.: 0355
Artist: Franjo Likar (1928)
Date: latter half of the 20th century
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 60x74 cm
Signature: none
Description: The painting, which is in pastel green shades, depicts a pottery jug on a much-creased tablecloth.
23. STILL LIFE
Inventory no.: 0349
Artist: Nusret Pašić(20) (1951)
Date: latter half of the 20th century
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 99,5x79 cm
Signature: bottom left N.P.
Description: A table with a few articles – a crumpled tablecloth, a green bottle, a lamp and a pottery dish. The central motif is a stem of dried burdock lying on the tablecloth. The background of the painting is dark.
24. STUDIO
Inventory no.: 0349
Artist: Mario Mikulić (1924)
Date: 1960
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 95.5x129.5 cm
Signature: top right Mikulić 1960
Description: The painting depicts an artist’s study. An easel with a painting takes centre stage, with to the left a cane chair and to the right a tall stove.
25. SUTJESKA NEAR SUHA
Inventory no.: 0374
Artist: Ivo Šeremet(21) (1900 to 1991)
Date: between 1919 and 1991
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 63.8x48.5 cm
Signature: bottom left Šeremet
Description: The painting depicts a mountain landscape – a bare rock face seen from a mountain glade.
26. BREAKTHROUGH
Inventory no.: 0369
Artist: Ismet Mujezinović (1911 to 1992)
Date: 1961
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 51x79 cm
Signature: bottom left Ismet 61
Description: The painting depicts a Partisan breakthrough. At the bottom of the painting, back to the observer, are enemy soldiers in a trench, some of them dead. A company of Partisans is storming the trench, led by a powerful man in a white shirt with a bandage around his head, and holding a rifle. His body shows signs of exhaustion. To his left is a soldier in uniform aiming his rifle at the enemy trench. To the right of the Partisan leader is a soldier holding a red flag high above his head. In the background are other soldiers, some of them fallen.
27. HUNTING SCENE
Inventory no.: 0315
Artist: Vojo Dimitrijević(22) (1919 to 1981)
Date: latter half of the 20th century
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 162x107 cm
Signature: none
Description: The painting depicts a stylized hunting scene. In the left-hand half of the painting is the figure of a hunter with a bow and arrow in his outstretched hands. In front of him, in the middle of the canvas, is the figure of an animal (a stag or deer), its hind legs bent and front legs raised. Beside the animal is another, wounded by an arrow. A twining tendril decorated with trefoils runs from the left of the picture towards the middle. The colour palette is sombre, mainly in muted shades of red and ochre.
28. PARK
Inventory no.: 0356
Artist: Vojo Dimitrijević (1919 to 1981)
Date: 1951
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 130x90 cm
Signature: bottom right D. Vojo 951
Description: A sunset seen through tall leafless trees in a park is depicted in light pastel shades. Beyond the park is a view of the town.
29. KORČULA
Inventory no.: 0356
Artist: Sabahudin Hodžić
Date: after 1945
Technique: oil on lessonite
Size: 70x54 cm
Signature: bottom right Sabahudin Hodžić Korčula
Description: The painting depicts three paved stone areas surrounded by tall stone-built houses, with a pedestrian in the square. The painting is mainly in shades of orange and red.
30. SUTJESKA
Inventory no.: 0343
Artist: Branko Šotra(23) (? to 1960)
Date: 1958
Technique: graphic on paper
Size: 40x60 cm
Signature: below: graf ol. Sutjeska 7/10 Branko Šotra 1958
Description: The narrow gorge of the river Sutjeska is depicted in a combination of dark and light tones, with the river breaking around a large rock at the bottom of the gorge.
31. STILL LIFE
Inventory no.: 0348
Artist: Ljubo Lah (1930)
Date: latter half of the 20th century
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 58x94.5 cm
Signature: top right Ljubo Lah
Description: A low flower pot with flowers is depicted against a dark background.
32. DUBROVNIK
Inventory no.: 0333
Artist: Ivo Šeremet (1900 to 1991)
Date: between 1919 and 1991
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 63x81 cm
Signature: none
Description: The painting is of a view of the old town of Dubrovnik.
33. FROM POČITELJ
Inventory no.: 59
Artist: Salim Obralić(24) (1945)
Date: 1985
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 134x134 cm
Signature: bottom right Salim Obralić 1985
Description: A stone-built house in Počitelj, with some poplar trees outside it, is depicted against a blue background.
34. UNTITLED
Inventory no.: 0376
Artist: Ratko Lalić(25)
Date: 1985
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 99x99 cm
Signature: bottom left R. Lalić 85
Description: A mass of floral elements is depicted against a light ochre-green ground. In the centre are three trees, the middle one of which has a rather thicker trunk than the other two. The trees are painted in shades of grey and white.
35. VIEW THROUGH A WINDOW
Inventory no.: 0351
Artist: Vera Čohadžić (1910 to 2003)
Date: latter half of the 20th century
Technique: tempera on paper
Size: 69x48 cm
Signature: top right Vera Čohadžić
Description: A view over the town, three-storey houses with tiled roofs seen through a window. The white double-casement window is divided into three panes. In the top left corner is a curtain falling over the window.
36. STILL LIFE
Inventory no.: 0300
Artist: Aleksandar Kumrić (1910 to 2003)
Date: latter half of the 20th century
Technique: tempera on paper
Size: 69x48 cm
Signature: bottom left Kumrić
Description: A rectangular table on which is a white dish is depicted against a light background. The bowl is lined with a white tablecloth, the ends of which are draped on the table. The bowl is full of fruit (apples, pears, peaches), and there is also some fruit on the table (bunches of grapes and an apple).
37. THE MAGIC OF THE UNA
Inventory no.: 0305
Artist: Enver Krupić (1911 to 1992)
Date: 1980
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 78x118 cm
Signature: bottom right Enver Krupić 1980
Description: The painting depicts one of the cascades on the river Una.
38. MARINA
Inventory no.: 0335
Artist: Mario Mikulić (1924)
Date: latter half of the 20th century
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 85,5x94 cm
Signature: bottom left Mikulić
Description: A cove with a view of the open sea is depicted in dark tones.
39. BAŠČARŠIJA
Inventory no.: 0339
Artist: Rizah Štetić
Date: latter half of the 20th century
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 56x76,5 cm
Signature: bottom left R.Štetić
Description: A scene of Baščaršija square by the sebilj. The square is full of passers-by. The tops of hills can be seen in the distance.
40. JELENA
Inventory no.: 0304
Artist: Mersad Berber(26)
Date: latter half of the 20th century
Technique: graphic on paper
Size: 69x49 cm
Signature: bottom right M. Berber
Description: A small square with a gold background contains the half-length figure of a girl in profile, wearing a light blue dress and a broad-brimmed hat of the same colour.
41. YOUTH LINE
Inventory no.: 0324
Artist: Rizah Štetić
Date: 1987
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 70x55 cm
Signature: bottom right Štetić 87
Description: The robust figure of a woman pushing a wheelbarrow loaded with soil is portrayed against a dark, hazy background.
42. VRATNIK
Inventory no.: 0364
Artist: Petar Šain
Date: latter half of the 20th century
Technique: tempera on paper
Size: 44.5x57 cm
Signature: bottom right P. Šain
Description: The painting depicts a view of houses in Vratnik. The roofs of the houses nearest to the observer are clad with shingles, and those further away with tiles. The minarets of two mosques can be seen in the quarter, with the walls of the White Bastion in the distance.
43. LANDSCAPE
Inventory no.: 0433
Artist: unknown artist
Date: unknown
Technique: tempera on board
Size: 60x78 cm
Signature: none
Description: The painting, in shades of red, green and ochre, depicts a ploughed field, with a mountain range in the distance. An ox harnessed to a cart is depicted in the foreground in dark brush strokes.
44. SKETCH OF BATHERS
Inventory no.: 0375
Artist: Zdenko Grgić (1927)
Date: latter half of the 20th century
Technique: sketch on paper
Size: 88x57 cm
Signature: none
Description: The painting portrays three elongated nude female figures seated on low rectangular stools. The central figure is facing the observer, and the two outer figures are in profile. Their hands are in their laps.
45. PEASANTS LOADING GRAIN
Inventory no.: 0332
Artist: Ivan Radović
Date: unknown
Technique: oil on board
Size: 69x87 cm
Signature: bottom left Radović
Description: A summer landscape with a scene of peasants loading a horse-drawn cart with sacks of grain is depicted in shades of red, orange and ochre.
46. REFLECTIONS IN THE UNA
Inventory no.: none
Artist: Enver Krupić (1911 to 1992)
Date: 1982
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 87x114.5 cm
Signature: bottom right Enver Krupić 1982
Description: The painting is of the river Una, with the reflections of the trees on its banks.
47. CHAIR
Inventory no.: 0302
Artist: Salim Obralić (1945)
Date: latter half of the 20th century
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 62.5x93.5 cm
Signature: bottom right Salim Obralić
Description: A square four-legged against a light background. On the chair are various articles: a bottle, a class, a tablecloth, and a džezva coffee-pot.
48. BORAČKO LAKE
Inventory no.: 0346
Artist: Vojo Dimitrijević
Date: 1946
Technique: oil on lessonite
Size: 44x53.5 cm
Signature: bottom right Vojo 1946
Description: The Boračko lake is depicted in a valley against a rocky landscape with tall deciduous trees decked with yellow foliage in the foreground. A tall building with three rows of windows can be seen beyond the trees, and on the other side of the lake, in the distance, is a mountain range.
49. IN BLUE
Inventory no.: 0361
Artist: Milorad Ćorović(27) (1932)
Date: latter half of the 20th century
Technique: oil on lessonite
Size: 54x73 cm
Signature: top left Ćorović
Description: Various elements in dark tones, blue and white against a blue background.
50. IN MEMORY OF THE ROUTE TO THE NORTH POLE
Inventory no.: 0357
Artist: Mehmed Zaimović(28) (1940)
Date: 1968
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 120x150 cm
Signature: centre right: M. Zaimović Sar 968
Description: A white panel against a brown background extends from top to bottom of the painting. To the left are various elements in shades of brown.
51. ROMANTIC PLACE
Inventory no.: 0345
Artist: Mehmed Zaimović (1940)
Date: 1968
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 110x85.5 cm
Signature: none (the top bar of the frame bears a metal plaque engraved with: ital.schule 17 JHT)
Description: The painting depicts a tall tree with its branches bent by the wind. At the foot of the tree are some figures wearing typical Renaissance costume, in conversation.
52. TROGIR
Inventory no.: 0345
Artist: Cata Dujšin Ribar(29) (1897 to 1994)
Date: 1963
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 76x88.5 cm
Signature: bottom right Dojšin 63
Description: The painting depicts the ramparts of the old fort of Trogir, with the sea at the foot of the ramparts.
53. PEASANT WOMEN
Inventory no.: 0331
Artist: Špiro Bocarić(30) (1876 to 1941)
Date: between 1897 and 1941
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 53.2x88.5 cm
Signature: bottom right Š. Bocarić
Description: The painting depicts four peasant women, seated in conversation, wearing traditional village folk costume, with long, brightly-coloured aprons around their waists and scarves on their heads. Three of the women are seated in a group, and the fourth is sitting apart. Two of them are holding a distaff and spindle and are spinning wool.
54. SCENE FROM THE SAVA
Inventory no.: 0327
Artist: Sabahudin Hodžić
Date: unknown
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 35.8x64 cm
Signature: top right Hodžić
Description: The painting shows the river Sava, with a bridge over it, a village on the right bank, some boats and rafts, and a ship.
55. POČITELJ
Inventory no.: 0313
Artist: Ksantipa Gorgoljatos(31) (1921 to?)
Date: latter half of the 20th century
Technique: oil on board
Size: 39.5x27.8 cm
Signature: none
Description: The painting depicts a view of the dome of the hammam, with the green Neretva beyond.
56. OLD OLIVE TREE
Inventory no.: 0337
Artist: Oton Postružnik(32) (1900 to 1978)
Date: 1959
Technique: oil on board
Size: 97x47 cm
Signature: bottom right OP 959
Description: An irregular grey shape with touches of white and black is shown against a brown background.
57. NOBLEMEN II
Inventory no.: 0308
Artist: Dževad Hozo (1941)
Date: 1969
Technique: graphic
Size: 76x56 cm
Signature: bottom: V/V Emforte '69 (imp.81) NOBLE HOZO
Description: The graphic is mainly in black, with gold and red details.
58. NOBLEMEN II
Inventory no.: 0307
Artist: Dževad Hozo (1941)
Date: 1961
Technique: graphic
Size: 76x56 cm
Signature: bottom: V/V Emforte '61 (imprime81) NOBLE II HOZO
Description: The graphic is mainly in black, with gold and red details.
59. ALONE
Inventory no.: 0306
Artist: Dževad Hozo (1941)
Date: 1969
Technique: graphic
Size: 76x56 cm
Signature: bottom: V/V Emforte '69 (imp.80) SAM HOZO
Description: The graphic is mainly in black, with gold and red details.
While gathering documentation to draft the decision to designate the building of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina and its movable heritage as a national monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Commission was provided with an inventory of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina which included a list of the works of art in the building. In addition to those listed above, the inventory also includes another 24 works of art to which access was not provided. Written application has been made by the Commission (04-35-249/07-10 od 10.06.2008 and 04-35-23/09-7 of 11.02.09), but Commission representatives have not yet been granted permission to photograph the following works of art:
1. MARINA
Artist: Mario Mikulić
Technique: oil on board
Size: 70x50 cm
2. PETROVARADIN
Artist: Nikola Graovac
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 90x66 cm
3. LANDSCAPE
Artist: Hakija Kulenović
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 75x60 cm
4. THE ROAD TO ŠEKOVIĆI
Artist: Ivo Šeremet
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 65x55 cm
5. AVENUE
Artist: Neha Sefić
Technique: watercolour on paper
Size: 50x45 cm
6. SCENE FROM DUBROVNIK
Artist: Branko Kovačević
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 110x80 cm
7. MARINA
Artist: I. Majkovski
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 97x87 cm
8. AUTUMN LANDSCAPE
Artist: Gabriel Jurkić
Technique: oil on board
Size: 50x35 cm
9. PAINTED VASE
Artist: Slavko Grk Marić
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 100x100 cm
10. ONE DAY - BELOW
Artist: Boris Dogan
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 92x72 cm
11. DREAM OF THE MASSES
Artist: Peđa Milosavljević
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 192x130 cm
12. OHRID AT SUNSET
Artist: Vladimir Vojnović
Technique: oil on lessonite
Size: 52x73 cm
13. PEASANT WOMEN
Artist: Petar Tiješić
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 120x90 cm
14. STILL LIFE
Artist: Pero Bodroža
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 65x55 cm
15. BLUE TREES
Artist: Jusuf Nikšić
Technique: tempera on paper
Size: 70x50 cm
16. BELGRADE PANORAMA
Artist: Vesna Sokolić
Technique: enamel
Size: 96x46 cm
17. LANDSCAPE WITH TOWER
Artist: Mirko Kujačić
Technique: oil on plywood
Size: 95x63 cm
18. MOSTAR
Artist: Vojo Dimitrijević
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 70x60 cm
19. TWO DISHES
Artist: Salim Obralić
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 75x55 cm
20. BUILDING THE RAILWAY STATION
Artist: Hakija Kulenović
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 100x72 cm
21. DISCOVERY OF THE ARHIPELAGO
Artist: Franjo Likar
Technique: oil on woodchip board
Size: irregular in shape, 120x80 cm
22. LANDSCAPE
Artist: Afan Ramić
Technique: oil on lessonite
Size: 60x50 cm
23. DON QUIXOTE
Artist: Bogdan Kršić
Technique: graphic
Size: 30x24 cm
24. LANDSCAPE IN DALMATIA
Artist: Frano Šimunović
Technique: oil on canvas
Size: 117x42 cm
Geodetic documentation
The geodetic documentation is housed on the ground floor of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, occupying ten rooms with a total area of 354m2.
Data on the ground works are housed in rooms 34 and 35, in 17 metal cabinets. The data consists of 30,542 record cards of trigonometric stations (triangulation stations, trig points) classes I-IV, 10088 elevation points of extreme accuracy, and original data for the grid points.
Rooms 35 and 36 (with an area of 109m2) contain data from the old Austro-Hungarian survey (7,386 sixteenths lithographic copies scale 1:6,250 and other scales of unspecified print run), together with Austro-Hungarian studies and statistical data for the period 1880 to 1885, 1:75,000 maps, maps used for other purposes, and data from the aerophotogrammetric survey – negatives, slides, films, contact copies and so on. This geodetic documentation is housed in wooden cabinets with a cubic content of 141 m3, purpose-built during the Austro-Hungarian period in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The original plans and reproductions for 93 building sites are maintained, with 15,442 originals and a certain number of reproductions of plans.
A basic map to a scale of 1:10,000 was drawn for an area of 1,829,197 ha of Bosnia and Herzegovina, consisting of 715 sheets – 715 publisher’s originals and a print-run of about 9,510 reproductions of the basic map to a scale of 1:5,000 and 1:10,000.
A topographical map to a scale of 1:25,000 covers the entire territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and consists of 426 sheets with a total print run of 99,510 sheets. There are also twelve sheets of the topographical map of Bosnia and Herzegovina to a scale of 1:200,000 with a print run of 60 copies.
The geodetic documentation and original plans, reproductions and printed copies of the topographical maps are housed in rooms 28, 30, 32, 33/1, 33/2, 33/3, and part of rooms 34, 35 and 36, where there are 167 cabinets each with ten shelves for maps in format A1-A0.
Statistical land survey data by type of holding, crops, classes and cadastral revenue, along with data on the valuation and classification of land, studies to determine the scale of cadastral revenue and on the conditions of agricultural production etc., are housed in the basement. Room 34 contains three safes, one of which is a specially-designed fireproof model, housing copies of tapes or diskettes with cadastral data and data on real properties and their owners or rights-holders.
The classic archival material is also housed in the basement.
Records on the accession of original plans of surveyed areas to 1992 are maintained separately.
Rooms 19 and 21 house a specialist library and a collection of the Official Gazettes for the period 1945 to 2008 (details obtained from Mr Mustafa Begić, head of the Geodetics, Property and Legal Affairs Authority of Bosnia and Herzegovina).
3. Legal status to date
The First Provincial Government Building in Sarajevo is legally protected by Ruling of the City Institute for the Protection and Management of Cultural Monuments, Sarajevo (Now the Cantonal Institute for the Protection and Use of the Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage) no. GDŽ-329/76 of 16 December 1976.
The 1980 Regional Plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina lists the First Provincial Government Building in Sarajevo as a category I monument under the heading Executive Council Building in Sarajevo.
The First Provincial Government Building in Sarajevo is on the Provisional List of National Monuments, as part of the Urban Townscape Ensemble of Sarajevo, under serial no. 546.
4. Research and conservation and restoration works
In 1911 a third floor was added to the Provincial Government Building in Sarajevo.
In addition to the effects of time and the elements, considerable damage was inflicted on the First Provincial Government Building during the 1992-1995 war. The entire area of the façade bore the visible signs of damage, with the façade paint and rendering falling away. There was also visible damage from shell shrapnel, and particularly noticeable damage to the mouldings on the window lintels, the roof cornice, and the sheet metal fittings.
In July 1999 the Cantonal Institute for the Protection of the Cultural, Historical and Natural Heritage of Sarajevo drew up a project entitled Programme to repair the façade of the Presidency Building in Sarajevo. The project covered preparatory works, façade works (redoing the façade of parts of the ground, first, second and third floors, remaking the damaged cornices and string courses, biforate windows, consoles and other ornaments) and metal works. These works were carried out during 1999 and 2000.
Restoration works on the Grand Hall and the small conference hall and meeting room were carried out in July 2007.
5. Current condition of the property
The general condition of the First Provincial Government Building is good, apart from the façades of the inner courtyard, which are in poor condition. The repairs and refurbishments carried out on the building in 2000 did not extend to this façade. The damage has been caused by the effects of the elements as well as by war damage incurred in 1992-1995. Damage can be seen over the entire surface of the façade, with the façade paint and rendering falling away in places.
The collection of paintings is in good condition. Some of the paintings have been destroyed, probably by shrapnel. Most of the canvases are covered with a layer of dust.
6. Specific risks
Failure to carry out maintenance works, particularly on the inner courtyard façade.
III – CONCLUSION
Applying the Criteria for the adoption of a decision on proclaiming an item of property a national monument (Official Gazette of BiH nos. 33/02 and 15/03), the Commission has enacted the Decision cited above.
The Decision was based on the following criteria:
A. Time frame
B. Historical value
C. Artistic and aesthetic value
C i. quality of workmanship
C.ii. quality of materials
C.iii. proportions
C.iv. composition
C. v. value of details
C.vi. value of construction
D. Clarity (documentary, scientific and educational value)
D.i. material evidence of a lesser known historical era
D.ii. evidence of historical change
D.iii. work of a major artist or builder
D iv. evidence of a particular type, style or regional manner
D. v. evidence of a typical way of life at a specific period
E. Symbolic value
E.v. significance for the identity of a group of people
F. Townscape/ Landscape value
F.i. relation to other elements of the site
F.ii. meaning in the townscape
F.iii. the building or group of buildings is part of a group or site
G. Authenticity
G.i. form and design
G.ii. material and content
G.iii. use and function
G.iv. traditions and techniques
G.v. location and setting
G.vi. spirit and feeling
G.vii. other internal and external factors
H. Rarity and representativity
H.i. unique or rare example of a certain type or style
H.ii. outstanding work of art or architecture
H.iii. work of a prominent artist, architect or craftsman
I. Completeness
I.i. physical coherence
I.ii. homogeneity
I.iii. completeness
I.iv. undamaged condition
Bibliography
During the procedure to designate the First Provincial Government Building in Sarajevo as a national monument of BiH, the following works were consulted:
1973. A. Bejtić, Ulice i trgovi Sarajeva (Streets and Squares of Sarajevo), Museum of Sarajevo, Sarajevo, 1973, 245.
1978. Catalogue of survey details and topographical map 1:25,000, Sarajevo, September 1978
1985. Skarić, Vladislav, Izabrana djela (Selected Works), vol II, Prilozi za istoriju Sarajeva (Contributions to the History of Sarajevo), Veselin Masleša, Sarajevo, 1985, 64-65.
1985. Dr. Madžar, Božo, “Sto godina Vladine zgrade u Sarajevu (1985-1985.)” (A Hundred Years of the Government Building in Sarajevo [1895-1995]), Jnl of the Society of Architects of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo, 1985, 249-255.
1987. Ivan Štraus, 15 godina bosanskohercegovačke arhitekture 1970/1985, prilog za istoriju arhitekture Jugoslavije (15 Years of Bosnia and Herzegovina's Architecture 1970/1985, contribution to the history of the architecture of Yugoslavia), Svjetlost, Sarajevo.
1988. Various authors, Graditelji Sarajeva (The Builders of Sarajevo, book), Radio Sarajevo III programme, Sarajevo.
1988. B. Spasojević, Arhitektura stambenih palata austrougarskog perioda u Sarajevu (The Architecture of Mansion Blocks of the Austro-Hungarian Period in Sarajevo), Svjetlost, Sarajevo.
1989. Božić, Jela, Arhitekt Josip pl. Vancaš, Značaj i doprinos arhitekturi Sarajeva u periodu austrougarske uprave (Architect Josip Vancaš, significance and contribution to the architecture of Sarajevo in the period of Austro-Hungarian rule (doctoral dissertation), University of Sarajevo, Faculty of Architecture in Sarajevo.
1992. M. Prstojević, Zaboravljeno Sarajevo (Forgotten Sarajevo), Ideja, Sarajevo.
1997. N. Kurto, Sarajevo 1492-1992, Oko, Sarajevo.
1998. N. Kurto, Arhitektura Bosne i Hercegovine – Razvoj Bosanskog stila (Architecture of Bosnia and Herzegovina: Development of the Bosnian Style), Cultural Heritage, Sarajevo.
2000. Azra Begić, ”Poetika dovedena do perfekcije – In memoriam – Fehim Feđa Avdić“ (Poetics Brought to Perfection – In Memoriam – Fehim Feđa Avdić), Most, no. 127, Mostar, 2000, 46-48.
2001. Zdravka Gurović Jeremić, “Mirko Kujačić”, Most no. 139 50 new series, Mostar, 2001, 50-52.
2004. I. Krzović, Arhitektura Secesije u Bosni i Hercegovini (Architecture of the Secession in BiH), Cultural Heritage, Sarajevo.
2006. Vlado Puljić, “Hommage Mustafi Pezi (1927-1987)” (Hommage to Mustafa Pezo [1927-1987]), Most, no. 194, Mostar, 2006, 46-48.
2007. Meliha Husedžinović, “Umjetnička kolekcija institucija Bosne i Hercegovine i njeno prisustvo u javnom prostoru” (The Art Collection of the Institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina and its Presence in the Public Domain), Vizura, Sarajevo, 2007, 99-103.
Information obtained from Mr. Mustafa Begić, head of the Geodetics, Property and Legal Affairs Authority of Bosnia and Herzegovina
(1) Josip pl. VANCAŠ was born in Šopronj, Hungary, on 22 March 1859, and lived in Zagreb from 1865, attending primary and high school there. Graduated from Technical High School, department of architecture in Vienna in 1881, and from 1882 to 1884 studied architecture with Prof. Heinrich Ferstel at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. He spent a year working in the Fellmer and Schmidt studio. In 1883, on the recommendation of Prof. Schmidt, he was entrusted with the design and execution of the cathedral and the First Provincial Government Building in Sarajevo. When the time came to begin building works on the Provincial Government Building in 1884, he and his studio moved to Sarajevo, on 10 March 1884, there to remain for the next 37 years. Vancaš's life in Sarajevo was characterized by incessant professional work, gaining him a considerable reputation socially and politically. In 1919, under the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, he was held in custody for 100 day, accused of having taken part in anti-Serb demonstrations at the time of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in 1914. He was cleared of these charges, but in 1921 he moved to Zagreb, where he continued working. In 1929, to mark his 70th birthday, Vancaš was elected as an associate member of the Yugoslav Academy of Sciences and Arts, department of the arts. He died in Zagreb on 15 December 1932, at the age of 74.
His career saw him receiving the highest accolades. His extensive work as an architect covered about 300 projects, most of which were implemented. Most of these were for the city of Sarajevo, and for Bosnia and Herzegovina, but he also designed properties for Croatia, Slavonia and Slovenia. He designed 70 churches, including the Cathedral of the Heart of Jesus in Sarajevo, the church of St John the Baptist in Kraljeva Sutjeska, and parish churches in Brčko, Bijeljina, Gradačac, Modriča, Žepče and Prozor, as well as the Orthodox church in Konjic, the church in Bosanski Brod and many others. He also designed public buildings such as the Music Academy in Sarajevo, the mansion block at no. 12 Tito street in Sarajevo, the Military building in Mostar, the First Croatian Savings Bank building in Zagreb, the Union Hotel and the City Savings Bank building in Ljubljana, to name just a few.
(2) The Second Provincial Government Building was designated as a national monument of BiH at the 37th session of the Commission to Preserve National Monuments.
(3) At joint exhibitions held at that time, the procurements committee of the state authorities, the Parliament and the Presidency purchased a work by each exhibitor, while the second exhibition by the Society of Artists of BiH was purchased in its entirety. However, most of the paintings listed in the catalogue of this exhibition are no longer in Bosnia and Herzegovina or the property of state institutions or the Art Gallery, most of them having become gifts by BiH delegations. On the other hand, as they gave away the works of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s artists, so too they received gifts of works by artists from elsewhere – Krsto Hegedušić, Nikola Graovac, Božo Ilić, Sabahudin Hodžić, Oton Postružnik, Mihajl Petrov, Frane Šimunović, Zlatko Šulentić. (Husedžinović, 2007, 101)
(4) Milosavljević was born in 1908 near Kragujevac. He graduated from grammar school and Law School in Belgrade, and studied painting under Jovan Bijelić. He served as a diplomat in Paris, Madrid and London. He published a book of essays, Između trube i tišine (Between the Bugles and the Silence), in 1958, and a drama, Zopir, in 1966. He was a member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts. He had numerous solo exhibitions in the former Yugoslavia and abroad, and won many awards.
(http://www.b92.net/kultura/izlozbe/vesti.php?nav_id=284740)
(5) This was the time when Milosavljević produced most of his views of Paris and Dubrovnik.
(6) Nada Pivac was born in Čapljina in 1926. She graduated from junior grammar school in Metković and attended teacher training college in Mostar for a year, before moving with her parents to Vinkovci in 1942 and continuing her education in Osijek, where she graduated from grammar school. She enrolled at the Fine Arts Academy in Belgrade under Professor Nedeljko Gvozdenović, under whom she gained her masters in the department of painting in 1955. On completion of her studies she taught in primary schools in Slavonia. She came to Sarajevo in 1961, after which she gained a scholarship from the Italian government to study in Rome for five months in 1965. She co-founded the Fine Arts Academy in Sarajevo, where she worked from its formation in 1972 to 1991, when she moved to the newly-established Academy in Široki Brijeg. She died on 26 February 2008 in Sarajevo.
(http://www.svjetlorijeci.ba/html/revija/religiozna_umjetnost.html)
(7) Born 23 April 1888 in Kostajnica. Attended primary school in Prijedor, and grammar school in Sarajevo. Trained as an art teacher in Budapest (Academy of Fine Arts) under Professor Zempenzya. During World War I he served as a lieutenant in the Austro-Hungarian army, returning to Sarajevo after the war. In the years that followed he had a brilliant career as an artist. He lived and worked for a time in Belgrade, and also worked as a drawing master in Travnik and in Sarajevo, in the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments of Bosnia and Herzegovina, where he was chairman and secretary of the association for many years, engaged in scholarly work. He died in Sarajevo in 1975.
(http://www.novigrad-bosanskinovi.rs.ba/novi_grad/stranice/Kultura/poz_lic/dj_m.htm)
(8) The academic painter Stojan Aralica was born in Škara near Otočac in 1883, and died in Belgrade in 1980. After graduating from grammar school in Otočac and teacher training college in Osijek, he studied painting in Munich and Prague. He held his first solo exhibition in Zagreb in 1919. After World War I he lived in Rome and Florence before travelling around Italy, Spain and North Africa. From 1925 to 1934, with short breaks, he lived in Paris, where he exhibited his works in prominent salons. He then lived in Zagreb again, before moving to Belgrade in 1941. He lived in Stockholm from 1946 to 1948, when he returned to Belgrade. He was a member of the Oblik (Form) group and the Šestorica group (Group of Six), and exhibited at many solo and joint exhibitions. In style, he was a colourist, passing through various stages from correct realism with colourist leanings to intimism, at which stage colour played the primary role in his paintings. He died in Belgrade in 1980.
(http://www.tz-otocac.hr/cro/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=37&Itemid=61)
(9) Born in Varaždin in 1928. He spent most of his life in Sarajevo, leaving in 1992 for Klagenfurt, where he is still living.
(10) Graduated from the Fine Arts Academy in Cracow. At first his work was inspired by Secessionism and expressionism (in colour, not form), but later his still lifes led him to Cezannism and neo-classicism, and in landscapes to post-impressionism.
(11) Born in Mostar in 1927. Enrolled in the State School of Art in Sarajevo in 1945/6, under Professors Roman Petrović, Sige Sumereker, Voje Dimitrijević, Ismet Mujezinović and others. On graduating, he returned to Mostar. He is said to be a chronicler of his town, painting scenes from Mostar and fragments and symbols of Herzegovina. He initiated, founded and led the Herzegovina branch of the Society of Artists of BiH. He died in Mostar in 1987. (Vlado Puljić, 2006, 46-48)
(12) Born in Rogatica in 1925. He studied painting under V. Filakovac and P. Dobrović, graduating under M. Milunović (1946), and completing specialist courses under kod N. Gvozdenović, I. Tabakovićandi M. Čelebonović (1948) at the Fine Arts Academy in Belgrade. He underwent further training and worked in the Masters’ Studio of M. Milunović (1948-1951). He was a member of various art groups: Samostalni, Sarajevo 55, Grupa 57. He taught at the Fine Arts Academy (Faculty) in Belgrade (1964-1985), and was a founder and honorary professor at the Fine Arts Academy in Sarajevo (1952-1962) before returning to Belgrade, where he died in 1995.
(http://www.ulus.org.yu/Izlozbe/Radenko_Misevic/Radenko_Misevic.htm)
(13) Born in Sarajevo in 1938. Graduated from the School of Applied Arts in Sarajevo. Exhibited around former Yugoslavia. Died in Sarajevo in 1995.
(14) Born in 1911 in Bosanska Krupa. Completed his art studies in Belgrade in 1937. Gained a scholarship to study for the next two years at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris, simultaneously studying art history part-time at the Sorbonne, followed by theory and application of composition in l’atelier d’André Lhote. From the 1940s, lived and worked in Belgrade teaching art history at grammar school. His most common subject is the natural worls. He died in Bihać in 1992, leaving his entire estate to Bihać.
(15) Born in Tuzla in 1907. Graduated from art school in Zagreb, after which he took a course in art history at the Sorbonne. He first exhibited in Belgrade in 1930. He fought in the War of National Liberation from 1941. Between the beginning of his career as an artist and the end of his life, three different periods in the recent history of this region succeeded one another, corresponding to three distinct periods in the opus of Ismet Mujezinović. The first, from his first solo exhibition in 1926 to 1941, was full of change, maturing, activity in various fields; a period of humanist and ideological leanings and, finally, one of brilliant colourist achievements, ending with the outbreak of World War II; the second was the four war years; and the third was the post-war period, a time of major undertakings, cycles, widespread public repute, and productive years of work. He died in Tuzla on 7 January 1984
(http://bs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ismet_Mujezinovi%C4%87)
(16) Fehim Avdić was born in 1932 in Plana near Bileća. He spent the World War II years in an orphanage in Lokrum. He graduated from art school in Sarajevo, and in 1954 he enrolled in the graphics department of the Fine Arts academy in Belgrade, where he was taught by the well-known artists Boško Karanović and Mladen Srbinović. All in all, however, what was to be crucial to his artistic leanings was Feđa’s work with Uroš Tošković and Dado Đurić, representatives of fantasy and visionary art; nor should one forget that Feđa’s time as a student saw the first appearances of the famous Mediala group of Belgrade, proponents of a synthesis between the traditional approach and modern sensibility, of respect for museum values – particularly those of the Renaissance and Classicism – with particular respect for the achievements of European surrealism and fantasy. Like most of the members of this group, Feđa would later opt finally for phantasmagorical figurative art with all the attributes of neo-surrealism, in which he would achieve remarkable results and an individualist expression (figural painting with a distinctive tone, a blend of precise detail and imagination, perfectionism and his own recognizable idiom). In 1959, immediately on completing his studies, Feđa returned to Bosnia, initially to Vareš, where he worked as a drawing master for two years and, in 1961, joined the Society of Artists of BiH and becoming an illustrator for Oslobođenje, which he remained for 11 years, until obtaining a permanent job in the School of Applied Arts in Sarajevo in 1972. He exhibited at home and abroad with the Society of Artists of BiH, but rarely held solo exhibitions. He died in Sarajevo in 2000 (Begić, 2000, 50-52)
(17) Born in 1926 in Rogatica. Graduated from the Fine Arts Academy in Belgrade in 1956.
(18) Mirko Kujačić was born in 1901. Subject to the risk inherent in any attempt to confine an entire artistic oeuvre within rigid time limits, Kujačić’s artistic opus may be seen as polarized into two periods, from 1929 to 1935, and from 1960 to the 1980s. The first anticipated, and the second recapitulated Kujačić’s expressionism. In the first, the origins of what was to affirm the characteristics of his art may be perceived: the temperamental broad-brush approach, the emphasis on colour, the delight in figures, and a marked individuality. The second period, that of his maturity, saw the continuation of this. Kujačić painted nudes with a degree of geometric stylization, elaborating on Lhote’s principle of the disaggregation of form with colour and the reduction of the colour register to two or three primary colours. In the composition of his paintings, the figure occupies the foreground, articulated into colourist planes within a defined form that still retains its natural form. The palette is reduced to the warmer tones of ochre, pink, yellow and red. The modelling of forms is achieved by the selection of colour for each separate plane. The carefully conceived array of colours suggests movement and defines volume. The third dimension is suggested by geometrically schematic screens. The principle that holds good for Kujačić’s art in the seventh decade was that in the two-dimensional expanse of colour, the role of value is taken over by the coloured drawing, with line developing into contour to define a given form or space. This principle also holds good for Kujačić’s later figurative cycles, when he makes maximum use of monochrome line in his paintings, suppressing the colourist values of that time. His Mostar period, or cubist stage, in the manner of Jacques Villon, which Šeremet calls “strips,” marks a new, more subtle and more abstract mode of expression – a lighter, impressionist cubism. The real landscapes of Mostar, Počitelj and the Buna form the framework within which the artist arrays the quantities of colour. The extremely precise line, graphically accurate, defines form, gives rhythm to the different planes, and constructs the environment. The unity of the painting now lies more in a unity of tones, of values, compositionally organzed into a triangle. In this new procedure, sculptural factors of violet-green tonality dominate, watercolour strokes rather than thick impasto and geometricized articles and mass. All this combines to enhance the sense of balance, solidity and purity given off by these paintings. He died in 1987. (Jeremić, Most, 2001)
(19) Born in 1930 in Sarajevo. Graduated from art school in Sarajevo in 1949. After specializing in painting in the State Master’s Studio under Đorđe Andrejević Kun in Belgrade, he returned to Sarajevo and took a job teaching at the Academy of Pedagogy. He then moved to the School of Applied Arts in Sarajevo. He left to posterity many well-received works ranging of a wide spectrum of techniques (drawings, watercolours, gouache, pastels, oil on canvas and combined techniques), created outstanding cycles of psychological portraits, and for a time showed an interest in figurative geometrism, but his usual preference was for poetic realism and religious subjects.
(20) Nusret Pašić was born in 1951 in Sarajevo. He graduated from the Fine Arts Academy in Sarajevo, department of painting, and from post-graduate studies at the Fine Arts Academy in Belgrade. He held solo exhibitions in BiH and abroad, and also took part in many joint exhibitions. He is currently dean of the Fine Arts Academy in Sarajevo.
(21) Born in Livno, where he attended primary school. In 1912 he moved to Sarajevo, where he attended general-programme grammar school. In 1919 he continued his education in Zagreb, Vienna and Cracow, where he graduated from art school. He lived and worked in Belgrade until the outbreak of World War II, returning to Zagreb from 1941 to 1948, after which he again moved to Sarajevo, remaining there until his death in 1991.
(22) Born in 1910 in Sarajevo, where he died in 1981. Graduated from the State Art School in Belgrade and then visited André Lhote’s studio in Paris. He was involved in founding the Collegium artisticum and the Society of Artists in BiH, as well as the Fine Arts School in Sarajevo, where he worked as principal and teacher. He was a full member of the Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
(23) The painter Branko Šotra was born in the village of Kozice near Stolac. He graduated from the Royal Art School in Belgrade in 1929. During his studies he formed links with the Communist Party of Yugoslavia. He fought in World War II in Hercegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo and Metohija, and Serbia. After the war he worked on the establishment the Yugoslav National Army Centre in Belgrade, and was later chosen to head it. He was appointed full professor and first Rector of the Academy of the Applied Arts in Belgrade in 1948, a post he held until 1956. He died in Stockholm on 21 May 1960
(24) Born in Maglaju 1945. Completed secondary school of applied arts in Sarajevo in 1969, and post-graduate studies in painting at the same school under Professor Mladen Srbinović in 1974. A member of the Society of Artists of Bosnia and Herzegovina since 1972, he is a full professor at the Fine Arts Academy in Sarajevo.
(25) Ratko Lalić was born in Dolipolje in 1944. He graduated from the Fine Arts Academy and post-graduate studies in Belgrade in 1975 under Stojan Ćelić. He worked as a full professor at the Fine Arts Academy in Sarajevo until 1991. From 1992-1994 he worked as a full professor at the Fine Arts Academy in Cetinje, and is now a full professor of drawing and painting at the Faculty of the Applied Arts in Belgrade. He has exhibited his works at 30 solo and 250 joint exhibitions at home and abroad.
(26) Born in 1940 in Bosanski Petrovac. Graduated in painting at the Fine Arts Academy in Ljubljana in 1963 under Profesor Maksim Sedej, and in post-graduate studies in graphics under Professor Riko Debenjak at the same faculty in 1965.
(27) Born in Sarajevo in 1932. Graduated from the School of Applied Arts in Sarajevo in 1953, after which he enrolled at and graduated from the Fine Arts Academy in Belgrade. Has been teaching at the Fine Arts Academy in Sarajevo since the 1970s, and was dean of the Academy from 1989 to 1992. He is founder and dean of the Fine Arts Academy in Trebinje.
(28) Born in 1940 in Tuzla, where he graduated from grammar school, followed by the School of Applied Arts in Sarajevo. Has exhibited at numerous solo and joint exhibitions. Lives and works in Tuzla.
(29) Born in Trogir in 1897, and died in Zagreb in 1994. Studied at the Art Academy in Zagreb and under V. Becić, completing her studies in Paris and London. Worked as a picture restorer in the Art Galleryin Split. Inspired by her lyrical and dramatic experience of the natural world, she exhibited in London, New York, Washington, Venice and Zagreb. She also wrote and published poetry.
(http://hr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cata_Duj%C5%A1in-Ribar)
(30) Born in Budva to a merchant family. Initially learned to paint from his elder brother Anastase, and then in Italy. From 1897 to 1914, lived in Sarajevo, before moving to Banja Luka. Killed by the ustasha in Banja Luka in 1941.
(31) Born in 1921 in Sarajevo. Graduated from art school and the Academy of Pedagogy in Sarajevo.
(32) Born in 1900 in Maribor, and died in 1978 in Zagreb. Trained in Prague and Zagreb, with further training in Paris. Taught at the Fine Arts Academy in Zagreb. Co-founder of the art group Zemlja His greatest inspiration is the natural world, but he also uses abstract forms. He was also a potter.
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