Museum of Contemporary Art, Belgrade facts for kids
| Музеј савремене уметности Muzej savremene umetnosti |
|
_(crop).jpg) |
|
| Established | 1958 |
|---|---|
| Location | Belgrade |
| Type | Art museum |
| Visitors | 98,826 (October 2017 – July 2018) |
The Museum of Contemporary Art (which in Serbian is Muzej savremene umetnosti) is a cool art museum in Belgrade, Serbia. It started way back in 1958 as the Modern Gallery. This made it one of the first museums of its kind anywhere!
The museum moved to its current amazing building in the Ušće area of New Belgrade in 1965. The building itself is a work of art, designed by talented architects Ivan Antić and Ivanka Raspopović. Inside, you'll find a huge collection of over 35,000 artworks!
The museum collects and shows art made since 1900 from Serbia and Yugoslavia. It also hosts special shows of modern and contemporary art from all over the world.
The museum was closed for a long time, from 2007 to 2017, for important renovations. It finally reopened its doors to visitors on October 20, 2017.
Contents
History of the Museum
Building the Museum
The museum building is in a beautiful spot where the Sava and Danube rivers meet. It's located in Ušće park in the Novi Beograd area. Architects Ivan Antić and Ivanka Raspopović designed it in 1960.
Construction started that same year and finished in 1965. The architects even won a special award, the October Prize, from the City of Belgrade on October 20, 1965. This was the very same day the museum first opened to the public! People often call the building the "crystal at the confluence" because of its unique shape and location.
Renovations and Reopening
The museum closed for big renovations in 2007. It was a long process, but after 10 years, the museum finally reopened on October 20, 2017. This date was special because it was exactly 52 years after the museum first opened!
The whole building was updated to be super modern and safe for all the artworks. Even the park around the museum got a makeover. The first art show in the newly reopened museum was called "Sequences."
One of the original architects, Ivanka Raspopović, helped with ideas for the renovation. She suggested using darker glass for the building's dome-shaped roofs. These new blue panels actually change color depending on the weather and time of day! This makes the domes look alive and fit in perfectly with the park and the nearby Ušće Tower.
Art Collections and Departments
The museum started collecting art in 1958. By 2018, it had about 8,000 paintings and sculptures on display!
The museum has different sections for its amazing art collections:
- Collection of Paintings made before 1945
- Collection of Paintings made after 1945
- Collection of Graphics, Prints, and Art from other countries
- Famous Serbian and Yugoslav artists in the collection include: Sava Šumanović, Milena Pavlović-Barili, Petar Lubarda, and many more.
- The museum also has 323 artworks from other countries, mostly prints and drawings.
- You can see graphic works by famous artists like Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, Joan Miró, and Salvador Dalí.
- There are also drawings by Fritz Wotruba.
- And paintings by Max Ernst and André Masson.
- Collection of Sculptures
- There are 752 sculptures by artists like Ivan Meštrović, Antun Augustinčić, and Olga Jevrić.
- Collection of New Art Media
- This collection includes works by artists like Marina Abramović.
The museum also has a huge library with over 4,800 books and 23,000 art catalogues. Plus, it has archives with more than 350,000 newspaper clippings about art!
Some of the most popular artworks after the 2017 reopening include a painting called "On the black field" by Bora Iljovski, a big sculpture of balls called "L-50" by Ivan Kožarić, and a cool installation called "Comrade Tito, (our) white violet" by Dušan Otašević.
See also
In Spanish: Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Belgrado para niños
- List of museums in Belgrade
- List of museums in Serbia
- Museum of Contemporary Art of Vojvodina
