Bogdan Bogdanovic – the practice of architecture under changing political regimes in Yugoslavia

The Conversation is chaired by
INES WEIZMAN

This conversation discusses the work of the architect Bogdan Bogdanovic in former Yugoslavia. He became particularly known for his monumental sculptures and monuments in the 1970s and 1980s, but also his teaching at the architectural school in Belgrade. In his position as the mayor of Belgrade between 1982 and 1986 he called for a competition for the redesign of New Belgrade and became known for his controversial politics and eccentric statements. With the arrival of Slobodan Milosević as the leader of the Communist Party in 1987 and his nationalistic politics that eventually caused the ethnic wars in Yugoslavia, Bogdan Bogdanovic had to leave all his public positions and was forced into an “inner emigration” until he could leave Belgrade in 1993.

The speakers in this conversation will discuss the work and writing of Bogdan Bogdanovic and will also try to assess the sometimes paradoxical nature of gestures of politics that do not always follow the clear demarcation of political fronts: sometimes gestures of resistance need to incorporate gestures of complicity.