SRBIJAFILA XVI is held in the building of the Serbian Military Club, a representative edifice located in the very heart of Belgrade. It was erected on a site granted by the Municipality of Belgrade to former soldiers of the Liberation Wars of 1912–1918.
The building was constructed in the spirit of modern architecture, with pronounced elements of the expressionism of the 1940s, based on the design of professors and architects Jovan Jovanović and Živko Piperski. Originally named Warrior House, it was built with funds collected through personal contributions from members of the Association of Reserve Officers and Soldiers of the Kingdom of Serbia between the two World Wars. Construction began in 1929 and was completed in 1931.
The structure was designed with a ground plan in the shape of the Cyrillic letter П (P), with a prominent donjon tower and clock at the corner of Francuska and Braće Jugovića streets. The building acquired its present appearance — with a square base — in 1939, when it was extended toward Simina Street, enclosing the inner courtyard.
During the Second World War, the Warrior House served as the headquarters of the Gestapo Command for the Southern Balkans. After the liberation of Belgrade, on the first anniversary of Victory Day over Fascism, on May 9, 1946, the building officially assumed a new purpose and became the Hall of the Yugoslav Army, later known as the House of Yugoslav Army.
The first commander and director of the Hall was Branko Šotra — a professor, wartime colonel, academic painter, and graphic artist, one of the distinguished figures in Serbian artistic and military history.
By the decision of the Assembly of the City of Belgrade, the building was declared a cultural monument in 1984. In 2010, the Serbian Army Hall became the home of the Media Center “Odbrana” and the Art Ensemble of the Serbian Army “Stanislav Binički”.
Within the building is the Gallery of the Serbian Military Club, which preserves a valuable art collection of more than 1,500 works by the most significant artists from the territory of the former Yugoslavia. The collection includes notable pieces from the first half of the 20th century — works by Vlaho Bukovac, Ljuba Ivanović, Sava Šumanović, Milo Milunović, Ljubo Babić, Kosta Hakman, Jovan Bijelić, and others.
However, the majority of the collection consists of works by Serbian and Yugoslav artists from the second half of the 20th century — including Petar Lubarda, Zora Petrović, Milan Konjović, Krsto Hegedušić, Marko Čelebonović, Nikola Martinoski, Mića Popović, Ljubica Cuca Sokić, Sreten Stojanović, and other great masters of Yugoslav fine art.
Address:
Serbian Army Hall
19 Braće Jugovića Street, 11000 Belgrade
Serbia