page_title: Architecture of Serbia
section_title: Brutalism
hierarchical_section_title: Architecture of Serbia / Socialist Yugoslav period / Brutalism
caption_attribution_description: Avala Tower was destroyed on 29 April 1999 by NATO bombardment, supposedly to put Radio Television of Serbia off the air. Radio Television Serbia broadcasting did not suffer as it was relying on a network of local TV stations which were obliged to relay its program throughout the whole of Serbia. The tower was one of the last buildings to be destroyed before the end of the NATO operation. A special bomb was used to destroy the tower. The blast was one of the loudest explosions heard throughout Belgrade during the NATO bombardment. Between the date of its destruction and 11 September 2001, it was the tallest building ever destroyed, succeeding the Singer Building. As of 2001, it is the third tallest building ever destroyed (behind the two towers of the World Trade Centre in new York). In 2004, Radio Television Serbia commenced a series of fund-raising events in order to collect money to construct the building once again at the same place it was destroyed. In 2005, clearing of the site where the tower was destroyed began and on 21 December 2006 the construction of a new Avala Tower commenced. Initially, completion of the new tower was expected in August 2008, but construction works were severely delayed. The opening date was pushed back to 29 April, the tenth anniversary of its destruction. Radio Television Serbia reported on 23 October 2009 that the tower has been completed. Source: Avala Tower on Wikipedia
context_page_description: The architecture of Serbia has a long, rich and diverse history. Some of the major European style from Roman to Postmodern are demonstrated, including renowned examples of Raška, Serbo-Byzantine with its revival, Morava, Baroque, Classical and Modern architecture, with prime examples in Brutalism and Streamline Moderne.
  Centuries of turbulent history of Serbia caused a great regional diversity and favored vernacular architecture. This made for a heterogeneous and diverse architectural style, with architecture differing from town to town. While this diversity may still be witnessed in small towns, the devastation of architectural heritage in the larger cities during World War II, and subsequent socialist influence on architecture resulted in specific mix of architectural styles.
context_section_description: In the late 1950s and early 1960s Brutalism began to garner a following within Yugoslavia, particularly among younger architects, a trend possibly influenced by the 1959 disbandment of the Congrès Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne. Besides numerous brutalist buildings in the capital, other notable examples can be found Požarevac, Arilje, Užice, Sremska Mitrovica and other parts of the country.
  Museum of Yugoslavia (1962) by Mihajlo Janković
  Novi Beograd town hall (1967) by Stojan Maksimovic and Branislav Jovin
  Toblerone building (1963) by Rista Šekerinski
  25 May Sportcenter (1975) by Ivan Antić
  Belgrade's Eastern City Gate (1976) by Vera Ćirković
  Belgrade's Western City Gate (1977) by Mihajlo Mitrović
  Sava Centar (1979) by Stojan Maksimović
  Blocks 22, 23, 28, 30, 61, 62, 63, New Belgrade
caption: Brutalist Avala Tower, 1961
exif: {"Image ImageWidth": "3000", "Image ImageLength": "4000", "Image BitsPerSample": "[8, 8, 8]", "Image PhotometricInterpretation": "2", "Image Make": "NIKON", "Image Model": "COOLPIX L110", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image SamplesPerPixel": "3", "Image XResolution": "300", "Image YResolution": "300", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Adobe Photoshop CS5 Windows", "Image DateTime": "2010:10:21 19:30:36", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Co-sited", "Image Padding": "[]", "Image ExifOffset": "2360", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "5246", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "6143", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/641", "EXIF FNumber": "7", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "80", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2010:09:21 13:04:33", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2010:09:21 13:04:33", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "4", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "1165241/125000", "EXIF ApertureValue": "561471/100000", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "18/5", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF LightSource": "Unknown", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, auto mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "5", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "1500", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "2000", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "5120", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF SceneType": "Directly Photographed", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "0", "EXIF FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "28", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF GainControl": "None", "EXIF Contrast": "Normal", "EXIF Saturation": "Normal", "EXIF Sharpness": "Normal", "EXIF SubjectDistanceRange": "0", "EXIF Padding": "[]", "EXIF OffsetSchema": "3912"}