Author: Srdjan Garcevic

Culture, Reviews

Eddington or the Tragedy of Anti-Political Pintrest Protests

The first truly good film I’ve seen this year is Eddington, the latest feature from Ari Aster – whose Midsommar I also really liked. Unlike more personal Midsommar, this is a dark social satire, incisively dissecting the U.S. (and by extension almost any Western society) during the pandemic and the BLM protests. Without giving too much away, the film explores what happens to a small town when various political … Continue reading Eddington or the Tragedy of Anti-Political Pintrest Protests

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Culture, Translations

Vladimir Dvorniković: The Psyche of the Yugoslav Melancholy (Part 1)

Ever since I almost miraculously ended up with a copy of “The Psyche of the Yugoslav Melancholy” I wanted to have it translated into English and have it popularized to the wider audience. It is an essay which cuts deeply and clearly into the heart of the matter – a rarity in the current field of social sciences and Humanities. That is doubly true in … Continue reading Vladimir Dvorniković: The Psyche of the Yugoslav Melancholy (Part 1)

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The Belgradist

Belgrade’s Grand Designs: Metropolis in progress

Having passed by it regularly on my runs and cycling routes, I was happy to see Ložionica, the new creative hub on the site of the old coal roundhouse, grow. I even felt pride as it was being built based on the design of my friends Anđela and Vladislav from Studio AKVS; this pride by proxy may be since in high school, I had Anđela … Continue reading Belgrade’s Grand Designs: Metropolis in progress

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The Belgradist, Travel

In the Land of Resilience: Serbia Is Falling in Love with Endurance Sports 

A country where endurance is much more than a sport gets into the endurance sports craze While endurance and the national pride in “inat” (spite) has been crucial for Serbian history and have saved the nation several times – including during a treacherous trek through Albania in WWI – endurance sports in Serbia have been on the back-burner and the country is more famous for … Continue reading In the Land of Resilience: Serbia Is Falling in Love with Endurance Sports 

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Uncategorized

Eurocrem: the taste of Serbian Boomer Europeanism

My obsession with Eurocrem, Serbia’s favorite cocoa and hazelnut spread, started when I was a kid in Belgrade in the 1990s. I still remember the joy whenever my mom treated me with a small Eurocrem blok, the version of the spread made into a chocolate bar, usually whenever we went into the cavernous Centroprom supermarket by our flat in Zvezdara. The appeal of Eurocrem went … Continue reading Eurocrem: the taste of Serbian Boomer Europeanism

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Hidden Belgrade, The Belgradist

Hidden Belgrade: Opening Belgrade’s Chakras

Researching the occult practices in Socialist Yugoslavia, I came across a fantastic PhD dissertation (and book) by Nikola Pešić on the “Occult in the art of Marina Abramović” (I was happy to find out that his mentor was the great Professor Nemanja Radulović who I interviewed for my Pokretači podcast). Apart from Pešić’s analysis of Abramović’s work, he also includes a brief history of occult … Continue reading Hidden Belgrade: Opening Belgrade’s Chakras

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The Belgradist

Which Belgrade neighbourhood do you identify with the most and what does that say about you?

I decided to do a very scientific analysis using The Belgradist proprietary data. Dorćol: You were always liked and respected because you worked hard to be. However when you are best when you let cracks show a bit in your façade Belgrade waterfront: You love provoking others as you like to think you see a bit further than them and are a lot more ambitious. You do … Continue reading Which Belgrade neighbourhood do you identify with the most and what does that say about you?

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Culture, Life

Tell Them You Love Me (2023): The Victims of Sentimentalism

Desperate for an enemy But too afraid to kill Use the pain of someone else And triumph for their will And spill the blood Of the arrogant mosquitoes –       Ezra Koenig, Sympathy A few weeks ago, I watched a uniquely American – that is, riveting and bizarrely larger than life – story of an intellectually disabled person being abused by people around him, who all … Continue reading Tell Them You Love Me (2023): The Victims of Sentimentalism

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Culture, Reviews

Cognac (1988) and Born to be a warrior (1994): Yugoslavia through a “for export” lens

I often criticise Serbian and regional movie production for being excessively focused on “for export” films, which do not seek to portray any real stories, but just fit into the cottage industries of war-time trauma, Eastern European miserabilism or “political commentary”. Still I found myself greatly enjoying two very explicitly Yugoslav/Serbian “for export” films, which, however did not seek any prestige on festival circuits but … Continue reading Cognac (1988) and Born to be a warrior (1994): Yugoslavia through a “for export” lens

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Politics, Serbia

Treće Oko, eclipses, pandemics and years of magical thinking

My first memory of Treće Oko (Third Eye) magazine was with my grandma at Hotel Palisad in Zlatibor. It was just after my grandad passed away, and I begged her to buy it, as I was intrigued by various mysteries it claimed to uncover. I remember being very unimpressed with that issue, though. The only article I remember from it claimed we would all be … Continue reading Treće Oko, eclipses, pandemics and years of magical thinking

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Hidden Belgrade, The Belgradist

Hidden Belgrade (69): Streamline Modern at Craftsmen’s Hall and PRIZAD

Bogdan Nestorović was the son of the one of the most prolific Serbian arhcitects, Nikola Nestorović. He prusued his architectural education in Paris in 1920s where he developed a penchant for Art Deco (more precisely Streamline Modern) which characterised his two most monumental buildings: the Craftsmen’s Hall (aka Radio Beograd) and PRIZAD (aka Tanjug). Both buildings have a very intriguing history worth dedicating separate articles … Continue reading Hidden Belgrade (69): Streamline Modern at Craftsmen’s Hall and PRIZAD

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Balkans, Travel

Beginnings of skiing in Yugoslavia

After writing my article about Kopaonik (or rather its architecture), a friend of mine and a Kopaonik aficionado (he also rents out his apartment), reached out with photos of his family’s collection of ski-related memorabilia (pins, posters and skis) which reached to the era before WWII. While the 1984 Sarajevo Olympics are obviously the pinnacle of Winter Sports in the Yugoslavia and attract the most … Continue reading Beginnings of skiing in Yugoslavia

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Hidden Belgrade, The Belgradist

Hidden Belgrade (68): Automobile museum, Sablja Dimiskija and my disappearing neighbourhood

Through life, one develops but then has to abandon a nostalgic, protective attitude towards things in one’s life, especially places. Any living city is constantly changing, and cherished nooks and crannies, those that remind you of the best of times and people, have to make way.While it is normal to try to protect what is deemed valuable, one has to realize that it is, after … Continue reading Hidden Belgrade (68): Automobile museum, Sablja Dimiskija and my disappearing neighbourhood

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Travel

Yugohotels: Kopaonik’s alpine vernacular spectacular

The history of Alpine tourism in Serbia starts in the 1930s on the slopes of Kopaonik. The mountain hosted Serbia’s alpine sports competitions from 1936 until the start of WWII in Serbia. Back then, the only structure on the slopes of Kopaonik was a mountain hut, destroyed during the war. The development of Kopaonik re-started in 1948 with the construction of Olga Dedijer mountain hut … Continue reading Yugohotels: Kopaonik’s alpine vernacular spectacular

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Culture, Guide to Belgrade, Reviews, The Belgradist

Exploring Džej Ramadanovski’s Dorćol on film and in reality

When I saw that there is a film in the works about Džej Ramadanovski, a Serbian-Roma pop star who passed tragically during at the age of 56 in 2020, I feared it would be another slapdash cash-grab riding on the wave of “Toma”, a hit 2021 film about Serbian folk singer Toma Zdravković.   My scepticism was even greater as I did not like “Toma”. … Continue reading Exploring Džej Ramadanovski’s Dorćol on film and in reality

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Balkans, Culture

Yugoslav Musical Calendar

Given that most of former Yugoslavia is still agricultural or tied to the weather through tourism it is no wonder that seasons still play a large part in its music. I decided to make a little playlist with the best songs which can be tied to specific seasons, months and hoildays so that you can see how the Yugomind conceptualises time. Whether it is Ana … Continue reading Yugoslav Musical Calendar

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Culture, Reviews

Lost Country: In search of Tomasi di Lampedusa and Proust in Serbia

In November 1996, my mother, grandma and I were excitedly chanting „Bando crevna“ (Red gangsters!) during the mass anti-Milošević protests in Belgrade. I was 8 at the time and was mesmerised by the thrill, energy and fun that were on the street of Belgrade for those few months after the contested election. There was a mini-renaissance or music and art happening on the streets, a … Continue reading Lost Country: In search of Tomasi di Lampedusa and Proust in Serbia

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Balkanska posla

Srđan rešava Beograd 2023: Muzeji, Sajam, Železnica i liftovi

Učestali izbori na kojima ne učestvujem sve više jačaju moju veru u vrednost neizabrane večne, ali sposobne vlasti koja bi mogla da na dugi rok sprovodi dugoročna i kreativna rešenja, a kojom bih rukovodio ja. Šalu na stranu, evo par ideja vezanih za neke problemčiće u Beogradu, pa ako me se neko seti…   Muzeji i Sajam Što se tiče pitanja muzeja i Sajma rešenje … Continue reading Srđan rešava Beograd 2023: Muzeji, Sajam, Železnica i liftovi

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Best of Belgrade, The Belgradist

“Doček”: a Triumph, Serbian-style

An elderly man and a pre-teen girl are standing on a branch. A few meters from them, a well dressed man in his late seventies is trying to climb a 6 foot tall wall and refusing help from a young guy watching him struggle in disbelief. In the back a group of people with disabilities are waving flags, while thousands of children perched on their … Continue reading “Doček”: a Triumph, Serbian-style

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