The winning conceptual idea by Milan Kulić from Belgrade has been selected within the Call for conceptual sculptural-architectural idea for the sculpture dedicated to Mitar Subotić Suba, a pioneer of electronic music in this part of the Europe and Latin America, launched by the ‘Novi Sad – European Capital of Culture’ in cooperation with the ‘Mitar Subotić Suba’ Foundation.
The winning solution will be the first sculpture dedicated to one of the pioneers of electronic music, which makes Novi Sad stand out in the region and Europe. It will be placed right on the Suba’s Plateau, at the entrance to Liman Park. In this way, it will complement the art space on the Suba’s Plateau, where the first open-air gallery in Novi Sad was created for the first time, which started a new practice of exhibiting artistic flags.
‘After the open-air gallery, by placing a sculpture, i.e. a memorial, in this part of Liman Park, it will finally be possible to round off the entire form of the Suba’s Plateau as a recognisable city space dedicated to Mitar Subotić Suba,’ said the architect of the ‘Novi Sad – European Capital of Culture’ Foundation, Dušan Stevanović.
Milan Kulić, the author of the winning conceptual idea, founded the inspiration in Suba’s work, the concept of spirituality and the ability to see something from different perspectives, and the duality of space and time. Kulić explained that the movement and energy of music are woven into the static and solid nature of the sculpture. At the same time, the final form was inspired by the simplicity and layered content of Mitar Subotić Suba’s compositions.
The five-member commission that selected the winning conceptual idea and conceptual ideas that will receive awards, included the president of the ‘Mitar Subotić Suba’ Foundation Ruža Subotić, architect Dušan Stevanović, historian and director of the Historical Archives of the City of Novi Sad Petar Đurđev, professor at the Academy of Arts and president of the Association of Fine Artists of Vojvodina Goran Despotovski, and visual artist Boris Lukić.
In addition to the winner, another two conceptual solutions by Petar Mirković from Begeč and Svetlana Milić from Novi Sad also received awards. After two rounds of review of the applied works, i.e. visual representation, technical description and concept by the registered candidates, the commission came to a unanimous decision on the winning solution and the awarded conceptual ideas.
‘Another two artists who received awards, Petar Mirković and Svetlana Milić, are up to par with the winning conceptual idea by the author Milan Kulić. The nuances in the commission’s decisions are based on the example of feasibility, integration into the environment and the contents they represent,” said Goran Despotovski, a member of the commission. He emphasized that this sculpture represents a translated message from the sound energy of Suba’s musical exploration of tone and complex composition into physical sculptural work.
Mitar Subotić Suba was one of the biggest and most renowned music producers in this part of Europe and Latin America. He composed music for films, theatre plays, ballet, TV shows, advertisements, and opening credits for Radio Novi Sad. He is the winner of the UNESCO award for the promotion of culture. He collaborated with numerous famous names such as Milan Mladenović, Marina Perazić, Masimo Savić, João Donato, Bebel Gilberto, Haustor and La Strada bands, and many others.
The grand finale of the European Capital of Culture, the Other? Europe programme arch will dedicate a significant part to Mitar Subotić Suba. Within the programme arch, several programmes such as the exhibition Suba Room, a remake of his composition and music installation in collaboration with Goran Vejvoda, the Dreambird, and a concert of singer CéU, a three-time Latin Grammy winner, nominated for the Grammy in the world music category, will be dedicated to Suba.
