Virtual Exhibition / PHARMACY “TZAR DUSAN” AND CINEMA “KOLARAC“
Monday-Monday / AUGUST 22 – SEPTEMBER 17, 2022 / SASA Gallery of Science and Technology
For a while, the only (somewhat) large building belonged to the National Theater, after which the square was also named. In that small park next to the theatre, up until World War II, you could visit a reputable kafana and cinema. “Kolarac” will be remembered for the officers’ balls and its painted interior depicting the legendary heroes from the two Serbian uprisings. It also remains infamous as one of the places where the respectable officers and people of government created a conspiracy that will culminate during May 1903 with the tragic killing of King Alexander and Queen Draga.
You could also find the Pharmacy of Svetolik Trajkovic, “Tzar Dusan”, in the immediate vicinity of the historical tavern of Ilija Milosavljevic Kolarac. The family of the prominent pharmacist died agonizingly after five months of imprisonment and torture in the Banjicka camp, being targeted by the Gestapo in 1942. The love letter sent to Sveta’s daughter, Sloboda, by her fiance and member of the anti-fascist movement, Ivo Lola Ribar, reached the hands of the Belgrade police before her. Officers who broke into Trajkovic’s house unannounced, took all valuables from it. The family pharmacy vanished in flames, and police officers moved into the former home of the Trajkovic family. Ivo will never receive a reply to the fateful letter.
