Atelje 61 is the only institution in the Western Balkans. This is an institution for the production of tapestries, specific in that it is the only museum institution of a complex type in Serbia with its own production: a workshop, a gallery and a museological collection. It is one of only five similar cultural institutions in Europe and is in elite company with the Obison Tapestry Center in France and the Dovecot Salon in Edinburgh, England, institutions that represent the Western European counterpart to Atelier 61.
History of the Atelier 61
Atelje 61 started working in 1961, when it was founded by textile designer Etelka Tobolka and famous Serbian painter, tapestry and mosaicist Boško Petrović with the support of the city of Novi Sad, which declared Atelje 61 a cultural institution of special social significance. At the beginning of the sixties of the 20th century, large-format tapestries were primarily made in the Atelier according to the designs of some of the most famous artists of Yugoslav and Serbian modernism and contemporary art. The designs were created by Stojan Celic, Jagoda Buic, Lazar Vujaklija, Milan Konjovic, the famous Sava Shumanovic, Ilija Bosilja, Mladen Srbinovic, Bosko Karanovic and many others. The first exhibitions abroad brought high recognitions in the Atelier and put the production and the institution itself on the map of cultural institutions of great value and quality of work.
Significance and activities in the Atelier 61
- During the 60-year history of Atelier 61, in collaboration with over 300 artists, about 900 tapestries were woven. The studio has a National Collection of Tapestries, which is considered one of the largest collections in this area.
- Festivals and programs dedicated to this kind of art are held in the Atelier. The most famous are the International Tapestry Triennial and the International Tapestry Colony Boško Petrović.
- Within the institution, it is possible to attend the famous weaving school. They weave as an invitation to approach from the position of the old craft, as our grandmothers and mothers did in the past.
How to get to Atelje 61
The studio is located within the Petrovaradin Fortress, at the address Petrovaradinska Fortress 9. You can reach it by Mihajlo Pupin Boulevard, which leads you to the Varadin Bridge and Kamenicka Street, which leads straight to the Atelier. Given the length of the road and the ascent, it is best to cross this route by car or taxi. If you go by car, there is parking right in front of the Atelier.