DANUrB+ Project: Mural for “Stapar Rose” as the joint pilot-action of the Faculty of Architecture in Belgrade and the City of Sombor

As the part of final activities in the DANUrB+ Project, each project partner conducted a pilot action with the Danube city with which it cooperates. The main pilot action within DANUrB+ Project realised in Serbia is a new mural for “Staparska Ruža / Stapar Rose” Women association from Stapar Village, a super-stakeholder organisation in the project from Sombor Region. The authors of this mural – artists Dejan Ivanović (Wuper) and Nikola Mihajlović (Kori) – created the mural on the village hall building based on ‘Stapar Rose’, the most prominent motive on handmade traditional rugs from this region, which is also a protected intangible heritage of Serbia. 

The mural (pilot action) was implemented in joint cooperation between the Faculty of Architecture of Belgrade, the City of Sombor, “Prostor” PE from Sombor, “Staparska Ruža” Association, the Communal public enterprise of Sombor, and the village and community of Stapar in the second half of November 2022. The main coordinator of activities on the behalf of the team of the Faculty of Architecture was Milorad Obradović, a PhD candidate, and in front of the city of Sombor was Dragana Siljanović Kozoderović, an urban planner in the “Prostor” Public Enterprise. Asst. Branislav Antonić and Svetlana Tolić from the Faculty of Architecture were in charge of the administative issues for the pilot implementation. 

The official ceremony regarding to the new mural was held on November 29, 2022 in Stapar. Several speakers gave official words in the front of the citizens of Stapar and Sombor: Prof. Aleksandra Djukić from the Faculty of Architecture in Belgrade (the main partner), Dragana Siljanović Kozoderović (associated strategic partner), Mira Kovačev (“Staparska ruža” – local stakeholder) and Jovana Miljević (City of Sombor – assistant of major), who officially inaugurated the mural. 

Mural “Stapar Rose / Staparska Ruža” after the finalisation

Village Hall in Stapar before the mural painting 

Motif of the Stapar Rose on local handicrafts 

Painting of the mural during November 2022

 Local population visiting the mural works

Detail of the finished mural in Stapar 

Ceremonial opening of the mural on November 29, 2022

Prof. Aleksandra Djukić from the Faculty of Architecture gives an opening speech