Building of Matica Srpska(Novi Sad)

The building of Matica Srpska in Novi Sad was built between 1911 and 1913 as an orphanage, designed by the architect Momčilo Tapavica. It is on the list of intangible cultural heritage of Serbia, in the category of cultural heritage of great importance and today, the headquarters of the most important and the oldest literary, cultural and scientific institution in Serbia is located there.

The building of Matica Srpska was the present from the patroness Marija Trandafil, and it found its current purpose in 1928.

The one-storey building with long wings along two streets has a bevelled corner with a bay window on the first floor and a complex dome. It was built in pseudoclassicism, which is characterised by mild and balanced forms, with subdued ornamentation. The glamorous building is characterised by classical simplicity, monumentality, and harmony in volume and details. There is a visible antique architectural plastic with tympanums on the façade, pediments and wreath decoration modelled upon strict Roman architecture, but also inspired by pure and neat Greek forms. The façade on ground and roof levels is painted in yellow-beige. The top layer on the first-floor level is made of facing brick in dark beige. The roof covering consists of metal sheets in pigeon blue, while other details on the roof are made of dark blue metal sheets. There are six busts of prominent people in front of the building.

Special attention was devoted to interior design as well. There are portraits of founders of Matica Srpska and other prominent people, works by famous Serbian painters.

Today, the building is home of the Matica Srpska Library, with a reading room, editorial of the ‘Letopis Matice Srpske’ magazine, lexicography, manuscripts and scientific offices, publishing centre, antique and book stores. The Library of Matica Srpska has manuscripts, handwritten and printed books, as well as magazines that are, due to their cultural-artistic and scientific-historical values, declared monuments of culture and are movable cultural heritage.

Zgrada Matice srpske u Novom Sadu sagrađena je između 1911. i 1913. godine kao sirotište, prema projektu arhitekte Momčila Tapavice. Nalazi se na listi nepokretnih kulturnih dobara Srbije, u kategoriji kulturna dobra od velikog značaja i u njoj se danas nalazi sedište najvažnije i najstarije književne, kulturne i naučne institucije u Srbiji.

Zgrada je bila poklon dobrotvorke Marije Trandafil, a svoju sadašnju namenu dobila je 1928. godine.

Ovaj jednospratni objekat sa krilima duž dve ulice ima zasečen ugao sa erkerom na spratu i kupolom složene arhitektonike. Izgrađena je u pseudoklasicističkom stilu kojeg karakterišu mirne i uravnotežene forme, uz svedenu ornamentiku. Klasična jednostavnost, monumentalnost, harmonija volumena i detalja, odlikuju ovo glamurozno zdanje. Na fasadi je izražena antička arhitektonska plastika sa timpanonima, natprozornim lukovima i dekoracijom venaca, uzeta iz stroge rimske arhitekture, ali inspirisana i čistim i otmenim grčkim formama. Fasada je u nivoima prizemlja i krova obojena žuto - bež fasadnom bojom. U nivou prvog sprata završni fasadni sloj je od fasadne opeke tamnobež boje. Krovni pokrivač čine ploče od lima golubije plave boje, dok su detalji na krovu oblikovani od lima tamnoplave boje. Ispred zgrade postavljeno je šest bista znamenitih ličnosti.

Uređenju enterijera takođe je posvećeno dosta pažnje. U njemu se nalaze portreti osnivača Matice srpske i drugih značajnih ličnosti, radovi znamenitih autora srpskog slikarstva.

U ovoj zgradi danas se nalazi i Biblioteka Matice srpske sa čitaonicom, izdavaštvom časopisa „Letopis Matice srpske“, leksikografskim, rukopisnim i naučnim odeljenjem, izdavačkom kućom, antikvarnicom i knjižarom. Biblioteka Matice srpske čuva rukopise, ručno pisane i štampane knjige, kao i časopise koji su zbog svoje kulturno umetničke i naučno istorijske vrednosti koji su proglašeni za pokretno kulturno dobro.