Lesson Eight, Culture

Major Artists and Works of Art

All Serbo-Croatian speaking areas feature numerous works of classical, medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, and contemporary architecture. Most notably, churches along the Dalmatian coast, monasteries in Serbia, and Bosnian mosques should be mentioned. There are also rich musical traditions reaching as far back as the medieval and Renaissance periods.

The most prominent contemporary artists include early twentieth century authors, such as Croatian painters Vlaho Bukovac and Miroslav Kraljević, and Serbian painters Nadežda Petrović and Jovan Bijelić. The mid-twentieth century is marked by the Croatian painter Ivan Meštrović. The best known authors of the second half of the century include the Croatian print artist Virgilije Nevjestić, Serbian painters such as Dado Đurić and Vladimir Veličković, and the Bosnian Muslim print artist Mersad Berber. Most recently, a pop art group from Sarajevo, called Trio was quite successful.

One should also mention the well established tradition of naive and folk art. The best known school of native art is in the Croatian village of Hlebine. The best known music composers are the Croatian Jakov Gotovac, the author of the famous opera buffa "Ero s onoga svijeta" and the Serbian symphonic writer Stevan Mokranjac, best known for his "Opelo" (Orthodox Christian Requiem) and "Sedam rukoveti" symphony based on traditional folk music.

Literary Traditions

Early literary traditions feature Serbian epic folk songs and hagiographies as well as Croatian Renaissance literature (authors such as Marko Marulić and Marin Držić). The major authors of Romanticism are the Croatian Ivan Mažuranić and Serbian Petar Petrović Njegoš. The best known twentieth-century authors are the Croatian Miroslav Krleža as well as Serbians Ivo Andrić (who won Nobel Prize in 1961) and Danilo Kiš. Most recently, authors such as Milorad Pavić and Dubravka Ugrešić have commanded considerable attention abroad.

One should mention in this connection that knowledge of one's literary traditions plays a far more important role in the region than in the United States. School curricula give a very prominent role to courses about literary traditions all throughout elementary and high school.

More information about Serbian literature and culture in general is available at the Serbian cultural service titled Rastko. Information about Croatian literature and culture is at www.hr.

Ethnic Crafts

The best known products of the region are laces from the island of Pag in Croatia, called paška čipka, wool sweaters from Sirogojno in Serbia, called džemperi Sirogojno, and various traditional coffee utensils from Bosnia, such as džezva, which is used to fix coffee, or small coffee cups called fildžan. Bosnia and Southern Serbia are also known for ornamented hand-made rugs.

Major Religious Holidays and Practices

As previously noted, Serbs are Orthodox Christians, Croats are Catholics, and Bosnian Muslims are followers of Islam. The calendar of fixed holidays in the Orthodox church lags thirteen days behind that of the Catholic church. The most important fixed holiday, Christmas (called Božić), is observed on December 25th in the Catholic tradition and on January 7th in the Orthodox church. The second most important holiday is Easter (called Uskrs), which is a movable date in both Christian religions. In addition, Croatians observe Namesday on the day of their namesake saint. Serbs observe the so called Slava, the day of the saint who is patron to and entire family rather than one person. Holidays include Croatian Christmas tree decoration and Serbian burning of the Yule log (dry oak branches) on Christmas Eve, dying eggs and the game of trying to smash an opponent's egg with one's own for Easter in both Catholic and Orthodox church. It is common for Croatians to keep a crucifix at their homes, while Serbs have the icon of their patron saint. Bosnian Muslims observe two major holidays (both movable dates). First, the last three days of the holy month of Ramadan are called Ramazanski Bajram, second, there is another day in the year, called Kurban-Bajarm, when a sacrifice mutton is carved and parts taken to friends and relatives. All major holidays in both Muslim and Christian religious traditions feature family gatherings at tables with elaborate meals.