The Art Nouveau Wonders of Subotica.

The Art Nouveau Wonders of Subotica.

June 2021.

It was a warm late afternoon when Sladja and I arrived in the Serbian city of Subotica. The bus from Belgrade took just under three hours, while from the station we immediately set off on a walking route to find our Airbnb apartment. I’d read that Subotica is a wonderfully green city, but oh boy, this was surely one of the lushest residential streets I’d ever have the pleasure of passing through.

“Is this our street?” asked Sladja hopefully. I glanced back at my phone, squinting a bit from the sun. “No, it’s a few roads down” I answered. “Unfortunately”. Not that we were disappointed when we got there. In fact, Oleg’s Place looked charming and was easy to spot with its rambling wall ivy, eruption of pink roses and tiled welcome sign.

Inside, our host Oleg swiftly greeted us in flawless English before leading us to a tiny but cosy room with ensuite shower/toilet. Overlooking a pretty garden set away from the main road, a good night’s sleep was surely guaranteed. Touch wood.

Not wanting to waste a precious second of our weekend we thanked Oleg, gave the gorgeous house cat a few strokes and headed off to grab dinner in the old town.

The Art Nouveau Wonders of Subotica.

Making our way towards Liberty Square, we drank in Subotica’s envious, ever-present greenery. And how the city seemed so calm and pedestrian-friendly. Indeed with a population of just over one hundred thousand, this is merely Serbia’s ninth largest city.

The afternoon light was already beginning to ebb away as we passed through the dramatic expanse of Liberty Square.  

We wouldn’t take a closer look until the next day, though that evening I did momentarily stop to grab a shot of the National Theatre. It’s a fine neoclassical style structure that dates back to… uh… 2007.

The original theatre here opened in 1854 as the city’s very first monumental public building. But local authorities razed the historic edifice, despite public outrage, to move forward with the new theatre. “But we rebuilt it faithfully in the style of the old one!” countered those responsible. Scandalous.

With food and drinks at the forefront of our minds, we pressed on through the city centre to our eatery of choice. Along the way, we passed countless cafes, bars and restaurants where tables and chairs spilled out onto the street. Many of these operated out of historic townhouses.

Exploring Subotica.

As lovely as these places were we definitely didn’t have any regrets over our dinner spot that evening. Before long we reached Matije Korvina, a gorgeous pedestrian street where a number of elegant establishments sit snugly under a canopy of leafy branches.

From the numerous choices on offer we plumped for Caffe Boss, a Subotica institution that has been a favourite with locals and visitors since 1986. Thus we grabbed a table, ordered a pair of large Hoegaardens and eagerly scanned the menu to pick out our dishes.

Boss began life as a pizzeria, but has expanded its menu over the years to include traditional Serbian dishes in addition to pastas, steaks and Asian fusion.

I’m usually sceptical of restaurants that offer a broad range of cuisines, but on this occasion I was happy to take a risk. Luckily, it worked out fantastically as our pizza, noodles and chicken & cashew stir fry were all flawless. Totally “boss” as today’s cool kids might say.

The next morning, bright and early, we began exploring Subotica in earnest. Top of the agenda was to seek out the city’s incredible Art Nouveau architecture. Now I’m not just talking about any old run of the mill Art Nouveau, but some of the very best in Europe according to historians.

The Art Nouveau Wonders of Subotica.

These architectural gems can be traced back to the late 19th century when Subotica was under Austro-Hungarian rule. At this time Art Nouveau was exploding across Europe and Subotica was one of the biggest and most important cities of the region. Hence it was very much a case of: geez we better pull our finger out and get with the times.

Our Art Nouveau journey started back at Liberty Square and its grandiose City Hall. Built between 1908 and 1910, this 6000 m² complex is like something out of a Hungarian fairytale with ceramic floral tiles, wrought ironwork, stained glass windows and a 76-metre clock tower.

Today it houses municipal offices, exhibition spaces and a grand hall used for cultural events, concerts and weddings. We popped our heads inside the ground floor where there was a sobering exhibit on Jasenovac Concentration Camp.

Established during World War II in the Croatian village of Jasenovac, the camp oversaw the extermination of approximately one hundred thousand people including Serbs, Jews, Roma, Croats and Bosnian Muslims.

City Hall.

In truth the focus of the exhibition had caught us by surprise. As a result, our mood had somewhat soured as we exited and strolled into the gorgeous park that runs off City Hall’s north side. Liberty Park, as it’s loosely known by locals. It was just what we needed, an uplifting scene where pockets of cheerful locals chatted together in a mishmash of tongues.

You see, Subotica is also famous for being Serbia’s most multicultural city. Located just 38 kilometres from the Hungarian border, there are more Hungarians than actual Serbs as well as a sizeable Croat population.

Happily, we found our second Art Nouveau masterpiece in the park. Lo and behold the delightful Blue Fountain, created in 2001 as the park’s centrepiece and a bold new addition to the city’s Art Nouveau creations.

It is a prime example of Zsolnay Ceramics, a handmade porcelain manufacturer based in the Hungarian city of Pécs. However, though many see the fountain as the pearl of Liberty Square, the piece has also been subject to considerable criticism.

First came the scandal of how much the fountain cost to produce, a matter compounded by the fact that the official figure given has been disputed by some critics.

Moreover, the fountain’s fragility means that it is covered with a tarpaulin for virtually half the year in order to protect it from the elements. Which, some say, turns this part of the park into a bit of an eyesore.

The Art Nouveau Wonders of Subotica.

From the fountain we embarked on a tour of the old town to cross off some more Art Nouveau wonders. And what better place to start than the seemingly sugar-spun Subotica Savings Bank Palace. Constructed in 1907, at the time it was the first bank in Korzo the city’s main pedestrian street.

You certainly can’t miss it with its pale yellow colour and charming embellishments of ceramic and carved stone. All these symbols represent the values of good character, hard work and saving. They include determined  housewives and beehives (representing frugality), a squirrel (diligence apparently) and an owl (wisdom).

Next we made our way to the avocado-green Golden Lamb Hotel. Originally built in 1857, it is a sublime showcase of Jugendstil, a German brand of Art Nouveau established in Munich.

Sadly the building fell into such a sorry state that the local council tore it down in the mid 1980s and rebuilt it from scratch. Today it hosts a number of private apartments.

From the Golden Lamb it’s just a 3-minute walk to the former Hotel Adolfa Halbrora. This one first opened its doors in 1897, and yes the original building still stands after numerous restorations. As with many of these fabulous buildings finding clear historic information is hard work, whether you search in English or Serbian.

The Art Nouveau Wonders of Subotica.

It was definitely time for lunch. With our stomachs rumbling we found ourselves tempted into a gorgeous Art Nouveau cafe garden where the sound of clinking spoons and the smell of coffee punctuated the air. However, what we didn’t initially realise is that this is a second location belonging to Caffe Boss!

Packed with pruned trees, hedges, plants, flower beds and charming sculptures, the garden proved an idyllic spot from which to rest our feet and soak up more of Subotica’s laid-back vibe.

Some of the sculptures pay homage to the region’s folktales and notable locals. Others celebrate the city’s love of jazz music. Right enough there are numerous jazz bars across Subotica and several annual festivals such as Jazziré.

The most significant piece stands outside the garden’s entrance arch. The statue represents Matthias Corvinus, the formidable king of Hungary and Croatia between 1458 and 1490. Remembered for, among many things, transforming Hungary into a European superpower and raising taxes to extraordinary levels. 

It’s a wonderful collection of art. Above all though our Caffe Boss brunch really hit the spot. We went for cappuccinos and a pair of giant croissants that came with little dip bowls of chocolate spread and jam (apricot and blueberry).

Back at Boss.

After lunch it was time to return to our architectural mission. What’s more, we’d now be heading to what most people agree are the two jewels in Subotica’s Art Nouveau crown.

First up was the incredible Subotica Synagogue (1908), Europe’s second largest synagogue. Widely championed as one of the finest expressions of religious Art Nouveau architecture in the world, imagine our disappointment when we arrived to find the place closed. Noooooo!

In fact, so gutted were we that we hung around outside for a while in disbelief. All we could do was gaze at the old joint from across the road with some local art students as they sat sketching the place. And there we stood glumly, praying for a miracle.

Moments later said miracle arrived in the form of a local man who opened the gates but then promptly locked them behind him. Jogging over to enquire if we could go inside, the man explained that the synagogue was actually closed for a few days and could we come back on Monday?

When I told him we were leaving on Monday morning, he said “let me see what I can do” and inside he went. A few minutes later he returned before ushering us inside, saying “You’ve got ten minutes”.

The Art Nouveau Wonders of Subotica.

We were DELIGHTED to have talked our way into the interior. Enraptured by its beauty, we covered as much of the place as we could in our all-too-brief allotted time. It was like touring a giant lavish birthday cake, its painted hearts, tulips and peacock feathers staples of Hungarian Secession Art Nouveau.

Finally, our last Art Nouveau stop of the day came at the tremendous Raichle’s Palace. Completed in 1904, this was once the opulent family home of the Serbian-Hungarian architect Ferenc Raichle. A man who, as it happened, constructed a handful of the city’s most impressive Art Nouveau structures.

Within a year of opening, Raichle’s Palace had forged a reputation as one of the region’s most luxurious private residences and a wild party spot for the rich and famous.

Indeed on any given day there were drinking competitions playing out in the smoking lounge and informal classical concerts unfolding in the massive courtyard garden. Furthermore, it was common for staff members to find some of Subotica’s most prominent businessmen passed out on the pink marble floor of its many corridors.

Raichle’s Palace.

Such a state of affairs couldn’t last forever of course and in 1908 Raichle declared himself bankrupt. He therefore lost his dream palace along with many of his prized possessions which were sold off at auction. Today the building serves as Subotica’s quite magnificent Modern Art Gallery.

It had been a fantastic day hunting down Subotica’s many Art Nouveau wonders. But we weren’t done yet with the city’s charms. There was still much more to see and do, not least with a memorable afternoon at one of Serbia’s prettiest lakes.

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