Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Adaptation of the Central Tower at the Old Fair of Belgrade

The central tower is one of the few preserved original fair pavilions of the first Belgrade fair complex built on this location in 1937. During the Second World War, it was turned into a concentration camp. After the war, it was used as studios. The architectural composition of the Tower consists of four geometric elements: a one-story base with a circular base, four trapezoidal annexes in the plane of the ground and two segments of the tower, conceived as the base of the tower and the tower. The reconstruction of the historical building preserved its architectural and urban design values, as well as its cultural and historical significance.

As the original plans have not been preserved, the reconstruction of the building was designed based on the recorded existing condition, historical photographs from which the details of the original architecture and design were reconstructed, as well as on the basis of several research projects that collected sufficient data on the location, geomechanical characteristics of the soil and the state of the building's construction itself, which was in a very poor condition, almost structurally unsupportable. Based on the project program, the annexes on the ground floor, which originally had the function of fair shops, were completely reconstructed. The exhibition space has been freed from numerous subsequent historical interventions. A roof terrace was formed above the first floor, while at the top of the base of the tower there is a lookout point that can be reached by elevator in the central core of the tower building, which utilizes the facilities of the building to provide a new view of Belgrade at these levels. Thus, this landmark building was given a new purpose, along with the reconstruction of the original architectural design.

The reconstruction of the building was carried out using the same or similar materials as the original. All the existing concrete elements of the structure of the building were renewed and repaired using concrete, and the masonry parts using bricks, which repeated the basic structure of the building. The way in which the new installation systems necessary for modern functioning were solved, hidden in the raised floor of the ground floor, the annular installation channel under the ceiling, the lowered ceiling of the floor and the parapet wall of the annex, provided flexibility and adaptability in terms of configuring the exhibition space, allowing the curators to easily rearrange and different spatial disposition, adaptability and dynamism of the exhibition. The finishing of the wall towards the annexes is plasterboard cladding with a final layer of microcement, and the finishing towards the exhibition space on the ground floor is an art installation that is an integral part of the exhibition.