From academicism to architectural realizations: The work of Franja Urban in Belgrade (1924-1937)

Abstract

The architect Franja Urban belongs to the group of foreign architects who arrived in Belgrade in the wake of the First World War, leaving as a legacy a lasting contribution to its urban development and architectural design. Franja Urban arrived from Czechoslovakia as a result of links to the Ashkenazi Jewish community, and, from 1926 until his untimely death in 1937, he worked as a private architect specializing in the field of residential and industrial architecture. Although Urban left behind a rich architectural opus, so far no monographic article has been published that would shed light on and further valorize his work in Belgrade and beyond. This article stems from many years of research into Urban's life and work, and represents the first attempt to frame his work within the context of modern Serbian architecture.

Keywords

• franja urban
• interwar period
• belgrade
• architecture