Sava Šumanović Art Gallery in Šid | Museums of Serbia

Sava Šumanović Art Gallery is located in Šid and is dedicated to the life and work of our renowned painter.

The desire of the "Serbian Cézanne," as he was called, was for a gallery to be established after his death, and his mother Persida Šumanović brought that idea to fruition. Mother and son shared the same opinion that a painting is best experienced where it originated.

In 1952, Persida Šumanović donated her son's life's work to the city, a decade after the artist's tragic death. Today, the materially and artistically significant legacy of the painter is housed in the Šumanović family home in Šid.

The gallery collection consists of a total of 417 artworks, including 67 sketches created using various techniques. Some were painted with watercolors, while others with pastels. There are also drawings, as well as works created with diluted technique. The majority of the works are oil paintings, with approximately 350 of them displayed in the gallery.

Sava Šumanović brought several of his works from Paris, and he painted the most during the last ten years of his life. Despite being misunderstood for his audacity and desire to experiment and explore, Sava Šumanović is considered the greatest Serbian painter of the 20th century.

The gallery's permanent exhibition consists of one hundred Šumanović's works. These are paintings created specifically in Šid using the oil on canvas technique. The exhibition includes the cycles Šid Women, Children's Figures, and Spring in Šid Gardens.

The famous Serbian artist was primarily inspired by the colors of his surroundings and light, but a notable cycle featuring nudes stands out as well. Besides women and girls from Šid, Šumanović also depicted the most famous Parisian models. However, he had a particular love for painting landscapes, and his Winter Landscapes are iconic works of national art.

Sava Šumanović Memorial House is located near the gallery in Šid. Originally built for the needs of a brewery, the Šumanović family moved into it when the artist was four years old. In addition to his childhood, Sava spent his last years in this house before being brutally killed by the Ustaše.

Since 1982, the Memorial House has been open to the public, and it has been declared a cultural monument of exceptional importance by the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments. In addition to the family furniture and exhibited items, the house now preserves the artist's studio where he painted over 600 paintings.

For admirers of Sava Šumanović's life and work, the gallery is open on weekdays from 9 am to 6 pm and on Saturdays from 9 am to 3 pm. The admission fee for adults is 100 dinars, while children receive a 50% discount on tickets.