„Pekić House“ in Šavnik should become a regional cultural centre: It is the state’s responsibility and could become a cornerstone of contemporary Montenegrin spirituality and art

„Pekić House“ is the state’s responsibility. Just as we restored it, we must now give it a function as a cultural residency - a space for creation and encounters, rather than merely a monument to the written word – said editor of the culture desk at Radio Television of Montenegro Nevenka Jovović in a document by the Šavnik Cultural Centre presenting the views of prominent cultural figures, producers, artists and intellectuals on why „Pekić House“ in Šavnik should become a regional cultural centre.

Jovović believes that the project would also contribute to the decentralisation of culture, while Šavnik, as a town that has produced numerous prominent figures from the worlds of literature, art and history, would thereby become a vibrant hub of contemporary creativity.

- Because Šavnik has two dawns, and that is a synonym for something new, better and more beautiful. Because this phenomenon shapes the local identity and art of this region. Because this environment attracts writers, poets, filmmakers and photographers, as Šavnik is a metaphor for light, and light in art and culture is the starting point and foundation of creation - Jovović said.

She added that, when considering Borislav Pekić, whose house should become a regional cultural centre, one must not overlook the fact that he was one of the greatest and most influential writers of the 20th century in this part of the world.

- His work transcends the borders of the country, which is why his house must not remain merely a local cultural centre. In this way, Montenegro and Šavnik would not only honour Pekić’s name in a dignified manner, but the house would also become a space embodying the breadth of mind that Borislav Pekić himself possessed - Jovović stressed.

An identity and spiritual foundation

Director of Radio Television Nikšić Nikola Marković said that Borislav Pekić’s legacy is so vast and significant that the ancestral family home in Šavnik is not only the best symbol of his work, but also the natural place for the headquarters of a regional centre.

- It could become one of the foundations of contemporary Montenegrin spirituality and art. Because if you do not know where you come from, you will never know who you are - he said.

Writer and political scientist Dr Aleksandar Ćuković said that establishing such a centre would represent an act of repaying a debt to a lofty nobility of spirit which, like Pekić’s work, was always greater than any transience.

- In a time that often leans towards noise and oblivion, Šavnik must raise a fortress where the purity of language is defended at its source and where we answer to our ancestors for the future. „Pekić House“ would thus not be merely a home preserving the memory of one particular root, but of all the roots that this region has given to our country and to our entire linguistic and cultural space. Let this place become the finest expression of our debt to the language that created us and to a cultural space that refuses to disappear in the vortex of global noise and virtual wilderness. After all, this is also Šavnik’s first and true European responsibility - Ćuković said.

A revolution without stereotypes

University professor and historian Dr Adnan Prekić said that Šavnik is a cornerstone for understanding the biography of the great writer, as well as a key to understanding his family, without which Pekić’s greatness cannot be fully understood.

- That is why, without the symbolic value of his house in Šavnik, it is impossible to understand the breadth of Pekić’s work, nor his ties to this region, his origins and the historical experience that shaped and determined his creative work. This is also because our relationship with this kind of heritage reflects our contemporary relationship with Pekić and his work, in which he examined the relationship of the individual to power, politics, ideology and historical heritage - Prekić said.

He added that „Pekić House“ is not merely a place that should connect the great writer with his homeland, but also a place where the ideas of the great creator can be reconsidered in a new way.

Literary critic Vlatko Simunović said that common sense tells him that a regional cultural centre in „Pekić House“ and Šavnik is „a completely new, almost revolutionary idea“.

- Because its possibilities and benefits are practically limitless if its implementation is approached without being burdened by Montenegrin stereotypes and habits that often constrain what is yet to be created. Because at the very foundation of Montenegrin identity and culture lies a magnificent imperative: „Let it be what cannot be“ - Simunović said.

He believes that this very thought could provide the most accurate foundation for the idea.

- A regional cultural centre in „Pekić House“ and Šavnik should not be merely another cultural institution, but a space that tests the creative potential of our cultural system, and of all of us who make our living from culture and for culture - Simunović said.

He believes that the „Pekić House“ and Šavnik offer an opportunity to recommend ourselves to the future.

- To show that even a small community can have great cultural ambitions. That this country needs something bold, young and new. Something unseen before. Something simple, yet with an inner radiance that only new and free people can unleash. Something new that all those who still dare to dream bold dreams are dreaming of - Simunović said.

Šavnik, he added, is looking for people.

- And perhaps they will come from all over. And from everything they bring with them - their knowledge, experience, talents, languages and differences - let something emerge in goodwill. Because that is precisely the essence of culture: for difference not to negate unity, but to enrich it. If we give it a chance, Šavnik can become a place where a new spirit and a new being can be born. A place of creation, encounters and freedom. Perhaps the embryo of a Montenegrin Edinburgh? Why not - Simunović asked.

From idea to practice

Opera artist Ivana Čanović said that „Pekić House“ is not merely a memorial space, but a place where art is actively created, where it lives, and where future generations will be able to continue building the path we have begun.

- It is a path that will unite the north, permanently connect central and southern Montenegro, and become an integral part of the network of prestigious regional and European cultural centres - she said.

Producer Branimir Žugić (NGO „Art 365“) said that Šavnik has already demonstrated that culture in a small community need not be merely an occasional occurrence, but can instead be a space of continuous creation, encounters and new ideas.

- Back in 2018, through the forum „Pekić House, Our Opportunity“, we raised the question of the future of this house. Later, through the „Brigada“ artistic residency, the „Start Art“ project, numerous workshops, exhibitions and the „Two Suns“ Art Festival, we showed that Šavnik brings together artists, young people and the local community. It is a place where art is created, rather than merely a place to which cultural content is brought from elsewhere - Žugić said.

According to him, the „Two Suns“ Festival further expanded this idea from „Pekić House“ to the whole of Šavnik, its public spaces, nature and landscape, bringing together artists from Montenegro, the region and abroad.

- This valuable experience shows that a regional centre would not be starting from scratch: we already have programmes, strong partnerships, a loyal audience and experience on which a year-round cultural life can be built. It is time for what we have been creating through individual projects from 2018 to the present to gain continuity, open doors throughout the year and significance that extends beyond Šavnik itself. That is why „Pekić House“ must become a regional cultural centre for the north - Žugić concluded.