Castles of Serbia
Villa Mi-La ("Patriarchate Villa")
Vrnjačka Banja
Villa Mi-La in Vrnjačka Banja is located at 6 Proleterskihbrigade Street. It was built by engineer MilosavBoškovićthoughout the 1930s. The engineer named the villa “Mi-La”, which was written in a stylized musical notation on the main facade, out of love for his wife Mila and her taste and love for music and song.
Mr Bošković worked as an advisor in the Ministry of Forests and Mining of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, and in 1939 he managed the construction of the Vrnjačka Banja-Goč road. On that occasion, a memorial plaque was placed on which we can read: “This road was built in 1939 by the Ministry of Forestry and Mining under the management of engineer MilosavBošković, our advisor.” After the Second World War, Bošković worked in Vrnjačka Banja as an advisor to the Commission for the Evaluation of Nationalized Buildings.
The building, inspired by the neo-romantic style, uses elements borrowed from medieval Serbian architecture, such as half-arched openings framed by stone blocks, brackets carrying a corner terrace or a monumental entrance with arcades. Shapes from traditional architecture are mixed with these elements, such as a four-sided roof covered with clay roof tiles with chimneys with decorative elements and a porch-gallery with arches. The fence is monumental and robust. The windows have multicolour geometric stained glass.
The villa consists of a cellar, ground floor and first floor; the walls are built of brick and stone, with some concrete structures. The interior is organized from the central hallway; on the ground floor there are living rooms and a dining room, and on the first floor there is a bedroom, a children’s room and a bathroom; auxiliary rooms (pantry and kitchen) are in the basement. Interior decoration makes extensive use of wood (decorative elements, panelling) and stone (fireplace, certain floors), other elements related to decorative art, such as chandeliers, trinkets, ornaments and furniture, reflecting concern for the representativeness of the villa. In the yard there is a fountain, swimming pool, gazebo and ornamental trees. The villa was bought by the Serbian Orthodox Church, and in Vrnjačka Banja it is known as the “Patriarchate Villa”.
The villa is in excellent condition.
This project was supported by the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Serbia.