Slabinja Monument | Pierced Concrete

The Monument in Slapinja | Pierced Concrete

The full name of the monument is the Monument to the Fallen Soldiers and Victims of Fascism in Slapinja. It is located in Slapinja, Sisak-Moslavina County near Kostajnica, Croatia. This site is to commemorate the 547 fallen soldiers and civilians from Slapinja who died in Yugoslavia during World War II.

The author of the monument is Stanislav Mišić. The monument was completed in 1981.

According to research, this monument seems to be directly inspired by El Lissitzky's 1919 Russian Constructivist poster "Defeat the Whites with the Red Wedge".

In the late 1970s, many people in Slapinja believed that it was necessary to build a decent memorial complex to commemorate those who sacrificed their lives to defend the area during World War II. With the help of the National Communist League and the Regional Soldiers' Union (SUBNOR), the local council in Slapinja organized the construction project of the monument and chose the sculptor Stanislav Mišić from Zagreb to create this complex.

On May 30, 1981, the monument was opened to the public to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the people's uprising against oppression. Thousands of residents in the area participated in the ceremony. Jure Bilić, the Speaker of the Croatian Parliament, gave a speech at the opening ceremony, and Zdravo Kolar, a retired major - general of the Yugoslav Air Force, unveiled the monument.

The central sculptural element of the monument is a 15 - meter - high stainless - steel spire, with a huge red concrete triangle intersecting the spire at an acute angle. There are five steles engraved with inscriptions arranged around the monument, which tell the story of Slapinja from 1941 to 1945 in detail.

The names and ages of the 547 victims (107 soldiers and 441 civilians) who died in the Axis occupation and the aggressive war are engraved on the stainless - steel spire in the center of the monument. In addition, in front of the monument, there are five steles with inscriptions embedded in the ground.

Sculptor: Stanislav Mišić

Construction time: 1981

Construction location: Slapinja, Croatia

Photography: Alan Lau