February 6, 2020 - With the former Odeon Cinema remodeling complete, which has been transformed into a new public space intended for hosting music and stage events, cinema screenings, theatrical performances, exhibitions and conferences, a new stage is raised - the Arsen House of Art in Sibenik.

Namely, HRTurizam reports that the City has been implementing the reconstruction project of the former Odeon Cinema in phases since 2013, and so far more than HRK 9 million has been invested, of which about 40% has come from the Ministry of Culture grant. Since last year, the Public Institution Sibenik Fortress of Culture has been involved in the completion of the renovation project with the City, while the Institution has been entrusted with the future management of the renovated hall.

It is Sibenik Fortress of Culture that has proposed a name that honors one of the greatest artists of recent Croatian history: academic musician, individual and intellectual, composer, songwriter, painter, translator, silent craftsman and poet, Sibenik musician and artistic genius - Arsen Dedic.

City of Sibenik

"The Arsen House of Art will pay tribute and return love to the Sibenik native who, in his lifetime, was, and still is, the greatest ambassador of the city and his spirit. Through his work through poetry, music, painting, film and theater he embodied the culture and it is difficult to find a more suitable place in Sibenik that would bear his name and operate under the patronage of Arsen and his artistic personality,” said Gorana Barisic Bacelic, director of the Fortress of Culture.

The proposal was accepted by acclamation not only by the owner of the hall - the City, which together with the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Croatia financed its reconstruction, but also by all city cultural institutions, the City Council of Culture, as well as representatives of the two oldest Sibenik cultural institutions - the singing society "Kolo” and Sibenik folk music. The city government believes that the citizens, as well as the general public, will welcome this, which will keep Arsen permanently recorded in the collective memory of the town, at the same time marking a new era of its culture.

City of Sibenik

“The mission of the Arsen House of Art is to raise the quality of life of our fellow citizens to an even higher level and enrich the cultural life in Sibenik. We expect that the space will come to life even more strongly under Arsen's name, becoming another favorite place for cultural content for all generations of locals. The Arsen House of Art is certainly opening up new opportunities for cooperation and development of local cultural stakeholders, and I am sure that this hall will have some significance not only in the local but also in the national context,” said the Mayor of the City of Sibenik, Zeljko Buric.

The Dedic family is also thrilled to hear of the news: “I am delighted and moved. I am expecting and welcoming the answer to everything that Arsen has given to our city and why we, the people of Sibenik, give back the love and affection that Arsen gave us with his whole life, for which I thank you all immensely," said Gabi Novak, the late singer's wife.

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