Review article
https://doi.org/10.47960/2712-1844.2026.12.219
From Master Builders to Architects: Constructing Franciscan Convents and Churches in Bosna Srebrena
Miroslav Malinović
; Faculty of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy, University of Banja Luka
Jasna Guzijan
; Faculty of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy, University of Banja Luka
Abstract
This paper examines the architectural history of the Franciscan Province of Bosna Srebrena through the individuals responsible for the design and construction of its convents and churches. Rather than offering a conventional chronological survey of buildings and sites, the study focuses on master builders, architects, engineers, and associated collaborators whose work shaped Franciscan architectural production from the late Ottoman period to the post-1995 era. Drawing on archival material, published scholarship, and the analysis of realised projects, the paper traces the gradual transformation of building practice from a craft-based culture of locally or regionally engaged master builders to a professionally defined architectural field dominated by academically trained architects.
Particular attention is given to the changing models of authorship and patronage across successive historical periods: the late Ottoman era, the Austro-Hungarian period, the interwar Kingdom of Yugoslavia, socialist Yugoslavia, and the post-war decades after 1995. The study highlights the role of major figures such as Josip pl. Vancaš, Karel Pařík, Jože Plečnik, Zlatko Ugljen, and Ivan Štraus, while also recovering the contributions of less-studied builders and designers whose work formed an essential part of the Province's architectural landscape.
The paper argues that the architectural heritage of Bosna Srebrena should not be understood solely through stylistic or site-based analysis. Instead, it can be approached as a product of shifting historical conditions, institutional needs, and architectural networks extending across Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia, and the wider Central European sphere. In this way, the study contributes to a more nuanced understanding of Franciscan architecture as a field shaped by both continuity and transformation.
Keywords
Bosna Srebrena; Franciscan architecture; sacred architecture; master builders; architects; Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Hrčak ID:
351187
URI
Publication date:
1.10.2026.
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