Savo Radulovic  (1911 - 1991)

i am sove and stanleys 2end generation nephew
you can contact tanya and james kirkland which savo and stanley were both my moms uncals and her mother was savos and stanleys sister and mom has alot of storys about them and the haritage feel free to call us at v714-799-3108

Savo Radulovic
I am Rory Ellinger and have lived in St Louis most of my life. My uncle by marriage was named Robert O. Biggs, who was married to Edith Ellinger. Bob and Edith were connected to Savo, and good friends with Joe Jones, Jack Conroy, and Wally Wharton, a local poet.

I know bits and pieces about Radulovic's life. He was strongly connected to my uncle Dean and my aunt Edith Ellinger. They hung out together at Little Bohemia, which was co-owned by Savo and his brother Stanley.

I would love to hear if anyone knows any stories concerning any of my relatives in connection with Stanley and Savo. I grew up in Webster Groves with a painting by Stanley Radulovic, an oblong harlequin, painted in the style of Modigliani. Above our fireplance stood a giant piece by Stanley entitled "Partisans in Wartime." It was especially glorious painting of trees being whipped back and forth and a long bedraggled line of small figures representing fugitives in Yugolavia.

I do not know how my father, a conservative Republican business man, got these paintings except through my aunt and uncle who were Bohemians and radicals in the 40s and 50s.
Aanother painting I have is greatly damaged. It is of an enormous forest being whipped by the wind. Unfortunately about half of the paint has come loose from the canvas, but is restorable.

What I remember from family lore but have no proof of is that Savo was parachuted into Yugoslavia, where he had emigrated from years before. Family lore says he and his father were coal miners in Illinois, but I may be mistaken. He was a Serbian Yugoslav, like Tito.

We have a highly propagandistic painting by Savo that we recently purchased from Ivey Selkirk showing a Nazi German artillery being blown up, resting by the side of the road. In the middle of the destroyed armature is a clear Nazi swastika. On the left of the canvas march the faceless white draped soldiers of "the people" which I suppose represented the Yugoslavian army. Quite a dramatic piece. I regret that the large painting of the refugees was sent to Australia to my sister after my parents' death, along with brother Stanley's harlequin, and both have probably disappeared.

The most interesting Radulovic painting we own from the 30s shows a wheat farmer in the field with classic Communist large hands. It hung in my uncle Dean's house for 30 years and I always loved it. My uncle Dean was a hopeless alcoholic and sold this painting toward the end of his life and it ended in a gallery in Kansas City. When I was in my early 20s I was in the gallery and saw this painting and recognized it instantly. The proprietor said the social realism stuff would never amount to anything. It is a magnificent portrait, much in the mode of Thomas Hart Benton and Joe Jones. I bought it for $100.

During my acquaintance with Jack Conroy he would talk about hanging out at Little Bohemia and drinking with Jones, Radulovic, et al. I think there is a painting that hung in Little Bohemia of a large nude with a leering plutocrat staring at her, like a peeping tom, at the Tomsich gallery in Clayton, and looks like it would fit neatly above a bar. It is done in a bawdy manner and could have hung in Little Bohemia. Radulovic opened a successful art gallery in New York, and we have two or three of his later works that are expressionistic, of moving traffic and lights from Times Square in New York. We also have a couple of sketches of a violinist and are on the lookout for Radulovic paintings.

Like one of the early writers on this discussion, our walls are covered with art but we try to emphasize St Louis artists such as my uncle Robert O (Bob) Biggs, and his circle. Bob's closest friend was Wally Wharton.

I'm glad that someone at the Arch grounds is interested in this historic period. I personally would like to hear from anyone who knows anything about my uncle Bob Biggs, who lost his parents and was adopted by a dentist, came to Wash U after a heroic four years in the Air Force (I have Bob's diary of his wartime experience and his medals). He went to Wash U on the GI bill, quit because of an argument with Max Beckmann, but was great influenced by Siegfried Reinhardt.

We have several works by Reinhardt and also Fred Conway.

If you would like to communicate directly, here is my email address: RoryElling@aol.com

Savo Radulovic
This message is in response to messages currently posted in this section, welcoming feedback from all sources. My name is Bob Moore, and I work for the National Park Service in St. Louis, Missouri at the Gateway Arch as the site historian. The location of the famous Arch was, in the 1930s, the location of a "bohemian" artist community. Savo Radulovic (1911-1991) lived and worked in a studio/nightclub he called the "Little Bohemia" on the riverfront between about 1934 and 1939. These were the formative years of his artistic training and his cafe was a seminal meeting place for the city's intelligencia and creative artistic community during the period. Famous visitors to Savo's place included Carl Sandburg, George Gershwin, Thomas Wolfe, Nazimova, and Feodor Chaliapin. We are in the process of gathering information about Mr. Radulovic, to add to what we currently have, for display on a website we are creating which will describe the St. Louis riverfront and what it was like during the 1930s. Comments are welcome, scans of Savo's artwork would be a wonderful thing to include. In a way, the site would be a memorial tribute to a fine artist who once enlivened this Midwestern city and went on to do far more. Savo worked in a milieu that included renowned artist Joe Jones, novelist Jack Conroy and many others. We intend to bring this period to life through oral history interviews, newspaper reports, and photographs of the period. Any assistance you might be able to render would be most appreciated.

I have the honor of being friends with Savo
Back in the 70s and 80s I have the honor of knowing Savo, he was a regular at our home in New Jersey were we share many wonderful memories,dinners, story telling and lots of laughter, he became part of our family, we bought several of his paintings, some in particular were family portraits leaving great memories behind , we also enjoyed his company in the many trips we took to Dubrovnik, I still own a couple of his paintings which I may decide to sell if anyone out there is interested, I will reply for any who wishes to purchase any of his fine art work, it was truly a delight to have had him as a close friend, I miss him greatly, he was one of a kind, a very special man larger than life. ljejenich@aol.com

I sublet his apartment on east 56th street
When I first moved to NYC in 1986, my roomate and I sublet Savo's apartment on E 56th while he spent time in Dubrovnic painting and resting. We dined with him several times before he departed and I still remember some of our conversations - "In America children read only childrens books; but when I was 4 years old I was reading Plato!" I have such colorful memories of his art-filled apartment. I remember he had an ancient urn that was given to him by Tito. I would love to know how I could purchase some of his artwork!

my aunt's dear friend
My 2 aunt were dear friends of Savo's and visited him often in Dubrovnic during the 60 and early 70's. They had a large collection of his work, which I never appreciated as a young girl. It was not until my later years that one aunt, imparticular, shared her life's experiences with me and all the wonderful stories of this "larger than life" man. Unfortunately both my aunts are gone now, but I was the lucky one to inherit their collection, which I now truly love and appreciate. I would love to speak with anyone that could share any more stories with me about him. I even have a portrait of my aunt which he painted which is particularly special, as it captures her perfectly...reading a book...as she so loved to do!

heard about him all my life
I have been looking for info on Savo Radulovich all my life! My parents knew him in St. Louis in the 30s, Robert and Ruth Wind.
I've been spelling the name wrong all these years.
They remarked on his talent and a lovely lady he was with. At one point, he gave my dad some paintings to hold in temporary storage. I wonder if they knew the Kline's? My parents raised me with a deep appreciation of art--my walls are full!

a life-long friend of my parents
Savo was a life-long friend of my parents, Robert & Peggy Kline of St. Louis. Dad died at age 87 in 1996, Mom at age 81 in 2000.

I have a photo of my mother and her twin sister and their best friend taken in Savo's little garret-like apartment in St. Louis in the 30s.

Savo used to visit our home and I recall his visits in the 70s when I was a kid. He liked his wine and was a larger-than-life, charming fellow.

I still have prints of some of his paintings but don't know what became of whatever originals we had of his work, though I am sure we must have had some.

27 yrs ago...
27 years ago, my roommate and I sublet an apartment in NY across the street from Bloomingdales. We were young and carefree. Mr. Radulovic welcomed us and said we could use all of his paints and enjoy. I never appreciated it back then...
Now, I look back and remember the beautiful paintings in the apartment. I especially loved the nudes. I know that sounds weird, but they were in good taste and I wish I had money back them to buy some from him.
Those couple of months in Savo's studio were a memorable experience for me. I will never forget it.
All the best to him if he is still alive and his family. If someone knows how to get a hold of hiswoek, please tell me.
Sincerely,
Mimi Rozo

Savo Radulovic
My parents owned a gallery in Millburn NJ from 1961- 1979. One of their favorite artists was Radulovic. When I was in my early teens, in the early 1960's, I accompanied my mother to Radulovic's studio in Manhattan to buy paintings. He was a huge bear of man. He often used his wife and young son as models- one large oil of them hangs over our bed. I'm quite sure he died about twenty years ago. Among the art my parents left were about eight Radulovic oils, most of which hang in my house. One of my favorites is a very wide painting of a symphony orchestra, from the same perspective as would be photographed with a wide-angle lens. But most who see his work find all of it compelling.

painting
Dear Savo Radulovic,

About 25 years ago I was with my wife in your atelier/studio in Duvrovnik.
For two weeks we drank every day some glasses of wine with you.
At the end of our holliday I bought a painting. Four charcters of persons who play music. Mr. Radulovic paint above the painting: 'music impressions for Hans Barton 'It was for me a great honnor, he did that.
Still I'am a pianist/conductor and director of an institute of Arts. I want to know of Radulovic is still alive and perhaps it is possible to buy a painting of music.
Please let me know if it is possible.I still love the painting from Savo. Please let me know. May I travel to New York to visit him.

PLease let me know.

With the best regards,

Hans Barten
Winterswijk Holland