The sculpture Woman Sitting bears witness to the connections between Croatia and Serbia, as well as to the broader ties that linked the Yugoslav republics in the late 1980s. It was presented to the City of Belgrade by the municipalities of Bjelovar and Varaždin on the occasion of the 9th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement in 1989. Created by the Croatian sculptor Ivan Sabolić, the work was installed in Tašmajdan Park the same year. It depicts a stylised female figure seated in a calm, contemplative pose, with her legs drawn together on a small wooden stool.
The sculpture formed part of the Yugoslav Gift Gallery, a collection of artworks donated to Belgrade by cities and municipalities from across Yugoslavia in preparation for the Non-Aligned summit. These gifts were intended not only to represent the communities from which they came, but also to symbolise the values of cooperation, solidarity, and unity before both domestic and international audiences.
At first glance, many visitors to Tašmajdan Park interpret the sculpture as a bull. This impression is reinforced by the unusual shape of the stool on which the figure sits, as well as by the highly stylised forms characteristic of Sabolić’s sculptural language. In reality, however, the work represents a simplified female figure, shaped in accordance with traditional notions of women’s roles and everyday life.
