The Ars Aevi Museum of Contemporary Art (whose name is a partial anagram of “Sarajevo”, meaning “art of the epoch” in Latin) was founded during the war, in 1992.

A group of enthusiasts led by Enver Hadžiomerspahić invited artists from all over the world to donate some of their works as a symbol of support for Sarajevo during the Siege, while also building up a collection for what would later become Sarajevo’s museum of contemporary art.

Ars Aevi’s unique collection arrived in Sarajevo in 1999 and is comprised of approximately 150 works of art that were donated by some of the most renowned local and international contemporary artists.

Today, this collection is considered one of the most important collections of modern art in Southeastern Europe. Following the closing of the depot for the Ars Aevi Museum of Contemporary Art at Skenderija, this valuable art collection was relocated to Vijećnica, where will remain until the Museum of Contemporary Art opens on Wilson’s Promenade. 

The design for the new museum was put forth by the Italian architect, Renzo Piano, who also donated the materials used in the construction of the pedestrian bridge that spans the Miljacka River near the site of the future Ars Aevi Museum.

In recent years, Ars Aevi has organized many exhibits in Sarajevo by prominent artists, such as Michelangelo Pistoletto, Joseph Kosuth, Joseph Beuys, Bizhan Bassiri, Maja Bajević, Jusuf Hadžifejzović, Jannis Kounellis..., all of whom have donated some of their own works to the museum’s collection.