The Western Gate
The Brutalist Genex-Tower is one of the iconic buildings from the ‘Golden Age’ of Yugoslavia, a twin-tower conceptualized in 1977 and constructed in 1980, also known as The Western Gate. The fate of Genex relied greatly on the history of Serbia and Yugoslavia. The Yugoslavian Civil War, economic penalties, the socialist regime, the collapse of the state, nepotism, corruption and a failing economic policy derailed the former giant. Serbia’s todays Pro-EU policy and the ongoing economic problems create a nationwide insecurity which strengthen the Pro-Russian opposition. The view to the west in Belgrade doesn’t reveal only the Genex-Tower, the Western Gate, but underlines the fear and hope of the entry into the European Union.