Ethics of Remembering in Memory and Memorization

Abstract

This critical reflection examines Sabina Tanović's two-decade trajectory of architectural and research practice, commencing with her 2006 graduation from the Faculty of Architecture at the University of Sarajevo. Using her memorial museum project dedicated to the siege of Sarajevo as a critical point of departure, she traces the evolution of her work from conventional architectural paradigms toward a practice that challenges established frameworks of traditional architectural production. Through critical autobiography, she interrogates the presumption that utility combined with beauty inherently produces meaning — an assumption that underpinned her education and early work but which her practice, focused on memorial spaces and difficult heritage, actively contests. This personal-professional evolution has profoundly informed her pedagogical approaches, particularly as they respond to intersecting crises: climate collapse, social disintegration, and the erosion of international legal frameworks. Reflecting on this transformative journey, the reflection offers insights into the politics of architecture's capacity to respond to challenges through reimagining the discipline's fundamental premises.