From layers of history to a fading memory: Fid-Bau Portal

From layers of history to a fading memory

Zgonić, Aida Idrizbegović / Čakarić, Jasenka / Miljanović, Slađana

On a plot that was not once, but twice a famous historic restaurant, currently stands a flat, neglected surface unworthy of its former glory days. Cafes and restaurants have always been the essence of social life. Sarajevo has a long history of cafes, dating from the XVI century, the ottoman era. This particular one that will be the subject of research was built with Hotels and Baths in Ilidfa (Sarajevo west entrance), with waters springs and natural sulphuric baths, it became a popular and fashionable place from the XIX century. The restaurant that was built was “Cur Restauration”, a hedonistic paradise that complemented the entire area, as a popular tourist destination, mostly for the elite. This restaurant and hotel complex was the place for the Habsburg royals – King Franz I stayed there in 1910, as Bosnia and Herzegovina was a part of the Monarchy. That was the place where the Archduke and successor to throne Franz Ferdinand stayed with his wife Sophia the night before their assassination in Sarajevo that triggered the First world war. The object itself was a romanticized combination of local and alpine region architectural style with elaborate and delicate wooden carvings and details. The structure was classical masonry with wood trusses that were also laced with intricate wood carvings as a part of its architectural expression. In 1966 a new modernist style Restaurant “Kristal” was built on the same spot. Its architecture was an ode to purist modernism, post and beam structural system with large glass-pane windows and cantilevered roof that hovered over a large area, complemented with outdoor terrace, space that floated between interior and exterior. This was an iconic place, from a social and architectural point of view. This structure was destroyed during the war in 1992, and currently it stands empty. This emptiness is an indication that our society at the moment is not able to absorb or evaluate its meaning and importance. We cannot allow a place that was full of life and piece of history be just a faded memory, final layer to be destruction or oblivion. If the site is discussed among professionals and politicians most prefer a facsimile reconstruction of the first restaurant, since the hotel complex still exists. But this approach is simplification and even perhaps a form of decor. This paper will explore how can we articulate this place, is it possible to embody its layers of memory through architectural means? This is a place where memory, heritage and contemporary architecture meet. The answers will be in continuity through function, inclusion, recognition of past, but mostly in creating a structure that will carry the distinction and poetic, seductive features (sometimes overly romanticized notion) of its predecessors.