The conversation held in September 2024 on the occasion of the inauguration of if walls could tell, an installation by artist Mischa Kuball, can be considered historic in many ways. For the first time, three museum directors stepped out from behind the walls of their institutions and gathered at the same table, or, more precisely, in front of the same wall. Each presented their vision of the role of museums, generating synergies and making use of the potential of the space they share. The discussion took place outdoors, in the space between the museums, and attracted a large number of passers-by. It was the first public conversation in the Museum Quarter.

When the Austro-Hungarian administration in Sarajevo built the Landesmuseum, later the National Museum, on the edge of the city, it created an imposing structure: four pavilions and a botanical garden, designed by Karl Paržik. The aim was to present the country’s rich and previously unexplored cultural and historical heritage, to introduce the province to Western civilization, and to establish a modern museum housing collections assembled by pioneers of archaeology, ethnology, and the natural sciences. By the time the building was completed, however, the Monarchy was already in its final days.

When the socialist government erected its museum decades later, it too had a clear vision: to construct a new socialist society in the spirit of revolution and a projected future. This was embodied in the modernist building by Boris Magaš, Radovan Horvat, and Edo Šmidihen. Also located on the city’s outskirts, the area would only much later develop into the administrative and business hub of the Marijin Dvor neighbourhood. For decades, the two museums operated side by side with little or no contact: the first sustained by the prestige of being the oldest museum, devoted to science and research; the second animated by the ideology of building a new society, content with the stability of the system. They paid little attention to each other during the socialist era, and after the 1990s — under the new socio-political conditions — no one paid much attention to them at all, least of all the government.

At one point, even the tram stop named Muzeji (Museums) was renamed Tehnička škola (Technical School), a change that passed almost unnoticed, apparently troubling no one. In the early 2000s, plans emerged for a third museum nearby, one linked to the city’s recent history and to the solidarity shown by international artists toward the citizens of Sarajevo under siege. This time, the vision was to support the city and its community, to contribute to its physical and spiritual renewal through art, and to position Sarajevo as a significant centre for the international contemporary art scene.

The celebrated architect chosen for this project admired the modernist building of the Historical Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina and wanted to construct another on the same site, borrowing a little from his Croatian/Yugoslav colleague’s work. It would not have been much, just the administrative part of the building, nothing particularly remarkable. Fortunately, the project was later significantly altered, leaving the Magaš building almost intact. Local authorities also welcomed the idea of a new museum, periodically cutting ribbons and laying foundation stones. Yet more than twenty years have passed, and the museum remains unbuilt.

In the meantime, government attitudes toward museums have barely changed — though the tram stop has once again been renamed Museums. What has changed is the surrounding urban fabric: Marijin Dvor has become a dynamic hub of shopping centres and development, with further growth anticipated in line with the capital’s needs. More importantly, awareness among us, the museum-goers, has also shifted towards the potential of museums, the importance of the local community, and the inseparability of museums from their surroundings.

The Historical Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina, compelled by circumstances, began to open itself more to the outside world and to its immediate neighbours, exploring ways to connect cultural, educational, and commercial actors in the district. In 2017, the project Meet the Neighbours sought to bring all local stakeholders together, positioning the museum as a place of encounter. At the time, we were not yet familiar with the name or concept of the Museum Quarter, but the idea of activating the space between the museums, with its constant flow of people, was always present. Two museums alone can form the nucleus of a museum district, but something more was needed — a new impulse to revive the idea. That impulse came with the more serious steps toward the construction of the Ars Aevi Museum of Contemporary Art.

The story of Sarajevo’s Museum Quarter is not one of master plans by urban planners or self-styled visionaries (some of whom still dream of a transversal cutting through the two existing museums and a green city oasis). Nor is it a story of “starchitects” transforming urban space into glittering cultural-commercial zones. And, fortunately, it is not a state-sponsored construction project instrumentalised to bolster nationalist policies, as in some neighbouring countries. Its greatest potential lies precisely in the fact that it grew organically, over decades, shaped by architects such as Karlo Paržik, Boris Magaš, Edo Šmidihen, Radovan Horvat, and, finally, Renzo Piano — each working in different historical, social, and political contexts, each striving to create something new and different.

It is now up to us to see whether we can harness this potential, whether we can transform a zone rich in architectural heritage and diverse museum concepts into a vibrant site of cultural exchange, education, economic development, as a recognizable brand of Sarajevo. To begin, it is enough simply to walk through its walls…

Elma Hašimbegović is a historian and museum professional with over two decades of experience in the museum sector, specializing in curatorial practices, museum management, and cultural heritage preservation. Since 2001, she has been professionally affiliated with the History Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina, initially as a curator and, since 2013, as the museum’s director. Her professional expertise includes the development and implementation of exhibition concepts, strategic institutional leadership, and the positioning of the museum as a platform for education, critical reflection, and public engagement. She has contributed to numerous international cultural, museum and academic projects, with a focus on inclusive museum practices and contemporary approaches to historical narratives.