Walkway to Memory is a profound exploration of heritage architecture as a medium for healing, remembrance, and civic renewal. Designed by Zsolt Vasáros DLA, Baidaa Elfrieh, and Sarah Tawalbeh, this People’s Choice Award entry for the Memory competition proposes a sensitive yet forward-looking intervention in the heart of war-torn Aleppo.

Placed at the edge of the historic Aleppo Citadel, the project transforms a devastated site—once home to the Serail complex—into an experiential architectural journey. Through spatial sequencing, framed views, preserved ruins, and layered exhibitions, Walkway to Memory uses architecture not only as a witness to conflict, but as a catalyst for cultural restoration.

This article examines how the project deploys heritage architecture to connect the city’s past and present, construct a public narrative of resilience, and restore a sense of belonging for future generations.

“A layered site analysis showing the Serail’s transformation before and after the war, the Aleppo Citadel, and the preserved ruin integrated into the new architectural footprint.”

“Programmatic zoning revealing the vertical organization of exhibitions, public spaces, workshops, and circulation anchored around the Memory Walkway.”

1. SITE PLAN — CONNECTING THE PAST AND THE PRESENT

The project’s location is pivotal to its architectural and symbolic intent. The walkway unfolds adjacent to the Aleppo Citadel, one of the oldest and most iconic fortified structures in the world. The design overlays three historical conditions:

The Citadel’s enduring presence — an anchor of memory and identity
The Serail before the war — a reminder of civic life and cultural continuity
The Serail after the war — a landscape of ruin, loss, and fragmentation

By situating the new museum and public spaces on the line between these states, the architecture becomes a mediator—a threshold where past realities and future possibilities converge.

A preserved fragment of the ruined Serail stands as a physical and emotional landmark. This untouched remnant becomes the project's beating heart, confronting visitors with the stark truth of destruction while gracefully integrating it into a new spatial narrative.

2. ZONING — LAYERED EXPERIENCES WITH PURPOSE

The program is organized across multiple levels, each dedicated to a distinct layer of memory, culture, and public engagement.

Upper Level — War Exhibition & Memory Walkway

A linear walkway leads visitors through curated moments of remembrance. Exhibitions documenting the war’s impact are paired with reflective spaces, culminating in an elevated café facing the Citadel—a moment of serenity after confrontation with tragedy.

Intermediate Level — Temporary Exhibitions

Flexible gallery spaces encourage ongoing cultural production. The changing exhibitions ensure that the site remains relevant, dynamic, and connected to the evolving identity of Aleppo.

Ground Level — Public Heart of the Complex

This level includes:

The lobby and main entrance
Showrooms and administrative spaces
An amphitheater café
A gift shop and public gathering areas

The functions are arranged to create an accessible civic hub, bringing residents and visitors into constant engagement with culture, memory, and the surrounding landscape.

Basement Level — Support Backbone

Back-of-house areas, storage, and workshops ensure smooth operation of the museum and community programs. These functional elements remain visually unobtrusive yet crucial to the site's long-term sustainability.

3. SECTION — VISUAL CONNECTIONS ACROSS LEVELS

One of the project’s strongest heritage architecture gestures is the use of vertical transparency. The sectional design cultivates:

Visual Overlaps

As visitors move through the staircases and platforms, they continuously encounter glimpses of other levels—moments that feel like memories appearing and disappearing.

Spatial Rhythm

The changing heights, sloping floors, and framed openings guide visitors through distinct emotional stages, echoing the nonlinear nature of memory itself.

Narrative Progression

The section acts as a storytelling instrument, allowing architecture to choreograph experiences of loss, reflection, and hope.

“Sectional cuts and interior perspectives highlighting visual connectivity between levels and the sculpted spatial rhythm of the museum.”

“A narrow, immersive passage guiding visitors toward the preserved ruin, intensifying the emotional experience of Aleppo’s tragic history.”

4. MEMORY WALKWAY — TO FEEL THE TRAGEDY

This walkway is the core emotional journey of the project.

Long, narrow, almost oppressive corridors gradually open into larger spaces that reveal the preserved ruin. The transition from darkness to light, from enclosure to openness, mirrors the psychological arc of confronting a painful past.

Here, heritage architecture becomes experiential:

Walls tilt to create discomfort
Shadows guide movement
The ruin appears unexpectedly—unfiltered and haunting
Light pools around it, emphasizing its fragility

The walkway does not merely show history; it forces visitors to feel it. It is an architectural manifestation of trauma, resilience, and collective memory.

5. FRAMING THE CITADEL — ARCHITECTURE AS A VIEWMAKER

A defining move of the design is the dramatic, angular structure that frames a perfect, uninterrupted view of the Citadel.

This act of framing holds profound significance:

It reconnects visitors with Aleppo’s enduring identity
It symbolically aligns the future (new museum) with the past (Citadel)
It transforms the urban void into a commemorative civic plaza

The framing device also organizes the circulation, guiding visitors along terraces, shaded paths, and elevated platforms. The result is a public space that feels intentional, restorative, and open for collective use.

6. PLANS — A GUIDED SEQUENCE OF MEMORY

The architectural plans reveal a thoughtfully choreographed route:

Temporary exhibition → Ruin section → Outdoor exhibition → War exhibition → Walkway toward the Citadel → Amphitheater → Museum

This progression ensures that each visitor engages with the city’s layered history in the intended emotional and cultural order.

The museum is thus not a static building—it is an active, continuous journey between introspection and public expression.

7. PURPOSE — RAISING AWARENESS AND BELONGING

The project aspires to elevate both local and international awareness of Aleppo’s heritage and its evolving state.

It aims to:

Preserve cultural memory
Inspire responsible stewardship
Encourage rebuilding and innovation
Strengthen emotional ties between people and place

By showing past treasures, acknowledging destruction, and offering platforms for interaction, Walkway to Memory becomes an engine for collective motivation. It transforms remembrance into action, fostering hope and unity in a city seeking to heal.

Heritage Architecture as a Bridge to the Future

Walkway to Memory is not only a museum or walkway—it is a civic instrument built to reconnect people with their history, their city, and one another.

Through its sensitive use of heritage architecture, the project demonstrates that rebuilding is not merely physical—it is cultural, emotional, and communal. By embracing the past while shaping new experiences, the design helps Aleppo envision a renewed future grounded in memory, identity, and resilience.

“An open, contemplative space where the ruin stands as the emotional core, framed by soft light and minimal architectural surfaces.”

“Architectural volumes strategically frame a powerful view of the Aleppo Citadel, linking the new intervention with the city’s enduring heritage.”

WALKWAY TO MEMORY — A Heritage Architecture Pathway Reconnecting Aleppo’s Past and Present