Memorative Landscape: Concept and Experience

The use of landscape terminology in the studies of urban memory may seem redundant against the background of the established languages of description and discursive practices of commemoration. Nevertheless, the variety of already identified landscapes and approaches to their study illustrates the heuristic potential of the concept. Firstly, the landscape itself indicates a topography, a nuclear connection with the place. Secondly, a spatial frame is set - be it a city, knowledge or some memories associated with a certain territory. Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, the landscape makes it possible to connect dissimilar elements into something whole. In the landscape, the policy of memory is surprisingly manifested - what to highlight and place in the foreground, and what is better not to notice and ignore. On the other hand, spontaneous elements associated with the personal memories of residents and urban communities rhizom-atically \