Docomomo Journal

MULTIPLE MODERNITIES IN UKRAINE

2022-12-12T13:53:24+01:00

When moving the Docomomo Headquarters to Delft in January 2022, it announced a new cycle of the Docomomo journal by turning the journal fully open access and by introducing a peer-review process. This allows for further scientific indexation of the journal and attracting a wider range of authors. In September 2022 the Docomomo Journal was indexed by Scopus and the issues 1-65 from 1990-2021 are available online in our Docomomo journal Archive. Since then, the Docomomo Journal 66 on Modern Plastic Heritage was published and with this Docomomo Journal 67 we are approaching the country that has dominated our political and cultural discussions in 2022: Ukraine. In January 2022 it was not predictable that national autonomy, human lives and cultural heritage are threatened and destroyed by Russian aggression that started on 24th February 2022. In March of this year, Docomomo International published the Solidarity Statement on Ukraine and has since then been working on this special issue on the Multiple Modernities in Ukraine.

MODERN WORLD HERITAGE

2022-12-12T13:54:50+01:00

The article reflects on the status of modern World Heritage sites in general and in particular related to Ukraine, and the specific typologies of infrastructure and modern urban planning – both closely related to each other. The current war and the disastrous destruction of urban and civil infrastructure have again raised the question of its public perception, official recognition and national and international protection. Next to the internationally known Derzhprom complex, the cnstruction of Dneprostroj, the Dnipro Hydroelectric Station (DneproGES/DniproHES), the erection of a new industrial combine in direct proximity to it, and the new socialist city Sotsgorod—known as Zaporizhzhia—are impressive examples of urbanization and testimonies of the 20th century that need to be protected.

CHALLENGES OF ARCHITECTURAL ARCHIVING IN UKRAINE

2022-12-12T14:03:22+01:00

The history of the Ukrainian state, as well as the history of Ukrainian architecture in the 20th century, was more than turbulent. Wars, revolutions and changes in architectural development according to the course of the political establishment had a negative impact on archiving and preserving the memory of previous periods. Unfortunately, since the full-scale Russian invasion on February 24, numerous monuments, buildings and heritage sites have been exposed to danger again or have already been destroyed. By November 7, 2022, UNESCO confirmed the destruction or war damage of 213 cultural heritage sites in Ukraine: 92 religious buildings, 77 historical buildings and cultural institutions, 18 monuments, 16 museums and ten libraries.
But despite all the difficulties, Ukraine’s main symbol and outpost of architectural archiving still remains safe—the State Scientific Research Library of Architecture and Construction, named after Volodymyr Zabolotny. In Ukraine, there is still no museum of architecture or research center, but there is the Library.1 It is considered not only a library but also a museum and a scientific architectural center hosting conferences, exhibitions and preserving architectural memory in Ukraine.

ERASING OR RESTORING UKRAINIAN HERITAGE

2022-12-12T14:05:06+01:00

In Ukraine, heritage has been a battlefield since World War II. In those years, the Kyiv reconstruction was dominated by Russian architects, and Ukrainian architects were marginalized in their own city. However, restoration of churches slowly became a topic where policy changed from Stalin’s doctrines to his successors’ principles, and where Ukrainian builders managed to gain some success in heritage protection. This prevailed more after independence in 1991. The present war that Putin triggered against Ukraine is accelerating heritage issues. The destructions of this war have hit all types of buildings, but some of the reactions of the people in charge should arouse worry for the preservation of the 20th century heritage. The obvious lack of interest for the modern heritage of the 1920s and 1930s, or even for the more classical Stalinist buildings of the 1940s and 1950s, expresses a kind of selective memory. Soon this may lead to regrettable deletions, adding more disaster to the destructive traces that the war has already left. Consequently, and despite the many ghosts left by the Soviet regime (something which understandably led to the controversial decommunization laws), more studies should be launched on the Constructivist and Stalinist legacy in particular, in order to help saving this significant part of Ukraine history. This research could be useful when the reconstruction and conservation of the damaged towns eventually begins.

THE HEROIC PERIOD OF ARCHITECTURE IN UKRAINE

2022-12-12T14:08:46+01:00

This article is devoted to the search for answers to several burning questions: what is the uniqueness of the industrial, civil and residential architecture of Ukraine in the 1920s - early 1930s? Does it need to be preserved? Why did foreign architectural criticism call these years the “heroic period of architecture”, yet the early Modernism of that time is still not appreciated at its true worth in its homeland? What was ‘heroic’ in the architecture of Ukraine and its first capital, Kharkiv? A brief analysis of the political and economic situation in which the newly-born independent Ukrainian Socialist Soviet Republic found itself is given. The most striking examples of modernist architecture in Ukraine are selected for argumentation. These are industrial giants such as Dniproges and Kharkiv Turbine Plant, the new cities of Zaporizhzhia and New Kharkiv, grandiose metropolitan projects: the ensemble of Svoboda Square—the largest square in Europe, as well as other examples of avant-garde architecture built or developed in those years are presented in the article. The reasons for their loss of authenticity in subsequent decades are revealed. Finally, the problem of preserving the heritage of Modernism in Ukraine in the conditions of a new war is touched upon.

THE INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION FOR THE STATE UKRAINIAN THEATER (1930)

2022-12-12T14:10:45+01:00

Even although the International Competition for the State Ukrainian Theater (1930) did not result in any construction, it was a major landmark of Modernism in Ukrainian architecture. The competition received 144 entries from Soviet Union states and other countries, including four individual and one team proposals from Japan. Of these, Renshichiro Kawakita, a 29-year-old architect from Japan, was awarded the fourth prize and ranked higher than world-famous architects and designers like Walter Gropius, Norman Bel Geddes, and Hans Poelzig. This article deals with the modernist architectural scene in Japan around 1930 by introducing Japanese modernist architects’ applications to the competition. The structure of this paper is as follows: The introduction presents the four groups of applicants from Japan, and highlights the tense shipping deadline faced by Kawakita based on a retrospective by his collaborator. The main part points out that the proposal from Japan understood the organizer’s purpose to seek new ideas for theaters as cultural facilities for the proletariat via this competition, and designed it in line with that purpose. In this regard, Kawakita’s effective presentation in the drawings led to his prize. It also examines Kawakita’s architectural philosophy based on his comments after winning the prize. Kawakita praised functionalism and anti-aesthetics and believed that new architects should be engineers (rather than artists) with “inventor” nuances. This idea resonates with the international avant-garde ideas of the time in modernist architecture.

ARCHITECTURE OF AVANT-GARDE IN UKRAINE IN 1921-1939: ORIGINS, WAYS OF SPREADING, MAIN FEATURES

2022-12-12T14:12:13+01:00

The heritage of the architectural Avant-garde in Ukraine, formed in the interwar period (1921-1939), is large-scale in the number of objects and diverse in their typology, techniques and forms of expression of modern architectural ideas. Volyn – a historical Ukraine region that, at that time, was part of Poland (the Second Polish Republic) – plays a special role in this context. To date, the region has preserved a significant array of objects that demonstrate the specifics of the interpretation of European and Polish Avant-garde concepts. The article attempts to analyze the architectural context, ways of spreading and formation features of the architectural image of residential and public buildings as part of the European heritage of Interwar Modernism. Lack of professional evaluation and recognition of the objects’ value leads to their gradual degradation, reconstruction or destruction. Methods of comparative and stylistic analysis, archival research and field surveys of architectural objects were used in this research. The study showed that the spread of the Avant-Garde style in the architecture of Volyn was significantly delayed compared to similar processes in the architecture of Western Europe and Poland and reached its peak at the end of the interwar period. The use of formative techniques of Avant-Garde architecture in housing construction became an identifier and symbol of the social prestige of certain social groups. The design of public buildings reflected Volyn’s rapid social modernization.

NATIONAL TRADITIONS IN THE ARCHITECTURE OF UKRAINIAN MODERNISM OF THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY

2022-12-12T14:13:35+01:00

The national identity of Ukrainian architecture in the early 20th century manifested itself in the formation and development of the style of Ukrainian Modernism. This style was formed and spread in different regions of Ukraine as an original national style based on modern European achievements. Today, the issues of preserving its independence and national authenticity in architecture have become very important for Ukraine. Understanding the architectural style based on national traditions can guide the future development of Ukrainian architecture. The article considers Ukrainian Modernism in the context of general cultural developments. It provides a general description of the style of Ukrainian Modernism in the early 20th century, with an indication of the geographical locations where it developed and the main features of Ukrainian culture in the studied period. Theoretical and empirical research methods are used in this article, including a graphical analysis of the overall composition of buildings and their architectural details. The influence of Ukrainian Art Nouveau on the further development of Ukrainian architecture is explored, highlighting the relevance of national identity in architecture. The novelty of the study is the focus on the generalization of morphological features for the formation of a national style. The research can contribute to the revival of the national identity of Ukrainian culture at the present stage. Today, the study and analysis of national features of historical architectural heritage are important for Ukrainian society, as the post-war reconstruction of Ukrainian cities might be based partly on national authenticity in the figurative design of buildings, squares, and ensembles.

MASS HOUSING IN UKRAINE IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE 20TH CENTURY

2022-12-12T14:15:00+01:00

The housing issue is rightly considered one of the most acute problems of humankind. It is generated by social causes and has a social meaning. The housing issue cannot be solved with purely technical, architectural or artistic approaches. Rather, it also depends significantly on economic, political and environmental circumstances. At different times, the nature of the living environment was formed under the influence of social order, the level of development of productive forces, household and economic systems, and other factors. In the second half of the 20th century, following standard designs, Ukrainian cities mostly consisted of four- and five-story residential buildings in new residential areas. As a result, the living environment of many cities in the country acquired a common and rather modest appearance, dominated by concrete construction. At that time, this was the most effective way of mass housing construction. New technologies and design solutions were used. Such housing was cheap and purposefully met the social standards at the time. In addition, for the owners of such housing, it meant a new higher level of comfort. This publication focusses on housing construction in the second half of the 20th century in Ukraine after 1956. It is important to identify the quality of such housing and its compliance with modern requirements. Methods of systematization of historiographical materials, comparative and historical analysis, and field surveys were used to achieve the aim. Among the main achievements are the comfortable density of residential areas and fast construction times. The disadvantages of this period’s mass housing construction are related to missing maintenance, ongoing destruction, often complex ownership situations and the challenge to adapt each building to current needs and regulations.

KYIV MODERNISM

2022-12-12T14:16:28+01:00

This article attempts to demonstrate the changes that occur over a certain period in assessing the cultural heritage of different eras—from the scientific interest of individuals to wide public recognition. Today, the status of architectural monuments starts to be given to objects of the 1960s and 1980s, but these processes are accompanied by scientific and organizational problems. As an example, the author took the case of Kyiv, which includes many modern buildings of the 1920s-1930s and 1960s-1980s. The research is relevant, primarily considering the interest that modern architecture arouses in society today. At the same time, experts face a misunderstanding of the value of this architectural style, the objects of which are often endangered. Therefore, the relevance is strengthened by the negative trends of current construction processes in Kyiv, mass demolition or reconstruction of architectural heritage objects. The topic of cultural heritage protection is interdisciplinary—it combines the history of society and city life in general, the history of architecture, and actual architectural and artistic analysis. The article is mainly based on the practical experience of working with architectural monuments in Kyiv: their scientific research and preparation of legal documentation. The author does not analyze the value of Modernism as a recognized worldwide movement but depicts the peculiarities of its perception in society. This is facilitated by personal communication with a certain number of people, analysis of social networks and existing bureaucratic practices in the field of monument protection. Based on the analysis of Kyiv’s architectural heritage and existing public cases, the author concludes that only the joint work of architectural historians, experts in the field of monument protection and a wide range of interested city residents will allow to discover, research and preserve the maximum number of valuable modern buildings and sites, legally protect them by including them in the Register of immovable objects of cultural heritage.

EXHIBITING MODERNISM IN UKRAINE

2022-12-12T14:17:54+01:00

The Triennial of Modernism originated in 2013 from a cooperation between Berlin, Dessau and Weimar in Germany. Since then, the cultural, architectural and intellectual heritage of the epoch has been brought into the focus of the general public every three years, so far in 2013, 2016, 2019, and in 2022. The festival grew as a bottom-up and cross-sectoral network, with rising partnerships in Germany and abroad—projected to become a European Triennial of Modernism. A cross-city motto is determined in advance, which can also take into account special anniversaries or theme years. In 2022, a special focus takes a closer look at the roots and the heritage of Modernism in Ukraine, for a trans-European consideration of historical references and protagonists.

THE ENDANGERED CITIES OF UKRAINE

2022-12-12T14:06:36+01:00

In June 2022, UNESCO General Director, Audrey Azoulay warned that relentless attacks on Ukrainian cultural sites must cease. Yet, those have only further intensified since and as of early November 2022, according to the count made by her organization, 212 cultural sites had been totally or partially destroyed in Ukraine, among which 92 religious sites and 94 landmark buildings, monuments or historical sites, but also 16 museums and 10 libraries. To an organization founded in 1945 upon the rubble of WWII and whose mission notably consists in protecting world tangible and intangible heritage, the return of war in Europe represents a major challenge.

PUBLISHED RESEARCH SOURCES ON UKRAINIAN AVANT-GARDE

2022-12-12T14:19:34+01:00

Ukrainian architecture is scarcely represented in Western libraries. And there are few Western investigations that specialize in the Ukrainian Modern Movement. For a long time, Selim Omarovich Khan-Magomedov’s book ‘Pioneers of Soviet architecture’, first published in the German Democratic Republic in 1983 as ‘Pioniere der Sowjetischen Architektur. Der Weg zur neuen sowjetischen Architektur in den zwanziger und zu Beginn der dreißiger Jahre’, has been the best known source on this subject accessible for Western scholars. In 1987, this book was translated and published in English by Thames and Hudson/Rizzoli. After the fall of the Soviet Union, Khan-Magomedov reworked his manuscript and published an enhanced Russian version in two volumes1.
In this short overview of published materials on Ukrainian Avant-garde, I want to focus on almost unknown publications from the 1920s-1930s and recent research published in the last three decades.