Stalin commissioned some pretty horrible buildings (like the Moscow University buildings). This seemed to be repeated in the other Eastern European states-Poland, Hungary, Romania imitated the styles. Now, a lot of these buildings are being demolished-should some be saved?
I have a certain interest in stuff like (Romanian dictator ) Ceaucescue’s horror creations…but many of these edifices were shoddily built.
Should some be saved and preserved?
Soviet architecture is certainly an abomination in general. But, then again, so is much of Frank Lloyd Wright and Frank Gehre’s work too at least to me.
I think you just have to let the historical societies and people who claim to be really interested in that type of thing take the initiative to save a few examples if they really want to. I am all for historic preservation when it comes to things like whole beautiful towns but it really only takes a few examples to demonstrate the point when it comes to the hideous schools of architecture.
I would only save a couple and that’s all you need unless a private organization can raise the money and keep the ugly buildings in shape. There are way to many mediocre places historical societies would like the tax payers to keep up. Most old buildings aren’t worth the effort to stop them from falling apart. The Soviet buildings are mostly mass produced ugly. Go on urban explore sites to view it.
I started this thread a few months ago for this abandoned Soviet-era building in Bulgaria. If that doesn’t make you nostalgic, then probably nothing will.
IIRC there was a big contraversy in Germany over the government demolishing the Palast der Republik (home of the East German parliament) in Berlin.
Interesting piece of trivia - the “Stalinist Style” actually originated in New York. Right before WW1, Joseph Stalin visited Manhattan and was so impressed by the new Manhattan Municipal Building that decades later, he ordered the construction of the Seven Sistersin Moscow, which in turn served as the inspiration for public buildingsthroughout the Soviet Block.
I recall reading years ago that that made them impractical or unsafe in many parts of the world; Soviet architecture was mass produced according to Russian designs, which were optimized for Russian conditions. Good at handling things like large snowfalls and cold; not so good with hot weather, floods, hurricanes and earthquakes.
Cool. Looking at that, I can’t help but see it as part of the setting for a Fallout: Russia game.
There’s a big difference between the ubiquitous slapped-together apartment blocks and the showpiece architecture they had mostly in big cities. Much of the former are indeed dangerously unsafe and can’t be pulled down fast enough, but a lot of the nicer stuff is at least considered nice enough that nobody is feeling the need to destroy it.
One of the best examples of the latter might be Karl-Marx-Allee in (former East) Berlin, which has been lovingly restored since reunification and is one of the more desirable neighborhoods in modern Berlin. From what I understand, there are similar showpiece neighborhoods in Moscow where the ruling elite lived during the Soviet era that also remain quite prestigious.
That building was butt-ugly. I walked through it hundreds of times back in those old East German visit days. I wasn’t really all that old and was built by the East Germans, but was considered an architectural jewel by the Party (that obviously had no architectural taste or flair for design). Plus, I believe they were going to keep it for nostalgic reasons, but then discovered it was chock full of asbestos and was a major health hazard. It cost a fortune to have specialists tear the building down.
There were, however, many other buildings and entire streets filled with the old Stalin style of architecture…Karl Marx Allee (photo link today) has huge apartment complexes on each side of the street that mirrored each other exactly…looked kind of cool until the East Germans told me “Nobody wants to live in those crappy places.” Some were over 10 stories high and had no elevators, bad plumbing and heating and I think the biggest complaint was that all the interior moldings and doors, etc. were made of some kind of plastic that would break easily and be hard to repair.
Oops, typo in my post above: While it is true that “I wasn’t really all that old…” I meant to say “It wasn’t really all that old…”
But were you built by the East Germans?
Wow-thanks for the link-amazing how these buildings resemble Mormon temples!
The mid twentieth century especially and the 20th century generally were not good times for architecture. Anyway I see your Soviet era construction and raise you Council houses of England..
You’re a Londoner, right? I could see why you would say that - the 20th Centrury did London few favors. A New Yorker, though, might say otherwise.
Not since 2009, but yes I did live in London for quite a while. Well NYC had the luxury of not being bombed. Many of these butt ugly buildings in nearly all countries were built to provide cheap housing for the displaced masses. Practicality not aesthetics governed the day, they needed to build them quickly.
But still, no excuse for not having the whole lot torn down by 1980…latest.
On the other hand, both former East- and former West Berliners seem to have developed a degree of (perhaps grudging) affection for the TV tower. Even if it does look suspiciously like an olive on a cocktail stick 
Maybe I’m biased, as I lived in Moscow State dorms while in grad school, but I always loved the seven sisters. It was like going home to a Batman supervillian’s house.
Yeah, there is noshortageofthosehere, too, although they mostly aren’t as monumental as some of their European brethren. Some of them have indeed been torn down, some are still slums, and some are surprisingly expensive these days. Location, location.
What do you mean by this question exactly? Do you own any such buildings? Are you asking for advice on what to do with these buildings you own?
Generally, people who own buildings can do whatever they want with them within the confines of zoning, nuisance, etc. laws. Asking what “should” be done with buildings you don’t own seems weird to me.