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Communism


And its impact on the architecture and urban planning of eastern europe’s cities – construction of panel housing estates and interaction with the city.



In the autumn of 1917 the word "communism" spread throughout the world. Its origin is derived from the Latin word communis (belonging to all). The first thoughts about it were formulated by the Old-Greek philosopher Plato in his Constitution, more than two thousand and three hundred years ago. The first Communist government was born in Russia, but the revolution re-emerged as a dictatorship. At the beginning and in the middle of the 19th century, socialism seemed to be a modern political movement. They were readily accepted in France and also in other European countries where the industrial revolution caused social problems, people matured for the idea that not a private but shared ownership would enable the masses of people to participate fairly in the results of joint work. Socialism has become a hope for the future. Even many priests have taught that socialism is simply another name for Christianity. The fundamental difference between the Socialists and the Communists was that the socialists wanted to change the capitalism in communism evolutionarily and the communists revolutionarily in a very bad way.


Capitalism vs Communism


“PANEL HOUSING ESTATES – ONLY SHAME OF THE CITY?”

Therefore, to better understand what communism is, I decided to compare it with the capitalism which we mentioned in our previous lessons (Harvey or Lefebvre and their Right to the city). There are several main points and approaches that describes a particular periods of time. At first capitalism and communism never go together because of their different political and economic ideologies. Main differences consists of the resources and also the means of production.


IDEOLOGY AND IMPACT ON SHAPING THE CITY


The idea of communism was created in Europe long before Marx and Engels. Like other socialists, Marx and Engels have been striving for the end of capitalism, which they considered responsible for the exploitation of workers. But while former socialists preferred long-term social reform, Marx and Engels believed that the popular revolution was necessary and the only way to socialism. In accordance with the Marxist argument for communism, exploitation is the main feature of life in a class society; and communism is necessary because it results in the full realization of human freedom. Marx followed George Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel in understanding freedom not only as a lack of coercion, but as the presence of moral satisfaction. They believed that communism would allow people to do what they wanted, but also reach human relationships that people would not need exploitation. Unlike Hegel, the existence of this moral life is in history of ideas, but for Marx, communism came out of material, especially the development of production.


During the Second World War, most of the cities of Eastern Europe suffered from damage of building structures, most of the buildings were also devastated or left only ruins. The economic sphere was on the same way and it started to disseminate poverty. Gradually, it began with the extensive reconstruction of the places that were marked by this war period. The most important examples include the Warsaw and Dresden. However, the most problematic was the time when the city needed to be reconstructed. As a communist ideology, control was taken over by the government, which involved controlling also finances. The main direction of Communism was also the development of the industry that would restore the economic sphere of the city and return the city's life. The development of the industry took place in the first 5 to 10 years, and the city itself was reconstructed in a way that was insane and did not have an urban plan. Why? Everything was done on fast track, fast construction, due to lack of time. It was not time to make a plan. But that was not all. At that time it was also difficult to find a professionals who could do it in the shortest possible time because the city had to go ahead. So the city was reconstructed with its new spirit and character that ignored the old. The new cities were reborn according to the principles of the Soviet Socialism which, fortunately, took care of the reconstruction of damaged historic buildings, but only in a less cases and in large cities. Behalf of the development of industry this era also contributed to evacuation and relocation of people. Many traditional villages nearby rivers were demolished and their inhabitants relocated.

1. Old City Warsaw, 1947

2. The ruins of Dresden, 1945

Izvorul Muntelui on the Bistriţa river - relocation of several villages with a population of thousand people


PANEL HOUSING ESTATES


After the war in time of the industrialization, the people of the rural areas began to withdraw into the city for work. The construction of the settlements was started. In 1940, the USSR developed a new style of high - rises. The first buildings were built in Moscow and this new style has begun to be popular in other countries of the communist regime (also China and North Korea). From the very beginning, it was only about the construction of individual buildings that did not respect the plans of the urban plan and had no contact with neighbourhoods. Finally, in the mid-1950s the mass construction began to be built. For example in my home country Slovakia most of prefabricated housing estates were built in the period 1960 – 1990 . One million seven hundred eighty thousand dwellings, more than six hundred thousand are located in prefabricated panel buildings, representing a third of all dwellings in Slovakia.

1. Moscow State University

2. The palace of Culture and Science, Warsaw

The Stalin Allee (subsequently named Karl-Marx-Allee), East Berlin


The construction took place on the sites where the historic buildings mostly the churches were situated. The entire building was razed to the ground and thus gave space to the buildings of this new architectural style. This whole process has appropriated the name: communist urbanism, which consists of the complex redesign of the city. The main motives included the ideological, political, social and economic spheres. Often it was connected with modernist ideas and a compared with Le Corbusier and his urban plan for Paris. Standardized tower blocks that used structurally insulated panels for their rapid modular construction started to be new accents of the city. Simplicity, moderation, proportionality were the main visible values. Technical and economic indicators that meet the housing requirements of broad social layers allow a strict limitation for living space to which a person is entitled (in many cases nine to ten square meters). Also one room was shared with two people and there was one apartment for the whole family called the nuclear.


1. Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, Moscow

2. Paris urban plan from Le Corbusier required for the Palace of the Soviets which was never built


The most of these panel neighbourhoods was located nearby the centres of cities in many cases on their outskirts, incorporating suburbs or undeveloped land into the city. They were not included in the old centre even though there are some examples, but there are only the individual tower blocks. Construction of estates also included the infrastructure itself, the whole transport system with roads, water supply, sewerage, power supply, shopping centres, schools and other infrastructure. It is like a city in the city, with location near the city centres, due to minimise the distance of travelling to work and solve the lack of space for the construction of these apartment units in the city. Smaller housing estates were also build near or in the industrial parks and in the cities where slums existed, then the slums were redeveloped with modern housing units.

Nowa Huta, Krakow


PANEL HOUSING ESTATES

- CONNECTION WITH THE URBAN PLAN


After all I found only one solution which described why it is necessary to talk about panel housing estates in connection with the urban plan. The period of Communism, which was permitted by the massive construction of tower blocks, did not respect urban plans, but only to provide low-cost housing on a small area accommodating as many working people as possible. This disregard has often grown into catastrophic scenarios that have disturbed the old-fashioned historical structure of the city, and have neglected historic nuclei as well as historical buildings. Although these estates provided a residential function, the city was threatened in the way that we now see as negative because the residential function is not enough in this modern age, and therefore has often become a shame of the city. On the first impression, it is often like a new city in the city, but repressed the old one. I would also like to mention example from my home town, which was marked by this era. I live in one of the four panel housing estates in the city. It shapes its silhouette in a bad way. The first when you look at it you notice the giant tower blocks. How this could be happened? How this could be allowed? Well it was not ours responsibility, in that era people did not have right to this city and everything controlled state. It built new dominants that shape the city without any clear urban planning that would respect it. A few tower blocks, which are located in the old town are just exclamation points and underline this time as a time, which went against the city. Just had to fulfil the function of providing accommodation for working people. It's not just about planning, it's about the feeling when man goes through these concrete jungles. It does not care about the quality of the environment or the leisure activities of the people living in these estates. It do not care about their everyday needs. People used to be robots that live and work to earn a lot of money to have a good life. This is on the first place. No aesthetics, just function and only one function. The fact that the state has provided them with accommodation and they did not have to come from long distances to work is a big plus for the development of the city's economy, but also a huge minus for its expansion in the form of these panel housing estates. We have to prevent from these procedures and be more human´s and design city to looking in a whole city and especially for human needs. The human scale is the most important (the man must be feeling comfortable) which the era of communism totally deleted.

1. Panel housing estates Tahanovce, Kosice

2. Panel housing estates Petrzalka, Bratislava


PANEL HOUSING ESTATES: ONLY SHAME OF THE CITY?

- CHANGE OF VIEW ANGLE


Nowadays these panel housing estates are very difficult to adapt to the surrounding environment. The boom of the city is submitted to modern techniques and design, with which these estates have a problem. As a result, there is a big contrast of values, especially the aesthetic value, the value of the lack of green areas and the localization value - rural area. It is necessary to consider that the cancellation of these panel housing estates is not considered, especially for the high number of people living in. The only way is that there must be a change of view of these communists’ constructions. Turn the concrete jungle into lighter and safer places, where people will not just fall asleep after hard work but also relax and meet other residents in a common activity. Changing the angle of view means changing the negative attitude towards the panel housing estates to positive ones. The estate is like a nest of hundreds of people who may not have to pay an expensive rental in the city or have bought an apartment in the city centre. It suits them that they do not have to go far for work and do not have to pay so much. The panel housing estates will always have a manuscript of the era of Communism, but they will also be unique to their time. The role of an architect or urban planner is to add an adequate value to the everyday needs and lives of the inhabitants and to change 'grey surroundings' to 'colourful surroundings'. The environment has to fit into everyday life of people who live in it. Building new public spaces, children's playgrounds, safe places for social adaptations, partial or complete reconstruction of existing buildings (facade insulation, changing colours, replacing windows, adding loggias, balconies etc.) and integrating new functions of civic amenities have made it even easier for people to discover the hidden values of the settlement and to change their views on these impious outgrowth of communism. Change of opinion means change view on the world. There are three basic things that will bring this change to a successful end: people feel safe, people are satisfied and people have a good opportunity to live near the city centre in a good way with the positive interaction among residents.

Regeneration of panel housing estates, Frenštát pod Radhoštěm, Czech republic

Wah Fu before and after revitalization, Hong Kong, China

Complete reconstruction of existing panel house Rimavska Sobota, Slovakia

 

We cannot delete history, but we can learn from it and do not repeat it. Today is the effort to design high-quality and sustainable buildings that cooperate with the rest of the city and do not suppress it, but emphasize its value and help it to the overall silhouette. It cannot allow something to perish in such a catastrophic scenario as in the communist era, at the time of the expansion of these panel housing estates. And what communism has left us must be a big exclamation point, but yet we have to deal with it and reclaim it into places that would make the buildings a little bit cheerful and integrate new functions or public spaces. Fill these empty spaces (gaps) with life. The human scale is the most important and the creation of cosy, bright spaces only contributes to the satisfaction and security of the inhabitants of the panel housing estates and changes their view on the environment marked by the time in a positive way.

 

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