Postconstructivism

Postconstructivism was a transitional architectural style that existed in the Soviet Union in the 1930s, typical of early Stalinist architecture before World War II. The term "postconstructivism" was coined by Selim Khan-Magomedov, a historian of architecture, to describe the product of avant-garde artists' migration to Stalinist neoclassicism Russian: С.О.Хан-Магометов. «Архитектура Советского авангарда».Т1. Москва. Стройиздат. 1996 (S.O. Khan-Magomedov, "Soviet avantgarde architecture", 1996)] [English 1987 version: Khan-Magomedov, "Pioneers of Soviet Architecture: The Search for New Solutions in the 1920s and 1930s", Thames and Hudson Ltd, ISBN 978-0500341025] . Khan-Magomedov identified postconstructivism with 1932-1936, but the long construction time and vast size of the country extended the period to 1941.

Existence of this style is evident, but Khan-Magomedov's explanation of its evolution as a natural process inside the architectural community, rather than a by-product of plain State intervention, is disputed.

Khan-Magomedov's viewpoint

"This section is based on Khan-Magomedov's "Soviet avant-garde architecture", vol.1, "Avant-garde to postconstructivism and beyond" X] "

Background

In 1932-1933, during the Palace of Soviets contest, the State sent a clear message to architects that the age of experiment was over and the new buildings must follow the classical canon. At this time, architectural profession was divided into three generations:
*Mature Neoclassical architects (most of them in their fifties and sixties), like Ivan Fomin, Alexey Shchusev and Ivan Zholtovsky. Excellent education [Academic training in Tsarist Russia was long. Zholtovsky trained for his diploma for 11 years, Fomin - 17 years.] and experience led them to success in any style - Art Nouveau, Neoclassicism and Constructivism.
*A younger, diverse avantgarde movement (itself divided into rationalists and constructivists). With the exception of the Vesnin brothers, few constructivists had acquired professional experience before World War I; the war, Revolution of 1917 and Civil war halted any new construction for a decade (1914-1926). In 1927-1929, former theorists Nikolai Ladovsky, Moisei Ginzburg, Ilya Golosov stepped aside from public discussions and switched to practical building and urban planning. By 1933, they had not more than seven years of practice, and were just entering their own age of maturity.
*Finally, the vocal students of the 'Proletarian School', members of VOPRA: the "class of 1929" (Arkady Mordvinov, Karo Alabyan). Trained by Constructivist leaders in a style they dubbed "sterile avant-garde", they were completely unaware of the classical legacy and had no practical experience. They compensated for this with left-wing political assaults and accusations, in particular a campaign against Ivan Leonidov.

Birth of a style

According to Khan-Magomedov, two forerunners of the style were Ivan Fomin and Ilya Golosov. They converged on the same style from opposite directions - neoclassicism [Note that Ivan Fomin (like Alexey Shchusev) was successful in "any" style, including Constructivism - he practiced whatever was in demand.] and constructivism. Fomin's concept, easily formulated, erected in steel and granite in Moscow (Dynamo Building), was well understood even by the inexperienced youth. "The youth instinctively followed those who managed to declare their stance clearly. The youth believed that this period is a self-sufficient cultural stage, not a transition to something else".X] In 1933-1934, Golosov publicly disposed with the avantgarde. He returned to Neoclassicism, trying to avoid direct citations from the past. For example, he used square columns instead of traditional, round ones. Square, lean columns without capitals became a trademark feature of the emerging style. Golosov's entries in public design contests exposed his style to numerous followers.

Ivan Fomin and Ilya Golosov. Original concepts (never materialized):

tyle defined

Khan-Magomedov defined postconstructivism as neoclassical shapes without neoclassical detailing. Golosov and his followers deliberately replaced the proven historical details (columns, capitals, friezes and cornices) with their own inventions - to differentiate themselves from pure Revivalists. The main volumes follow the classical rules, and usually are perfectly symmetrical.

Ilya Golosov and Vladimir Vladimirov. Apartment buildings in Moscow

Recognition

Postconstructivism benefited from a natural reaction against both the avantgarde and the eclectics of the past. It was perceived as "new", and at the same time allowed "grand" buildings that were to the taste of provincial elite. Another benefit in a time of total rationing was that, unlike Constructivism, the new style minimized use of steel and cement, turning back to primitive masonry with wooden floors and partitions. This helps explain the spread of Postconstructivism in 1930s.

Evolution - Constructivism to Postconstructivism to Stalinism (Moscow) [Black and white photography: "XXX years of Russian Federation (1917-1947)" by Academy of Architecture (Moscow), 1950 edition. Most of these photographs were actually taken before 1941] LeningradSverdlovsk and Kuibyshev

Demise

By 1936, the left-wing "class of 1929" and younger (Mordvinov, Alabyan) had gained some practical experience. These architects completely lacked the classical training of older Constructivists; lack of skill prevented them from inventing their own incarnation of classical legacy; all they could do was copying. As a result, they buried their avantgarde teachers and proceeded straight to pure neoclassicism. They could not stop at postconstructivism because they - unlike Golosov or Fomin - could not innovate. Meanwhile, Fomin died in 1936, and Golosov was ageing physically, clearing the road for the young.

Another group of young architects, seeking academic training, joined the workshops of Zholtovsky and other old neoclassicists. They, too, skipped over postconstructivism - straight to the Stalinist canon. Their old mentors were still active and enjoyed the support of the State. There was no need for inventing new shapes or styling anymore. Postconstructivist projects draggedon for a few more years; World War II finally sealed the fate of this style.

Criticism of Khan-Magomedov's viewpoint

Role of State

Authors like Dmitry Khmelnizky [Russian: Dmitry Khmelnitsky, "Stalin and Architecture", 2004, [http://www.archi.ru/publications/virtual/hmelnitsky.htm www.archi.ru] ] appreciate Khan-Magomedov's studies of 1920s and 1930s, but completely disagree with him on the origins and evolution of early Stalinist architecture [Russian: Dmitry Khmelnitsky, "New versiond of History", 2000, [http://www.archi.ru/publications/articles/hmel_versii.htm www.archi.ru] ] and the demise of Constructivism.

Khan-Magomedov barely mentions the role of State (or Stalin personally) in those events, presenting the demise of avant-garde as a natural evolution within the professional community. He admits that the profession was manipulated by the "class of 1929" youth, but does not study the forces that shaped and directed their assaults. Not a word on Stalin's personal influence, not a word on rising terror. Khan-Magovedov discusses the 1929-1931 political assaults by VOPRA at length, but fails to mention that they were part of an all-out national campaign. As Khmelnitsky summarized it, "Postconstructivism was "born by terror". The very term is misleading. Traces of the Constructivist style in the Postconstructivism of 1930s are a sign of indecision, not tradition. "They" banned constructivism, but didn't explain "what" to do... the result is an architectural pathology. Comparison with European parallels is useless. There were no "European parallels", even Nazi architecture does not come close".

Art Deco factor

Postconstructivism merged closely with Soviet adaptations of Art Deco. Some examples of this style, like the 1934 [http://leninka.ru/index.php?doc=434 Lenin Library] by Vladimir Schuko, may be mistaken for "Postconstructivism". In fact, Schuko was a seasoned Neoclassicist and the Library was his attempt to differentiate into "proletarian classic" with Art Deco tools. The situation inside professional community was even more diverse than Khan-Magomedov's picture. Vladimirov's apartment block featured above is usually classified as an Art Deco adaptation, too.

Present day

Public awareness and preservation

The general public is seldom aware of the concept of "postconstructivism". Real estate agents classify these buildings as "early stalinka", and that's how they are perceived by the public. In Moscow, such buildings are gradually torn down or completely rebuilt (see facadism); demolition of postconstructivist buildings, with few exceptions, goes unnoticed even within preservationist community. One recently lost example was [http://www.wbb.ru/bimages/kurort.jpgA.A. Samoilov's building] on Novy Arbat in Moscow, torn down in 2006 [Russian: photo gallery, [http://www.wbb.ru/moscow30 www.wbb.ru] ] .

afety hazards

The buildings of the 1920s-1930s were built using primitive technologies (masonry, wet stucco, wooden ceilings and partitions), low-grade materials and a low-grade workforce. Poor initial quality and inadequate maintenance led to rapid decay. Excluding a few well-maintained, high-class apartment buildings, "early stalinka" are unsafe. February 10, 1999, a fire in Samara police department, built 1936, killed 57 men and women [Russian: Radio interview with federal fire marshal of Russia, 10/02/2000 [http://www.echo.msk.ru/guests/593/ echo.msk.ru] ] . On February 13, 2006, Panteleimon Golosov's Constructivist Pravda Building burnt down, killing one person and injuring four [Russian: Aнна Куприна. "Виновники в пожаре 'Правды' не найдены". 12.07.2007, [http://www.smi.ru/text/07/02/12/5148257.html www.smi.ru] ] [English: "Fire on Ulitsa Pravda Comparable To Manezh Fire for the Russian Avant-Garde', Izvestia, 20.02.2006, [http://www.maps-moscow.com/index.php?chapter_id=149&data_id=170&do=view_single Moscow Architecture Preservation Society] ] .

Reconstruction

Proper reconstruction of Constructivist or "early stalinka" buildings is challenging. The structures are weak, and often require complete demolition. A notable example is School 518 (Balchug, Moscow), designed in 1933 by Ivan Zvezdin (1899-1979) [Russian: Zvezdin bio at [http://schools.techno.ru/sch518/ofis/rekonstuk/page/zvezd.htm School 518 site] ] and completed in 1935. Praised by Khan-Magomedov, the only Postconstructivist building entered on the national monument register, the school was reconstructed in 2001 to modern safety standards. [http://www.wbb.ru/bimages/school518_1.jpgMost of load-bearing walls] and all 1935 interiors were completely rebuilt from scratch [Photo gallery, interiors before and after reconstruction [http://schools.techno.ru/sch518/ofis/rekonstuk/page/et1.html School 518 site] ] .

Revival

New "postconstuctivist" or "early stalinka" buildings are rare. Preobrazhenskaya Zastava (Преображенская Застава) mixed-use project (two blocks, 308 apartments and retail stores) was completed in 2002-2005. Unusually for present-day Moscow, it actually looks like a period piece, not a cheap modern replica. There are no trademark square columns or slim porticos, yet it is the best attempt to recreate a style of 1930s.On a smaller scale, Russian architectural firms design [http://www.wbb.ru/bimages/TS_12_L.jpgcountry houses] in true postconstructivist shape [Russian: photo gallery [http://www.wbb.ru/arhi www.wbb.ru] ] .

Footnotes