The Treatment of Postwar Architecture in Europe’s Post-Socialist Countries 1945-1965

Europe’s postwar architecture, which has been re-discovered only recently, is currently subjected to great pressure for change. The transformation process, characterized by decay, full-fledged demolition and change-of-use measures, raises the question of the cultural value of these buildings of recent modernism. Because of continuing socio-economic change and its consequences, this question applies in particular to Europe’s post-socialist countries.

Relying on concrete examples from East Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Latvia and Romania, the goal of the project is to present experiences and to debate appropriate procedures in documentation, preservation and continuous use. In a dialogue between research and practice, experts from the disciplines of planning and design will discuss recent questions concerning the treatment of postwar modernism while taking into account the diverse interests of architecture, monument preservation and the construction business.

Management: Prof. Markus Otto, Dr. Lars Scharnholz
Period: 2004-2006
Organization: INIK e.V., Lausitz University of Applied Sciences
Coopertion partners: Docomomo International, Deutscher Werkbund, Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Planning of the German federal state of Brandenburg
Topics: Postwar architecture