MINI THESIS
My passion for architecture appeared very early. Since I was a teenager I
was fascinated by the buildings that were around me, especially the new
ones and build in my neighborhood. As I grew up in a small village where
people were generally quite poor and preferred to do everything by
themselves there were many different occasions to witness all sorts of
constructions and reconstructions of existing buildings. My first fascination
was the actual structure and form of the buildings then its general
appearance or functionality.
When I grew up I have started to travel around Poland and became more
interested in aesthetics and general appearance of the buildings. I can still
remember how impressed I was when I arrived to Warsaw for the first time.
All those white monumental buildings, skyscrapers covered in a glass,
different scale and proportions of the buildings which looked much bigger
than anything I have ever seen before, made me realize that there is much
more things to learn about architecture than I thought. Facing ‘new’ reality
and seeing all these wonderful and unusual buildings made me realize that
I would like to expand my education in this direction.
The reason that I want to write about modern architecture in Poland is
that since I have started to travel around the world and exploring new
countries and their architecture, I also realized how much Poland has on
offer when it comes to the architectural styles and the history behind some
of the buildings. In this essay, which I consider as the early stage of my
work on the dissertation thesis I would like to explore the concept of
Modern Architecture in Poland especially after the Second War.
At the beginning I will investigate some basic information about
Modernism origin, meaning, main assumptions and characteristics. I will
also look at the history of Polish modernism, to learn more about how
exactly modernism started, what influences on its beginning, and how it
evolved in recent years.
During my further research I will establish the main points on which I will
resist my future dissertation. Under each paragraph I will note what I would
like to develop and investigate in the next phase of my research. Moreover,
at the end of my essay I will designate Polish buildings that I have chosen to
research in my final dissertation in which I will introduce their creators and
demonstrate how the buildings evolved and changed with the time.
Modern Architecture is a period in Architectural history which was
developing between 1918 and 1975. For the first time architects completely
moved away from historical styles and presented to us simplicity and lack
of decorations. Although modern buildings were able to fulfill certain and
strict requirement to ‘satisfaction of all needs‘
Logic of Modern Architecture was based on the assumption of the new
creative method, derived form, function and structure of the building
almost exclusively from existing material conditions. The form was
dependent on functional conditions, construction capabilities and needs.
One of the primary themes was Sulivan’s maxim ‘Form Follows Function’.
The term of Modernism is derived from the French word ‘moderne’,
meaning modernity. It describes something that is completely new, better
and different from the past and is happening right now, it means changed
and developed. Historically, the term is also applied to modern architecture
but in a broader sense, also including postmodernism.
Modernism perfectly describing the time around 20th century when
architects were eager to create something completely different from that
they know so far and which will exceed the styles, materials and
technologies of earlier architecture.
Through the years modern movement developed in many different ways.
Although we can distinguish several currents and trends, the difference
between them is not very clear. In contrast to historical styles, modern
movement has not developed a uniform style and never had a clear
ideology for the design. There was a desire to avoid anything that can be
defined as formal features, nevertheless we can find several principles
common for most of the modern buildings. Those are: curtain walls, free
plan divided with light partition walls, flat roof with terrace and straight
column structure. Many of those most characteristic features as cubic
shapes of the buildings, lack of details, big white elevation surfaces, huge
glazed facades and use of raw materials were created as a protest against
previous forms developed during 19th century. Very often used only to
contrast what architects already know and used to build in the past.
The most interesting was the fact that modernists believe that the
building supposed to be the work of an abstract. Very important were the
maxims: ‘Less is more’ (Mies van Der Rohe) and ‘Ornament is a
crime’ (Adolf Loos).
In 19th century in European countries, modern movement in architecture
developed very independently and in very different ways. The main cause of
this evolution was mainly related to the great development of engineering
and an introduction of new materials such as iron and steel. Engineering
and industrial progress was appreciated and accepted by architects and that
is the main reason which had an important impact for the birth of
Modernism.
One of the very important years in the history of Modernism was 1884
when the first skyscraper with a frame construction was built. Wiliam Le
Baron Jenney elaborated a solution to the problem of fireproof construction
for tall buildings and took this advantage during design process of Home
Insurance Building. His idea was to substituting steel in the structural
system to cast iron, which melt at high temperature.
However, the history of Modern Architecture starts in England where
under the influence of Wiliam Morrise and John Ruskin were formulated the
basics of the Art & Craft (1887), which was going to regenerate the craft as
an antidote for the ugliness of the industrial production. One of the prime
building examples which represents the beginning of the early modernism
in Europe is the Crystal Palace in London designed by Joseph Paxton which
was built entirely from glass panels set within iron frame.
In Poland Modernism developed in two phases, before World War II and
after.
After the First World War (1914-1918), Modernism in Poland was not
widely known and practiced. Mainly it occurred in the style of elite
buildings, such as private villas, public buildings or cooperative housing
estates. In the 30s when the functionalist tendencies were no longer so
popular and architects were still looking for something ‘new’ modernist
forms were often combined with elements that were giving impression of
steadiness, solidity and durability.
The largest numbers of modern-style buildings were built mainly in the
large cities of Poland as Warsaw (Saska Kepa, Old Zoliborz, Old Mokotow),
Gdynia and Katowice (southern district and Ligota). In those cities until now
there are entire neighborhoods of buildings influenced by the modernism.
The Post-War Modernism (after the Second War) had a much wider range
in Poland and it was much more important for the country architecture
progress. Its largest development occurred between 1956-1957 and
continued until late 80s as a nationally regulated practice guideline for the
design of new buildings.
Unfortunately, after the Polish political system was changed in 1989,
many wonderful pre-war and post-war modernist building had been
completely devastated and disfiguring. As the biggest issue of this time we
can consider the poor state of knowledge of the history of architecture in
the society, and also incompetent and shoddy repairs often performed on a
massive scale not by architects, but ordinary builders. The main maxims of
modernism such as 'Less Is More' and 'Forms Follow Function' had been
totally forgotten and omitted.
It is difficult to discuss Warsaw’s twenty century history of architecture
without mentioning broader context of Modernism. It is really important to
understand what Modern Architecture is in general, where its start and how
its influence European countries.
As we all know the history had a huge impact on the polish architecture.
After the First and Second World War, the whole country was almost
demolished, and required total reconstruction. However, many structures
have survived or have been restored and reconstructed. I would like to
research further on these buildings in my final dissertation.
During the postwar period Warsaw’s architecture was a particular mixture
of preservation (reconstruction) and modernization. The well explored
general opinion tells that the II World War only strengthened the prewar
attitudes and tendencies in the architecture, and it had limited impact on
earlier approaches to this field.
Nowadays, Warsaw features prominent buildings in a variety of styles
designed by many important architects. The city has many wonderful
examples that reflect the whole range of European styles, from gothic,
renaissance and baroque through neoclassical period and contemporary
architecture.
I hope that my primary research will help me in determining exact topic
for my dissertation thesis, and allows me to understand the main principles
of Modern Architecture in Poland.
Research Goals For Dissertation:
1. Acknowledgment
- my main dissertation’s objective will be to examine architectural and urban
planning theories and practices of post World War II Warsaw, Poland within the
wider context of Modern History
2. Introduction
- personal interest in Modern Architecture
3. What Modern Architecture is?
- where its come from?
- what is its logic?
4. Where the name of modern architecture come from?
5. Main assumptions and characteristics of Modern Architecture
- features of modern building
- free plan
- flat roof
- residential areas
6. History of Modern Architecture
- origins and sources of modernism
- early modernism in Europe
- late modernism in Europe
Artists:
- Le Corbusier - leading representative of the modernist style
- Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
- Frank Lloyd Wright
- Adolf Loos - precursor of modernism
- Louis Henry Sullivan - modern building technologies
5. Modern Architecture in Poland
- architecture between I and II World War
- architecture after II World War
Artists:
- Jadwiga Grabowska-Hawrylakowa
- Stanislaw Brukowski i Barbara Brukowska
- Helena Syrkusowa
- Czeslaw Przybylski
Selected examples of Polish modernism:
up to 1939
- Sejm of the Republic of Poland, 1925-1928
- Building of the Ministry of Religion and Public Education in Warsaw 1925-1927
- Cooperative Housing Estate in Warsaw Żoliborz 1927-1932
- BGK The National Economy Bank 1928-1931
- The National Museum in Warsaw 1927-1932
after 1945
- Eastern Wall in Warsaw 1958-1968
- Behind the Iron Gate - a housing estate 1972
- Grunwald Square in Wroclaw 1967-1973
List of Figures/Image sources
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1335661
Bibliography
Books
- ‘History Of Modern Architecture Volume II’ Leonardo Benevolo, Press Cambridge,
Massachusetts, 1999
- ‘The Polish Avant-Garde, Architecture Town-Planning’ Olgierd Czerner, Hieronim
Listowski, Interpress Publishing, Warsaw, 1981
- ‘Glimpses Of Polish Architecture’ Roman Soltynski (translated by Peter Jordan),
Standard Art Book Co. Ltd., London
- ‘East European Modernism, Architecture in Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Poland
Between The Wars’, Edited with Introduction and Essays by Wojciech
Lesnikowski, Thames and Hudson Ltd., London, 1996
Visited sites
http://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modernizm_(architektura)
http://encyklopedia.pwn.pl/haslo/4575125/polska-sztuka-okres-1944821189-ilata-90.html
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1335661
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture_of_Poland
h t t p : / / w w w. f a u . u s p . b r / i p h s / a b s t r a c t s A n d P a p e r s F i l e s / S e s s i o n s / 2 4 /
BARTETZKY.PDF
http://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modernizm_w_Polsce
http://www.scribd.com/doc/48843000/Modern-Architecture
http://eng.archinform.net/stich/740.htm
Warsaw map, 1945, Preserved and Destroyed Buildings