«ARCHITECTURE WITHOUT PEOPLE...»
Against the background of the boiling activity of the entire architectural community, presentations, awarding prizes and honoring stars like thunder from a clear sky, an “Open letter” was heard in defense of old Moscow. “In the chaotic clearing of the city center for new construction, hundreds of living Moscow monuments were lost, replaced by “fake monuments ”and new buildings that destroy the city ensemble.” “The construction policy practiced today in Moscow, in its essence, is criminal, antisocial and anti-state, depriving future generations of Russian citizens of historical memory” (lines from the letter). It turns out that this is what excites real moscow citizens and citizens of Russia. The letter was signed by the most respected people - historians, art historians, artists, writers, artists and ordinary people who love their capital. Who owns the city? For whom does an architect work in modern society? What is the essence of architectural activity? Why are there practically no signatures of architects in the “Open letter”? But the project of E. van Egeraat "Russian Avant-Garde" was accepted with a bang! I provide my reasoning at the request of AB magazine.
RUSSIAN AVANT-GARDE
In the global art history context, the leading role of Russia is mentioned in combination with two concepts - icons and the Russian avant-garde. On the one hand - the centuries-old history of Christian culture. On the other - a riot of human consciousness. Internal confrontation and revolutionary sentiment gave birth to the Russian avant-garde, whose philosophy adopted the policy of the Communists and became an accomplice and culprit in the events that dragged on for many years. A tragic fate befell these artists, and history preserves the memory and works that carry the true value of the first discovery and freedom of the human spirit. The root of this tragedy is that the ethical line of good and evil has been crossed. And the right to lawlessness, freedom to dishonor and annihilation was declared. It was then that the prevailing traditions and Russian culture also interfered, so the main blow was aimed at the destruction of architecture as an embodiment of cultural heritage. Then the people and the freedom of the human spirit were destroyed. This endless war of good and evil continued throughout the Soviet period of our history. I will not continue - this is an old story that we all know, but experience does not teach anyone and everything is repeated again. It is clear that in a society where culture has been exterminated for a century, man has changed. A period of rehabilitation, repentance, reappraisal of values, a revival of ethical concepts and education is needed. It seemed to the uninitiated public that the path to the revival of spiritual values was right then, ten years ago, the construction of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior began. But hopes were scattered, because simultaneously with the construction, a new destruction of historical buildings began.
INTERNATIONAL MASS-CULT
The struggle for historical heritage is a problem not only of our country. All civilized states work on it. International Monument Conservation Societies create laws and charters. A new stage in the struggle marks the end of the 20th century, when globalist tendencies finally capture Europe. An active confrontation begins with the culture of traditional, historical and international mass culture, which has now taken hypertrophied forms. This is a gigantic factory whose consumption product is spectacle production. The circle of tasks also includes the formation of public opinion, fashion, design and architecture. Developing within itself, according to its own laws, mass culture uses the achievements of civilization by copying, collaging originals. She gives birth to new myths and her new heroes, "stars". Since demand creates supply, economically designed for the average person, mass culture as a result produces huge quantities of cheap products, the so-called pop music. We all partly already belong to this system. For the architect, the temptation of the system is very great. The idea of power over the world and universal, imposed happiness is close to the idea of globalism. Of course, international architecture, to a large extent grown from Russian avant-garde and constructivism, is part of this policy and is developing according to the same laws. The world of pop music gives birth to its school of architecture - so with the help of modern technology, fashionable forms are surprisingly easily and quickly simulated, for which you do not need to study long and comprehend the sacraments of the profession, as was customary in a classical school. The evaluation criterion here is marketing - the marketability of the product. And it’s not even so scary that the houses are alike, the scary thing is that their quality is estimated by their size and aggressiveness. The onslaught of this aggression is not always possible to stop in a prosperous Europe. Here and there scandalous projects are growing up, deliberately destroying the historical environment. Ethics problems were raised by M. Fuchsas at the 2000 Venice Biennale, addressing architects - “More Ethics, Less Aesthetics”. And, nevertheless, due to the high importance of traditional culture, a balance between the "old and new" exists. And we, as before, can enjoy the beauty of historical cities, which are in ethical harmony with the achievements of technology in the forms of modern architecture.
POWER OF POPS
In Russia, international mass culture has found fertile ground. The long-awaited freedom has become the slavery of a consumer society. Moscow with all its historical values fell under the rule of pop. Neither reasonable arguments of cultural figures, nor historical-security structures could stop this onslaught. Not architects who, by their calling, should have directed the whole process in the right direction. Bazaar, commercial interest was stronger than all the arguments. All the creative pathos and talk about how to build - in modern or historical style - do not make sense when it comes to the destruction of the historical environment, the demolition of a historical monument. Moreover, in justification of their own selfish goals, a new term was coined - "To demolish and recreate." The simplest and most immoral way, where you don’t even need to invent architecture, and you don’t need to spend money on expensive restoration. Unfortunately, questions of professional ethics are not raised anywhere. As a result, tastelessness and vulgarity flourishes, and talented artists and architects, according to the new "ethical" laws, sing the new "academics", arguing that "...living means changing in the flow of time. It is impossible to preserve, to leave unchanged the space in which real life flows. You can’t make Moscow a city of one era, let alone one generation". And we really live at a different time, when in a flash we can erase all the centuries-old strata that are called the city of Moscow. Where only a layer of one era remains, whose name is pop.
ARCHITECTURAL SCHOOL
There is no doubt how important the profession of an architect is for the whole society, when an architect takes responsibility for citizens to create an environment for many years, and sometimes generations. In a civilized society, this is part of a long historical process related to upbringing, traditions and culture. The Moscow architectural school is primarily proud of the times inspired by the “Russian Avant-garde” of the 20s, the Zholtovsky school of the 30s and 40s. And this, of course, is part of our culture. There was a period of comprehension of our historical heritage, when the size of the factory panel dictated its conditions and architecture was unnecessary. And now, it seems to me, the time has come when society does not need its own architectural school. There are no funds for a full-fledged professional education, and there are no teachers to educate ethics, a love of history and their culture. Superficial learning has become ubiquitous. Self-proclaimed academies and monthly courses appeared. Therefore, many really go to study abroad. Others are drawn into the system of mass culture. Easy result, money, success. And here the omnipotence of pop music is unlimited. Someone will deny the self-sufficiency of the historical past of Russian culture. Self-sufficiency and originality of architecture. And the fact that the existing architectural ensembles and simple ordinary buildings now have historical value. And the fact that working in a historical environment requires high professional qualifications and ethics. But it seems to me that the true art of architecture is born only on the basis of its cultural heritage, rests on the complex relationships of generational life, work, patience and love. The destruction of its true historical gene pool threatens the degeneration of its own architectural school. And you can forget about normal education and the development of your true modern architecture for a long time. In civilized countries, the state deals with the problems of education and the preservation of culture. In a society where there are no morally restraining factors, laws and state law should work. Otherwise, the uncontrollable machine of “progress” will inevitably lead to a cultural catastrophe. The trouble is that the elite of society expelled from Russia, being in exile, lived in Russia, and today's "high society" in their thoughts lives abroad, being in Russia. But even foreigners - “monsters” of modern architecture - say the same thing. Having been in Moscow, Maximiliano Fuksas canceled his slogan “more ethics, less aesthetics”. He said “more ethics” and advised the stars to build in the countryside. And Ram Kulhas, having visited St. Petersburg, called: “to preserve the city as it is and not to worry about the lack of obviously new architecture.” All troubles and problems ultimately rest on ethics and culture, the so-called "human factor". The "Open letter" is not addressed to officials, architects and ordinary people, it is addressed to people, because "architecture without people is dead".
Ilya Utkin
2004-06-17