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02
Poetica tranziiei merit
nite poei
The Poetics of Transition Asks
for Certain Poets
TEXT: CONSTANTIN GOAGEA
06
Modernizri nenalizate:
ntre utopie i pragmatism
Unnished Modernizations:
Between Utopia and Pragmatism
TEXT: MAROJE MRDULJA, VLADIMIR KULI
FOTO / PHOTO: WOLFGANG THALER
16
Arheologie urban contemporan
Contemporary Urban Archeology
TEXT: MIKLS RCZ, BALZS BOD
PHOTO: TAMS BUDHA, MIKLS RCZ,
ANDRS TBORI
24
Oraul epuizat
Exhausted City
TEXT: MILICA TOPALOVI
32
Naiuni i regiuni
Nations and Regions
TEXT: MIKLS PTERFFY
38
Ctre un regionalism critic?
Heading Towards Critical
Regionalism?
TEXT: TEFAN GHENCIULESCU
46
SPRE VEST!
GO WEST!
TEXT: VALERI GYUROV,
TRANSFORMATORI ASSOCIATION
FOTO / PHOTO: VALERI GYUROV
52
coala studiilor lips
School of Missing Studies
TEXT: SRDJAN JOVANOVI WEISS
62
Jurnalul oraelor
Cities Log
TEXT: ANA DZOKIC, MARC NEELEN
(STEALTH.UNLIMITED)
70
Hindemith. Un lm sau mai mult
de-att
Hindemith. A movie or more
TEXT: TODOR ATANASOV
74
Obiceiuri alimentare nesntoase
n arhitectur
Unhealthy Eating Habits
in Architecture
TEXT & FOTO / PHOTO: ELI CHAKAROVA
80
Evacuarea Fantomei
Evicting the Ghost
TEXT & FOTO / PHOTO: ALEX AXINTE,
CRISTI BORCAN (STUDIOBASAR)
90
Expediia autostrzii pierdute
Lost Highway Expedition
TEXT & FOTO / PHOTO: IVAN KUCINA
02 02 02
06 06 06
16 16 16
24 24 24
32 32 32
38 38 38
46 46 46
52 52 52
62 62 62
70 70 70
74 74 74
80 80 80
90 90 90
#1
05.2011
Poetica tranziiei
merit nite
poei
The Poetics of
Transition Asks
for Certain Poets
Text:
Constantin Goagea 2
#1
If you look upon this...
S
ome sort of weather forecast with extensive
urban news.
Whenever I watch a weather forecast, I real-
ize that I assign myself to those large cities
whose name I see and I try to guess how their street
looks like, how the economy, the new construction
sites and new constructions are doing. Although
weather seems the most common and standard
aspect to be watched, we actually realized that we
are facing a familiar, close or dear territory, the one
we know, or the one we will work on soon. We have
thus turned this observation into a larger action
known as Urban Report.
We, the people in Bucharest, are separated by
Belgrade or Soa by one hour ight, but it took as a
bit longer to get into this project. Either by chance
or by need, or by coincidence, we have eventually
found each other, the ones you will notice in this
rst issue for Urban Report. We have found a com-
mon set of practice, issues and dramas, a parallel
world to the West, but very real and consistent, of
which we are a part. Te feeling that we need to
condense the experience of our meetings, that we
need to get a better world and that we are the pio-
neers of a new era have brought us at this point.
Tis is what we aimed for, an extended map of
distinct cultures, languages and societies on which
we highlight certain daily urban events. Just like the
weather forecast, this Urban Report tells key things
at this very moment. It is a quick mapping of ordi-
nary facts inuencing our actions, state of mind and
plans for today and tomorrow. We aim for a forecast,
we attempt to get the end of transition, and we
try to understand how we could play a role in the
Balkans and in the East, under the post-transition.
How we got a team...
T
he world is not at all the same as the one we
were born in for us, the generation from the
last years of the communist curtain, almost
all types of architecture changed their mean-
ings. For instance, the at presented by the party has
lost the connotation of success, its place was taken
up by a villa, by the ats in residential areas. Te
ordinary types of shops are gone, for those still re-
membering shops such as the bakers, the hardware,
electronics or plumbing xtures), and the brands are
up. We hardly see a furriers, skinners, TV mainte-
nance etc. Historical monuments and places lost the
pioneers making their vows, museums are mas-
sive failures. Public spaces have seen a spectacular
dynamics, from Caesarean patterns of working class
marches to entertainment and concert stages. After
all, the whole underground world born on top of this
changing universe invented new meeting places.
I think that the element of poetics came up
in a moment of enthusiasm and warmth for our
fates in a distinct world. Why and for whom such
a poetics in transition, and for what reason such
a fragmentary territory, island- and hysterically-
shaped willing to believe in theories, strategies or
Dac te uii la asta...
E
un fel de meteo cu tiri urbane de pe o mare
ntindere.
De cte ori privesc la o emisiune de progno-
z meteo, mi dau seama c m proiectez
n oraele ale cror nume le vd i ncerc s ghicesc
cum arat strzile, cum mai merge economia, ce
mai fac toate antierele i noile construcii. Dei sta-
rea vremii pare cel mai banal i mai anost lucru pe
care s-l priveti, am constatat c ne proiectm de
fapt n faa ochilor teritoriul care ne este cunoscut,
sau apropiat, sau drag, cel pe care l tim sau n care
ne vom desfura foarte curnd. Aa am transformat
aceast constatare ntr-un proiect mai mare numit
Urban Report.
Pe noi, cei din Bucureti, ne desparte de Belgrad
i de Budapesta sau Soa cte o or de zbor, dar ne-a
luat ceva vreme s ne adunm n proiectul acesta.
Fie din hazard, ori c aa trebuia, sau din coinciden-
, pn la urm am dat unii peste alii, cei pe care-i
vei gsi n acest prim numr al Urban Report. Am
descoperit o sum de practici, problematici i drame
comune, ntr-o lume paralel vestului dar foarte
real i consistent, creia-i aparinem. Sentimentul
c trebuie s condensm toate experienele ntl-
nirilor noastre, c ar trebui s cptm o lume mai
bun i c suntem nite pionieri ai unei ere noi ne-
au adus aici.
Pn la urm, asta am vrut s e, o hart extins
cuprinznd culturi, limbi i societi distincte, pe
care s marcm evenimente urbane cotidiene. i la
fel ca prognoza meteo, acest Urban Report spune
lucruri care sunt eseniale acum, n momentul pre-
zent. El este o cartare imediat a faptelor mrunte
care ne schimb aciunile, starea de spirit i planu-
rile pentru ziua de azi i cea de mine. ncercm o
prognoz, ncercm s ntrezrim captul tranziiei,
ncercm s desluim cum am putea noi aici n
Balcani i-n est, aici n post-tranziie.
Cum ne-am fcut o trup...
L
umea nu mai e deloc la fel cu cea n care
ne-am nscut, noi generaia care a copilrit
n ultimii ani ai cortinei comuniste; aproape
toate arhitecturile i-au schimbat semni-
caiile. Bunoar apartamentul de bloc, cadorisit
de partid, nu mai are semnicaia succesului, locul
lui a fost luat de vil, de apartamentele din dezvol-
tri rezideniale, de casa din suburbie. Magazinele
generice de odinioar au disprut (pentru cei care-i
mai amintesc magazine cu nume simple ca pine,
ferometal, electrocasnice sau articole menaj-sani-
tare), au aprut brandurile. Abia de mai vezi cte
o blnrie, sau cojocrie, reparaii de televizoare
etc. Monumentele i locurile istorice i-au pierdut
pionierii care depuneau jurminte, muzeele sunt
n falimente masive. Spaiile publice au cunoscut
o dinamic spectaculoas, de la formele cezarice
destinate marurilor muncitoreti au ajuns locuri
de entertainment, arene de concert. La urm, toat
cultura underground care s-a nscut peste aceast
lume n mutare a inventat locuri de ntlnire noi.
3
even common action, to create a new cultural,
social and political start?
In all the website channels, DVD and boogazine,
we speak of a common territory we try to nd a
name for. We imagine its existence not only virtual-
ly-digitally, but physically as well. We could actually
name it podgoria (meaningful in all the languages
of this project) and we could imagine one should get
it with a visa. For those able to grasp the charm of
such a place, its madness, nostalgia, and dangerous
tensions, we will produce special forms.
Tis is something to unite us, the authors of the
project, in this attempt of contemporary history,
the hermeneutics of a case contemporary with and
containing us. We have of course breached the prin-
ciple of the external witness to a case, and having no
claims of total objectivity, we have immersed in the
role of observers, critics, practitioners and polemi-
cists of the immediate.
Te specicity of that brand is that each of its
members works electronically (as any human be-
ing), but, besides the virtual ids, we are activists and
managers of real actions, and each of us is a hub of
relationships and set of information we try to put
together. A mini-network of organisers, insemina-
tors and disseminators. Tats why the project gets
its maximum focus via direct meetings to take place
this year for the targeted audience. Tere are two
more volumes of the Urban Report by the end of this
year, and meetings in Belgrade, Soa, Budapest and
Bucharest. Tis is the tour we aim for the launch.
Cred c ideea cu poeticul ne-a venit ntr-un
moment de entuziasm i cldur pentru destinele
noastre, dintr-o lume aparte. De ce i pentru cine
atta poetic n tranziie, de unde pn unde un teri-
toriu ca acesta, fragmentar, insular i isteric, e gata s
ndjduiasc la teorii, strategii sau chiar aciune co-
mun, s creeze un start nou cultural, social i politic?
Prin toate canalele de la website, dvd i un
boogazine, vorbim de un teritoriu comun cruia i
cutm un nume. Ne imaginm existena lui nu
doar virtual-digital, ci chiar zic. L-am putea numi
n glum podgoria (are sens n toate limbile aces-
tui proiect) i ne-am imaginat c aici ar trebui s se
intre pe baz de viz. Pentru cei care neleg armul
acestui loc, nebunia, nostalgia i tensiunile lui peri-
culoase, vom introduce formulare speciale.
E ceva ce, pe noi, autorii acestui proiect, ne unete
i pe care am ncercat s-l capturm aici, n aceast
tentativ de istorie contemporan, n hermeneutica
unui fenomen ce are loc odat cu noi i ne conine.
Am nclcat desigur principiul martorilor externi ai
unui fenomen i, fr pretenii de obiectivare total,
ne-am imersat n aceast misiune de observatori,
critici, practicieni i polemiti ai imediatului.
Particularitatea acestui brand const n faptul c
ecare din membrii lui funcioneaz electronic (ca
orice om), dar, dincolo de id-urile digitale, suntem
activiti i organizatori ai unor aciuni concrete, sun-
tem ecare n felul lui un hub un portal de relaii i
ansambluri de informaii pe care le care punem aici
cap la cap. O mini-reea de organizatori, de poleniza-
tori, de diseminatori. Drept pentru care acest proiect
i atinge maximul de intensitate n ntlnirile direc-
te pe care le vom avea n 2011 cu oamenii pentru care
a fost conceput. Urmeaz nc dou volume Urban
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4
ansamblur mb
cap la cap. la c
ori, de dis i, de d
i atinge m i atinge
e pe care l e pe care l
a fost conc on
#1
Pitch 1.
S
urng through the poetics of transition
in this rst volume of Urban Report rstly
focuses on the conict generated by a world
of modernity coming on us, and to whom we
try to resist one way or the other. Modernity has no
good connotation per se, as long as it is not mas-
tered democratically and negotiated on, as long as
liberal, critical or creative voices are still marginal or
insuf cient. Te same way it results from this rst
survey, the forces to bring modernity in our cities
are culturally genuine, violent and determined, a
reason for which they generate good things to the
same extent with chaos, ugliness or corruption.
What is missing in those cities, from that new ar-
chitecture? Te added value, a coherent approach in
time, a savoir fair or savoir vivre?
Tis issue records various types of clashes, re-
search, critical stances in the four countries, whose
common constant is the nostalgia and humour (be
it involuntary) marking the nal results. From the
urban archeology in Budapest to the evacuation of
the ghost in Bucharest, in the numerous materials
coming from the ex-Yugoslav space which highlity
sharply the urban identity in a cultural and politi-
cal context, and then re-dening the pleasures and
the individualism, as the case of the materials from
Bulgaria, everything is a questioning of minor facts
making up a glossary, a methodology, plus some
contemporary history.
Report pn la sfrtiul acestui an i ntlniri
n Belgrad, Soa, Budapesta i Bucureti. Cam acesta
este turneul pe care ni-l propunem pentru lansare.
Diez 1.
S
urfarea prin poetica tranziiei n acest prim
volum Urban Report pune n prim-plan
conictul generat de o lume a modernitii
venite peste noi, creia, ntr-un fel sau altul,
i rezistm. Modernitatea nu are de la sine neles
o parte bun, atta vreme ct nu este stpnit n
mod democratic i negociat, atta vreme ct vocile
liberale, critice, creative sunt nc periferic stabilite
n ea, sau insuciente. Aa cum rezult din acest
prim studiu, forele care aduc modernitatea n
oraele noastre sunt ingenue cultural, sunt violente
i determinate, motiv pentru care provoac n ace-
eai msur lucruri bune, dar i haos, urenie sau
corupie. Ce lipsete din orae, din arhitectura nou
nc? Plusvaloarea, o perspectiv coerent n timp,
savoir faire sau savoir vivre?
Numrul de fa nregistraz n cele patru ri di-
verse tipuri de ciocniri, de cutri, de energii, de si-
tuaii critice, dar a cror constante rmn nostalgia
i umorul (chiar involuntar) care coloreaz rezulta-
tele nale. De la arheologia urban la Budapesta, sau
evacuarea fantomei la Bucureti, spre multele studii
venite din spaiul ex-iugoslav, care pun acut proble-
ma identitii urbane din perspectiv cultural i
politic, iar apoi, trecnd la redescoperirea plcerilor
i a individualismului, ca n cazul materialelor din
Bulgaria totul este o interogare de fapte minore,
alctuind n acelai timp un glosar, o metodologie, i
ceva istorie contemporan.
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THE ARCHITECTS COSMINA GOAGEA, CONSTANTIN GOAGEA AND STEFAN
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OF ARCHITECTURAL PRACTICES, THE COHERENT DEVELOPMENT OF THE CITY,
THE PRESERVATION AND PROTECTION OF THE ARCHITECTURAL AND URBAN
HERITAGE; TO ACTIVELY STIMULATE THE CRITICAL REFLECTION IN THE FIELD
OF ARCHITECTURE, DESIGN, URBANISM, URBAN CULTURE; TO SUPPORT
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5
Modernizri
nenalizate:
ntre utopie i
pragmatism
Arhitectur i urbanism
n fosta Iugoslavie i
n statele care au urmat
Text:
Maroje Mrdulja,
Vladimir Kuli
foto / Photo:
Wolfgang Taler 6
#1
Unnished
Modernizations:
Between Utopia
and Pragmatism
Architecture and Urban Planning
in Former Yugoslavia and Its
Successor States
7
T
he collaborative project Unnished
Modernizations explores the construction
of the built environments in the countries of
former Yugoslavia. It focuses on the shift-
ing concepts of modernization as a precondition for
the development of a democratic and emancipating
society. Modernization is a global phenomenon, but
it can be motivated by diferent reasons, it can have
if f i f if diferent efects, and it can be used for diferent
ideological purposes. Unnished Modernizations
explores the pragmatic and ideological motiva-
tions for modernization and their efects on the
built environments in two diferent socio-political
contexts: the socialist state and the transitional and
post-transition societies that replaced it. It seeks to
uncover the fate of socialist modernizing processes
in the post-socialist period: their sustainment and
transformation into af rmative experiences and
practice; or their abandonment and deterioration
into various regressive tendencies.
Contextualizing modernization
apid modernization was an inextricable part
of the project of socialist Yugoslavia. South
Slavic lands greatly difered in the degree
of development, but due to their position
at the periphery of large historical empires, they
all lagged behind the heartlands of modernity in
the West. In order to build socialism, it was neces-
sary to also modernize all of Yugoslavias regions
and all segments of society. At rst modeled after
the Soviet Union, after the countrys break from
Moscow in 1948 the project of modernization was
redened on the basis of the system of workers self-
management, an original interpretation of Marxist
theory. Te system espoused the progressive ideals
of emancipating workers/citizens and their active
participation in management and government,
with the goal to liberate the creative potential
of individuals and the collective. In practice, the
Communist Party renamed in 1952 the League of
Communists of Yugoslavia to evoke Marxs original
Communist League remained the sole custodian
of political power, but it was transformed into as
a mass organization, instead of a small conspira-
torial clique. In culture, the system tolerated the
pluralism of ideas and expressions as long as they
could be explained through the concept of crea-
tive freedoms and as long as they did not critically
encroach upon the foundations of the political and
ideological platforms.
Te success of modernization was critical for the
sustainability of the Yugoslav federal state, espe sustainability of the Yugoslav federal state, espe-
cially for maintaining its independence. In the rst
decade of socialist Yugoslavias existence, its foreign
policy wildly oscillated between the two poles of the
Cold War world, but eventually settled in equidis-
tance from both the East and the West, ultimately
becoming a leader of the non-aligned movement.
Te system of workers self-management was
conceived as criticism of both capitalism and of
the Soviet-type state socialism and the related
P
roiectul colaborativ Modernizri nena-
lizate exploreaz dezvoltarea mediului
construit n rile din fosta Iugoslavie i se
concentreaz pe conceptele de modernizare
aate n continu transformare, considerate drept
precondiie a unei societi democratice n curs de
emancipare. Modernizarea e un fenomen global,
dar poate motivat prin argumente diferite,
f if i i f i poate avea efecte diferite i poate folosit pentru
diferite scopuri ideologice. Proiectul Modernizrile
nenalizate exploreaz motivaiile pragmatice i
ideologice pentru modernizare i efectele lor asupra
mediului construit n dou contexte socio-politice
diferite: statul socialist i societile de tranziie i
post-tranziie care i-au urmat. El caut s descopere
soarta proceselor de modernizare socialiste n peri-
oada post-socialist: continuitatea i transformarea
lor n experiene i practici armative, sau abando-
nul i deteriorarea spre diferite tendine regresive.
Contextualizarea modernizrii
M
odernizarea rapid a fost o parte intrin-
sec a proiectului Iugoslaviei socialiste.
inuturile slave de sud se difereni-
au substanial n sensul dezvoltrii,
ns, datorit poziiei la periferia marilor imperii
istorice, au rmas n urm fa de modernitatea
Vestului. Pentru a construi socialismul, era nece-
sar o modernizare a tuturor regiunilor Iugoslaviei
i a segmentelor societii. Modelat iniial dup
Uniunea Sovietic, dup desprirea de Moscova
din 1948, proiectul modernizrii a fost redenit pe
bbazele sistemului autogospodririi muncitorilor, o
interpretare original a teoriei marxiste. Sistemul
combina idealurile progresive de emancipare a
muncitorilor/cetenilor i participarea lor acti-
v la conducere i guvernare, cu elul descturii
potenialului creativ al indivizilor i a colectivitii.
n practic, Partidul Comunist rebotezat dup 1952
drept Liga Comunitilor din Iugoslavia, pentru a
evoca Liga Comunist original iniiat de Marx
rmnea singurul custode al puterii politice, dar era
transformat ntr-o organizaie de mas n locul unei
mici grupri conspirative. n cultur, sistemul tolera
pluralismul ideilor i expresiilor, n msura n care
puteau explicate conform conceptului de liberti
creative, i n care nu invadau critic bazele platfor-
melor politice i ideologice.
Succesul modernizrii a fost critic pentru
continuitatea statului federal iugoslav, n special
pentru meninerea independenei sale. n primul
deceniu al existenei Iugoslaviei socialiste, politi-
ca sa extern oscila substanial ntre cei doi poli ai ca sa extern oscila substanial ntre cei doi poli ai
Rzboiului Rece, dar s-a plasat n cele din urm la o
echidistan ntre Est i Vest, devenind n nal un
lider al micrii nealiniate. Sistemul autogospod-
ririi muncitorilor era conceput ca o critic, att a
capitalismului i a socialismului de stat de tip sovie-
tic, ct i a tendinelor statice din blocul estic; dar,
mulumit normalizrii strategice a relaiilor cu su-
perputerile, graniele rii au devenit poroase i au
permis schimburi culturale intense. n acelai timp,
Vestului. P estului.
ar o mod ar o mo
i a segme a segme
Uniunea S Uniunea S
din 1948, p din 1948, p
azele sist azele sis
#1
T P
nealinierea a deschis ua cooperrii economice
cu lumea n curs de dezvoltare. Iugoslavia s-a aat
astfel nu doar n lumina actualitii politice, ideo-
logice, economice i culturale, ci i n postura unui
mediator activ ntre aa-numitele lumi nti, a doua
i a treia.
Socialistmul iugoslav a fost luminos nu doar
spaial, ci i temporal, ntruct a continuat printr-o
i i i i i i f serie de revizuiri succesive, chiar dup transform-
rile metodice provocate de desprirea de Moscova
n 1948. S-a aat ntr-o continu stare de reform,
reacionnd internaional la tendinele economice
i politice, iar pe plan intern, la diferite tensiuni ne-
rezolvate, e nou produse, e motenite din trecut.
Aplicat pe larg prin metoda ncercrii i erorii, fr a
avea predecesori clari, proiectul a devenit inevitabil
un experiment.
Modernizare ntruchipat
n paralel i n plus fa de platforma teoretic i
practic a socialismului autoguvernat, proiectul
modernizrii a constituit o component vital a
progresului social imaginat. S-a pus un accent
deosebit pe dou aspecte clasice ale modernizrii,
industrializarea i urbanizarea, care erau conside-
rate drept elemente sine qua non pentru dezvolta-
rea economic i social a societii revoluionare.
Procesele gemene ale industrializrii i urbaniz-
rii au cptat deci tonuri ideologice puternice, n
special nainte de 1970. n sens operaional totui,
ele au hibridizat mprejurrile i soluiile locale cu
tendinele i experienele globale ale modernizrii,
ducnd la un model iugoslav unic al socialismului.
Sub anumite aspecte, modernizarea socialist
iugoslav a demonstrat o aparent autonomie fa
de ideologia politic, ba chiar o anumit rezisten
fa de aceasta. Un exemplu a fost autonomia relati-
v a culturii moderniste care a lsat unele rezultate
interesante i autentice. Pe de alt parte, principiile
de baz care au ghidat procesele specice de mo-
dernizare nu au fost n mod deosebit inovative, nici
aplicarea prea impresionant, nereuind s sprijine
viziunea teoretic progresist a autogospodririi
socialiste. Aplicarea inteniilor progresiste a fost n
nal copleit de tot felul de contradicii i tensiuni,
att din interiorul structurilor de putere, ct i n
societate n general. Problema deosebit consta n
discrepana dintre o insisten continu a condu-
cerii monolitice a Ligii Comunitilor, att la nivel
ideologic, ct i la nivel practic, fa de proclamata,
dar niciodat aplicata, democratizare a societii, i
dorita distanare fa de stat.
Modernizarea n arhitectur i urbanism Modernizarea n arhitectur i urbanism
A
rhitectura i urbanismul au reinterpretat
elurile sociale progresiste ale modernis-
mului, elaborate n perioada antebelic. n
cazul managementului resurselor, un anu-
mit nivel de egalitarism a fost atins n domenii cum
ar distribuia locuinelor, n timp de principiile
de planicare au fost aplicate strict de sus n jos i
prin morfologiile locale i tipurile arhitecturale care
statist tendencies in the Eastern bloc; but thanks
to the strategic normalization of relations with the
superpowers, the countrys borders became porous
and allowed intense cultural exchange. At the same
time, non-alignment opened the doors for economic
cooperation with the developing world. Yugoslavia
thus found itself not only in the position of ultimate
political, ideological, economic, and cultural lumi-
nosity, but also as an active mediator between the
so-called First, Second, and Tird worlds.
Yugoslav socialism was luminal not only spatial-
ly, but also temporally, as it continued undergoing
successive revisions, even after the thorough trans-
formations caused by the 1948 rift with Moscow. It
was in a perpetual state of reform, reacting interna-
tionally to political and economic trends and inter-
nally to various unresolved tensions, either newly
produced or inherited from the past. Implemented
largely through the method of trial and error and
lacking any clear predecessors, the project was una-
voidably an experiment.
Modernization embodied
P
arallel with and supplementary to the theo-
retical and practical platform of self-manag-
ing socialism, the project of modernization
was a crucial component of the imagined
social progress. Special emphasis was placed on two
classical aspects of modernization, industrializa-
tion and urbanization, which were understood as
the sine qua non for economic and social develop-
ment of a revolutionary society. Te twin processes
of industrialization and urbanization thus acquired
strong ideological overtones, especially before the
early 1970s. In the operational sense, however, they
hybridized local circumstances and solutions with
global modernizing trends and experiences, leading
to a unique Yugoslav brand of socialism.
In certain aspects, Yugoslav socialist moderniza-
tion demonstrated an apparent autonomy from and
even resistance to political ideology. One example
was the relative autonomy of modernist culture,
9
which yielded some interesting and authentic
results. On the other hand, the basic principles that
guided the specic modernizing processes were
not always particularly innovative, nor were their
application always successful, thus failing to fully
support the progressive theoretical vision of socialist
self-management. Te implementation of progres-
sive intentions was ultimately plagued by all kinds
of contradictions and tensions, both within the
structures of authority and in the broader society.
Particular problem was the discrepancy between a
continuing insistence on a monolithic ideological
nu erau esenial diferite de modele din Vest sau Est.
Abordrile experimentale sau utopice nu au fost
aplicate, deoarece depeau att nevoile practice ale
modernizrii, ct i resursele disponibile. Agenda
neoavangardist de a construi medii de locuire
avansate estetic n spiritul sintezei dintre artele
plastice, care a atins punctul culminant la mijlo-
cul anilor 50 a avut doar efecte practice limitate.
Asemenea autogospodririi muncitorilor, teoria era
prea nceat pentru a penetra practica obinuit.
Etica umanist modern a fost recunoscut i
aplicat ca o paradigm compatibil cu orizontul
Arhitecii Arhitecii i
b i i urbanitii s-au

bucurat de o poziie

social i inuen
p p
relativ ma relativ mare, i

d lib de o libertate
considerabil n
conceptualizarea
produciei mediul produciei mediului
pp
i construit.
p p
Architects and urban
planners enjoyed lanners enjoyed planners enjoyed
l i l i a relatively high
ppp j y j y
social position and social position and
y g y
inuence, as well as
pp
considerable freed considerable freedom
i li i in conceptualizing
the production of the
p g p
built environment.
pp
#1
and practical leadership of the League of
Communists and the proclaimed, but never truly
implemented, democratization of society and the
desired withering away of the state.
Modernization in architecture and urban planning
A
rchitecture and urbanism reinterpreted the
socially progressive goals of modernism,
elaborated in the pre-war period. In the case
of resource management, a certain level of
egalitarianism was achieved in the areas such as the
distribution of housing stock, while the planning
principles were implemented strictly top-down and
through the zoning morphologies and architec-
tural types that were not essentially diferent from
the Western or Eastern models. Experimental or
utopian approaches were not implemented because
they exceeded both the pragmatic needs of modern-
ization and the available resources. Te neo-avant-
garde agenda to construct aesthetically advanced
living environments in the spirit of the synthesis of
plastic arts, which reached its peak in the mid 1950s,
had only limited practical efects. Just like workers
self-management, the theory was slow to penetrate
common practice.
Modern humanist ethics was recognized and
applied as a paradigm compatible with the horizon
of social development. For that reason, new set-
tlements were constructed according to relatively
high standards, compared to similar examples in
the East, but accommodating for much broader seg-
ments of population than in the West. Te nanc-
ing and production of new housing was removed
from the direct control of the state and placed on a
limited market, allowing the self-managing organi-
zations a certain level of exibility and participa-
tion in providing residences for its members. Tis
particular mix of circumstances contributed to the
continuing social sustainability of many settle-
ments from the socialist period, even in the face of
violent social changes of the past twenty years.
Architects and urban planners enjoyed a rela-
tively high social position and inuence, as well
as considerable freedom in conceptualizing the
production of the built environment. Expropriation
of private estates and the establishment of social
ownership enabled large-scale interventions and
the status of cultural and technical elite allowed ar-
chitects and urban planners a great deal of aesthetic
autonomy. On the other hand, these professionals
were not included in decision-making mechanisms
of the political and economic production of the
built environment. Similarly, the management of
resources remained conventional and similar to
state socialism; neither architects nor construction
industry was integrated into a common system.
Architects and urban planners were thus in charge
of implementing cultural modernization, and the
construction industry was in charge of implement-
ing technical modernization; but the two remained
largely independent of each other. Te invention of
experimental models of design and management
was reduced to resolving immediate pragmatic
dezvoltrii sociale. Din acest motiv, noile
aezri au fost construite conform unor standarde
relativ ridicate, comparativ cu exemplele similare
din Est, dar gzduind segmente mult mai largi de
populaie dect n Vest. Finanarea i producerea
noilor locuine a fost scoas de sub controlul direct
al statului i plasat pe o pia limitat, permind
organizaiilor care se autogospodreau s aib un
anumit nivel de exiblitate i participare la oferirea
locuinelor ctre membrii lor. Aceast combinaie
aparte de mprejurri a contribuit la continuitatea
social a multor aezri din perioada socialist, chiar
i pe parcursul schimbrilor violente din ultimii
douzeci de ani.
Arhitecii i urbanitii s-au bucurat de o poziie
social i inuen relativ mare, i de o libertate
considerabil n conceptualizarea produciei me-
diului construit. Expropierea terenurilor private i
stabilirea proprietii sociale a permis intervenii pe
scar larg, iar statutul elitei culturale i tehnice a
permis arhiecilor i urbanitilor o bun autonomie
estetic. Pe de alt parte, aceti profesioniti nu erau
inclui n mecanismele de decizie ale produciei
politice i economice a mediului construit. n
mod similar, managementul resurselor rmnea
convenional i asemntor socialismului de stat;
nici arhitecii, nici industria construciilor nu erau
integrate n sistemul comun. Arhitecii i urbanitii
erau astfel responsabili de aplicarea modernizrii
culturale, iar industria construciilor avea rolul de
aplicare a modernizrii tehnologice; dar cele dou
rmneau n mare parte separate una fa de cealal-
t. Invenia modelelor experimentale de proiectare
i management a fost redus la rezolvarea proble-
melor practice imediate, cum ar oferirea dreptu-
lui la locuin. Numai n unele cazuri, imaginaia
arhitectural i aplicarea sa operativ au reuit s
medieze ntre modernizrile cultural-sociale i cea
tehnic. Un astfel de exmplu a fost cercetarea avan-
sat n construciile prefabricate, n special pentru
locuinele de mas, care au ieit din stereotipurile
locuinelor inexibile funcional, nereuite estetic i
de slab calitate material.
O alt zon n care modelele inovative s-au re-
alizat a fost constituit de aa-numitele cldiri de
standard social. O anumit arhitectur a modernis-
mului de apogeu, produs generic, dar consistent,
a fost cea mai bun contribuie la mbuntirea
condiiilor de locuire a populaiei generale, aco-
perind ntreaga gam a confortului social (de la
faciliti educaionale i sanitare, la teatre) i un
ntreg registru de mrimi (de la piese de mobilier,
la vecinti ntregi urbane). La nivel local, moder-
nismul de apogeu a cutat astfel s se identice cu
succesul socialismului iugoslav n obinerea unei
modernizri pentru toi. La nivel internaional, a
devenit un semn vizual al independenei Iugoslaviei
fa de inuena sovietic, n special de lungul ani-
lor 50 i la nceputul anilor 60 cnd s-a dovedit a
n contrast evident cu ideile staliniste de frumusee.
ns, dei tonurile populiste ale modernismului au
rezonat cu ceea ce stilul avea n Vest, caracteristicile
sale ideologice au fost ferm nrdcinate ntr-un
model colectivist al bunstrii.
11
problems, like providing the right to housing. Only
in some instances did architectural imagination and
its operative application mediate between the cul-
tural-social and technical modernizations. One such
example was the advanced research in prefabricated
construction, especially for mass housing, which
greatly departed from the stereotypes of function-
ally inexible, aesthetically deprived, and materially
poor social housing.
Another area in which innovative models were
realized was the so-called buildings of social stand-
ard. Somewhat generically but solidly produced
architecture of high modernism made the greatest
contribution to the improvement of living condi- iving condi-
tions of the general population, coverring the full
range of socialized amenities (from ed ducational
and health facilities to theaters) a and d a full range
of scales (from pieces of furniture to wwhole neigh-
borhoods). Locally, high modernism th hus became
the identier of the success of Yugoslav socialism
in achieving a just modernization for everyone.
Internationally, it also became a visuaal sign of
Yugoslavias independence from the SSoviet inu-
ence, especially in the 1950s and earlyy 1960s, when
it provided an obvious contrast with t the Stalinist
ideals of beauty. But even though the populist over-
tones of Yugoslav high modernism resonated with
those that the style had in the West, i its ideological
underpinnings were rmly planted inn a collectivist
model of welfare.
Modernism in architecture and ur rban planning,
however, did not stop at reproducing the generic
modernist models. It followed the intternational
currents towards exploring advanced typologies and
morphologies, but in their transfer to o Yugoslavia,
these currents were inevitably transfoormed and
adapted to local conditions, occasiona ally creating
unique hybrids and morphing into iddiosyncratic
architectural poetics. Te country thuus developed
an architectural culture that was sim multaneously
authentic and in close correspondencce with interna-
tional trends. It was, at the same time e, also highly
diverse, as each of Yugoslavias region nal centers
cultivated its own local methodologiees and aesthet-
ics, centered on its own institutions o of architectural
education and on its own vision of na ational/ethnic
culture. Tis diversity was both a natural continua- ural continua-
tion of local architectural traditions and an explicit
means of identity-building. Each of the local schools
Totui, modernismul n arhitectur i urba-
nism nu s-a oprit la reproducerea modelelor generice
moderniste. Au urmat curentele internaionale de
explorare a tipologiilor i morfologiilor avansate, dar,
pe parcursul transferului lor n Iugoslavia, aceste
curente s-au transformat i adaptat inevitabil la
condiiile locale, genernd ocazional amestecuri
unice i amalgamndu-se ntr-o poetic arhitectu-
ral caracterizat de idiosincrazii. ara a dezvoltat
astfel o cultur arhitectural care a fost simultan
autentic i n strns coresponden cu tendinele
internaionale. Era n acelai timp i foarte divers,
deoarece ecare din centrele regionale ale Iugoslaviei
i cultiva propriile metodologii i estetici locale, fo-
calizate pe propriile instituii de educaie arhitectu-
ral i pe propria viziune a culturii naionale/etnice.
Aceast diversitate a fost att o continuare natural
a tradiiilor arhitecturale, ct i mijlocul explicit de
construire a identitii. Fiecare din colile locale a
fost adeseori dominat de persoane carismatice care
au generat o identitate particular, ntrind-o; dar
toate au urmat de fapt aceeai direcie, determinat
de sarcinile modernizrii. Arhitectura modern nu
a intit deci spre o nou identitate pan-iugoslav. n
schimb, o astfel de identitate s-a format implicit i
spontan, drept consecin a conceptului comun i
condiiilor modernizrii.
Cadrul interpretrii
H
ional a modernizrii e de-
complet. Mult timp privi-
erspectiv vestic, practicile
din societile marginale au
fost cu greu integrate n discursul narativ al culturii
moderniste. Lipsa interpretrii i evaluarea efectelor
i rezultatelor modernizrii confer Estului fost so-
cialist, n mare parte, un modernism internaional
de tip terra incognita. naintea cderii zidului
Berlinului, peisajele sociale i culturale din Est i
Occident ofereau diferene considerabile, din care
multe supravieuiesc nc i azi. Modernismul est
european i motivaiile i efectele lui sociale nu
pot deci intrepretate n mod analog canonului
occidental. Ceea ce era considerat n Vest drept
producia cultural de baz, putea s devin n Est
un ton subversiv. Pe de alt parte, ceea ce n Est era
un produs direct al nevoilor sociale, n Vest putea s
e considerat drept diletantism estetic. n mod frec-
vent, interpretarea reciproc a produciei culturale
a celor dou pri s-a desfurat cu o subiectivitate
considerabil, ind n mare parte, dar nu ntotdeau-
na contient, motivat la nivel politic.
Cu graniele sale poroase spre Est i Vest, cu
propriul sistem experimental i cu un ntreg set de
contradicii mai vechi sau mai noi, Iugoslavia soci-
alist a fost terenul fertil unde diferite experiene i
practici s-au suprapus, implicnd ocazional metodo-
logii i poetici autentice creative. Dar relaia dintre
ideologia dominant, experimentul autogospodririi
socialiste i proiectul modernizrii rmne nc n
mare msur neexplorat. n domeniul arhitecturii
i urbanismului, e deosebit de important s de-
tectm i s analizm modelele progresive, innd
12
HH
arta interna interna
parte de a a
te dintr-o pe r-o p
moderniste d erni
t cu greu integrate u greu integrate
#1
de sistemul social, mecanismele de decizie
i modul de proiectare, n special n cazurile unde
conceptul autogospodririi a afectat semnicativ
producia mediului construit. Toate aceste relaii cer
o analiz critic atent, n special n ceea ce privete
aspectul incomplet i eecul de integrare a procese-
lor disparate de modernizare ntr-un sistem holistic
i funcional de producere a oraului, beneciind pe
deplin de ideea proprietii sociale.
Se poate argumenta c Iugoslavia socialist a
avut precondiiile necesare politice i culturale de a
dezvolta medii construite armonioase, echilibrate
social i stimulative. De ce, atunci, a rmas neatins
orizontul utopic al modernismului? Potenialul a
fost realizat doar n intervenii urbane izolate, cu
precdere pentru a demonstra puterea considera-
bil de aplicare a proiectelor pe scar extins. ns
forma oraelor a rmas asemntoare celei cunos-
cute n capitalism sau socialismul de stat, diferene
comparative aprnd doar n momentul focalizrii
analizei la nivel micro. Exploatarea treptat a spi-
ritului revoluionar, dicultile i iraionalismele
economice, dar i tensiunile interne n cretere au
rigidizat aplicarea ideilor progresiste.
ntrebri i perspective deschise ntreb
P
utem identica ce tip de progres cultural
i social a avut loc n Iugoslavia socialis-
t? Care erau caracteristicile sale? Ct de
autonome erau realizrile culturale i ct
au pe sistemul social? n ce msur i n ce se baza
s-au stabilit relaii progresiste ntre resursele cazuri
nibile, mecanismele de management, ideile dispon
hitectur i nevoile cetenilor? n ce cazuri au din arh
arhitectura i urbanismul cetenii n direcia ajutat
ciprii i dezvoltrii propriei lor creativiti i emanc
unoateri? Care au fost elementele care nu au autocu
s oraului s e un organism colectiv com- permis
Este posibil conturarea aspectelor de baz ale plex? E
rnizrii urbane socialiste i trsturilor sau moder
caracteristicilor sale? caracte
Aceste ntrebri pun un anumit accent pe
condiiile actuale ale tranziiei post-socialiste
was often dominated by charismatic individu-
als that generated signicant following, further
strengthening each particular identity; but they all
ultimately followed the same direction, determined
by the tasks of modernization. Modern architecture
thus never aimed at creating a new pan-Yugoslav
identity. Instead, such an identity formed implicitly
and spontaneously, as the consequence of a com-
mon concept and conditions of modernization.
Contours of interpretation
T
he international map of modernization is far
from complete. Long viewed from a predomi-
nantly Western perspective, modernist prac-
tices in peripheral and marginal societies
have hardly been integrated into the international
narrative of modernist culture. Te lack of interpre-
tation and assessment of the efects and achieve-
ments of modernization renders the former socialist
East largely a terra incognita of international mod-
ernism. Before the fall of the Berlin Wall, the social
and cultural landscapes in the East and the West
displayed considerable diferences, many of which
still survive even today. East European modernism
and its social motivations and efects thus cannot
be interpreted as directly analogous to the Western
canon. What in the West was considered main-
stream cultural production, in the East could have
acquired a subversive overtone. On the other hand,
what in the East was a straightforward product of
social needs, in the West could have been misread
as aesthetic dilettantism. Both sides thus frequently
interpreted each others cultural production with
considerable bias, which was largely, although not
always consciously, politically motivated.
With its porous borders towards the East and the
West, with its own experimental system, and with
a host of inherited and new contradictions, social-
ist Yugoslavia was a fertile ground where various
experiences and practices overlapped, occasionally
resulting in authentic creative methodologies and
poetics. But the relationship between dominant ide-
ology, the experiment of socialist self-management,
and the project of modernization remains largely
unexplored. In the eld of architecture and urban
planning, it is particularly important to detect and
analyze the progressive models that related the
social system, decision-making mechanisms, and
design practices, especially in the cases where the
concept of self-management signicantly afected
the production of the built environment. All these
relationships require careful critical analysis, par-
ticularly with respect to their incompleteness and
failures in integrating the disparate modernization
processes into a holistic and functional system of
the production of the city, while taking full advan-
tage of the idea of social ownership.
It may be argued that socialist Yugoslavia had the
necessary political and cultural preconditions to de-
velop harmonious, socially balanced, and stimulat-
ing built environments. Why, then, did modernisms
utopian horizon remain out of reach? Te potentials
were realized only in isolated urban interventions,
Ceea ce n Est era un prod Ceea ce n Est era un produs
di l il i l V direct al nevoilor sociale, n Vest dir
ppp
utea s e considerat drept pu
letantism estetic. dil
pp
h E What in the East was a Wh
raightforward product of str
cial needs, in the West could so
g p g p
en misread as aest have been misread as aesthetic ha
i d lettantism. dil
13
y
mostly by demonstrating the considerable power
to implement projects on a large-scale. But forms
of cities remained similar to those known from
capitalism or state socialism and comparative difer-
ences emerge only when focusing the analysis on a
micro-scale. Te gradual exhaustion of the revolu-
tionary spirit, economic dif culties and irrationali-
ties, and the increasing internal tensions further
stied the implementation of progressive ideas.
Open questions and perspectives
C
an we identify what kind of cultural and
social progress was made in socialist
Yugoslavia? What were its specicities? How
autonomous were cultural achievements
and how much did they rely on the social system? To
what extent and in which instances were progres-
sive relations established between the available
resources, mechanisms of management, architec-
tural ideas, and the needs of citizens? In which cases
did architecture and urban planning help citizens
emancipate and develop their creativity and self-
awareness? Which were the ones that inhibited or
impoverished the city as a complex collective organ-
ism? Is it possible to outline the basic contours of
socialist urban modernization and its specicities or
singularities?
i pe contextul post-traziie. n ciuda stabilirii
democraiilor de tip occidental n regiune, noile
valori nu au reuit s nlocuiasc sistemul de valori
socialist, antrennd creativitatea colectiv, respon-
sabilizarea cetenilor i emanciparea indivizilor i
a grupurilor. Valorile clare lipsesc n toate dome-
niile: de la politic, creia i lipsete legitimitatea
moral la fel de mult ca orice fundaie teoretic sau
Iugoslavia socialist a avu Iugoslavia socialist a avut
di iil li i i l l precondiiile politice i culturale
gg
necesare pentru a dezvolta
p p
medii construite armonioase,
pp
echilibrate social i stimulative. echilibrate social i stimulative.
Yugoslavia had the necessary
political and cultural
gg
preconditions to develop preconditions to develop
p
h i i ll b l harmonious, socially balanced,
ppp p p p
and stimulating built
y
environments.
14
#1
Tese questions have special urgency in the
current conditions of post-socialist transition and
the post-transitional context. Despite the establish-
ment of Western-style democracies in the region,
new values have largely failed in replacing the
collapsed socialist value system, thus stiing col-
lective creativity, the participative empowerment
of citizens, and the emancipation of individuals
and the collective. Clear values are missing in every
eld: from politics, which lacks moral legitimacy as
much as any recognizable theoretical or ideological
foundation, to general culture and civic life, which
lack a sense of civic solidarity and are prone to re-
traditionalization and regression. Civic and non-
governmental initiatives are gaining momentum,
but they have not grown to a signicant force in
general social processes and their activities remain
focused on individual and tactical operations, rather
than strategic plans.
In the context of the dispersion of thought
and the trivialization of public life, which reinforce
the neo-colonial order, it is necessary to critically
analyze the unnished socialist modernization as a
way of strengthening self-awareness and reinforc-
ing local identity. Te omnipresent physical traces of
socialist modernization, inescapable throughout the
region, constitute not only an important segment of
cultural heritage, but can potentially serve as obvi-
ous counterpoints to the speculative method of the
construction of the city in the current neo-liberal
society of control. Te built environments and
individual architectural artifacts inherited from the
period of intense modernization under self-man-
aging socialism are largely superior to the general,
basically anti-modern, situation we encounter today
in most of the countries of South-Eastern Europe
and Western Balkans. Although the future will be
built literally on the ruins of an interrupted experi-
ment, nostalgia towards the lost utopian horizons is
not a productive position. Instead, it will be neces-
sary to use the local traditions of socially progres-
sive thought to explore new, revised, directions of
modernization if the region is to be integrated into
the international community without being once
again vassal and colonial. Te region can escape its
fate of Europes permanently repressed Other only
by building on its own authentic experiences of
modernization and by creatively exploiting its own
luminal position with porous cultural borders. Te
current social situation hardly ofers any hope of re-
af rming the experiences of socialist self-manage-
ment towards the construction of social democracy.
But it is up to intellectuals to explore the potentials
of the regions unnished modernizations and to
try to revise and adjust them to the contemporary
moment.
JULY 2010
ideologic, pn la viaa cultural i civic
creia i lipsete sentimentul solidaritii civice i
care e nclinat spre retradiionalizare i regresie.
Iniiativele civice i neguvernamentale se intensi-
c, dar nu au crescut ca o for semnicativ n
procesele sociale generale, activitile lor rmnnd
concentrate pe operaii individuale i tactice, n
locul planurilor strategice.
n contextul dispersiei de gndire i a trivi-
alizrii vieii publice care ntrete ordinea neo-
colonial, este necesar s analizm critic moder-
nizarea socialist nenalizat ca pe o ntrire a
autocunoaterii i a armrii identitii locale.
Trsturile zice omniprezente ale modernizrii
socialiste, de neevitat n regiune, constituie nu doar
un segment important al motenirii culturale, dar
pot servi drept contrapucte evidente pentru o meto-
d speculativ de construire a oraului n neoliberala
societate a controlului din zilele noastre. Mediul
construit i artefactele arhitecturale motenite din
perioada modernizrii intense din socialismul au-
toguvernant sunt n mare parte superioare situaiei
generale, practic antimoderne, pe care o ntlnim
astzi n majoritatea rilor din Europa de Sud-Est
i Balcanii de Vest. Dei viitorul va literal constru-
it pe ruinele unui experiment ntrerupt, nostalgia
fa de orizonturile utopice pierdute nu constituie
o poziie productiv. Este necesar n schimb s se
foloseasc tradiiile progresive de gndire pentru
a explora direciile noi, revizuite, de modernizare,
dac regiunea urmeaz s e integrat n comuni-
tatea internaional, fr a deveni nc o dat vasal
i colonial. Regiunea poate scpa de soarta sa de
alt inut al Europei reprimat n permanen doar
dac i construiete experienele proprii autentice
de modernizare i i exploateaz creativ propria
poziie inuent, cu granie culturale poroase.
Situaia social actual cu greu ofer vreo speran
de rearmare a experienelor autogospodririi
socialiste n direcia construirii unei democraii
sociale. Rmne ns la latitudinea intelectualilor
explorarea potenialului modernizrilor nenalizate
din regiune i ncercarea de revizuire a acestora i de
adaptare la momentul prezent.
IULIE 2010
Mediul construit din perio Mediul construit din perioada
i li l i socialismului autoguvernant este
pp
n mare parte superior situaiei
gg
generale, practic antimoderne,
p p p p
pe care o ntlnim astzi. pe care o ntlnim astzi.
g , pp
The built environments from the
period of self-managing socialism
are largely superior to the are largely superior to the
p g g g g
l b i ll i general, basically anti-modern,
g y p g y p g y p
situation we encounter today.
g y y
15 y
Arheologie
urban
contemporan
Text:
Mikls Rcz, Balzs Bod
foto / Photo:
Tams Budha, Mikls Rcz,
Andrs Tbori 16
#1
Contemporary
Urban Archeology
17
T
he exhibition entitled Metropolitan archeol-
ogy by Tams Budha, Andrs Tbori and
Mikls Rcz was on show at the Holdudvar
gallery from mid June to mid July 2010. We
met with Mikls Rcz, the archeologist team mem-
ber to talk about the project. Te interview features
photos from the exhibition.
Two artists and an archeologist decide to document
the city... what does an archeologist do in contempo-
rary culture?
MR: Archeology in a wider context means search-
ing, identifying, naming, preserving and interpret-
ing for contemporary society things which at some
distant point in our culture have completely lost
their function and meaning for some reason or
another. When we narrow the gap between the two
points in cultural history, that is, the one perform-
ing the archeological analysis and the other being
the object of this analysis, we are looking at our own
lives from an archeological perspective. Tis parly
acts as a reection on our archeological methods
(why and to what degree is it legitimate to regard
our objects of general archeological analysis as alien
or distant at all) and partly as a reection on our
age (how we abandon and forget things in our sur-
rounding world of objects and how this tells about
ourselves, our lifestyles and our time).
How do you start to read a city when you look at it as
an archeologist? All subcultures and groups sensi-
tive to the specicities of urban space have their own
methods to nd what they are looking for, think graf-
ti artists, skateboarders or preservationists. How
does a person with archeologists ambitions go out on
the street, look for and nd things? What is noise and
what is noteworthy? How do they lter and select?
R
ealizat de ctre Tams Budha, Andrs
Tbori i Mikls Rcz, expoziia Arheologie
metropolitan a fost deschis publicului la
Galeria Holdudvar n perioada iunie iulie
2010. L-am ntlnit pe Mikls Rcz, un membru al
echipei de arheologi, care ne-a vorbit despre proiect.
Interviul include fotograi din expoziie.
Doi artiti i un arheolog decid s se documenteze
asupra oraului Ce face un arheolog n cultura
contemporan?
MR: Arheologia n context larg nseamn s caui,
s gseti, s numeti, s pstrezi i s reinterpre-
tezi pentru societatea contemporan lucruri care,
aate la o anumit distan n cultura noastr, i-au
pierdut complet funcia i sensul dintr-un motiv sau
altul. Cnd scurtm distana dintre cele dou puncte
din istoria cultural, adic cel care realizeaz analiza
arheologic i cellalt care este obiectul analizei, pri-
vim de fapt propriile noastre viei dintr-o perspecti-
v arheologic. Aceasta joac parial rolul de reecie
a metodelor noastre arheologice (de ce, i n ce
msur este legitim s privim obiectele noastre de
analiz arheologic general drept strine sau dis-
tante), iar parial este o reecie asupra vrstei noas-
tre (cum ne abandonm i uitm lucrurile n lumea
nconjurtoare de obiecte i cum asta povestete
despre noi, stilul de via i timpul nostru).
Cum ncepi s citeti un ora atunci cnd l priveti
ca un arheolog? Toate subculturile i grupurile
sensibile la specicul spaiului urban au propriile
metode de a gsi ceea ce caut, gndii-v la artitii
grafti, rolleri sau ecologiti. Cum poate cineva cu
ambiii arheologice s ias pe strad, s priveas-
c i s gseasc lucruri? Ce e banal i ce merit
observat? Cum privesc i selecteaz?
18
spre noi, stilul de vi spre noi, stilul de v
m ncepi s citeti ncepi s citeti
un arheolog? Toate arheolog? Toate
nsibile la specicu bile la specicu
etode de a gsi ceea de de a gsi cee
T R
MR: We came up with the idea of metropoli-
tan archeology at the end of 2008 when we walked
through an area by the Nyugati railway station and
found several things on the streets for which we
could nd a shared interpretation and which started
to outline the themes of a research. Te nal im-
pulse was a rusty sign on which we were trying to
read the barely legible script from before its repaint.
We photographed it and when we started looking
for the details we found out that the sign high up
on the rewall, which at rst glance is completely
covered in rust, had once actually been standing
beside a road on the border of Hungary and the
Czechoslovakian Transcarpathia (between 1920 and
1938). How could it end up here, how did it become
an advertising signpost on a rewall in Budapest?
Tis discovery was a striking revelation of the
depths to be found behind these phenomena and
thus we started to take observations and possible
interpretations much more seriously. Te concept of
the collection came together shortly after this.
MR: Ideea arheologiei metropolitane ne-a venit la
sfritul anului 2008, cnd ne plimbam ntr-o zon
din gara Nyugati i am gsit diverse lucruri pe strzi
crora le-am putut asocia o interpretare comun,
iniiind temele unei cercetri. Impulsul decisiv l-a
constituit un semn ruginit de pe care ncercam s
descifrm cu dicultate scrisul vizibil dinainte de
a revopsit. L-am fotograat, i, cnd am nce-
put s cutm detaliile, am descoperit c semnul
montat sus pe un calcan, care la prima vedere prea
acoperit complet de rugin, fusese plasat cu mult
timp n urm pe o strad la grania dintre Ungaria
i Cehoslovacia transcarpatic (ntre 1920 i 1938).
Cum ajunsese acolo, cum devenise un indicator pe
un calcan n Budapesta? Descoperirea a constituit o
revelaie surprinztoare asupra profunzimilor ce pot
sta n spatele acestor fenomene, i astfel am nceput
s strngem observaii i s le interpretm mult mai
serios. Conceptul coleciei a prins contur la scurt
timp dup acest moment.
Cum au devenit doi artiti urbani i un arheolog
membri ai unei echipe?
MR: Eu am fost prezent de la nceput n contura-
rea conceptului. Am petrecut civa ani cu Andrs
la MRK (acum MNM-NK, Unitatea de depozitare
central, arhiv i procesare a Muzeului Naional al
Ungariei) la departamentul de cercetare a cldirilor,
unde am lucrat la documentarea cldirilor protejate
i a arheologiei construciilor, el ca desenator, iar eu
n calitate de cercettor. n ceea ce privete practica
arheologiei construciilor, am nvat de la Andrs,
care nu era legat strict de activitatea de conservare,
o anumit msur a autoreeciei i ironiei. Micile
etichete care nsoesc descoperirile arheologice apar
plasate la ntmplare pe pereii biroului nostru.
Am avut o perspectiv diferit asupra mediului,
n afara celei arheologice, deoarece am absolvit fa-
cultatea arhitectur la Universitatea politehnic Ybl
Mikls, pe care am urmat-o n paralel cu studiile de
arheologie medieval i modern timpurie la ELTE.
Ceea ce m intereseaz cel mai mult e cercetarea
ruinelor i a cldirilor (i a altor chestiuni practice
cum ar conservarea cldirilor).
19
How did two artists active in street art and an
archeologist come together to form a team?
MR: I had been present from the beginning in
shaping the concept. We spent some years together
with Andrs at the MRK (presently MNM-NK,
the Central Storage, Archive and Processing facili-
ties of the Hungarian National Museum) at the
Department of Building Research where we worked
on documenting protected buildings and build-
ing archeology, him as a draughtsman and myself
as a researcher. Regarding the practice of build-
ing archeology I have learnt from him, as someone
not strictly within the preservationist profession, a
degree of self reection and irony. Te small printed
labels denoting archeological ndings sometimes
appeared randomly placed on the walls of our of ce.
I also had another perspective on the environ-
ment besides that of archeology as I have a degree in
architecture from the Ybl Mikls Polytechnic which
I obtained parallel with my studies in Medieval and
Early Modern archeology at ELTE Humanities. What
mostly interests me is the research of ruins and
buildings (and other, more practical matters as well,
such as building preservation.)
Everything beyond the stones forming the space of
the street is ephemeral. How do you select from this
ephemeral world?
MR: At the phase of formulating the concept
of collecting and the exhibition we came up with
Dincolo de pietrele din spaiul strzii, to-
tul este este efemer. Cum alegei n acest spaiu
efemer?
MR: n faza de formulare a ideii de colecionare i
expunere, am gsit temele proprii care au asigurat
un mediu favorabil conceptual, structurndu-ne
observarea i procesul de clasicare a fenomenelor
din spaiul urban. n cursul observrii i documen-
trii, actul analizei i procesele din context ne-au
motivat; am ateptat de la noi nine, dar i de la
ceilali, o parcurgere a celor mai profunde interpre-
tri. Aspectul cheie al seleciei a fost gradul n care i
puteam asigura procesului analizat o mprtire a
interpretrii i limpezimea recunoaterii contextului
cultural generator al unei noi constelaii de obiecte.
Constituie un contrast destul de evident faptul c
expoziia nu prea conine astfel de interpretri, dei
aproape toate i ecare din cele 100 de fotograi ar
putea deveni o carte. De ce ai ales s nu i prezent
la conturarea contextului, n afara aciunilor de
colectare i selectare?
MR: Actuala lips a unei interpretri arheolo-
gice profunde i a explicrii materialului expus
se datoreaz n mare parte termenelor strnse ale
expoziiei. De aceast dat, am reuit s prezentm
fenomenele arheologice care altminteri nu sunt ob-
servate ca atare i s sugerm posibilitile de inter-
pretare arheologic. Singura documentaie specic,
pe termen lung i focalizat, privete transformrile
di
#1
20
ervate ca atare i s ervate ca atare i s
retare arheologic. S retare arheologic. S
e termen lung i foc men lung i foc
in zona urban. ona urba
themes for ourselves which created a concep-
tional background, structuring our focus and our
classication process of phenomena in urban space.
On observing and documenting the act of analysis
and the background processes also motivated us; we
expected from ourselves and the others as well to
go to the utmost depths of interpretation. Te key
aspect of selection was the degree to which we could
attach a shared interpretation to the captured proc-
ess and how clearly the cultural context creating the
given constellation of objects was recognizable.
Ce pri din acest material le considerai proprii?
Pot obiectele nsuite? Vedei vrsta obiectelor ca
pe cea proprie? Pot strada sau istoria nsuite?
MR: Sigur c le vd vrsta ca pe cea proprie.
Apropo, nu pentru fenomene i strzi, dei le con-
sider adeseori prezena ca ind foarte important,
esenial n sensul de a m face s m simt acas,
aici i acum.
Pstrarea artefactelor poate s devin un el, pen-
tru a le extrage din trecerea timpului, din decdere?
ri, aceasta poate foarte
important, dar necesit alegerea unor anumite
categorii drept extrase inevitabile. Indicatoarele de
magazine i etichetele, de exemplu, dar i con-
ceptele arhitecturale sau urbane pot ntrite de
conservarea contient a anumitor contexte sau
amplasamente, sau a aplicaiilor mai focalizate,
tematice, legate de estetica la mod preocupat ns
de ea nsi, ntr-un fel, i de arhitectura barurilor
ruinate din spaiile publice (baruri situate n zonele
centrale rezideniale aate n stare de degradare).
Ca s v ofer un exemplu: pavajul original al strzii
romane ctre rd, vechi de aproape dou milenii,
aat aproape n stare perfect, este actualmente ex-
pus sub form de petice n strzi cu trac sczut, la
acelai nivel cu suprafaa asfaltului. n contrast, pa-
vajul ranat n-de-sicle din Budapesta a disprut
sub asfalt, iar pstrarea detaliilor nu apare deloc ca
o idee potrivit, deoarece nu se ncadreaz n rutina
spaiilor publice. Materialul original este totui aco-
lo, iar n unele amplasamente, zece metri de pavaj
vechi de o sut de ani ar putea ajuta la domolirea
tracului.
22
ru a le extrage din tr u a le extrage din t
MR: n unele cazur n unele cazu
mportant, dar nece ortant, dar ne
ategorii drept extras tegorii drept ex
magazine i etichetel magazine i etichetel
It is quite a contrast then that the exhibition
contained almost no such interpretations, though
almost any and all of the nearly 100 photos could
obviously be turned into a book. Why did you choose
not to be present in drawing up the context beyond
the actions of collecting and selecting?
MR: Te current lack of in-depth archeologi-
cal interpretation and explanation of the material
on show is largely due to the tight deadlines of
this exhibition. Tis time we could mainly aim for
presenting as archeological phenomena things that
otherwise are not seen as such and suggest the pos-
sibilities of archeological interpretation. Te only
specic, long term and targeted documentation
analyzed the transformations of an urban pathway.
What parts do you feel your own from this material?
Can objects be appropriated? Do you see the age
where these artifacts come from as yours? Can the
street or its history be appropriated?
MR: I certainly see the age as mine. Te phenom-
ena and the streets by the way I dont, but most of
the time I regard their presence very important,
they are instrumental in making me feel at home
here and now.
Can the preservation of the artifacts be a goal, to
extract them from the passing of time, from decay?
MR: In some cases this can be very important,
but it necessittes choosing certain categories as
inevitable extracts. Painted shop signs and labels,
for instance, but even architectural or urban design
concepts can be reinforced by consciously preserv-
ing certain contexts or sites or the more reected
and focused, thematic applications of the trendy but
somewhat self-absorbed aesthetic and architecture
of ruin bars (bars in abandoned downtown tene-
ment buildings) in public spaces. Just to give you an
example: the original pavement of the close to two
thousand years old Roman road to rd is in almost
perfect condition and is now shown exposed as
patches in the current low-traf c road on the same
level with the asphalt surface. In contrast, the often
very exquisite n-de-sicle cobble stone pavements
in Budapest largely disappeared under the asphalt;
preserving their details does not even come by as an
idea because it does not t in the routine of deal-
ing with public spaces. Te original material is still
there though and in certain locations ten meters
of a hundred-year-old stone pavement could even
serve to calm down the traf c.
23 n n
Oraul epuizat
Text:
Milica Topalovi 24
#1
Exhausted City
BRANISLAV JOVIN I STOJAN MAKSIMOVI,
PRIMRIA NOULUI BELGRAD, 1971 (FOTO:
BAS PRINCEN, 2001)
BRANISLAV JOVIN AND STOJAN
MAKSIMOVI, MUNICIPALITY OF NEW
BELGRADE, 1971 (PHOTO: BAS PRINCEN, 2001)
25
I
n many ways, New Belgrade today embod-
ies post-transitional Serbia, with its character
marked by increasing social diferences and com-
mercialization, and also, by the lack of public po-
litical dialogue guiding the direction of its changes,
and a weakness of architecture and urbanism as
critical practices shaping the citys space. Behind
this current paradigm of New Belgrades urban de-
velopment is an incomplete institutional and legal
transformation, characterized by a mix of economic
neoliberalism and socialist protectionism, elements
of which are found in most post-socialist cities. In
Belgrade, this framework has promoted an elitist
model of power distribution: a model in which only
political and economic actors have a direct inu-
ence on urban development, with the position of
other key actors planners and architects on the
one hand, citizens on the other hand remaining
marginal.
Within the partial institutional recovery since
2000, New Belgrades central zone was identied
both by the city government and the Masterplan of
Belgrade to 2021 as the rst strategic location in the
capitals expansion into a commercial hub through
private investment, owing to its high quality infra-
structure and large residential community. As a
consequence, city of cials have estimated that New
Belgrades potential will be completely exhausted
within the next two to three years, after which po-
litical attention will be transferred to other attractive
locations in the city. Tis approach has been widely
criticized for displaying signs of corruption and a
favoring of private interests, as well as a hesitation
to promote legal and institutional transformation,
for the sake of preserving political power. From the
urban planning perspective, the development of
New Belgrade and other parts of the city has been
carried out outside of plans; having lost political sup-
port and status as an important social function, the
N
oul Belgrad de azi reprezint Serbia post-
tranziie n multe feluri, cu caracterul su
marcat de creterea diferenelor sociale i
a comercializrii, dar i de lipsa dialogului
politic public care s ndrume direcia schimbri-
lor, precum i de o anumit slbiciune a arhitec-
turii i urbanismului drept practici vitale care s
modeleze spaiul capitalei. n spatele paradigmei
actuale a dezvoltrii urbane a Noului Belgrad se
a o transformare instituional i legal incom-
plet, caracterizat de un amestec de neoliberalism
economic i protecionism socialist, elemente care
se regsesc n majoritatea oraelor post-socialiste.
n Belgrad, acest cadru a promovat un model elitist
al distribuiei puterii: un model n care doar actorii
politici i economici au o inuen direct asupra
dezvoltrii urbane, n timp ce poziia celorlali ac-
tori urbaniti i arhiteci, pe de o parte, cetenii,
pe de alt parte rmne marginal.
n timpul revitalizrii instituionale pariale din
2000, zona central a Noului Belgrad a fost identi-
cat att de administraia oraului, ct i de Planul
Urbanistic al Belgradului pn n 2021 drept primul
amplasament strategic al dezvoltrii capitalei ntr-
un centru comercial prin investiii private, dato-
rit infrastructurii de calitate i unei comuniti
rezideniale considerabile. Drept consecin,
ocialii au estimat c potenialul Noului Belgrad
va complet epuizat n urmtorii doi sau trei ani,
dup care atenia politic va transferat ctre
alte amplasamente atractive ale oraului. Aceast
abordare a fost intens criticat pentru semnele de
corupie i favorizarea intereselor private, precum i
pentru ezitarea de a promova transformarea legal
i instituional de dragul meninerii puterii politi-
ce. Din perspectiva urbanistic, dezvoltarea Noului
Belgrad i a altor pri ale oraului a avut loc n afara
planurilor urbanistice; pierznd sprijinul politic i
statutul de funcie social important, profesia de
Privatizarea i marketizarea fr Privatizarea i marketizarea fr
di i i b i discriminare a urbanismului i

a arhitecturii le-au distrus rolul a a ec u e au d s us o u

critic n ora; acestea au ncetat

s mai e subiectul constitutiv i s mai e subiectul constitutiv i

l l f scopul lor ca profesii.

Urban planning and architecture
have followed a process of have followed a process of
p g p g
i di i i i i i indiscriminate privatization and
pppp
marketization; losing their critical
pp
role in the city, they have lost the
gg
city as the constitutive sub city as the constitutive subject
y y y y
d f h f and purpose of the professions.
yy j y j
PROIECTUL PENTRU NOUL BELGRAD,
MACHET (FOTOGRAFIE DE EPOC)
NEW BELGRADE PROJECT, MODEL (PERIOD
PHOTO)
#1
26
va complet epuizat a complet epui
up care atenia pol up care atenia
lte amplasamente at mplasamente
bordare a fost intens dare a fost intens
orupie i favorizare rupie i favorizare
entru ezitarea de a p entru ezitarea de a
I N
urban planning profession has been nearly reduced
to a technical-formal validation of decisions car-
ried out at a higher level. Te inuence of citizens
on urban development has been equally negligible;
the tendency to resort to informal construction can
be understood as a direct reection of lost trust in
institutions together with a lack of experience in col-
lective and civic organizing and as a direct form of
resistance to of cial developmental politics.
Te ongoing discussions of urban development in
Belgrade and other ex-Yugoslav cities with simi-
lar experiences have consistently underscored the
absence of consensus around the question of public
interest; in Belgrade it has become clear that solu-
tions cannot be arrived at through the government
organs which tend to remain outside the public
realm and evade democratic control. A relevant ques-
tion in this context concerns the possible critical
strategies available to architecture and urbanism for
reconstituting their lost engagement with the city.
urbanist a fost practic redus la o validare teh-
nic formal a deciziilor luate la nivel mai nalt.
Inuena cetenilor asupra dezvoltrii urbane a
fost aproape neglijabil; tendina de a recurge la
construcii improvizate poate neleas ca o reec-
tare direct a ncrederii pierdute fa de instituii,
mpreun cu lipsa experienei de organizare colec-
tiv i civic dar i ca o form direct de rezisten
la politica de dezvoltare ocial.
Discuiile continue despre dezvoltarea urban din
Belgrad i alte foste orae iugoslave cu experiene
similare au nregistrat regulat absena consensului
n jurul chestiunilor de interes public; n Belgrad,
a devenit clar c soluiile nu pot lsate la ndem-
na organelor guvernamentale care tind s rmn
n afara domeniului public i s scape controlului
democratic. O chestiune relevant n acest context
privete posibilele strategii critice pe care arhitectu-
ra i urbanismul le au la dispoziie pentru reconsti-
tuirea angajamentului lor pierdut fa de ora.
ZONA CENTRAL A NOULUI BELGRAD (FOTO:
BAS PRINCEN, 2006)
NEW BELGRADES CENTRAL ZONE, (PHOTO:
BAS PRINCEN, 2006)
A continuity of local protagonists
T
he phenomenon of continuity of social
elites the link between the elites of the so-
cialist period and the ones leading the tran-
sition to liberal capitalism has been widely
observed in post-Yugoslav societies. Both during the
Miloevi period in the 1990s and after 2000, the
common strategy for institutional transformation
involved an adaptive reconstruction of old institu-
tions, in a manner ensuring that signicant social-
ist actors could continue or expand their political
and economic inuence under market economy
conditions. As evident in the central zone of New
Belgrade, in the urban development sphere this
process produced an efective monopoly by a few
formerly state-owned, now privatized corporations
and conglomerates. Te leading enterprises active in
New Belgrade, such as Napred, Energoprojekt, and
Komgrap, were set up in the 1950s and 1960s by the
state and the defense ministry, when their main
task was to develop the new city; during the 1970s
and 1980s they became more rmly established
and competitive abroad, chiey in non-aligned
and socialist countries. Following privatization,
the inuence of these enterprises in New Belgrade
has persisted, mainly owing to the extension of the
right to use land awarded by the state. And as long
as the regimes of land use and land tenure remain
unclear and inadequately dened, there is little mo-
tivation to promote reform, as the ongoing situation
is favorable for the diferent parties involved. Such
circumstances, governed by non-transparent rules,
have contributed to the inuence of foreign invest-
ment in the area actually remaining low, or taking
place through covert alliance with local partners.
Within such a practice, both the debate over public
interests and the design and development proc-
esses have efectively been privatized; its impact not
only manifest in the commercial appropriation of
urban space and increasing social disparities but in
the creation of a professional environment render-
ing urban planning superuous while promoting
insular corporate architecture and urbanism as a
professional standard.
City without a plan
I
n the post-Yugoslav context, the urban-planning
sector may represent the social subsystem that
has disintegrated most fully. Te result of the
decades-long decline of planning institutions
Continuitatea protagonitilor locali
F
ntinuitii elitelor sociale le-
elitele epocii socialiste i cele
care conduc tranziia ctre capitalismul
liberal a fost pe larg observat n societ-
ile post-iugoslave. Att n timpul epocii Miloevi
n anii 90, ct i dup 2000, strategia comun
pentru transformrile instituionale a implicat o
reconstrucie adaptabil la vechile instituii, astfel
nct actorii socialiti semnicativi au reuit s-i
extind inuena politic i economic n condii-
ile economiei de pia. Dup cum este evident n
zona central a Noului Belgrad, n sfera dezvoltrii
urbane acest proces a produs un monopol efectiv al
fostelor corporaii i conglomerate deinute de stat,
acum privatizate. ntreprinderile de vrf active n
Noul Belgrad, de exemplu Napred, Energoprojekt
i Komgrap au fost ninate n anii 50 i 60 de
ctre stat i ministerul aprrii, avnd ca principal
misiune dezvoltarea oraului; n anii 70 i 80 ele au
devenit mai stabile i competitive pe plan inter-
naional, mai ales n rile nealiniate i socialiste.
Dup privatizare, inuena acestor ntreprinderi n
Noul Belgrad a continuat, datorit mai ales extin-
derii dreptului de a folosi terenul alocat de stat.
Att timp ct regimul folosirii terenurilor rmne
neclar i insucient denit, exist o slab motivaie
de a promova reforma, de vreme de situaia curen-
t e favorabil diferitor pri implicate. Asemenea
mprejurri, guvernate de reguli netransparente, au
fcut ca inuena investiiilor strine din zon s
rmn redus sau s aib loc printr-o alian clan-
destin cu partenerii locali. n condiiile unei astfel
PROIECTUL PENTRU NOUL BELGRAD,
PERSPECTIV
NEW BELGRADE PROJECT, PERSPECTIVE
NOUL BELGRAD,
INSULA 21, TURNUL
UE N FUNDAL
(FOTO: PETAR STE-
LKIC, 2009)
NEW BELGRADES
BLOCK 21, UE
TOWER IN THE BACK-
GROUND (PHOTO:
PETAR STELKIC,
2009)
#1
28 28
ontinuitatea protago ontinuitatea protago
FF
enomenul con enomenul con
gtura dintre ra dintre
care conduc tr care conduc t
and organizations, followed by only partial
recovery after 2000, has been an inability to react
to spatial and social transformation, together with
a lowering of professional capacity and a response
to changing conditions with a sense of disillusion-
ment and passivity: a range of professional symp-
toms often attributed to neoliberal regimes. In
New Belgrade, the Miloevi period was marked
by transformation through direct state interven-
tion; after 2000, the political stratum continued
to remain beyond the inuence of the planning
practice. In the post-2000 legislation, new types of
entrepreneurially oriented political players, emerg-
ing on both the state and city level (in capacities
such as City Manager and City Architect), have been
able to shift urban agendas toward a promotion of
Belgrades attractiveness to investors, through for
example infrastructural improvements and highly
visible individual projects (e.g. the highest of ce
tower, the largest arena, and the biggest shop-
ping mall) that were regularly positioned outside
or in opposition to plans. Within this context, no
critical planning or design strategies have been cre-
ated; instead, the capacity of urban plans to shape
the city has been replaced with a focus on individual
sites and projects. Tis practice has been formalized
in a now standard accommodation of short-term
decisions regarding investment initiatives through
an alteration of the masterplans parameters in
favor of lower-level regulatory plans. Tis amounts
to a situation where, in the words of a Belgrade
planner, normative concerns about the public good
appear in planning documents, while they disap-
pear in leasing contracts for properties for construc-
tion. Te established hierarchy in this process of
investment-centered decision-making so called
investors urbanism begins with the private
investor and moves down to the politician, then to
the planner, for the sake of acquiring a planning
de practici, att dezbaterea intereselor publice
ct i procesele de planicare i dezvoltare au fost
efectiv privatizate; impactul se manifest nu doar n
nsuirea comercial a spaiului urban i n creterea
diferenierilor sociale, dar i n crearea unui mediu
profesional ce arm inutilitatea urbanizrii plani-
cate, n timp ce promovarea arhitecturii i urbanis-
mului de tip corporatist i ngust sunt privite drept
standard profesional.
Ora fr plan

n contextual post-iugoslav, sectorul urbanistic

reprezint subsistemul social cu cea mai ridicat

rat de dezintegrare. Rezultatul declinului de de-

cenii al instituiilor i organizaiilor responsabile
cu planicarea, urmat de o revenire parial dup
2000, a reprezentat incapacitatea de a reaciona
la transformrile spaiale i sociale, mpreun cu
scderea capacitii profesionale i reacia la condi-
iile n schimbare, odat cu sentimentul deziluziei
i al pasivitii: o gam de simptome profesionale
adeseori atribuite regimurilor neoliberale. n Noul
Belgrad, epoca Miloevi a fost marcat de trans-
formare prin intervenia direct a statului; dup
2000, stratul politic a continuat s rmn dincolo
de inuena practicii de planicare. n legislaia
post-2000, noi tipuri de juctori politici cu spirit
antreprenorial aprui att la nivelul statului i al
oraului (n roluri cum ar Managerul Capitalei
i Arhitectul Capitalei) au fost capabili s schim-
be agenda urban ctre promovarea atractivitii
Belgradului pentru investitori, prin, de exemplu,
mbuntiri ale infrastructurii i prin proiecte
individuale foarte vizibile (de exemplu cea mai
nalt cldire de birouri, cea mai mare aren i
cel mai mare mall comercial) care au fost plasate
n mod regulat n afara sau n opoziie cu planuri-
le urbanistice. n acest context, nu au aprut nici
o planicare critic sau strategii noi; n schimb,
capacitatea planurilor urbanistice de a modela
oraul a fost nlocuit cu un accent pus pe amplasa-
mentele i proiectele individuale. Aceast practic
s-a formalizat n ceea ce a devenit acum regul de
intervenie: alterarea parametrilor planului gene-
ral prin planuri la scar inferioar, reprezentnd
decizii pe termen scurt. Acestea au dus la situaia
n care, dup cuvintele unui urbanist belgrdean,
ngrijorrile normative despre binele public apar
n documentele de planicare, n timp ce dispar din
contractele de leasing pentru proprietile pen-
tru construcie Ierarhia xat n acest proces de
luare a deciziilor centrat pe investiii aa-numitul
urbanism al investitorilor ncepe cu investitorul
privat i se deplaseaz ctre politician, apoi ctre
urbanist, de dragul obinerii unui amendament ur-
banistic i a unei autorizaii de construcie. Cu alte
cuvinte, interesul privat domin mediul belgrdean
n timp ce politicienii au cea mai mare inuen
asupra planicrii. Odat cu aceast traiectorie
problematic, chiar strategiile potenial vitale mai
ales concursurile publice ce au avut o mare tradiie
n planicarea Noului Belgrad au fost reduse la
proceduri formale. Privatizarea i marketizarea fr
Pentru a iei din pasivitate Pentru a iei din pasivitate
i d il i hi i i deziluzionare, arhitecii
p p p
i urbanitii Belgradului pot i urbanitii Belgradului pot

explora potenialul radical
g p g p
al acestui nou rol, devenin al acestui nou rol, devenind
p p p p
i i i i i l i voci active i critice la nivelul
oraului.
As a replacement for pass As a replacement for passivity
d di ill i B l and disillusionment, Belgrades
p p p p y p p
architects and urbanists can
g
explore the radical potential of
this new role, becoming ac this new role, becoming active
p p p p
d i i l i i hi and critical voices within the city.
ggg
29 22
amendment and the building license. In other
words, private interest dominates Belgrades devel-
opment while politicians have the greatest inu-
ence on its planning. Along this problematic trajec-
tory, even potentially crucial strategies especially
the public competitions with their great tradition
in New Belgrades planning have been reduced to
decorative procedures. In such position, Belgrades
urban planning and architecture have followed a
process of indiscriminate privatization and marketi-
zation; losing their critical role in the city, they have
lost the city as the constitutive subject and purpose
of the professions.
Politics constitutes a problem of choices. Who
ultimately chooses the image of a city is not the city
itself and always and only through its political
institutions. To say that this choice is indiferent
is a banal simplication of the problem. It is not
indiferent: Athens, Rome and Paris are the form
of their politics, the signs of their collective will.
Once again, Aldo Rossis view has relevance in help-
ing to frame contemporary architectures recur-
rent question regarding the relationship between
politics and city-making. In an environment where
the political and urban spheres are separate, politics
as a decision-making faculty aimed at the public
interest and common good, at potentiating the ways
individuals and diferent groups of people can live
together, appears only on a distant horizon.
As argued at an earlier point in this book, urban
planning has lost its role in shaping Belgrades
future, instead taking on a role close to that of the
press that is, of an organ, devoted to comment-
ing on the character of a democratic societys urban
development. It seems reasonable to suggest that
as a replacement for passivity and disillusionment,
Belgrades architects and urbanists can explore the
radical potential of this new role, becoming active
and critical voices within the city. Such a critical
role would no longer serve as an extension of state
and governmental institutions but would neces-
sarily be located in the public sphere a sphere in
which motives and support for both transformation
of architectural practice and its vital engagement
with the city can be generated and sustained.
Remarkably, nearly fty years have passed since
the last overarching urban plans and concepts for
New Belgrade were created. Between that time
and the present, the area has developed erratically,
shifting from one unstable urban paradigm to the
next. Tis movement has produced an urban space
and communities now only supercially tied to the
modernist ethos that was their beginning. While
the plans formulated along those early lines intro-
duced a range of spatial qualities that can to large
extent still be promoted, more recent developments
call for a precise evaluation of outcomes and, above
all, a set of new urbanistic concepts. Could those
modern city qualities be reinforced and rened in
a contemporary city, beyond the irrational indif-
ference regarding both the socialist and modern
inheritance? Could a public political dialogue on
New Belgrades future be initiated through a precise
discriminare a urbanismului i a arhitecturii
le-au distrus rolul critic n ora; acesta a ncetat s
mai e subiectul constitutiv i scopul lor ca profesii.
Politica reprezint o serie de alegeri. Cel care
alege n cele din urm imaginea unui ora nu
este oraul nsui ci ntotdeauna, i numai prin,
instituiile sale politice. S spui c aceast alegere
e indiferent reprezint o simplicare banal a pro-
blemei. Nu este indiferent: Atena, Roma i Parisul
sunt forma propriilor politici, semnele voinei
colective. nc o dat, perspectiva lui Aldo Rossi e
relevant n conturarea chestiunii actuale, persis-
tente, privind relaia dintre politic i dezvoltarea
oraului. ntr-un mediu n care sferele politic i
urban sunt separate, politica vzut drept faculta-
tea lurii deciziilor fa de interesul public i binele
comun, potennd modul n care indivizii i diferite
grupuri de persoane pot tri mpreun, apare doar
la un orizont foarte ndeprtat.
Dup cum s-a argumentat mai devreme n
volumul de fa, urbanismul i-a pierdut rolul
de modelare a viitorului Belgrad, lund n schimb
un rol similar celui al presei adic, al unui organ
dedicat comentrii caracterului dezvoltrii urbane
democratice a societii. Pare rezonabil s sugerm
c, pentru a iei din pasivitate i deziluzionare, arhi-
tecii i urbanitii Belgradului pot explora potenia-
lul radical al acestui nou rol, devenind voci active i
critice la nivelul oraului. Un astfel de rol critic nu
va mai servi drept o extindere a instituiilor statale
i guvernamentale, ci ar neaprat plasat n sfera
public o sfer n care pot generate i susinu-
te motivele i sprijinul att pentru transformarea
practicii arhitecturale, ct i a angajamentului su
cu oraul.
n mod remarcabil, au trecut aproape cincizeci
de ani de la ultimele planuri i concepte urbanistice
complete. ntre acel moment i prezent, zona s-a
dezvoltat haotic, trecnd de la o paradigm urban
instabil la urmtoarea. Aceast mutare a produs un
spaiu i comuniti urbane doar supercial legate
de etosul modern care a reprezentat nceputul lor. n
timp ce planicarea iniial a determinat anumite
caliti spaiale ce mai pot promovate i astzi (n
cea mai mare parte), dezvoltri mai recente necesit
o evaluare precis a rezultatelor i, mai ales, un nou
set de concepte urbanistice. Ar putea acele caliti
moderne ale oraului ntrite i ranate de un ora
contemporan, dincolo de indiferena iraional la
motenirea socialist i cea actual? Ar putea ini-
iat un dialog politic public asupra viitorului Noului
Belgrad printr-o focalizare precis pe temele sale
prioritare n sfera spaial i urban, n afara mode-
lelor dominante folosite?
Scara cercetrii i proiectrii n cadrul creia pot
integrate i adresate astfel de ntrebri nu este
cea a unei abordri de tip master plan cu rezul-
tat deschis, nici cea a concentrrii egoiste asupra
cldirilor individuale i a complexelor dezvoltato-
rilor. Este, mai degrab, scara la care Noul Belgrad
a fost conceput i planicat un cmp de aciune
produs de ctre suprapunerea disciplinelor arhitec-
turii i urbanismului i care a ajuns s e cunoscut
30
critice la nivelul orau ritice la nivelul ora
va mai servi drept o e a mai servi drept o e
i guvernamentale, ci vernamentale, ci
public o sfer n ca o sfer n ca
e motivele i sprijinu e motivele i sprijinu
practicii arhitectural racticii arhitectural
#1
focus on its urgent themes in spheres of the
spatial and the urban, outside what have been
dominant patterns?
Te scale of design investigation within which
such questions can be integrated and addressed is
not that of open-ended master-planning approach,
nor that of self-absorbed attention to individual
buildings and developers complexes. Rather, it is the
scale in which New Belgrade was originally planned
and designed a eld comprised of the overlapping
disciplines of architecture and urbanism that came
to be known in the mid-1950s as urban design.
Tis scale ofers a possibility for developing both
theoretical positions and design proposals; po-
tentially, it could acquire new relevance as a basic
frame for creating alternative ideas of the city. Te
case of New Belgrade raises the question of whether
it is possible to construct a contemporary agenda
for urban design, as a proactive design exercise
that can clearly and intelligibly represent the citys
social, cultural and political realities. Consequently
this is not a search for yet another universalist
urban model, but rather for an urban project with a
tangible and specic eld of operation, positioned
within territorial limits dened by a continuity of
historical, social, and morphological features. Such
a plan would not represent one more staging ground
for economic activity, but an attempt to constitute
a contemporary public and political platform for a
renewed commitment to the city.
THIS TEXT IS AN EXCERPT FROM AN ESSAY NEW BELGRADE: THE
MODERN CITYS UNSTABLE PARADIGMS BY MILICA TOPALOVI
IN BELGRADE. FORMAL / INFORMAL: A RESEARCH ON URBAN
TRANSFORMATION. THE BOOK WAS INITIATED IN 2006 AND PRODUCED
BY THE ETH STUDIO BASEL CONTEMPORARY CITY INSTITUTE AND PUB-
LISHED IN 2011 BY VERLAG SCHEIDEGGER & SPIESS FROM ZRICH.
REFERINE
SRETEN VUJOVI, MINA PETROVI, BELGRADES POST-SOCIALIST UR-
BAN EVOLUTION: REFLECTIONS BY THE ACTORS IN THE DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS, IN: THE POST-SOCIALIST CITY, ED. KIRIL STANILOV, (VIENNA-
NEW YORK: SPRINGER, 2007), PP. 379-380.
IBID., P. 361.
IBID., PP. 366-7.
ORE BOBI, ILLEGAL CONSTRUCTION TO BE TORN DOWN, INTER-
VIEW, ECONOMIST (BELGRADE), SPECIAL EDITION (2007), P.10.
VUJOVI, PETROVI, BELGRADES POST-SOCIALIST URBAN EVOLU-
TION, P. 374.
IBID., PP. 361, 378.
IBID., P. 371.
IBID., P. 379.
IBID., PP. 374, 379.
IBID., PP. 370-373.
IBID., P. 375.
IBID.
ALDO ROSSI, THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE CITY (1966, CAMBRIDGE
MASS: MIT PRESS, 1982), P. 162.
PIER VITTORIO AURELI, TOWARD THE ARCHIPELAGO: DEFINING THE
POLITICAL AND THE FORMAL IN ARCHITECTURE, LOG (NEW YORK), NO.
(2008).
ROGER DIENER ET AL., BELGRADE. FORMAL / INFORMAL: A RESEARCH
ON URBAN TRANSFORMATION, (ZRICH: VERLAG SCHEIDEGGER &
SPIESS, 2011).
PIER VITTORIO AURELI, ARCHITECTURE AFTER LIBERALISM:
TOWARDS THE FORM OF THE EUROPEAN CAPITAL CITY, IN: BRUSSEL
A MANIFESTO TOWARDS THE CAPITAL OF EUROPE, ED. AURELI ET AL.,
(ROTTERDAM: NAI PUBLISHERS, 2007), PP. 195, 197.
ROSSI, THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE CITY, PP. 63-64.
la mijlocul anilor 50 drept design urban.
Aceast scar ofer posibilitatea dezvoltrii att a
poziiilor teoretice, ct i a propunerilor de design;
n plus, are potenialul de a relevant drept cadru
de baz pentru crearea ideilor alternative de ora.
Cazul Noului Belgrad ridic ntrebarea dac e posibil
s se construiasc o agend modern pentru pro-
iectarea urban ca un exerciiu de design proactiv
care s poat reprezenta clar i inteligibil realitile
sociale, culturale i politice ale oraului. Prin urma-
re, nu este vorba despre o cutare a unui nou model
urban universal, ci mai degrab a unui proiect urban
cu un tip de operare tangibil i specic, plasat n
limitele denite de continuitatea trsturilor sale
istorice, sociale i morfologice. Un astfel de plan nu
ar reprezenta un teren de manifestare a activitii
economice, ci o ncercare de a constitui platforma
public i politic pentru un angajament rennoit
fa de ora.
ACEST TEXT ESTE UN FRAGMENT DIN ESEUL LUI MILICA TOPALOVI
NOUL BELGRAD: PARADIGMELE INSTABILE ALE ORAULUI MODERN
(NEW BELGRADE: THE MODERN CITYS UNSTABLE PARADIGMS),
APRUT N BELGRAD. FORMAL/ INFORMAL: O CERCETARE A TRANS-
FORMRII URBANE (BELGRADE. FORMAL / INFORMAL: A RESEARCH
ON URBAN TRANSFORMATION.). VOLUMUL A FOST INIIAT N 2006 I
PRODUS DE ETH STUDIO BASEL CONTEMPORARY CITY INSTITUTE I PU-
BLICAT N 2011 DE VERLAG SCHEIDEGGER & SPIESS, ZRICH.
REFERINE
SRETEN VUJOVI, MINA PETROVI, BELGRADES POST-SOCIALIST UR-
BAN EVOLUTION: REFLECTIONS BY THE ACTORS IN THE DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS, N: THE POST-SOCIALIST CITY, ED. KIRIL STANILOV, (VIENNA-
NEW YORK: SPRINGER, 2007), PP. 379-380.
IBID., P. 361.
IBID., PP. 366-7.
ORE BOBI, ILLEGAL CONSTRUCTION TO BE TORN DOWN, INTER-
VIU, ECONOMIST (BELGRAD), EDIIE SPECIAL (2007), P.10.
VUJOVI, PETROVI, BELGRADES POST-SOCIALIST URBAN
EVOLUTION, P. 374.
IBID., PP. 361, 378.
IBID., P. 371.
IBID., P. 379.
IBID., PP. 374, 379.
IBID., PP. 370-373.
IBID., P. 375.
IBID.
ALDO ROSSI, THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE CITY (1966, CAMBRIDGE
MASS: MIT PRESS, 1982), P. 162.
PIER VITTORIO AURELI, TOWARD THE ARCHIPELAGO: DEFINING THE
POLITICAL AND THE FORMAL IN ARCHITECTURE, LOG (NEW YORK), NO.
(2008).
ROGER DIENER ET AL., BELGRADE. FORMAL / INFORMAL: A RESEARCH
ON URBAN TRANSFORMATION, (ZRICH: VERLAG SCHEIDEGGER &
SPIESS, 2011).
PIER VITTORIO AURELI, ARCHITECTURE AFTER LIBERALISM:
TOWARDS THE FORM OF THE EUROPEAN CAPITAL CITY, N: BRUSSEL
A MANIFESTO TOWARDS THE CAPITAL OF EUROPE, ED. AURELI ET AL.,
(ROTTERDAM: NAI PUBLISHERS, 2007), PP. 195, 197.
ROSSI, THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE CITY, PP. 63-64.
31 31
Naiuni i
regiuni
Transilvania ca studiu de caz pentru
arhitectura ca element al unei
construcii identitare
Nations and
Regions
Transylvania as a study case for
an architecture part of the identity
construction
Text:
Mikls Pterfy 32
#1
T
his text does not absurdly pretend to con-
dense over one hundred years of architectur-
al history of a whole region. We have simply
thought that, to be able to understand the
complexity of an architectural movement attempt-
ing to strongly stand up for a certain identity, it is
vital to look back. We may thus manage to out-
run traditional clichs Hungarian architecture,
Romanian Architecture and even modern versus
traditional or allegedly national architecture and
read easier the continuities and discontinuities of a
historical process.
In the great region of Transylvania, the coexist-
ence of various minorities has a long tradition. In
historical and identity discourses (often, completely
opposite), the focus is on diferences, specic fea-
tures - widely speaking, on cultural borders. But,
while noticing carefully the various micro-regions,
we remark not only a parallel existence of local cul-
tures, but also a rich and great fusion of those. Lets
think, for instance, at the folk music and dance spe-
cic to the Transylvanian plateau, where the same
bands of musicians used to play for Hungarian,
Saxons,Romanians, Jews, Armenians or Roma.
One of the key identity elements relies on the
regional features. Terefore, a cultural self-deni-
tion today, starting with the regions, is as justied
as possible. Yet, the relation between this cultural
constructions and traditional forms, rather sponta
neous, does not always seem coherent. We actually
need to ask the question to what extent various
factors in the vernacular culture contributed to th
development of those regional identities?
Religion, probably the best context for self-
denition and the spread of values in a traditional
society, was one of those factors. Religious commu-
nities generated a coherent and valuable blend of
the regional and micro-regional vernacular cul-
tures. In the area of built space, the background was
vitally dened by religion, not only in villages, but
also in towns. It is suf cient to consider the towers
of the reformed churches, for instance, or those of
Orthodox and Greek-Catholic ones in the North-
Western area of Transylvania. Various micro-regions
with very specic characteristics nally dened a
wider region in Transylvania, with a rather mixing
type of cultural character. Over this complex set of
layers and fusion, certain political types of organiza-
tion of which the region was part of took place. First,
the Hungarian kingdom (from the colonization of
German population up to building castles, fortresses
etc.) and later by the Habsburg empire (in its various
forms, but always in the spirit of unication and
spreading of models to the borders).
A
cest articol nu are pretenia absurd de a
condensa o sut i ceva de ani de istorie
arhitectural a unei regiuni. Pur i simplu,
am considerat c pentru a putea nelege
complexitatea unui fenomen arhitectural care n-
cearc s arme cu putere o identitate, este esenial
s aruncm o privire n urm. Poate astfel reuim s
depim decupajele tradiionale arhitectur ma-
ghiar, arhitectur romneasc i chiar arhitectur
modern vs. tradiional i cu specic naional
i s citim ceva mai uor continuitile i disconti-
nuitile unui proces istoric.
n macroregiunea Transilvania, coexistena dife-
ritelor etnii are o tradiie venerabil. n discursurile
istorice i identitare (de multe ori, diametral opuse),
s-a pus n general accentul pe diferene, pe carac-
teristici proprii, n sensul cel mai larg, pe granie
culturale. Observnd ns cu atenie diferitele mi-
croregiuni, remarcm nu doar o existen n paralel
a variatelor culturi, ci i o foarte bogat i frumoas
interferen a acestora. S ne gndim, de exemplu,
la muzica i dansul populare din regiunea podiu-
lui Transilvaniei, unde aceleai tarafe de muzicieni
cntau pentru maghiari, sai, romni, evrei, armeni
sau romi.
Unul dintre cele mai importante suporturi iden-
titare este bazat pe decupajele regionale. n con-
secin, o autodenire cultural n ziua de astzi,
pornind de la regiuni, este ct se poate de justicat.
ns relaia ntre aceast construcie cultural i
formele tradiionale, mai degrab spontane, nu pare
ntotdeauna coerent. De fapt, trebuie s ne punem
ntrebarea n ce msur factori diferii de cultura
vernacular au contribuit la dezvoltarea acestor
identiti regionale?
Religia, probabil cel mai inuent mediu de au-
todenire i de transmitere a unor valori n cadrul
societii tradiionale, a fost unul dintre aceti
factori. Comunitile religioase au generat o conu-
en coerent i valoroas a culturilor vernaculare
regionale i microregionale. n domeniul spaiului
construit, peisajul a fost denit n mod esenial de
religie, nu numai n sate, ci i n orae. Este destul
s ne gndim la turnurile bisericilor reformate sau
ale bisericilor ortodoxe i greco-catolice din lemn,
din regiunea nord-vestic a Ardealului. Diferitele
microregiuni cu caractere foarte particulare au de-
nit n nal o macreoregiune a Transilvaniei cu un
caracter cultural conglomerant. Peste acest ansam-
blu complex de decupaje i interferene, s-a supra-
pus construcia unor organizri politice din care
regiunea a fcut parte. E vorba mai nti de regatul
maghiar (de la colonizarea cu etnici germani i pn
la construirea de castele, ceti etc.), i mai apoi de
ARH. KROLY KS, MUZEUL
NAIONAL SECUIESC, SF.
GHEORGHE. DESEN PUBLICAT
NTR-UN PROGRAM DE CONCERT
DIN 1927 (IMAGINE: ARHIVA
MUZEULUI)
ARCH. KROLY KS, NATIONAL
SZEKLER MUSEUM, SF.
GHEORGHE. DRAWING PUBLISHED
WITHIN A CONCERT PROGRAM,
1927 (IMAGE FROM THE MUSEUM
ARCHIVE)
33
a- a-
yy
he
T A
After the middle of the 19th century, the archi-
tecture of the Austro-Hungarian Empire indicates
a trend to set a type of Secession architecture, with
national features, matching the intention of self-
denition of the various ethnic and religious com-
munities. Tis trend was against eclecticism and
national Romanticism at the start of the century,
and indicated the willingness of the new bourgeoi-
sie to nd a way of expression diferent from that of
the aristocracy or the royal administrative elites.
In the Hungarian cultural space, dn Lechner
is the rst great representative of the Hungarian
Secession in architecture, he and his followers de-
ning the rst generation of the national style. Seen
as a self-expression in the general Secession trend,
the new style relied on both the acceptance of some
of the discoveries of the industrial revolution (steel
or cast iron prefab structures, glass, reinforced con-
crete etc.), as well as the research recently initiated
by the folk experts. Te economic growth allowed
building of schools, cultural centres, hotels, stations,
banks, universities, libraries, the new architectural
style becoming increasingly known and demanded
by the customers.
Te second generation of the national style was
produced by those architects who did not focus
Imperiul habsburgic (n ipostaze diferite, ns
ntotdeauna ntr-un spirit de unicare i de rspn-
dire a modelelor din centru ctre periferie).
Dup mijlocul secolului al XIX-lea, n arhitec-
tura Imperiului austro-ungar se creeaz un stil de
tip Sezession, cu coloraturi naionale, corespun-
ztoare unei dorine de autodenire a diferitelor
comuniti religioase i etnice. Acest curent se
mpotrivea eclectismului i romantismului naional
de nceput de secol i corespundea i dorinei noii
burghezii de a-i gsi o form de exprimare diferit
de cea a aristocraiei i a elitelor administrative
chezaro-crieti.
n spaiul cultural maghiar, dn Lechner este
primul mare reprezentant al Secesiunii maghiare n
arhitectur, el i urmaii si denind prima gene-
raie a stilului naional. Vzut nc drept o expresie
proprie n cadrul curentului general Sezession, noul
stil se baza att pe acceptarea unora dintre cuceri-
rile revoluiei industriale (structuri prefabricate din
oel sau font, sticla, betonul armat etc.) ct i pe
cercetrile recent ncepute de folcloriti. Creterea
economic a determinat construirea de coli, centre
culturale, hoteluri, gri, bnci, universiti, biblio-
teci, noul stil arhitectural devenind din ce n ce mai
cunoscut i cerut de ctre clieni.
ARH. NICOLAE
PORUMBESCU,
CENTRUL CIVIC,
SATU MARE, ANII 70.
SOCIALISM, FUNC-
IONALISM LIRIC,
INCORPORAREA
ELEMENTELOR CU
SPECIFIC NAIONAL
(FOTO: PLANWERK
CLUJ)
ARCH. NICOLAE
PORUMBESCU, CIVIC
CENTER, SATU MARE,
THE 70S. SOCIALISM,
LYRICAL FUNCTION-
ALISM, NATIONAL
ELEMENTS (PHOTO:
PLANWERK CLUJ)
ARH. KROLY KS,
MUZEUL NAIONAL
SECUIESC, SF.
GHEORGHE (FOTO:
RON TRK)
ARCH. KROLY
KS, NATIONAL
SZEKLER MUSEUM,
SF. GHEORGHE
(PHOTO: RON
TRK)
solely on integrating etnographic research, but
also mapped vernacular architecture from the whole
territory of the empire, inclusind Transylvania. Tey
have thus learned the features of the Hungarian
architecture in various regions and micro-regions
while still completing their degree. Kroly Ks, the
architect born in Transylvania, was the most known
member of that young generation promoting prin-
ciples similar to those of the British pre-Rafaelits,
the Arts and Crafts and the Finish architects around
Axeli Gallen Kallela. Ks rejected the empiral style
emerging from Vienna and wanted to go back to the
genuine roots of the Hungarian architecture, while
giving up any interpretations in a Secession work
or conservative eclectict manner. Together with
other young architects (Jnszky, Torockay, Kozma
and others), Ks promoted a new architecture meant
to start from the real built tradition of a nation,
including the regional specic. Soon turned into a
famous architect, he produces numerous buildings,
both in Budapes, as well as in Transylvania, going
back to Cluj after 1920, this time in a Transylvania
part of the Romanian state.
A cultivated turn of the century architecture of
Romanian inspiration was missing, until before
the rst world war. After 1918 though, the wish to
recover and to build-up a strong indentity imprint
generated a whole trend of constructions in the
so-called new-Romanian style. Te most important
programme was that of the new cathedrals and
churches. Usually, such constructions would not
attempt to reinterpret the constructive traditions
the Romanian population in Transylvania, but rat
er produced buildings in the new-Byzantine style
and to a wider scale than every before in Romania
before 1918.
Logically, this situation generated in the
Hungarian minority a more intense emphasizing of
national identity (and less regional or micro-region-
al) in architecture. Mostly in towns, debates were
animating both the bourgeoisie and the aristocracy,
and the intellectuals and were expressed in cultural
magazines such as Psztortz (Shepherd re, right
wing), Helikon (founded by Ks), Korunk (Our era,
left wing). Social elites still had funding to support
culture: thus, Baron Kemny organized an Academy
of the Hungarian culture in Transylvania (Kemny
Zsigmond Irodalmi Trsasg) in which architects
could be members.
In the hot discussion on the way a Hungarian
architecture should design a Hungarian architec-
ture, one of the extremes included the position of
a slightly naive formalism, such as that expressed
by architect Lajos Csiszr in Psztortz (nr.7/1930)
under the heading Te declaration of the con-
struction stones (pletkvek vallomsa). Lszl
Debreczeni, chief-architect of of ce of the reformed
bishop, clearly expressed his position against the
anachronist approach of Csiszr and defended the
importance of surveying the vernacular architec-
ture in the way started by Lechner i Ks: since the
STYLE is not dened by conceptual, rigid, one-direc-
tion shapes; on the contrary, it is born, self-denes
and emerges from a common unitary culture which
A doua generaie a stilului naional a fost
generat de ctre arhiteci care nu s-au rezumat la
integrarea unor cercetri etnograce, ci au realizat
i apoi editat relevee pe ntreg teritoriul Imperiului,
inclusiv n Transilvania. Astfel, i-au nsuit speci-
citile arhitecturii maghiare din diferite regiuni i
microregiuni chiar n timpul studiilor universitare.
Arhitectul originar din Ardeal, Kroly Ks, a fost cel
mai marcant reprezentant al acestei tinere genera-
ii, care promova principii asemntoare cu cele ale
prerafaleiilor englezi, ale micrii Arts and Crafts i
ale arhitecilor nlandezi din jurul lui Axeli Gallen
Kallela. Ks respingea stilul imperial cu centrul la
Viena i dorea s descopere rdcinile veritabile ale
arhitecturii maghiare, renunnd la orice prelucrare
n spiritul Sezession sau al eclectismului conser-
vator. mpreun cu ali tineri arhiteci (Jnszky,
Torockay, Kozma i alii), Ks propunea o arhitectur
nou care s porneasc de la tradiia construit real
a unei naiuni, inclusiv de la particulariti regiona-
le. Devenit n foarte scurt timp un arhitect renumit,
realizeaz numeroase cldiri, att la Budapesta, ct i
n Ardeal, revenind dup 1920 la Cluj, de data aceast
ntr-o Transilvanie fcnd parte din statul romn.
O arhitectur cult de sfrit de secol, de inspira-
ie romneasc a lipsit pn n perioada de dinainte
de Primul Rzboi Mondial. Dup 1918 ns, dorina
de recuperare i de marcare identitar puternic
a dus la un val de construcii n aa-numitul stil
neoromnesc. Cel mai important program a fost
cel al noilor catedrale i biserici. De obicei, aceste
construcii nu au ncercat s reinterpreteze tra-
diiile constructive ale populaie romneti din
Transilvania, ci au produs cldiri ntr-un stil neobi-
zantin i la o scar mai mare dect existase vreodat
chiar i n Romnia de dinainte de 1918.
n mod logic, acest fenomen a generat n cadrul
minoritii maghiare reacia de accentuare a unui
caracter naional (i mai puin regional sau microre-
gional) n arhitectur. Mai ales n orae, dezbaterile
animau att burghezia i nobilimea, ct i intelectu-
alitatea; erau exprimate n reviste culturale, cum ar
Psztortz (Foc de pstori, cu orientare de dreap-
ta), Helikon (fondat de ctre Ks), Korunk (Epoca
noastr, de stnga). Elitele sociale nc aveau fon-
duri pentru a sprijini cultura; astfel, baronul Kemny
a organizat un fel de Academie a culturii maghia-
re din Transilvania (Kemny Zsigmond Irodalmi
Trsasg), n care erau primii i arhitecii.
n discuia acerb asupra felului n care ar
trebuia gndit o arhitectur maghiar, exista
la una din extreme poziia unui formalism uor
naiv, cum era cel exprimat de ctre arhitectul Lajos
Csiszr n textul Declaraia pietrelor de construc-
ie (pletkvek vallomsa) din revista Psztortz
(nr.7/1930). Lszl Debreczeni, arhitect-ef al episco-
piei bisericii reformate, se demarca net de anacro-
nismul poziiei lui Csiszr i apra importana unei
analize a arhitecturii vernaculare, aa cum fusese
nceput de ctre Lechner i Ks: Pentru c STILUL
nu este denit de forme conceptuale, rigide, orien-
tate ntr-un singur sens; dimpotriv, acesta se nate,
se autodeduce dintr-o cultur comun unitar care
ptrunde n toate suetele. Modul de via al unei
35
of
th-
a
comuniti i condiiile locale determin pn
la urm decizii foarte pragmatice ale meterilor
care, n timp, creeaz caracterul regional al acestei
arhitecturi.
Iar Kroly Ks? n perioada interbelic continua s
proiecteze, s fac literatur i grac, fonda editura
Helikon, mai sus amintit, i devenea unul din prin-
cipalii protagoniti ai micrii Transilvanismului. n
condiile politice de atunci, Transilvanismul nsem-
na o posibilitate de prezervare a unei comuniti de-
venite brusc o minoritate. ns implicaiile depesc
acest nivel: ocrotirea i dezvoltarea unei culturi tran-
silvnene implica tocmai valorizarea coexistenei
de care vorbeam la nceputul acestui articol; iar n
arhitectur, accentul se deplasa de la formularea pur
naional la cea macroregional.
n raportul su privind expoziia celui de-al
XX-lea Congres Internaional de Arhitectur de la
Budapesta, Ks constata c ...acest nou stil nu i
caut expresia n noi ornamente, ci, nainte de orice,
i dorete s-i asume, s cristalizeze, s simpli-
ce i s raionalizeze, s adapteze mediului i vieii
arhitectura unui popor.
Ks scrie i despre arhitectura modern a di-
feritelor naiuni care au participat la expoziie,
de ecare dat prin prisma exprimrii unui ge-
niu naional. i aplaud pe olandezi, de exemplu,
ns consider c noua arhitectur maghiar este
corect, ns nu spune nimic din punct de vedere
al acestui geniu naional. Ajungnd acas, la Cluj,
construiete una din ultimele sale cldiri, Galeria de
art din Parcul Central, o ncercare de domesticire a
modernismului internaional.
nal (sau regional) maghiar i cel
neoromnesc, modernismul i ctig propriul loc
n arhitectura transilvan; pe de o parte, pe lie-
r bucuretean, un stil internaional adaptat i
cuminit i care a generat unele realizri remarca-
bile, iar pe de alt parte, la arhitecii maghiari, prin
racordarea la modelele central-europene. Studiile de
la Bauhaus ale lui Lszl Moholy Nagy sunt publica-
te la Cluj de ctre revista Korunk. Biserica unitarian
din Braov (arh. Klmn Halsz, fratele celebrului
fotograf Brassai) rmne pn astzi una dintre cele
mai radical moderne cldiri de cult din Romnia. La
Cluj, Ferenc Dek proiecteaz ansamblul parohiei
unitariene din centrul oraului, tot ntr-un limbaj
modernist fr compromisuri. Discuiile publice n
jurul acestui tip de arhitectur nu vor ns de loc
comparabile cu cele iscate de modul de dezvoltare al
unui stil naional.
Perioada comunist a nsemnat n primele dece-
nii o raliere la dogmele realismului socialist i apoi
ale funcionalismului, n care, cel puin din vedere
ocial, problema unei identiti naionale nu se
punea. n anii 70 i 80, radicalizarea regimului i
o politic naionalist din ce n ce mai virulent au
dus i la cererea explicit de creare a unei arhitec-
turi cu specic romnesc, ducnd de cele mai multe
ori la grefarea unor ornamente inspirate de cele
populare pe cldiri mai mult sau mai puin n spirit
funcionalist.
Dup 1989, competiia identitar a rence-
put. Nu doar programele specice unei societi
penetrates all souls. Te way of living of a cer-
tain community and the local conditions eventually
inuence truly pragmatic decisions of craftsmen
who will design, in time, the regional character of
that architecture.
What about Kroly Ks? In the inter-war era, he
continues to design, write literature and draw, be-
comes the founder of the Helikon publishing house
mentioned earlier and turns into one of the key
protagonists of Transylvanism. In the radically dif-
ferent political situation after 1918, Transylvanism
was another opportunity to preserve a community
suddenly turned into a minority. Yet the implica-
tions go beyond that level: the protection and the
development of a Transylvanian culture was right
about valuing the coexistence mentioned at the
beginning of this article; and in architecture, the
focus was going from the national expression to the
macro-regional one.
In his report on the exhibition on the 20th
international Architecture Congress in Budapest,
Ks concluded that this new style does not nd
its expression in new ornaments, but, rst of all, it
aims to assume, crystallize, simplify and rationalize,
adjust the architecture of one people to the environ-
ment and the life.
Ks also writes about the modern architecture of
various nations taking part in the exhibition, each
time asserting their works according to their expres-
sion of a national genius. He applauds the Dutch,
thinks that the new Hungarian architecture is cor-
rect, but fails to speak in real national terms. Getting
back at home, in Cluj, he builds one of his last build-
ings, the Art Gallery in the Central Park of the city,
an attempt to tame international modernism.
Between the national (or regional) Hungarian
or Romanian style, modernism earns its own place
in the Transylvanian culture; on the one side, via
the Bucharest approach, an international style
adapted and tempered, generating certain remark-
able achievements; on the other, at the Hungarian
architects, by connecting to the Central-European
models. Lszl Moholy Nagys Bauhaus studies are
published at Cluj by Korunk magazine. Te unitar-
ian church in Brasov (architect Klmn Halsz, the
brother of the famous Brassai photographer) stands
up until now as one of the most modern religious
buildings in Romania. In Cluj, Ferenc Dek designs
the complex of the unitarian church in the centre
of the city, in a similar modernist language with no
compromises. Yet, public debates around this type
of architecture are not at all comparable with those
arisen by the way of developing a national style.
Te communist era meant in the rst dec-
ades an acceptance of the dogma of the socialist
realism and then of the functionalism which, at
least of cially, didnt even discuss the issue of the
national identity. In the 70s and 80s, the radicali-
zation of the regime and an increasingly virulent
nationalistic policy led to an explicit demand of a
Romanian-like architecture, generating most often
the application of certain ornaments inspired by
the folk ones on buildings with a higher or lower
functionalist character.
36
al acestui geniu naio l acestui geniu na
construiete una din onstruiete una
art din Parcul Centr din Parcul Cent
modernismului inter nismului inter
ntre stilul naion stilul naion
neoromnesc, moder eoromnesc, moder
#1
capitaliste birouri, locuine individuale,
complexe comerciale etc. au explodat, ci i arhi-
tectura religioas, aproape inexistent n perioada
comunist. Complexitatea motivaiilor este mult
prea important pentru a tratat n cadrul acestui
scurt articol: putem ns spune fr a exagera prea
tare c majoritatea acestor construcii, indiferent de
confesiune i apartenen etnic, se preiau n mod
explicit modelele istorice i c scara este de multe
ori mai important dect nscrierea ntr-un context
cultural i arhitectural al locului.
n ceea ce privete n mod particular discursul
arhitectural din cadrul comunitii maghiare, fo-
carul principal nu mai pare a Clujul, ca n perioa-
da 19001940, ci inutul Secuiesc. Aat n centrul
Romniei i n partea sud-estic a Ardealului, acesta
este o microregiune cu o omogenitate etnic pro-
nunat (minoritatea este aici majoritar), i cu o cul-
tur regional valoroas (care a i constituit, de altfel,
una din principalele surse de inspiraie ale lui Ks).
n mod resc, aceast (re)construire identita-
r a nceput printr-o deschidere spre arhitectura
Ungariei. Cea mai vizibil este inuena arhitec-
turii organice (cea mai renumit la acea vreme n
Ungaria), mai ales a operelor fondatorului acesteia,
Imre Makovecz. Maestrul nsui realizeaz lucrri
n regiune, iar arhiteci maghiari sunt invitai s
studieze la coala de maitri fondat de acesta (a nu
se confunda cu coala Asociaiei Maitrilor Arhiteci
din Budapesta). Pe lng acest curent, care privile-
giaz o identitate naional acoperitoare (de altfel,
extrem de disputat astzi n Ungaria), arhitectura
inutului ofer mult mai multe nuane dect ar p-
rea la o prim vedere: exist o arhitectur tradiio-
nal n adevratul sens al cuvntului, o arhitectur
pragmatic cu tendine minimalist dar i tendine
ctre contextualism i ctre un regionalism critic.
Despre acestea ns, i despre felul n care se nca-
dreaz n contextul general al Transilvaniei ultimi-
lor douzeci de ani, va vorba n articolul urmtor
din acest numr.
After 1989, the identity competition restarted.
Not only the specic programmes of a capitalist so-
ciety of ces, housings, commercial buildings etc.
exploded, but also the religious architecture, almost
invisible in the communist era. Te complexity of
motivations is too important to be analyzed in such
a short material: we can say though, without exag-
gerating a lot, that most of those constructions, no
matter the confessional or the ethnical background,
are taking over explicitly historical models and that
the scale is often more important than the continu-
ation of the cultural and architectural character of a
certain place.
For the specic architectural discourse in the
Hungarian community, the key focus seems to move
away from Cluj, as in the 19001940 era, and goes to
the Szekler County. Located in the heart of Romania
and in the South-Eastern side of Transylvania, this
micro-region has a pronounced clear ethnic homog-
enity (the minority is the majority in this case) and a
valuable regional culture (which also was one of the
key sources of inspiration for Ks).
Quite naturally, this identity (re)construc-
tion started with an opening to the architecture
of Hungary. Te most visible is the inuence of
the organic architecture (the most known then in
Hungary), especially the works of its founder, Imre
Makovecz. Te master himself produces works in
the area, and Hungarian architects are invited to
study at the Craft School founded by him (not to b
taken for the School of the Association of the Mast
Architects in Budapest). Beside this trend, which
privileges a national comprehensive identity (actu
ally highly disputed today in Hungary), the archite
ture of the area provides more nuances that at a rst
sight: there is a traditional architecture in the true
sense of the word, a pragmatic one with minimalist
features and certain trends to contextualism and a
critical regionalism. About those, and the way they
go in the general background of the Transylvania in
the last two decades, the discussion will be contin-
ued in the following article in this issue.
Dup 1989, compe Dup 1989, competiia
id i i identitar a renceput i n
p , p pp , p p ,
arhitectur, exprimat mai
p p
ales prin preluarea explicit
pp
a unor modele istorice i p a unor modele istorice i prin
p p p p
b ii bi exacerbarea scrii obiectelor.
p p
After 1989, the identity
competition restarted, incl competition restarted, including
y
hi I ll f in architecture. It usually features
pp g p
the explicit takeover of historical
yy
models and an inated scale.
pp
CATEDRALA ORTODOX, CLUJ
(PERIOADA INTERBELIC). N
PRIM PLAN, STATUIA CONTESTAT
A LUI AVRAM IANCU AMPLASAT
N ANII 90.
(FOTO: DACIAN GROZA)
ORTHODOX CATHEDRAL, CLUJ
(INTERWAR PERIOD). IN THE
FOREFRONT, THE EXTREMELY
CONTROVERSIAL STATUE OF THE
ROMANIAN NATIONAL HERO,
AVRAM IANCU, PLACED DURING
THE 90S. (PHOTO: DACIAN GROZA)
37
ee
ter te
u-
ec- ec
rst rst
Ctre un
regionalism
critic?
Contexte i suprapuneri n arhitectura
transilvnean recent
Text:
tefan Ghenciulescu 38
#1
Heading
towards critical
regionalism?
Contexts and superpositions in recent
Transylvanian architecture
RADU MIHILESCU: MEMORIALUL DIN
SIGHET, 1997 (FOTO: MIHAI BOTESCU)
RADU MIHILESCU: SIGHET MEMORIAL, 1997
(PHOTO: MIHAI BOTESCU)
39
I
have been recently contacted by a researcher
who writes studies and organizes exhibitions on
todays critical regionalism. He is very interested
in Romania and he asked me about the state of
things here. I sent him a few materials that in my
opinion could be somehow associated to this spirit,
but on this occasion I had to seriously consider for
the rst time whether we can talk about critical
regionalism in Romania.
A structured movement, a school (in the broader
meaning of the word) involving leaders, a clearly
stated programme and a number of common fea-
tures are clearly absent. Tis would not necessarily
be a problem: more often than not it is the critics
job to come up with names and to bring a coherent
structure to the surface. And the term itself covers
very diferent phenomena which came to extend
beyond the classic denitions. However this highly
overused name is very relevant. Critical regionalism
is in the end a state of mind and a method which in
my opinion involves at least two essential elements:
on the one hand, a territorial-cultural denition
which is not that of the nation and on the other, an
attitude located inside modernity which counteracts
universality and utopia with a reinterpretation and
reinvention of a number of fundamental features.
Without these two elements what we have is a more
or less moderate traditionalism or simply a contex-
tualist attitude.
A
m fost contactat recent de un cercettor
care scrie studii i face expoziii despre
regionalismul critic de astzi. Era foarte
interesat de Romnia i m ntreba cum
arat lucrurile pe aici. I-am trimis cteva materiale
care, n opinia mea, corespundeau cumva acestui
spirit, ns cu acest prilej a trebuit s m gndesc
pentru prima oar n mod serios dac putem s vor-
bim despre aa ceva la noi.
O micare structurat, o coal (n sensul mai
larg) cu lideri, un program clar armat i un numr
de trsturi comune clare nu exist. Asta nu ar
neaprat o problem: de cele mai multe ori e vorba
de jobul criticilor de-a da nume i a deslui coerena.
Iar termenul propriu-zis acoper fenomene foarte
diferite, i care au ajuns s depeasc deniiile
clasice. Acest nume foarte abuzat spune ns foarte
mult. Regionalismul critic e pn la urm o stare de
spirit i o metod, i ine, cred, de cel puin dou ele-
mente eseniale: pe de o parte, de o denire terito-
rial-cultural care nu este cea a naiunii, pe de alta,
de o atitudine dinuntrul modernitii, care opune
ns universalismului i utopiei o reinterpretare i
o reinventare a unor trsturi fundamentale. Fr
aceste dou elemente avem de-a face doar cu un
tradiionalism mai mai mult sau mai puin tempe-
rat, sau cu pur i simplu cu atitudini contextualiste.
Or, n Romnia (i, de fapt, n aceast parte de
lume) regiunea nu a fost aproape niciodat tem
RADU MIHILESCU: CASA
HERCZEG, TIMIOARA, 2000
(FOTO: IOSIF KIRALY)
RADU MIHILESCU: HERCZEG
HOUSE, TIMIOARA, 2000 (PHOTO:
IOSIF KIRALY)
40
I A
However, in Romania (and in fact everywhere in
this corner of the world) the region has almost
never been a topic of architectural debate. Te na-
tion has always been considered important and all
traditionalist speeches have emphasized precisely
those elements considered as representative for the
national style. Tis is, I believe, one of the funda-
mental diferences between the Neo-Romanian style
and the national Swiss, German or Austrian style for
example, which fervently opposed academism and
later modernism, celebrating however at the same
time the diferences between the various parts of
these countries.
After 1989 decent Romanian architecture is,
beyond any ideological af nities, so insignicant
in relation to mass production that even debating
these issues can seem slightly ridiculous. However,
the wave of destruction and the general cultural
conservatism have continued to generate a de-
mand for a specic type of architecture which was
generally met with a strange mixture of stylistic
motives or with a frozen traditionalism so that any
tendency, however frail, to reconcile modernity and
the local spirit and to overcome the sterile opposi-
tion between national and international is more
than welcome in my opinion.
Architects who value context are spread all over
Romania. Yet, the only place which can be associat-
ed not to a strong, well dened critical regionalism,
but at least with tendencies in this direction and
moreover, with regional accents is the Western part
de discuie arhitectural. Naiunea a fost dintot-
deauna cea cu adevrat important, iar discursurile
tradiionaliste au accentuat tocmai acele elemente
considerate reprezentative pentru un stil naional.
E, cred, una din diferenele fundamentale ntre
stilul neo-romnesc i stilul naional elveian, ger-
man sau austriac, de pild, care se opuneau n mod
feroce academismului i apoi modernismului, ns
celebrau n acelai timp diferenele dintre prile
acestor ri.
Dup 1989, arhitectura romneasc decent,
dincolo de orice aliere ideologic, este att de ne-
semnicativ n raport cu producia de mas, nct
astfel de discuii pot prea chiar uor caraghioase.
ns valul de distrugeri i conservatismul cultural
general au generat cu atta insisten o cerere de
arhitectur cu specic, creia i s-a rspuns de obi-
cei cu un amalgame bizare de motive stilistice sau
cu un tradiionalism ngheat, nct orice tendin,
orict de fragil, de a concilia modernitatea cu un
spirit al locului, i de a iei din disputa steril dintre
naional i internaional mi se pare binevenit.
Arhiteci pentru care contextul este important
se gsesc mprtiai prin toat Romnia. Totui,
singurul loc n care cred c se poate vorbi, nu despre
un regionalism critic puternic i denit, ci mai
curnd despre tendine n acest sens i, mai ales,
de decupaje regionale, este partea de vest a rii,
Transilvania, la care se adaug provincia istoric a
Banatului. Motivele istorice ale acestui fapt i o oa-
recare tradiie a oscilaiei ntre repere naionale (i
ERBAN STURDZA, DOINA STURDZA, CAMELIA COVACI, MIHAIL
ZEGREA (PRODID): EXTINDERE ORFELINAT, TIMIOARA, 1991
(FOTO: MIHAI BOTESCU)
ERBAN STURDZA, DOINA STURDZA, CAMELIA COVACI, MIHAIL
ZEGREA (PRODID): ORPHANAGE EXTENSION, TIMIOARA, 1991
(PHOTO: MIHAI BOTESCU)
41
of the country, Transylvania, and the historic
province of Banat. Te historic reasons behind this
and a certain traditional oscillation between nation-
al landmarks (as well as contradictory approaches)
were tackled by Mikls Pterfy in the his article on
Transylvania in this issue. I will only limit myself to
a very brief presentation of the phenomena in case.
And I have to start with Timisoara architecture
which simply blossomed after 1989. Having a gen-
eral cultural background characterized by interfer-
ences, tolerance and openness towards the exterior,
which are quite remarkable, Timisoara architects
have not advocated any explicit regional ideology
but perhaps at the most a certain local tradition and
a fairly explicit delimitation from the overwhelming
center always represented by Bucharest. Extremely
diferent personalities, they shared the same focus
on the context, architectural models ranging from
the local history to the central Europe phenom-
ena or the work of Carlo Scarpa and an obsession
for details and articulation at all possible scales,
from the buildings' relation with the city to the
disassembling and reassembling of architectural
elements. Herczeg House built by Radu Mihailescu
and the extension of the orphanage designed by
Prodid, the of ce organized around the personality
of Serban Sturdza are, I believe, representative for
the Timisoara phenomenon. In the mean time, the
young people back then grew up to be famous archi-
tects, who won awards and created big works, some
of them came even to work outside the Banat area
(Serban Sturdza actually returned to Bucharest, his
native city). Te local identity is perhaps less obvious
today, but Timisoara still remains one of the most
important architectural centers of Romania.
An area which has until recently been pretty
obscure is the Szekler County, with which Miklss
article ends. On the one hand, this place seems to
discursuri cu sens complet opus) i identiti
regionale au fost discutate de ctre Mikls Pterfy
n articolul su din acest numr despre Transilvania.
M voi rezuma de aceea doar la o foarte sumar tre-
cere n revist a fenomenelor.
i trebuie s ncep cu arhitectura timiorean
care, pur i simplu, a explodat dup 1989. Ieii
dintr-un context cultural general al interferenelor,
toleranei i al deschiderii ctre exterior absolut
remarcabile, arhitecii timioreni nu s-au revendicat
de la nici un fel de ideologie regional explicit cel
mult de la o anumit tradiie local i de la o demar-
care destul de explicit fa de centrul covritor
pe care l-a reprezentat ntotdeauna Bucuretiul.
Personaliti extrem de diferite aveau n comun o
atenie fa de context, modele arhitecturale care
mergeau de la istoria local, la fenomenele din
Europa central sau la opera lui Carlo Scarpa, i o
obsesie pentru detaliu i articulare cu privire la toate
scrile posibile, la relaia cu oraul i la descompu-
nerea i recompunerea elementelor arhitecturale.
Casa Herczeg a lui Radu Mihilescu i extinderea
orfelinatului proiectat de ctre Prodid, biroul orga-
nizat n jurul personalitii lui erban Sturdza sunt,
cred, reprezentative pentru fenomenul timiorean.
ntre timp, tinerii de atunci au ajuns arhiteci de
prestigiu, cu premii i lucrri mari, iar unii dintre
ei au ajuns s lucreze i n afara Banatului (erban
sturdza s-a i ntors de fapt n Bucureti, oraul
su natal). Identitatea local este poate mai puin
evident astzi, ns Timioara rmne unul din
centrele importante de arhitectur din Romnia.
O zon de care, pn de curnd, nu se tiau prea
multe a fost cea inutului Secuiesc, cu care Mikls
i-a ncheiat articolul. ntr-un anumit sens, situaia
KLL MIKLS:
CLOPOTNI,
DITRU, JUD.
HARGHITA, 2010
KLL MIKLS:
BELL TOWER,
DITRU, HARGHITA
COUNTY, 2010
ZSOLT TVISSI:
CLOPOTNI,
GHEORGHENI, JUD.
HARGHITA, 2004
KLL MIKLS:
BELL TOWER, ZSOLT
TVISSI: BELL TOW-
ER, GHEORGHENI,
JUD. HARGHITA, 2004
42 i trebuie s ncep rebuie s ncep
#1
have perhaps the greatest potential for an
evolution in the spirit of true critical regionalism,
somehow related to that promoted by the Swiss
architecture of Grizoni or that characteristic of the
Austrian Voralberg: a clearly dened cultural char-
acter (among other things by an exceptional popular
architecture) and a strong regional identity, a
remarkable history and a venerable (and very much
alive) tradition of wooden constructions. In fact the
architects living here organize their activity, they
meet to debate, develop exhibitions and they pub-
lish materials explicitly focused on the region. But
the common discourse hides extremely diferent ap-
proaches, from the desire to revive a pure Hungarian
architectural identity to a modernized traditional-
ism open to various reinterpretations. I believe that
a more pronounced economic development and
going beyond the quite strong conservatory tenden-
cies will result in the more intense development of
critical regionalism. Until then, I believe that the
works in which tradition is reinterpreted in a more
relaxed (yet no less respectful) manner and in which
the construction and not the style is the essential
element of the project remain the most interesting.
I have selected two very small works belonging to
the same programme: the bell tower made by Zsolt
Tvissi resembles a quite traditional building, but
one playfully suspended, while that of Mikls Kllo
manages to be at the same time a distilled symbol
and the result of an impeccable construction logic
An example which demonstrates how hard it
is to operate with the term critical regionalism
in this context is the project that won the contest
organized for the community center of Ghetari
village (Garda commune, Alba county). Te team
ABRUPTARHITECTURA were not from the local
area, but from Bucharest. Is it a a case of immigrated
critical regionalism? Maybe, rather a case in which
the region was the decisive factor which resulted in
an original poetic discourse focused on a place and a
community; the project is not very context-based so
as to mean a respectful insertion but it is more like
a reinvention of an archetypal formula a congre-
gation of tall roofs, similar to those specic to this
area, under which a meeting space is created.
One of the major contemporary art centers even
since the 90s, the city of Cluj has become once more
an architectural hotspot in the past few years. Te
acestui loc mi se pare a avea poate cel mai
mare potenial pentru o evoluie n spiritul unui
regionalism critic veritabil, oarecum nrudit cu cel
al arhitecturii elveiene din Grizoni sau al celei din
Vorarlbergul austriac: un caracter cultural clar de-
nit (ntre altele, o arhitectur popular excepional)
i o identitate regional puternic, o istorie remar-
cabil i o tradiie venerabil (i vie) a construciilor
din lemn. De altfel, arhitecii de aici se i organi-
zeaz, discut i construiesc expoziii i publicaii
n care subiectul explicit este regiunea. ns, n
spatele unui discurs comun, se ascund abordri
extrem de diferite, de la dorina de renviere a unei
identiti arhitecturale maghiare pure, sau de la un
tradiionalism modernizat, la diverse reinterpre-
tri. Cred c o cretere economic mai puternic i
depirea unui conservatism destul de accentuat vor
duce la dezvoltarea mai intens a unui regionalism
critic. Pn atunci, cele mai interesante mi se par
operele n care tradiia este reinterpretat ntr-un
mod mai relaxat (ns la fel de respectuos), i n care
construcia, nu stilul, devine elementul fundamen-
tal al proiectului. Am ales dou opere foarte mici,
aparinnd aceluiai program: clopotnia lui Zsolt
Tvissi ne duce cu gndul la o cldire ct se poate de
tradiional, dar suspendat jucu, n timp ce aceea
a lui Mikls Kllo reuete s e n acelai timp un
simbol epurat i un rezultat al unei logici construc-
tive implacabile.
Un exemplu care arat ct de greu e s operezi
cu termenul de regionalism critic n acest context
este proiectul ctigtor al concursului pentru un
centru comunitar al satului Gheari (comuna Grda,
judeul Alba). Echipa ABRUPTARHITECTURA nu era
din regiune, ci din Bucureti. Regionalism critic de
imigraie? Mai degrab regiunea ca determinant
i un discurs original i poetic asupra unui loc i al
unei comuniti; proiectul nu este att de mult con-
textualist n sensul unei inserii respectuoase, ct o
reinventare a unor forme arhetipale o congregaie
de acoperiuri nalte, precum cele din zon, care
adpostete un spaiu de ntlnire.
Unul din centrele majore de art contemporan
nc din anii 90, Clujul a redevenit n ultimii ani i
un focar de arhitectur. Foarte reprezentativ pentru
acest fenomen a fost biroul SKBD, care, n mai puin
de ase ani, a reuit s devin unul dintre cele mai
publicate i premiate din Romnia. Poate c, dintre
ELIZAVETA CIUPERCA,
CRISTINA CONSTANTIN, COSMIN
PAVEL (ABRUPTARHITECTURA):
CENTRU COMUNITAR, SATUL
GHEARI, CONCURS, 2008
ELIZAVETA CIUPERCA,
CRISTINA CONSTANTIN, COSMIN
PAVEL (ABRUPTARHITECTURA):
COMMUNITY CENTER, VILLAGE OF
GHETARI, COMPETITION, 2008
43
c.
SKBD: PENSIUNE,
SUB PIATRA,
JUDEUL ALBA,
2006 2008 (FOTO:
ZOLTANIA)
SKBD: BOARDING
HOUSE, SUB PIATRA
VILLAGE, ALBA
COUNTY, 2006 2008
(PHOTO: ZOLTANIA)
ATTILA KIM,
TIBERIU BUCA,
ADRIANA DIACONU
(SKBD): CASA MEDA,
COMUNA FELEACU,
JUDEUL CLUJ.
(FOTO: DACIAN
GROZA)
ATTILA KIM,
TIBERIU BUCA,
ADRIANA DIACONU
(SKBD): MEDA
HOUSE, FELEACU
VILLAGE, CLUJ
COUNTY. (PHOTO:
DACIAN GROZA) 44
SKBD of ce, which managed in less than six
years to become one of the most published and
awarded architecture of ces in Romania, is very
representative for this phenomenon. Perhaps, out of
all the architects mentioned here, the three mem-
bers of the group were always the least inclined
to dene their work from a regional perspective.
Tey always talk about the works created together
or in collaboration with other partners in terms of
activating certain places, of modernity, of a response
to the social context or of design hybridization. Te
international context, the concentration and the
delicate arrangement seem more important than
any (self ) imposed specic characteristic and the
stylistic issues are practically non existent.
Even based on this brief and probably unfair se-
lection we can see that there is a limited number of
architects and works in Transylvania and Banat that
could t the topic at hand but even so, a complex
network of tendencies and very diferent points of
reference from contextualism and the poetics of
articulation to the reinvention of tradition, arche-
types and a relaxed and responsible modernity. In a
context of patrimonial destruction and anarchic de-
velopment and in a part of Europe where identities
and their architectural expressions were too often
associated to a logic of collision, this does not seem
such a bad alternative, after all.
And rather than a case of critical regionalism per
se there is a chance for a critical and non-discursiv
Transylvanianism: not a movement and certainl
not an organization, but rather a state of mind, a
natural result of conuent trends, superpositions
and ambiguous borders.
toi cei enumerai aici, cei trei membri ai
grupului sunt cel mai puin nclinai s-i de-
neasc opera dintr-o perspectiv regional. Vorbesc
ntotdeauna de operele realizate mpreun sau cu
ali parteneri n termeni de activare a unor locuri,
de modernitate, de rspuns la un context social sau
de hibridizare cu designul. Contextul internaional,
concentrarea i aezarea delicat par mai importan-
te dect orice specic (auto)impus, iar problemele
stilistice practic nu intr n discuie.
Chiar i prin intermediul acestei selecii su-
mare i probabil nedrepte, putem observa c n
Transilvania i Banat exist un limitat de arhiteci i
lucrri care s-ar ncadra n obiectul discuiei i, chiar
i n aceste condiii, o complexitate de tendine i
repere foarte diferite de la contextualism i poe-
tica articulrii la reinventarea tradiiei, recursul la
arhetipuri i modernitatea relaxat i responsabil.
ntr-un context al distrugerilor patrimoniale i al
unei dezvoltri anarhice, i ntr-o regiune a Europei
n care identitile i expresiile arhitecturale ale
acestora au inut de prea multe ori de o logic a coli-
ziunii, nu mi se pare o alternativ att de rea.
Poate c, mai degrab dect un regionalism
critic propriu-zis, exist ansa unui transilvanism
critic i non-discursiv: nu o micare, n nici un caz
o organizaie, ci mai degrab o mentalitate, un
resc al conuenelor, suprapunerilor i granielor
ambigue.
45
per
ve
ly
SPRE VEST!
Bulevardul visurilor
spulberate
Text:
Valeri Gyurov,
Transformatori association
foto / Photo:
Valeri Gyurov 46
#1
GO WEST!
Boulevard of broken
dreams
47
01
02
03
P
ersonajul principal al povetii pe care vreau
s v-o spun este un bulevard din Soa,
un martor viu al tranziiei din Bulgaria
dup 1989. Bulevardul poart numele lui
Todor Alexandandrov (18811924) un cunoscut
revoluionar bulgar de la nceputul secolului al
XX-lea i a fost construit n forma curent la nce-
putul anilor 90. Modernul bulevard este urmaul
strzii Nica, iar continuarea sa Bulevardul
arina Ioana leag spre vest centrul capitalei
cu unul din cartierele dormitor de la marginea
oraului Liulin, cu o populaie de aproximativ
300000 de oameni.
mi amintesc plimbrile mpreun cu colegii
de clas prin 19971998 din jurul liceului nostru
i de cartierul pitoreasc, dar fantomatic, parte din
vechea Soa, care urma s dispar din faa noastr
pe parcursul urmtorilor ani. n locul unde acum
ncepe bulevardul, se aa un pod metalic de pe care
te bucurai de privelitea unui complex inimaginabil
de barci i strzi nguste, motenire de la sfritul
secolului al XIX-lea i nceputul secolului al XX-lea.
Cele cteva cafenele i ateliere rmase artau ador-
mite i creau o atmosfer tip western cu singura
diferen c ne aam la sfrit de mileniu.
Cam n aceast perioad a fost demolat o parte
a colii, pentru c sttea n calea extinderii bulevar-
dului. Nu mi puteam nchipui c aceasta avea s
devin o metafor a proceselor din Bulgaria dup
1989, ntruct nu am auzit de o nicio coal nou
construit de atunci. Progresul cere sacricii n-
tr-o continuitate perfect cu spiritul socialismului
de care am scpat recent.
T
he main character in the story that I am go-
ing to tell you is a boulevard in Soa that is a
living witness of the transitions in Bulgaria
after 1989. Te boulevard is named after
Todor Alexandrov (18811924) a famous Bulgarian
revolutionary from the beginning of the 20th cen-
tury and is built in its current state in the beginning
of the 90-ies. Te modern boulevard is the successor
of Nishka street and through its continuation the
Tzaritza Yoanna (Queen Yoanna) Boulevard con-
nects to the West the top centre of the capital city
with one of the bedroom districts in the out-
skirts of the city Lyulin with a population of about
300000 people.
I clearly remember walking around the sur-
roundings of our high school together with my
classmates back in 19971998 and coming across
an enchanting but yet ghostly neighborhood, part
of Old Soa, that was going to disappear in front
of us as the years went by. On the spot where now
the boulevard starts there used to be a metal bridge
from which one could enjoy the view of an unim-
aginable ensemble of shacks and tiny streets, legacy
from the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th
century. Te few remaining cafs and workshops
looked like asleep and created a western movie
atmosphere with the only diference that it was the
end of the Millennium.
48
T P
04
Bulevardul ncepe de la piaa emblematic
Largo (Nezavisimost sau Piaa Independenei) de-
nit de ctre un ansamblu de cldiri impozante din
epoca socialist Magazinul Central (TZUM), fostul
hotel Balkan, acum Hotel Sheraton i vechiul sediu
al Partidului Comunist, plasate simetric fa de axa
central a bulevardului. Curnd dup schimbarea de
regim, a fost nalizat o alt cldire emblematic
Bulbank. ntoarcerea cltitei a cauzat o serie de
procese ndeprtarea stelei roii de pe vrful sediu-
lui Partidului, demolarea statuii lui Lenin i dema-
rarea unui nou nceput spre Vest, plin de sperane.
O plimbare de-a lungul Bulevardului Todor
Alexandrov ne poate povesti despre aproape orice
proces tipic pentru dezvoltarea rii noastre dup
1989. S-l urmrim, deci!
La nceputul bulevardului se a statuia Sntei
Soa, oper a renumitului artist bulgar Gheorghi
Ciapkanov Ciapa. Este interesant c, n planul
iniial, urma s e plasat n locul stelei rubinii
impozante din vrful sediului Partidului care a fost
dezasamblat n 1990. n cele din urm, statuia a
preluat locul bustului lui Lenin de dinainte de 1989.
Figura provocativ dezgolit i arat cumva simbolic
spatele spre Vest, privind n gol cu ochii spre Largo
n direcia est.
Around this time a part of a school wing was
destroyed as it was laying in the way of the boul-
evard that was already planned for an extension. I
wouldnt even imagine that this would become a
metaphor for the processes in Bulgaria after 1989, as
I havent heard about a newly built school building
ever since that time. Totally in the spirit of social-
ism, of which we have just recently escaped, there
had to be sacrices made in the name of progress.
Te boulevard starts from the emblematic square
of the Largo (Nezavisimost or Independence
Square) an ensemble of imposing buildings, built
in socialist times the Central Department Store
(TZUM), the former Balkan Hotel, now Sheraton
Hotel, and the former Communist party head of ce,
symmetrically situated in relation to the central axe
of the boulevard. Shortly after the changes another
emblematic building was nished the Bulbank
building. Te turning of the pancake caused a
series of processes the removal of the huge red
star on top of the Party head of ce, dismantling the
statue of Lenin and the setting of a new beginning
heading West and full with hopes.
A walk along the Todor Alexandrov Boulevard can
tell us about almost any typical process in our coun-
try from the past 20 years. So, lets do that!
9
05
06
La dreapta statuii se a singurele cldiri
rmase din piaa deceniului 3. Lng ele se a
catedrala catolic, construit la sfritul anilor 90
n locul celei vechi care a fost distrus de bombar-
damentele din 1944. Astzi, catedrala este o compo-
nent unic a crucii toleranei un ptrat format
de templele a patru culte o sinagog, o catedral
ortodox, o moschee i o catedral catolic plasate
pe doar un kilometru ptrat.
Drumul spre Vest de-a lungul bulevardului e plin
de impresii vizuale i mentale esutul oraului e
extrem de colorat i divers. Cldiri administrative i
hoteluri se a n vecintatea unor maghernie cu
un etaj i a unor curi abandonate. La civa pai de-
prtare, se pot vedea vehicule luxoase care ar putea
invidiate de o persoan nstrit din Vest, dar i
un cal care pate sau o cru, de exemplu. Pe cteva
din poriunile mai lungi i nguste de-a lungul
bulevardului se a showroom-uri i spltorii auto,
garaje sau staii de benzin.
Chiar i un ochi neantrenat poate percepe lipsa
total a planicrii urbane, att de tipic nu doar
pentru Soa, ci pentru ntreaga Bulgarie n ultimii
20 de ani. Chiar i noile cldiri nu urmeaz nici
un cadru logic. O serie de cldiri abandonate sau
deteriorate ofer cazare pentru sracii care par s
devenit proprietarii terenurilor adiacente celui
mai aglomerat bulevard al oraului de aproape dou
milioane de locuitori.
are s nsumeze caracteristicile
Bulevardului Todor Alexandrov, ar fr ndoial
termenul contrast. Indiferent de direcia n care
i arunci ochii, exist o palet extrem de bogat de
culori, materiale i identiti.
Chiar nainte de a se termina, bulevardul traver-
seaz piaa Dimitar Petkov. Aceasta a rmas, alturi
de renumita Pia a Femeilor din centrul oraului,
una din puinele mari piee n aer liber din Europa,
nc funcional. Oamenii de acolo sunt absorbii
de lupta zilnic de supravieuire i par oarecum cum
indifereni la viaa oraului care se scurge pe lng urge p
ei.
In the very beginning of the boulevard
stands the statue of St. Soa, made by the famous
Bulgarian artist Georgi Chapkanov Chapa. It is an
interesting fact that according to the initial plan it
was supposed to be put in the place of the imposing
ruby star on top of the Party head of ce that was
dismantled in 1990. Ultimately the statue took the
place where the Lenin bust used to be until 1989.
Te provocatively uncovered gure is somehow
symbolically turning her back on the West and look-
ing with emptiness in her eyes towards the Largo in
the East direction.
To the right side of the statue are located the
only remaining buildings from the old 30-es square.
Next to them is the Catholic church that was built
in the end of the 90-ies on the place of the old one
that was destroyed in the bombings in Soa in 1994.
Today this church is a part of the unique tolerance
cross a square formed by the temples of 4 reli-
gions a synagogue, an orthodox church, a mosque
and a catholic church located within only 1 sq.km.
Te way to the West along the boulevard is full
with visual and mental impressions the city fabric
is extremely colorful and diverse. Contemporary
administrative buildings and hotels are neighboring
on one storey shacks and abandoned yards. A few
steps away from each other one can see luxurious
vehicles, which could make a well-to-do person
from the West envy, and a grazing horse or a cart for
instance. On some of the problematic long and nar-
row lots alongside the boulevard there are tempo-
rary functioning car dealers, car washes, garages or
petrol stations.
Even with an unaided eye one can feel the total
lack of urban planning that is so typical not only
for Soa but for the whole of Bulgaria in the last
20 years. Even the new buildings dont follow any
logical frame. A series of abandoned or crumbling
buildings provide accommodation for extremely
poor citizens that appear to be owners of terrains
next to one of the most communicative boulevard of
the city with nearly 2 millions inhabitants.
50
Dac exist ceva c t ceva c
ulevardului Todor A ulevardului Todor A
ermenul contrast. ul contrast.
i arunci ochii, exist i arunci ochii, exist
ulori, materiale i id ulori, materiale i id
#1
07
08
09
Pe parcursul istoriei sale milenare, Soa a existat i
i-a pstrat importana datorit situaiei cheie pe
diagonala care leag Europa i Asia. Astzi, corido-
rul trans-european al axei trece nc prin urmaul
oraului Serdica. Bulevardul Todor Alexandrov
deviaz uor de la strada Decumanus Principalis
a oraului roman din timpul lui Constantin cel
Mare. i actualul bulevard are rolul unei puni ntre
cele dou lumi lumea rsritului asiatic i cea a
Vestului european. Ceea ce i d un caracter unic
este faptul c, pe o poriune de doar civa km de-a
lungul su i pe strzile i n cartierele din vecinta-
te, te poi bucura de o diversitate cultural i social
extraordinar, i poi atinge trecutul ndeprtat sau
s te ndrepi spre viitorul necunoscut.
If there is something to sum up the features of
Todor Alexandrov Boulevard it would undoubtedly
be the word contrast. No matter in which direc-
tion one would lay an eye there is an extremely rich
palette of colors, materials and spirits.
Just before its ending the boulevard crosses also
the Dimitar Petkov market, one of the few still func-
tioning open air markets in Europe along with the
famous Female market in Soa. Te people there are
absorbed in their daily struggle to survive and look
somehow indiferently as the city life goes by.
In its millennial history Soa existed and kept its
importance due to its key situation on the diago-
nal way that connects Europe and Asia. Today the
Trans-European corridor on this axe still passes
through the successor of the town of Serdika. Te
Todor Alexandrov Boulevard drifts slightly from the
main street Decumanus Principalis that used to
connect the Eastern and the Western Gates of the
ancient Roman town from the time of Constantine
the Great. Te same way the current boulevard has
the role of a bridge between two worlds the world
of the Asian East and the one of the European West.
Te unique thing about it is that just within a few
kilometers along the boulevard and the adjoining
streets and districts one can enjoy the extraordinary
cultural and social diversity, touch the distant past
or head to the unknown future.
coala
studiilor lips
Text:
Srdjan Jovanovi Weiss 52
#1
School of
Missing Studies
53
A
s societies ock more and more in and
between cities to inhabit corridors (mak-
ing some too empty and some too full),
corridors and cities are of ever-increasing
importance and are regularly exceeding nations in
their interests, power and meaning. Even if they are
abandoned as is the case in some post-ideological
and post-industrial cities in Germany, Russia or the
US Midwest cities remain under scrutiny, like con-
victs on parole, charged with social decay.
Te conscience of architecture and art is now at
stake. Tis conscience is indispensable for design-
ing tools to practice today. Professional education is
cited as the context through which such awareness
takes place. But what is often missed is that cities
themselves accumulate knowledge independent
of how they were created or indeed why. In cit-
ies where transition of one sort or another has
had a momentous impact (such as warfare, sudden
poverty, abrupt political coup, unexpected political
independence or instantaneous wealth), we tremble
at the fundamental efects incurred. Where is the
knowledge that links abrupt transition to cities as
complex objects that escape clear denition? How
or why to dene evasiveness in this context? What
can embed the lack of knowledge positively into the
cultural fabric?
Can cities know things? How could the even-
tual knowledge be stored? What is an organisation
of that storage? Does it depend on any patterns of
known organisation or any language of retrieval?
Are there one or many storage systems at work? Are
they networked? Is the knowledge anticipatory or a
result of a nostalgic delay?
Describing mutual relationships between know-
ing and doing, Yehuda Safran beautifully re-writes a
known riddle: Just what is it that we come to know
with the knowledge of a language? In what relation
does the architecture [of the city] stand to a given
culture?
Learning from the relationships between forms
and becoming, the conicts and shortcomings of
nostalgic yearning and solidication of memory
that marked the 20th century, the only response to
the riddles rst question is: zero.
But the second question in the riddle relates ar-
ranged space to constructed culture. It opens up for
an elusive theatre of analogy. What if cities were to
act as knowledge that was in a sense suppressed
or, even, oppressed under the siege of culture? In
this theatre, culture would naturally be played by
language, the main oppressor.
Te two following research projects conducted
around the School of Missing Studies (SMS) net-
work seem to dwell on this theatrical analogy. New
York and Belgrade, two very distinct cities and dif-
ferent sizes, varying dramatically in history, were
put under scrutiny. Each city became an object of
A
a cum societile se adun din ce n ce n
i ntre orae pentru a locui coridoarele
(fcndu-le pe unele prea goale i pe altele
prea pline), coridoarele i oraele devin
din ce n ce mai importante, depind naiunile n
interesele, puterea i sensul lor. Chiar i cnd sunt
abandonate dup cum e cazul pentru unele orae
post-ideologice i post-industriale din Germania,
Rusia i vestul mijlociu al Statelor Unite oraele
rmn sub lup, asemenea deinuilor eliberai con-
diionat, pui sub acuzare pentru decdere social.
Contiina arhitecturii i artei se a acum n joc.
Contiina e indispensabil azi conceperii instru-
mentelor unei practici contemporane. Educaia
profesional este citat drept contextul prin care o
astfel de contientizare are loc. Dar, ceea ce adeseori
nu se ia n considerare este faptul c oraele nsei
acumuleaz cunotine independent de felul n
care au fost create sau chiar de motivul crerii lor.
n oraele n care tranziia de un tip sau altul a
avut un impact imediat (cum ar rzboiul, srcia
brusc, lovituri de stat spontane, independen poli-
tic neateptat sau bogie instantanee), tremurm
n faa efectelor fundamentale care se petrec. Unde
sunt cunotinele care s lege tranziia abrupt de
orae ca obiecte complexe care scap unei deniii
clare? Cum sau de ce s denim evaziunea n acest
context? Ce poate antrena la nivel mod pozitiv lipsa
de cunotine n estura cultural?
noasc lucrurile? Cum pot
cunotinele nale stocate? Ce organizare are o
astfel de stocare? Depinde aceasta de anumite tipare
ale organizrii cunoscute, sau de un limbaj de re-
cuperare? Exist unul sau multe sisteme de stocare
funcionale? Sunt conectate? Este cunoaterea anti-
cipativ sau e rezultatul unei ntrzieri nostalgice?
Descriind relaiile reciproce dintre cunoatere i
aciune, Yehuda Safran rescrie minunat o cunos-
cut ghicitoare: Ce se ntmpl cnd ajungem s
cunoatem cunotinele unui limbaj? n ce relaie se
a arhitectura [oraului] cu o cultur dat?
nvnd din relaiile ntre form i devenire,
din conictele i eecurile nostalgiei i solidicrii
memoriei care au marcat secolul al XX-lea, singurul
rspuns la prima ntrebare a ghicitorii este: zero.
ns a doua ntrebare a ghicitorii leag spaiile
amenajate de o cultur construit i se deschide
ctre un teatru misterios al analogiei. Ce-ar dac
oraele ar juca rolul unei cunoateri care ar fost
ntr-un anumit sens suprimat sau chiar oprimat
sub asediul culturii? n acest teatru, rolul culturii
ar n mod natural jucat de ctre limbaj, principalul
opresor.
Cele dou proiecte de cercetare care urmeaz au
fost realizate pornind de la reeaua colii Studiilor
Pierdute i par s i trag seva din aceast ana-
logie teatral. New York-ul i Belgradul, dou orae
distincte, de mrimi diferite, variind dramatic ca
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54
e cunotine n est e cunotine n es
Pot oraele s cun Pot oraele s cu
cunotinele nale tinele nal
stfel de stocare? Depi stfel de stocare? Depi
le organizrii cunosc e organizrii cuno
A A
speculation, a site for scouting and detecting
missing knowledge and phenomena that swarm
around their nuclei. Te premise is not the usual
cities as laboratories for social experimentations.
Rather, we looked at cities as harvesting media for
desire as well as the fallouts of such desire. By this
we mean that the goal of a quick-search method-
ology is not a search for the things that generate
urbanity, but the process of reading the city itself.
Te search itself is meant to serve as a can opener
of reality.
Looking for October (LFO): Contemporary Meanings
of Liberation
U
nrecorded abundance is another way of
making things go missing. Belgrades irts
with various identities have produced an
abundance of multiple claims on its own
authenticity and origins. Before WWII, national
identity was constructed by borrowing from both
history (Roman/ Byzantium/ Ottoman) and mo-
dernity (Communism). Between the two there was
a short period of alignment with Stalin and Social
Realism. Identity was built-up as Social Realist
buildings aped and puried from already stripped
neo-classical sources Stalins favourite style. After
the break with Stalin, the new liberal forces of
Communism forged national identity by importing
the European International Style. Four decades
later, during the recent wars in the Balkans, nation-
al identity returned to a hybrid of neo-traditional,
istorie, au fost supuse analizei. Fiecare ora a
devenit un obiect de speculaie, un amplasament
pentru cercetarea i detectarea cunotinelor i
fenomenelor neluate n seam i care graviteaz n
jurul nucleului lor. Premisa nu este cea obinuit
a oraelor ca laboratoare pentru experimente so-
ciale. Am privit mai degrab oraele drept mediul
cultural pentru dorine, ca i pentru efectele acestor
dorine. Prin asta nelegem c elul acestei metodo-
logii de cercetare rapid este, nu cutarea lucrurilor
care genereaz urbanitatea, ci procesul de citire a
oraului nsui. Cutarea n sine e menit s ser-
veasc drept deschiztor de conserve al realitii.
n cutarea lui octombrie (ICO): sensurile moderne n cutarea lui octombrie (ICO): sensurile moderne
ale eliberrii
O
abunden nenregistrat e un alt fel
de a face lucrurile s dispar. Flirturile
Belgradului cu identiti diferite au produs
o abunden de pretenii multiple asupra
autenticitii i originilor sale. naintea celui de-al
Doilea Rzboi Mondial, identitatea naional a fost
construit prin mprumuturi att din istorie (Roma/
Bizan/Imperiul otoman), ct i din modernitate
(comunismul). ntre cele dou, a existat o scurt
perioad de aliniere cu Stalin i realismul socialist.
Identitatea a fost construit pe msur ce cldirile
realismului socialist au maimurit i au puricat
surse neoclasice deja epurate stilul preferat al
lui Stalin. Dup ruptura fa de Stalin, noile fore
liberale ale comunismului au modelat identitatea
naional importnd un stil internaional euro-
pean. Patru decenii mai trziu, n cursul recentelor
conicte din Balcani, identitatea naional a revenit
la amestecul hibrid neo-tradiional, neo-naional de
stiluri combinate cu imaginea tehnologiilor avan-
sate. Acum, Belgradul este nc nehotrt asupra a
ceea ce va viitoarea sa identitate.
Iniierea acestei cercetri a aprut cnd s-a
anunat c Belgradul va aboli srbtoarea care mar-
ca eliberarea de Germania n cel de-al Doilea Rzboi
Mondial, datorat partizanilor lui Tito, i asta la
cinci decenii dup ce aceast eliberare avusese loc.
Pe 20 octombrie 1944, partizanii lui Tito cu spriji-
nul trupelor ruseti au cucerit oraul din minile
ocupanilor germani. Urmtoarele patru decenii au
aparinut noilor eliberatori care au construit oraul
dup propriile impulsuri, numindu-l Noul Belgrad.
n numirea noilor instituii construite, cuvntul
octombrie a fost pstrat sus pe lista apelativelor
posibile, ceea ce includea coli, sli de cinema, fa-
brici i premii pentru art i arhitectur.
n cursul anilor 90, media internaional a aco-
perit n mod intensiv criza eliberrii Iugoslaviei de
socialism. Procesul lui Miloevi la Haga a reprezen-
tat o expresie perfect a acestui colaps. O alt form
de eliberare, att fa de Miloevi, ct i fa de co-
munism a devenit evident. SMS a decis s o ia uor
i s investigheze aceast tem i temele conexe cu
55
neo-national mix of styles combined with
an image of high technology. And now, Belgrade is
still undecided as to what its next identity should
become.
Te trigger for this research came when it was
announced that Belgrade would abolish the holiday
celebrating Titos Partisan liberation from Germany
in World War II, ve decades after the liberation
took place. On October 20th 1944, Tito's partisans
with the help of Russian troops seized the city
from the German occupiers. Te next four decades
belonged to the new liberators, who built the city to
their whim, calling it New Belgrade. In naming any
new built institutions, the word October was kept
high on the list of possible appellations. Tis in-
cluded schools, cinemas, factories and distinguished
art and architecture prizes.
During the 1990s, world media intensely covered
the crisis of liberating Yugoslavia from socialism.
Miloevis trial at the Hague neatly embodied the
collapse. Another form of liberation became evident,
both from Miloevi as well as from Communism.
SMS decided to be light about it and investigate re-
lated topics with younger participants who had not
been subjected to socialist indoctrination. Growing
up with Miloevi in the city built by Tito, this gen-
eration were set to take over in redening Belgrade
themselves.
Take October the 20th Elementary School locat-
ed in the 70th housing block in New Belgrade. It was
built in the 1970s as an exemplary Brutalist archi-
tecture, and had featured in state supported lm
dramas about the controversies of liberal socialism.
Today, with the demise of liberal socialism and of
the Orthodox Churchs status, the school is a place of
metamorphosis. A bright mosaic of the patron saint
of Serbia, Saint Sava, now accompanies a fresco of
ve Belgrade liberators of diferent eras: from 1806,
1815, 1867, 1918, and 1944. As one interviewed pupil
put it, the saint is revered because he helped many
people by building schools. It seems only a mat-
ter of time until the Brutalist building is renamed
to commemorate Saint Sava. What will subsequent
generations that attend lessons there come to make
of this draining of content?
Everyone at least once in their lives wished for
another name. Te process of liberation does not
only consist of removing an oppressive power but
also of internalising this situation and forging
one's own identity in a changed environment. Like
elsewhere, many Jews in Belgrade changed their
names to avoid deportation and murderous violence.
However, this presented a moment of freedom to
construct a new persona, an opportunity that does
not usually exist. For some, this changing of names
may have become an alluring new start, but for
Moritz Levi, whom we interviewed, it was simply
a temporary "freedom" that lasted only for the ve
years of liberation. For this period he chose the pure
Christian imagery of the angel for both his rst and
participani mai tineri, care nu au fost supui
ndocrinrii socialiste. Crescnd cu Miloevi n
oraul construit de Tito, aceast generaie era meni-
t s preia redenirea Belgradului.
S lum ca exemplu coala Elementar 20
octombrie aat n blocul nr. 70 din Noul Belgrad.
A fost construit n anii 70 ca o arhitectur bruta-
list exemplar, aprnd n multe lme nanate
de stat despre controversele socialismului libe-
ral. Astzi, dup sfritul socialismului liberal i
al statutului bisericii ortodoxe, coala e un loc al
metamorfozei. Un mozaic vibrant al patronului
Serbiei, Sfntul Sava, nsoete acum o fresc a celor
cinci eliberatori ai Belgradului din epoci diferite: la
1806, 1815, 1918 i 1944. Dup cum o spune un elev,
sfntul e respectat indc a ajutat muli oameni s
construiasc coli. Pare doar o chestiune de timp
pn cnd cldirea brutalist va rebotezat pentru
a-l comemora pe Sfntul Sava. Ce vor nelege din
aceast golire de coninut generaiile urmtoare ce
vor nva acolo?
Toat lumea, mcar o dat n via, i-a dorit un
alt nume. Procesul de eliberare nu const doar n
ndeprtarea unei puteri opresive, ci i n asuma-
rea acestei situaii i modelarea propriei identiti
ntr-un mediu schimbat. Ca i n alte pri, muli
evrei din Belgrad i-au schimbat numele pentru a
evita deportarea i violena criminal. Totui, acest
lucru a reprezentat un moment de libertate pentru
construirea unei noi personaliti, un prilej care nu

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last names: Andjelko Andjelkovi. He could
not have sounded more innocent to his potential
executioners. Tis strategy of survival shifted with
the liberation from the German occupation, and he
exchanged his personal renaming a freedom born
of necessity for political liberation. Once the lib-
eration came in 1944, he decided to take his Jewish
name back and in doing so, he altered the original to
make it sound a little better.
Tis is the moment when essential decisions
about identity are practiced as an elusive practice
of the everyday. Documented in the project lm,
three participants of the research are seen to be
daydreaming. Tey make fun about their own desire
to be called something else:
Grozdana: Ivan, would you like to be called some-
thing else?
Ivan: Well no, I am really satised with my name.
Irina: Would love to be called Ana.
Dubravka: Angelina, after my grandma.
Jelena: Mina, Mina Apostolovi, it is possible.
Grozdana: Marija that is what I want for myself
Marija.
Andreja: When I was I little boy I wanted to call
myself Sebastian.
Te alteration of names to indicate belonging,
as well as the re-appropriation of names after the
liberation, applies to streets and buildings as well
as to individuals. After October 20th 1944, hundreds
of streets that had been named for Serbian kings
were renamed as Communist partisan liberators,
and revolutionary ideas. Tis process of renam-
ing has come to be accepted over the decades and
has even gathered speed so that with each change
the citizens and powers-that-be already anticipate
future changes. Te names of streets analogous
to the temporary nature of politicians careers in
the city are seen as eeting. Sometimes, changes
are not always carried through fully; street plaques
that should replace each other instead appear as
compounds. For instance, the name of Marshal
Tolbuhin (a WWII general who died in a plane crash
near Belgrade while ying to celebrate the twenti-
eth anniversary of the October 20th liberation) was
superimposed over the former name of Mackenzie
Street (a Scottish WWI General). Te city then
mounted new plaques on the streets, which show
a timeline noting the dates of each of the names.
Tis helps postal delivery and also brings freedom to
choose and mix street names. One LFO video simu-
lated this overlaying, by quickly animating Cyrillic
letters of old and new street names merging in a
hybrid of names and meanings. Suddenly, ctional
Marshezies Street, or Mackbuhin Street became
place-names, and much iteration in between. Tis
keeps the streets liberated from repeated renam-
ing and lets everyone give their own names to the
streets. A new ctitious toponomy of the city of the
future was simulated imagining how the street
would be known as: Zapatista! Street, Madonna
Street, or even deeper in the future @@^%$$ street.
exist de obicei. Pentru unii, aceast schimba-
re a numelor a fost poate prilejul atractiv pentru un
nou nceput, dar pentru Moritz Levi, pe care l-am
intervievat, a fost pur i simplu o libertate tempo-
rar care a durat doar cinci ani. n aceast perioad,
a ales imaginea pur cretin a ngerului, att pentru
nume, ct i pentru prenume: Andjelko Andjelkovi.
Nu putea s sunat mai inocent executorilor si
poteniali. Aceast strategie de supravieuire s-a
deplasat odat cu eliberarea de ocupaia german
i el i-a schimbat numele o libertate nscut din
necesitate pentru o eliberare politic. Odat cu
eliberarea din 1944, a decis s-i reia numele ebraic
i fcnd asta, a modicat originalul pentru a-l face
s sune mai bine.
Acesta e momentul cnd decizii vitale despre
identitate sunt practicate ca o practic misteri-
oas a cotidinului. Dup cum apare n lm, trei
participani la cercetare par s viseze cu ochii des-
chii. Ei glumesc despre propria lor dorin de a avea
alt nume:
Grozdana: Ivan, i-ar plcea s ai alt nume?
Ivan: Mm, nu, sunt destul de mulumit de numele
meu.
Irina: Mi-ar plcea s m cheme Ana.
Dubravka: Angelina, dup bunica mea.
Jelena: Mina, Mina Apostolovi, e posibil.
Grozdana: Marija, asta vreau pentru mineMarija.
Andreja: Cnd eram un bieel, voiam s m cheme
Sebastian.
Schimbarea numelor care s indice apartenena,
ca i re-nsuirea numelor dup eliberare, se aplic
strzilor i cldirilor, dar i indivizilor. Dup 20
octombrie 1944, sute de strzi care fuseser numite
dup regii serbi au fost rebotezate dup partizani
comuniti sau idei revoluionare. Acest proces de
redenumire a reuit s e acceptat dup decenii i
chiar s-a accelerat astfel nct, cu ecare schimbare,
cetenii i decidenii anticipau viitoare schimbri.
Numele strzilor asemntoare naturii tempora-
re a carierelor politicienilor din ora sunt vzute
drept efemere. Uneori, schimbrile nu sunt duse
la capt; indicatoarele stradale care ar trebui s se
nlocuiasc reciproc apar drept nume compuse. De
exemplu, numele Marealului Tolbuhin (un general
din al Doilea Rzboi Mondial, care a murit ntr-un
accident aviatic aproape de Belgrad, n timp ce zbura
pentru a srbtori a douzecea aniversare a elibera-
rii de la 20 octombrie) a fost suprapus peste fostul
nume de strad Mackenzie (un general scoian
din primul rzboi mondial). Oraul a pus apoi noi
indicatoare pe strzi, care arat o notare cronologic
a datelor ecrui nume. Aceasta sprijin livrrile
potale i aduce libertatea alegerii i amestecului
numelor strzilor. Un video ICO a simulat aceast
suprapunere, animnd rapid caracterele chirilice ale
vechilor i noilor nume de strzi amalgate ntr-un
hibrid al numelor i sensurilor. Brusc, cionala
strad Mackenzie sau strada Mackbuhin au devenit
locuri-nume, repetndu-se. Aceasta ine strzile
libere de rebotezare succesiv i permite oricui s le
57
s s
Another striking discovery came from inter-
views with one of the surviving liberators and his
grandson. A video re-enactment of their experience
in contemporary New Belgrade brought us closer to
their life of past and future desires. While the libera-
tor rejects the change of time, the young activist
liberates a ood of new consumer products in local
supermarkets from their brand labels in a series of
subversive acts. Te openness, naturalized brutal-
ity of this semi-decaying Corbusier city built for
liberators provides clues for diferences in practic-
ing liberation spanning three generations. Te only
chance for Modern cities which are no longer state-
of-the-art is to alter and adapt.
Liberating the streets of a city leads to the prac-
tice of discharging old and loading new meanings.
However, residue from the removal of the previous
systems lingers and still remains visible around
the city as leaderships come and go, only partially
installing their rhetoric. Tis accumulation of com-
mingled dust and dirt obscures attempts to pin
down or return to a specic identity, and in fact
opens up a possibility to live in a swarm of historical
memories.
Te memory of liberation lives on in an array of
plaques, busts and monuments. Once the collective
ideology is lifted from its moored position, heroes
embodied as busts are pushed back into anonymity.
Many are incorporated into street shops, parlours
and betting places. Others are left to naturalize
with the hard-scaping and are nearly indistinguish-
able from street furniture. Te most telling case is
the beheaded concrete bust of partisan Nada Puri
standing in front of a typical mixed-use building
complex from the 1960s. LFO observed that the
dolls in the womens fashion store behind the bust
are equally beheaded. Te plaque on the surviving
concrete base tells us who Nada Puri was. As LFO
participants observed, how she may have looked like
is left entirely up to us: we have to make her face up
in our minds.
School of Missing Studies records participants
imagining the unimaginable. Tis brings lighter
questions to the surface. As Ivo Hasanovic gave a
tour of the beheaded bust sitting in front of a few re-
maining state department stores for womens work
fashion, the group shifts from facts to detection:
Ivo: She was a brunette. She had short hair, was
but chunky, with a round face, high forehead and
smaller eyes.
Dubravka: Well I think she was not like a teacher!
Teachers have soft faces and she probably had a
harsh look, as she was trying to be equal to men. She
was probably suppressing her feminine side, and she
was simply pushing forward that solid look.
Te reversal of roles between the beheaded bust
and headless, identity-less dolls becomes a catalyst
for a surprising speculation on how the partisan
hero would turn to urban civilian today.
numeasc dup cum dorete. O nou topo-
nomie ctiv a orauui viitorului a fost simulat,
imaginndu-ne cum ar cunoscut strada drept
strada Zapatista!, strada Madonna sau chiar
strada @@^%$$.
O alt descoperire izbitoare a venit din interviu-
rile cu unul din supravieuitorii eliberatori i nepo-
tul su. O reconstituire video a experienei lor din
Belgradul contemporan ne-a adus mai aproape de
viaa lor trecut i de viitoarele lor dorine. n timp
ce eliberatorul respinge schimbarea timpului, noul
activist elibereaz un ux de produse de consum
n supermarketurile locale din etichetele mrci-
lor, ntr-o serie de acte subversive. Deschiderea,
brutalitatea naturalizat a acestui ora corbusierist
semi-decadent construit pentru eliberatori devine
cheia diferenelor n practicarea eliberrii care se
ntinde peste trei generaii. Singura ans pentru
oraele moderne care nu mai sunt la mod este s se
schimbe i s se adapteze.
Eliberarea strzilor oraului duce la practica
eliberrii vechilor sensuri i ncrcarea cu altele noi.
Oricum, reziduurile din ndeprtarea sistemului
anterior nc rmn i sunt nc vizibile pe cuprin-
sul oraului, conductorii si ce vin i pleac reuind
doar parial s-i instaleze propria retoric. Aceast
acumulare de praf i murdrie amestecate mpiedi-
c ncercrile de a stabili sau reveni la o identitate
specic i deschide, de fapt, posibilitatea de a tri
ntr-un amalgam de amintiri istorice.
i triete ntr-o colecie a in-
dicatoarelor, busturilor i monumentelor. Odat ce
ideologia colectiv e ridicat din poziia sa ancorat,
eroii ncarnai prin busturi sunt mpini napoi n
anonimitate. Muli sunt ncorporai n magazine,
saloane i sli de joc. Alii sunt lsai s naturali-
zeze cu elementele de amenajare urban i ajung
aproape de nedistins fa de mobilierul stradal. Cel
mai elocvent exemplu este bustul de beton fr cap
al partizanei Nada Puri care se a n faa unui
complex tipc de cldire multifuncional din anii
60. ICO a observat c i manechinele din magazinul
de mod din spatele bustului sunt i ele decapitate.
Placa de la baza betonului pe spune cine a fost Nada
Puri. Dup cum au observat particpanii ICO, cum o
artat ne rmne s hotrm: trebuie s i recon-
stituim faa mental.
58
ncercrile de a sta ncercrile de a st
pecic i deschide, pecic i deschide,
ntr-un amalgam de a ntr-un amalgam de
Memoria eliberri moria eliberri
icatoarelor, busturilo catoarelor, busturi
#1
varied tableau of scenarios involving fragmenta-
tion, such as the Balkanisation of the Internet or
the Balkanisation of America. Most recently, one
read about the Balkanisation of Iraq referring to
the attempt to instil democracy in and amidst the
ethnic diference. Common to all these denitions
are the description of an elusive division between
self-propelled, self-managed fragmentation and the
imposed democratic order both in the virtual and
actual politics of inhabitation. If globalisation is the
increasing interconnectedness of peoples and places
Balkanise Deutsche Bank, New York
S
hould we be stunned by the positive
views on Balkanisations potential for
democracy? Perhaps, because the term
Balkanisation originally emerged in
response to small-scale independence movements
in the Balkans, that describes a process of geo-
political fragmentation. It is now used more to
depict political dissolution across the world: not
in order to ght, but in order to sustain the dif-
ference. But the term still has negative standing
as a metaphor. Balkanisation (when not related
to the territory of the Balkans) still connotes a
coala Studiilor Lips studiaz modurile n
care participanii i imagineaz neimaginabilul.
Aceasta aduce la suprafa ntrebri mai uoare.
Dup ce Ivo Hasanovic a nconjurat bustul decapi-
tat din faa ctorva magazine de stat pentru mod
feminin, grupul trece de la fapte la presupuneri:
Ivo: Era brunet. Avea pr scurt, era solid, cu o fa
rotund, fruntea nalt i ochii mici.
Dubravka: Eu cred c nu arta ca o profesoar!
Profesorii au fee blnde, dar ea avea probabil o pri-
vire dur, serioas, ncercnd s e egal brbailor.
Trebuie s-i suprimat latura feminin i s sub-
liniat acea nfiare solid.
Schimbul de roluri ntre bustul decapitat i ma-
nechinele fr cap, fr identitate devine un catalist
pentru o speculaie surprinztoare a felului n care
eroina partizan ar reveni astzi ca un civil urban.
Balcanizarea Deutsche Bank, New York
S
m surprini de perspectivele pozitive
asupra potenialului balcanizrii pen-
tru democraie? Poate, indc termenul
balcanizare a aprut iniial ca reacie la
micrile de independen la scar mic din Balcani
i descrie un proces de fragmentare geopolitic.
Astzi, el este folosit mai mult pentru a descrie
dezintegrarea politic peste tot n lume: nu pentru
a lupta, ci pentru a susine diferena. Ca metafor
BALKANISE DEUTSCHE BANK, IVO HASANOVI
59
through converging processes of economic, po-
litical, and cultural change, Balkanisation has come
to be a counteraction to the integrating and homog-
enizing efects of globalisation from the bottom-up.
Tat efectively means the abolition of the local in
exchange for the Balkanised, which truly shifts the
meaning of the originally negative and hostile term
of Balkanisation and at the same time advances the
reach of the term local.
Te usage of Balkanisation as a term has crossed
academic disciplinary borders to elds like mathe-
matics, international law, but also digital elds, like
software, as a tool for fencing of software codes that
are essential for overall functioning of the Internet.
It is the hypothesis of this research that the
forces of Balkanisation did unfold beyond the topog-
raphy of the Balkans and beyond negativity. As such
Balkanisation can be researched as more than only
a case study: it is a model of expanded diversity and
diference from the scale of individual architecture
in the environment to much larger geo-political
scales and relations. Balkanisation architecture are
largely buildings that advanced private initiative
into collective examples of architecture not neces-
sarily connected to the region of the Balkans, but
more to the method of fragmentation that Balkan
experience may ofer. Te distinction between
Balkan as metaphor and Balkanisation as strategy is
about the scope, intention and aim of the architec-
ture, which from personal survival stem towards
advance in state or national identity. When self-
organized personal strategy becomes collective,
Balkanisation becomes a form of globalisation and
may be in the power to bend its forces.
SMS chose to follow the occurring transcendence
of Balkanisations meaning and test its potential
across the Atlantic in New York. Te zoning laws of
the 1930s rendered in charcoal by Hugh Ferris (the
master of darkness) are the forces that make us
see the metropolis as it is now. Ferris deployment of
the shadow was the last systematic redenition of
ns, dar termenul are nc conotaii negati-
ve. Balcanizarea (cnd nu are legtur cu teritoriul
Balcanilor) indic nc un tablou variat al scenariilor
care implic fragmentare, sum ar balcanizarea
internetului sau balcanizarea Americii. Mai re-
cent, se poate citi despre balcanizarea Irakului, cu
referire la ncercarea de impunere a democraiei n
contextul diferenelor etnice. Aspectul comun aces-
tor deniii este descrierea unei mpriri subtile
ntre fragmentarea auto-iniiat i auto-condus, i
ordinea democratic impus att n politici virtuale
ct i n ceale curente ale locuirii. Dac globalizarea
reprezint interconexiunea crescnd a oamenilor
i locurilor prin procese convergente de schimbare
economic, politic i cultural, balcanizarea a ajuns
s contraatace integrarea i efectele omogenizatoa-
re ale globalizrii de sus n jos. Ceea ce nseamn
efectiv abolirea elementului local n schimbul bal-
canizrii care deplaseaz sensul termenului iniial
negativ i ostil al balcanizrii i avanseaz, n acelai
timp, spre cuprinderea termenului de local.
Folosirea noiunii de balcanizare a traversat
graniele academice spre domenii cum ar mate-
matica, dreptul internaional, dar i domenii digita-
le, cum ar programarea, ca un instrument de n-
grdire a codurilor de soft eseniale n funcionarea
per ansamblu a internetului.
cestei cercetri c forele balca-
nizrii s-au revelat dincolo de topograa Balcanilor
i dincolo de negativism. n sine, balcanizarea poate
cercetat mai mult dect un simplu studiu de
caz: este un model de diversitate extins, de la scara
arhitecturii, la o scar i relaii geopolitice mult mai
largi. Arhitectura balcanizrii e reprezentat de cl-
dirile care au avansat iniiativa privat n exemple
colective de arhitectur, nu neaprat conectate la
regiunea Balcanilor, ci mai degrab la metoda frag-
mentrii pe care experiena balcanic o poate oferi.
Distincia ntre Balcani, ca metafor, i balcanizarea,
ca strategie, se refer la scopul, intenia i elul ar-
hitecturii, care avanseaz din zona de supravieuire
personal spre identitatea statal sau naional.
Atunci cnd strategia personal auto-coordona-
t devine colectiv, balcanizarea devine o form
a globalizri, i poate n msur s-i modeleze
propriile forele.
SSL a ales s urmreasc transcendena progresi-
v a sensului balcanizrii i s i testeze potenialul
peste Atlantic, la New York. Regulamentele de
zonicare din anii 30 transpuse n crbune de
Hugh Ferris (stpnul ntunericului) sunt forele
care ne fac s vedem metropola aa cum e acum.
Utilizarea umbrei de ctre Ferris a fost ultima rede-
nire sistematic a Manhattan-ului. Viitorul arta
ca o metropol ntunecat, iluminat n primul rnd
de multe interioare prin oricii perforate n munii
blocurilor nalte. A reuit mai ales datorit faptului
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JELENA MITROVI
60
Este o ipotez a ac te o ipotez a ac
izrii s-au revelat di rii s-au revelat di
i dincolo de negativi dincolo de negativi
cercetat mai mult cercetat mai mult
az: este un model de az: este un model de
rhitecturii, la o scar hitecturii, la o scar
Manhattan. Te future looked like a dark me-
tropolis lit primarily from many interiors through
holes punched into the mountains of tall building
blocks. Did it succeed specically because it dened
itself as the negative of the form? Te principle has
since then left dening traces in the metropolis,
from canyon-like streets, sheer walls of of ce build-
ings, air rights, and sidewalk setbacks, all as a result
of the relations between the shadow and the law.
Te major anxiety of public life currently seems
to be the aporia of the modern corporation. Tis ex-
cavates the fear that we do not need the body of the
king, we do not need the sun, but we cant survive
without the corporation. Te anamorphosis in the
16th-century painting by Holbein, Te Ambassadors,
is simultaneously against form and also allegory: a
return to form. Te absence of a discernable vanish-
ing point temporalizes the vanishing: because you
must move by the painting, the painting creates
multiple vanishing points and interpretations.
Anamorphosis sets up the elliptical order of
presenting as central that which is not to be seen.
We experience a looming analogy in downtown
Manhattan. Te empty Deutsche Bank is the mas-
sive block just next to the World Trade Centre void
draped in black on three sides. Te 40-story black
monolith has now assumed a key visual position in
downtown Manhattan, yet in images of the site it
is not seen. Tis shadow of usage, anamorphosis is
inferred as the view of one side of the building, wit
a fteen-story gash, presents a very diferent story
than the view on the other three sides, with of ce
lights turning on and of hinting at ef cient func-
tionality. However, the corporate building is actually
pronounced dead. For how long can these metropol-
itan contradictory messages hold together, provide a
unied story and a gure of a single entity?
Tis structure is ideal for Balkanisation.
Balkanise Deutsche Bank applies Balkanisation
as a design strategy to dismantle innovatively
and convert fragments into a new kind of unied
structure. Gerrymandering means To divide (a
geographic area) into voting districts so as to give
unfair advantage to one party in elections: a form
of Balkanisation no less. Tis became a strategy for
the Deutsche Bank, whereby the individual oors
were used to redraw the constituencies involved.
Research on regular apartment expansion over
streets and alleys by Hassidic Jews in Brooklyn, NY,
was the initial case study and conceptual driv-
ing force of this project. Deutsche Bank has been
fragmented from inside out by displacing bits of
structure to the air around the perimeter of the
black monolith. Te process was continued until all
interior material from the centre was dispersed.
One of the efects of the Balkan break-up in the
1990s is the proliferation and mutation of languag-
es. Serbo-Croatian, the of cial language in Titos
ex-Yugoslavia, broke in four: Bosnian, Croatian,
Montenegrin and Serbian. One spoken language on
c s-a denit ca negativul formei? Principiul a
marcat de atunci urme denitorii n metropol, de
la strzile de tip canion, pereii absolui ai cldiri-
lor de birouri, la servituile de aerisire i retragerile
fa de trotuar, toate ca rezultat al relaiilor dintre
umbr i lege.
Anxietatea major n raport cu viaa public pare
s e aporia corporaiei moderne. Aceasta induce
teama c, dei nu avem nevoie de corpul unui rege,
dei nu avem nevoie de soare, nu putem supravieui
ns fr corporaie. Anamorfoza tabloului de secol
al XVI-lea de Holbein, Ambasadorii, este simultan o
lupt mpotriva formei i o alegorie ntoarcerea la
form. Absena punctului vizibil de fug face tem-
porar dispariia: deoarece trebuie s treci pe lng
tablou, el creeaz multiple puncte de dispariie i
interpretri.
Anamorfoza determin o ordine eliptic, conform
creia ceea nu e de obicei vzut devine element cen-
tral. Trim o analogie amenintoare n Manhattan-
ul central. Cldirea goal a Deutsche Bank este un
bloc masiv chiar lng golul drapat n negru pe trei
laturi, aat n locul unde se aa World Trade Center.
Monolitul negru de 40 de etaje i-a asumat acum
poziia vizual cheie n centrul Manhattanului, dar
n imagini ale sitului nu se vede. Aceast umbr a
folosinei, anamorfoza, reiese pe msur ce vederea
unei laturi a cldirii, cu o incizie de cincispreze-
ce etaje, prezint o poveste complet diferit dect
vederea de pe celalte trei laturi, cu luminile aprin-
zndu-se, ca aluzie la buna funcionalitate. Oricum,
cldirea corporatist este de fapt declarat moart.
Pentru ct timp pot astfel de mesaje metropolitane
contradictorii s reziste mpreun, s ofere o poves-
tire unitar i s contureze o singur entitate?
Aceast structur e ideal pentru balcanizare.
Balcanise Deutsche Bank aplic balcanizarea drept
strategie de design pentru a demonta inovativ i a
converti fragmentele ntr-un tip nou de structur
unicat. Gerrymandering nseamn a mpri
(o zon geograc) ntre districte electorale pentru
a oferi un avantaj nedrept n alegeri uneia dintre
pri: o form de balcanizare, fr ndoial. Ceea ce
devine o strategie pentru Deutsche Bank, prin care
etaje individuale au fost folosite pentru a reconstitui
electorii implicai. Cercetarea asupra extinderii re-
gulate a apartamentelor peste strzi i alei de ctre
evreii hasidici n Brooklyn, NY, a fost iniial studiul
de caz i fora conceptual inovatoare a acestui
proiect. Deutsche Bank a fost fragmentat n interior
prin mutarea unor componente ale structurii n
jurul perimetrului monolitului negru. Procesul a
continuat pn cnd tot materialul interior din cen-
tru a fost dispersat.
Unul din efectele rupturii balcanice din anii 90
este proliferarea i mutarea limbilor. Srbo-croata,
limba ocial n Iugoslavia lui Tito, s-a desprit
n patru: bosniac, croat, montenegr i srb. O
limb vorbit din CV-ul cuiva a devenit acum patru.
Adugai folosirea att a caracterelor chirilice, ct
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61 61
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someones CV can now become four. Add to someones CV can n
yrillic and Latin alphabets, that the u uuuuuuuuuuuuusa sa sa sa ssa sa sa sa sa ssa s ge ge ge ge ge ge ge ge ge ge ge ge ge gg oo ooooooooooooof f f f ffff f fff ff bo bbbbbbbbbbb th Cy
es even more. Tis strat- and the nu nu nu nu nu nuu nuu nu nuuuu numb mb mb mb mb mb mb mmb mb mb mb mb mb mb mber er er er er er er er er er er e iinnnc nnnnnn rease
anisation was deployed in egy of gai iiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnn nnnnnn th th th th th th th th h th th hhh thro ro ro rro ro ro ro ro roo roo r ug ug ug ug uug ug gg ug uuuggh Balka
e Bank monolith into four breaking gggggggg uu uuu uuu uuuuuupp p th th th th th th th th th h th hhhheeee e e e e ee DDeutsche
that in the end produce four self-sim mmmmmiiil il il il iil i aaar ar aaaaaaaaaa c ccccc ccccom om om om oom om om om mpo po oooooooounds t
d of one. hollow m mmmmmmmmoon on ooooo ol ool ol ooooolit it it it it it iit it it i hhs hhhhs hhh iiiinstead
ing phenomena of nature is One oof of of of of f of ooo t the he he eeee m mmmmmmos ostt tttttt striki
of white light into consti- the proc ccccccccces ess es ss of oof of o r rrrref eeef e ra ra aaaaaction
Te true positive nature of tutive nua ua ua ua uua uuuu nc nc c nc ces es ssss o ooof f cccco cccccc lour.
is the richness of the pal- Balkaniiiiiiiiisa sa sa aaati tion on on on on on oo oof f ff Light i
porary lifestyles as well as ette thattt ttttttt de ddde d ne ne ne ne nnes s ccccco cccccc ntemp
avoid. Te challenge of this moods th hhhhhhhhhhat aaaat aaaaaaaaa w wwwwwwwwwwwwee eeeeeeeeeee li li li li li li li li li l vvvve vvvvvv in or a
strategy is to transfer the sophistication and spe- strategy is to ttt transfer the
cicity of fragmentation onto the structure of the
tower. Exercising their own freedom to change their
facades to their own liking, residents in Belgrade
create a collective image of exacerbated diference
among oors and individual properties.
A similar strategy has been devised for twisting
and bending the blocks of oors of the Deutsche
Bank structure. Te history of alienation and break-
up resulting from discord over values and conduct
within the Episcopal world has inspired a strategy
to encourage the dissolution of the Deutsche Bank
monolith into independent entities that will even-
tually re-connect with self-similar entities, that
over time and space will eventually re-connect with
self-similar entities, creating a bound network that
is not physically continuous.
Good Bye Deutsche Bank combined two related
case studies: one of the demise of East German
consumerism and changes of ideology reected in
life styles; and US propaganda aimed at the subjects
of US attacks in Iraq and at US subjects of possi-
ble Cold War aggression and atom-bomb fear. Te
strategy that emerged from this combination let the
architecture of Deutsche Bank slip gracefully into
the past. Content is emptied leaving only the skin of
the tower, collapsed into skin-deep symbolism. Tis
project reies the demise of ideology into consum-
erist repackaging for recognition of nostalgia, on a
metropolitan and memorial scale.
Beyond Deutsche Bank building what would
happen if we take the Balkanisation strategy to
similar corporate monoliths in Manhattan: ones
covered in similar black glass and steel. One of the
most stunning and elegant examples of this kind
is the building designed by SOM and Bunschaft for
the corporation Brown Brothers Harriman on Wall
Street. Tis clean, black and smooth monolith gives
nothing away about the ery dynamics of activity or
performance taking place inside. Careful analysis of
the stock market performances of various depart-
ments within the BBH Corporation reveals cracks
between more and less successful entities. We en-
courage this diference and speculate on a diagram
that can reveal the true dynamics of inner organisa-
tion of the corporation rendering a quick image of
what it might look like on the outside: departments
i a alfabetului latin i numrul crete i mai nu nu m mru ulllll lllll cr cr cr cr cr cr r cr rrrrrreeee e eeeeeeeee te ii maii
mult. Strategia ctigului prri r n n ba balcan aniz iz zzzzzzzzar ar ar ar ar ar ar ar rr ar ar ar rrre e a constat
n divizarea monolitului Deu uuts tsch che e Ba Bank nk k nnnn nnnn nnnnnn patru
componente similare care, n nnnnn nnal al, , pr prod oduc uc pp pppppppppppatru
monolii goi n locul unuia.
Unul din fenomenele celeeeee mmmm ii ai ai u uim im mmmit it it ttt it t it it itoa oa oooooa oa oa oo re re re re re dddd dddd dddddin in in in in in in in in in in in n
natur este refracia luminii i i iii i al al al al al albe be be be be be eeeeee n n nnn n nnn el el el el el elem em em m emen een en en ente te te te tte te t le le lllle le le lle llle
constitutive ale culorii. Natuuuuuuuuuuuuura rra ra ra ra ra rra rrrr ppp pppoz oz oz oz oz oziiiit i iv iv iv ve vve ve ve veri ri ri ri ri ritb tb tb tb tb tbai ai ai aai ai a ---
l din balcanizarea luminii es es es es este t b bbog og og gg ia ia ia ia ia ia pppp pal al al al al a eet et t e ei ei ei
care denete stilurile de via a co co cont ntttem em em em empo po po o po ora ra ra ra ane ne nne ne,, ca ca ca i ii
atitudinile pe care le trim ssau au au evi iiit t t t m. mmm. PP PP PPro ro ro rovo vo vo vo voca ca care re reaa a
acestei strategii este s transssferi i i i so so so so ost st stttiiic ic ii ar ar ar area ea ea ea ea i ii
specicitatea fragmentrii p pe o oooo ssss str tr tr r truc uc uc cctttu tu tu t r r r r a aaaaa t tttur ur urnnnnu nu---
lui. Exercitndu-i propria libertate de a schimba iibe be be be b rt rt rt rtat at at a e e dde ddd a aaa ssss sch ch ch ch ch chim im imba ba ba aaaaaaaaaa
faadele dup bunul plac, locuitorii Belgradului
creeaz o imagine colectiv a diferenei exacerbate
dintre etaje i dintre proprietile individuale.
O strategie similar a fost conceput pentru
ndoirea i curbarea blocurilor de etaje ale structurii
Deutsche Bank. Istoria alienrii i desprirea rezul-
tnd din discordia asupra valorilor i conduitei cu
lumea episcopal a inspirat o strategie de a ncuraja
disoluia monolitului Deutsche Bank n entiti
independente care s se lege n cele din urm cu
entiti similare, crend o reea interconectat care
nu are continuitate zic.
he Bank a combinat dou
studii de caz nrudite: unul al sfritului consume-
rismului est-german i al schimbrilor de ideologie
reectate n stilurile de via; dar i propaganda
american adresat celor supui atacurilor america-
ne n Irak sau cetenilor americani supui agresi-
unii Rzboiului Rece i temerii de bomba atomic.
Strategia care a aprut din aceast combinaie a
lsat arhitectura Deutsche Bank s alunece graios
n trecut. Coninutul e golit, lsnd doar nveliul
turnului, deformat n simbolismul unei epiderme.
Proiectul subliniaz sfritul ideologiei i trecerea
ctre o reambalare consumerist a recunoatereii
nostalgiei, la scar metropolitan i memorial.
Dincolo de cldirea Deutsche Bank, ce s-ar n-
tmpla dac am lua strategia de balcanizare pentru
monolii asemntori din Manhattan, acoperii de
oel i sticl neagr. Unul din cele mai suprinz-
toare i elegante exemple de acest tip este cldi-
rea conceput de SOM i Bunschaft pe Wall Street
pentru corporaia Brown Brothers Harriman. Acest
monolit curat, negru i lucios nu indic nimic refe-
ritor la dinamica intens a activitii care se petrece
n interior. O analiz atent a valorilor de pia a
diferitor departamente n corporaia BBH indic
anumite diferene ntre entitile mai mult sau mai
puin competitive. ncurajm aceast diferen i
speculm pe o diagram care s poat indica dina-
mica adevrat a organizrii interne a corporaiei,
oferind o imagine rapid a felului n care aceasta ar
vizibil dinafar: departamente se divid i sunt
separate de goluri; bateriile de lifturi s-ar mpri
ntre entitile care funcioneaz difereniat. n
nal, speculm asupra modului n care o astfel de
DUBRAVKA SEKULI
62
Good Bye Deutsch ood Bye Deutsc
tudii de caz nrudite dii de caz nrudite
ismului est-german mului est-german
eectate n stilurile eectate n stiluril
merican adresat c merican adresa
e n Irak sau ceten e n Irak sau ceten
#1
become divided, separated by voids; eleva-
tor cores would split between entities that perform
diferently. Finally, we speculate on how such a
corporation would look like in three dimensions, on
the same site as the black mute monolith, if it were
organized and built according to its inner forces.
Another example of projected unity in a single
corporate object in mid-town Manhattan is the
elegant box in silver steel nish, built by SOM and
Bunschaft for the Pepsi Cola Corporation, nick-
named, Pepsi Cola Building. Deeper analysis of
this seven storey compression of minimalist tower
into a town-house shows a status in owing any one
of the oors. Current tenants include directors of
elite hedge funds, set on top of each other. How to
Balkanise this? Te value of each tenants endow-
ment is related to the added height of open space
oors between the original Pepsi Cola levels. Te
resulting structure is rendered as a delaminated
stack of original oor plates interspersed with pub-
lic parks between them with their height in relation
to the wealth of individual oor tenants. Te total
height of the Balkanised Pepsi-Cola building does
not exceed the height of the ultimate corporate
project on Park Avenue: Te Lever House.
Back to the questions of storing and organisation
of missing knowledge. In both examples of study,
Belgrade and New York, the mix between discovery
and interpretation kept researchers from cleansing
found experience from sensibility, while not falling
into nostalgia. Good days of ex-Yugoslav social-
ism and good days of corporate modernism in the
USA both left material traces and objects scattered
in two cities. Te potential for missing study comes
out of their mutuability, and combination of dif-
ferent natures, not unlike DJ mixing. Tis strategy
of combination is not interdisciplinary. One side is
not strictly learning from the other. Te topics are
greeted as sources, almost primitive and stupid,
in order to learn with the other. Te organisation
of the missing knowledge, than is not a mirror con-
fused with a signier of the other. Te other simply
looses grounds to be called as such and is accepted
as the missing.
ACCORDING TO HENRI BERGSON, THIS IS BECAUSE THERE IS NO POS-
SIBILITY FOR A MOMENT AND A SPACE TO BE READ AT THE VERY SAME
TIME AND IN THE VERY SAME WAY. THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN READING
A MOMENT AND READING A SPACE IS THE FOUNDATION FOR DEFINING
EFFECTS OF CINEMATOGRAPHY AND EXPERIENCE.
SCHOOL OF MISSING STUDIES IS A LOOSE NETWORK FOR EXPERIMEN-
TAL STUDY OF CITIES MARKED BY OR CURRENTLY UNDERGOING ABRUPT
TRANSITION. WWW.SCHOOLOFMISSINGSTUDIES.NET
TRANSCRIPT FROM SCHOOL OF MISSING STUDIES: LOOKING FOR
OCTOBER VIDEO DOCUMENTARY DIRECTED BY DUAN GLIGOROV;
SCRIPT BY DUAN GLIGOROV, IVAN KUCINA; PRODUCED BY COMPOSITE,
BELGRADE 2004
IBID.
ACCORDING TO WIKIPEDIA THE OPEN SOURCE INTERNET ORACLE
RECENTLY THE TERM [BALKANISATION] HAS BEEN USED IN AMERICAN
PLANNING TO DESCRIBE HOW GATED COMMUNITIES ARE CREATED.
THERE ARE ALSO ATTEMPTS TO USE THE TERM BALKANISATION IN A
POSITIVE WAY EQUALIZING BALKANISATION WITH THE NEED FOR SUSTE-
NANCE OF A GROUP OR SOCIETY. IT USED TO BE HOSTILE, BUT
RECENT USAGES OF THE TERM SHOW THE POTENTIAL OF
BALKANISATION VIS--VIS DEMOCRATIC PROCESSES. WIKIPEDIA.ORG /
ACCESSED IN 2005
corporaie ar arta tridimensional, pe aceeai
amplasament ca al taciturnului monolit negru,
dac ar organizat i construit conform forelor lui
interne.
Un alt exemplu al unitii proiectate ntr-o
singur corporaie din mijlocul Manhattanului este
eleganta cutie de oel argintiu construit de SOM
i Bunschaft pentru corporaia Pepsi Cola, botezat
Cldirea Pepsi Cola. O analiz mai profund a
acestei compresii a unui turnului minimalist ntr-o
locuin urban de apte niveluri indic o diferen
de status n funcie de deinerea unuia sau altuia
dintre niveluri. Chiriaii actuali sunt directori ai
unor fonduri de investiie de elit, aezai unul dea-
supra altuia. Cum s balcanizezi asta? Legm mri-
mea venitului ecruia dintre chiriai de nlimea
nsumat a etajelor iniiale ale cldirii Pepsi Cola.
Structura rezultat e redat ca un set mprit de
straturi de etaje originale amestecate cu niveluri de
parcuri publice ntre ele, a cror nlime variaz n
funcie de bogia chiriailor. nlimea total a cl-
dirii Pepsi-Cola balcanizate nu depete nlimea
exemplarului perfect de proiect corporatist celebra
Lever House de pe Park Avenue.
S ne ntoarcem la chestiunile depozitrii i
organizrii cunotinelor lips. n ambele exemple
ale studiului, Belgradul i New York-ul, amestecul
dintre descoperire i interpretare i-a mpiedicat pe
cercettori s-i separe experiena celor gsite de
sensibilitate, i n acelai timp s cad n nostalgie.
Att zilele bune de altdat ale socialismului ex-
iugoslav ct i zilele bune de altdat ale moder-
nismului corporatist din Statele Unite au lsat urme
materiale i obiecte mprtiate n cele dou orae.
Potenialul studiilor lips provine din reciprocitatea
lor i combinarea naturilor diferite, oarecum n spi-
ritul unui mixaj de DJ. Aceast strategie de combi-
nare nu este interdisciplinar. O parte nu nva de
la cellalt n mod strict. Temele sunt privite drept
surse, aproape primitive i stupide, pentru a putea
s nvei cu cellalt. Organizarea cunotinelor
lips nu este o oglind ce se confund cu un semni-
cant sau altul. Cellalt pur i simplu pierde dreptul
de a se numi ca atare i este acceptat ca lipsind.
CONFORM LUI HENRI BERGSON, ACEASTA SE DATOREAZ FAPTULUI
C NU SE POT CITI UN MOMENT I UN SPAIU N ACELAI TIMP I N
ACELAI MOD. DIFERENA DINTRE CITIREA UNUI MOMENT I CEA A UNUI
SPAIU REPREZINT FUNDAMENTUL DEFINIRII EFECTELOR CINEMATO-
GRAFIEI I ALE EXPERIENEI.
SCHOOL OF MISSING STUDIES ESTE O REEA INFORMAL PENTRU CER-
CETAREA EXPERIMENTAL A ORAELOR MARCATE SAU N PLIN PROCESS
AL UNEI TRANZIII ABRUPTE. WWW.SCHOOLOFMISSINGSTUDIES.NET
TRANSCRIERE DIN COALA STUDIILOR LIPS: N CUTAREA LUI
OCTOMBRIE, VIDEO DOCUMENTAR REGIZAT DE DUAN GLIGOROV;
SCENARII DE DUAN GLIGOROV, IVAN KUCINA; PRODUS DE COMPOSITE,
BELGRAD, 2004
IBID.
CONFORM WIKIPEDIA ORACOLUL OPEN-SOURCE AL INTERNETULUI
RECENT, TERMENUL BALCANIZARE A FOST FOLOSIT N URBANISMUL
AMERICAN PENTRU A DESCRIEREA MODUL N CARE SUNT CREATE DEZ-
VOLTRILE DE TIP GATED COMMUNITY . EXIST, DE ASEMENEA, N-
CERCRI DE A SE FOLOSI TERMENUL NTR-UN MOD POZITIV, ECHIVALND
BALCANIZAREA CU NEVOIA DE SUSTENAN A UNUI GRUP SAU A UNEI
SOCIETI. ALTDAT FOLOSIT DOAR N MOD OSTIL, TERMENUL NCEPE
S CAPETE UTILIZRI CARE EXPRIM POTENAILUL BALCANIZRII VIS--
VIS DE PROCESELE DEMOCRATICE. WIKIPEDIA.ORG / ACCESAT N 2005
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63 63
ssee

Jurnalul oraelor
Cities Log
Text:
Ana Dzokic, Marc Neelen
(STEALTH.unlimited) 64
#1
A
scan of the issues concerning the recent
urban development of cities like Belgrade,
Kotor, Novi Sad, Podgorica, Pritina, Pula,
Skopje, Tirana, or Zagreb, reads like some-
thing between a crime scene investigation and a
comic story. While up until two decades ago these
cities developed largely outside the mechanisms of
the real estate market, today privatisation, clien-
telism, and the creative abuse of laws seem com-
monplace in a context impacted by wild urbanisa-
tion and fast-moving capital investments set within
the horizon of a neoliberal context.
At the same time, something else starts to be-
come clear: the rst, uneasy struggles for collective
space start to take shape. Here and there inhabitants
start organising themselves, civil organisations start
turning their gaze to the city and journalists begin
digging through the issues. As urgent as they may
be for their own context, they also hint at a new
engagement of the citizenry and the profession-
als emerging in many cities throughout the world.
Tis points to the alternatives appearing out of the
cracks of the highly individual and prot-driven
development of contemporary cities opening the
horizon to diferent contributions and to involve-
ments in what the future of our cities could be.
Tis journal represents a short time-travel
along issues found in the span of a compressed
year (20082009). It is based on the Cities Log a
chronology of spatial issues compiled by STEALTH.
unlimited (Ana Doki and Marc Neelen) on the
occasion of the 4th T.I.C.A.B Tirana Internationa
Contemporary Art Biannual (September / October
2009), through conversations with and contribu-
tions by professionals in the elds of architecture
and urban issues: Besnik Aliaj, Gjergj Bakallbashi,
Aleksandar Bede, Branko Belacevi, Jelena
Stefanovi, Dafne Berc, Teodor Celakoski, Sotir
Dhamo, Ulrike Franzel, Valon Germizaj, akilina
Gligorijevic, Adelina Greca, Astrit Hajrullahu, Florina
Jerliu, Aleksandra Kapetanovi, Ivan Kucina, Marko
Mileti, Ilir Murseli, Oliver Musovik, Divna Peni,
Dubravka Sekuli, Petrit Selimi, Pulska grupa, Aneta
Spaseska, Borislav Vukicevi and more. Te project is
part of the rst case study of the project Individual
Utopias, supported by the Swiss Cultural Program
(SCP) in the Western Balkans. In 2010, a special edi-
tion of the Cities Log has been made as part of the
project Auction, Novi Sads Log of Spaces Between
Personal Interests and Public Needs, developed
with New Media Centar_kuda.org.
O
examinare a aspectelor legate de dezvol-
tarea urban recent din orae cum ar
Belgrad, Kotor, Novi Sad, Podgorica, Pritina,
Pula, Skopje, Tirana, sau Zagreb apare ca o
combinaie a unei investigaii criminalistice cu o co-
medie. Pn acum dou decenii, aceste orae se aau
n afara mecanismelor pieei imobiliare reale. Astzi,
privatizarea, clientelismul i abuzul creativ asupra
legii au devenit locuri comune ntr-un context mar-
cat de urbanizarea slbatic i de investiiile rapide
de capital plasate la orizontul mediului neoliberal.
n acelai timp, ncep s se desfoare i primele
btlii intense pentru spaiul colectiv. Pe ici, pe colo,
locuitorii ncep s se organizeze, asociaiile civile
ncep s-i ndrepte privirea spre ora, iar ziaritii
ncep s sape la rdcina problemelor. Pe ct de ur-
gente par n propriul context aceste aciuni, pe att
devin de importante i ca semne ale unui nou an-
gajament din partea cetenilor i profesionitilor.
Fenomenul este n cretere n multe orae din
lume un ansamblu de abordri alternative ce se
strecoar printre surile dezvoltrii extrem de indi-
vidualiste i conduse de prot a oraelor moderne.
Acest jurnal reprezint o scurt incursiune n as-
pectele descoperite pe parcursul unui an condensat
(20082009). Se bazeaz pe Cities Log o cronologie
a aspectelor spaiale adunate de STEALTH.unlimi-
ted (Ana Doki i Marc Neelen) cu prilejul celei
de-a patra ediii T.I.C.A.B Tirana International
Contemporary Art Biannual (septembrie / octom-
brie 2009), prin discuii i contribuii ale profesi-
onitilor din domeniile arhiecturii i urbanisticii:
Besnik Aliaj, Gjergj Bakallbashi, Aleksandar Bede,
Branko Belacevi, Jelena Stefanovi, Dafne Berc,
Teodor Celakoski, Sotir Dhamo, Ulrike Franzel, Valon
Germizaj, akilina Gligorijevic, Adelina Greca, Astrit
Hajrullahu, Florina Jerliu, Aleksandra Kapetanovi,
Ivan Kucina, Marko Mileti, Ilir Murseli, Oliver
Musovik, Divna Peni, Dubravka Sekuli, Petrit
Selimi, Pulska grupa, Aneta Spaseska, Borislav
Vukicevi i alii. Proiectul face parte din primul
studiu de caz al proiectului Individual Utopias,
susinut de Programul Cultural Elveian (Swiss
Cultural Program SCP) n Balcanii de Vest. n 2010,
o ediie special Cities Log a fcut parte din pro-
iectul Auction, Novi Sads Log of Spaces Between
Personal Interests and Public Needs, realizat m-
preun cu New Media Centar_kuda.org.
65
.
al al
r
A O
CLIENTELISMUL: STRNSA INTEGRARE A CONDUCERII POLITICE CU PARTENERII DE AFACERI, N TIMPUL UNOR SCHIMBURI
INTENSE RECIPROCE.
CLIENTELISM: THE TIGHT INTEGRATION OF POLITICAL LEADERSHIP WITH BUSINESS PARTNERS AND THE CLOSE
EXCHANGE OF FAVOURS BETWEEN EACH OTHER.
IES LA IVEAL MPREJURRILE LEGATE DE RIDICAREA NOULUI CENTRU COMMERCIAL UE N NOUL BELGRAD. COMPLEXUL
A FOST CONSTRUIT EXACT N FAA FOSTULUI CK (COMITETUL CENTRAL AL PARTIDULUI COMUNIST), ACUM UN TURN DE
BIROURI PRIVAT (VANCOUVERSERBS.COM)
CIRCUMSTANCES AROUND THE RISE OF THE NEW UE SHOPPING MALL IN NEW BELGRADE ARE HIGHLIGHTED. IT
WAS CONSTRUCTED RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE FORMER CK (COMMUNIST PARTY CENTRAL COMMITTEE) BUILDING,
NOW A PRIVATISED OFFICE TOWER. (VANCOUVERSERBS.COM)
REZULTATELE DISCUIILOR PUBLICE PRIVIND FELUL N CARE 5 HECTARE DE TEREN AU FOST ACHIZIIONATE DE DEZVOL-
TATOR FR NICI UN CTIG PENTRU ORA SAU STAT DETERMIN PREEDINTELE SERBIEI S LANSEZE O ANCHET A
CHESTIUNII (INSAJDER, B92)
THE RESULTING PUBLIC DISCUSSIONS ON HOW THE 5 HA OF LAND WERE ACQUIRED BY THE DEVELOPER WITH NO
GAIN FOR EITHER CITY AND STATE PROVOKES THE PRESIDENT OF SERBIA TO LAUNCH A PROBE INTO THE MATTER.
(INSAJDER, B92)
PRIVATIZAREA: O ZON A MANIPULRILOR N TRANZIIA DE LA PROPRIETATEA COLECTIV LA CEA PRIVAT
PRIVATISATION AN AREA FOR MANIPULATIONS IN THE TRANSITION FROM COLLECTIVELY OWNED TO PRIVATELY
OWNED PROPERTY.
BELGRAD / TOAMNA, 2008
ARHITECTUL DANIEL LIEBESKIND PREGTETE MASTERPLANUL PENTRU CONVERSIA PORTULUI BELGRADULUI. PRIVATIZAT
N CONDIII AMBIGUE, PORTUL ESTE PARTE A DISPUTEI DINTRE ORA I NOII PROPRIETARI (MAGNAI LOCALI). N CON-
FRUNTAREA PENTRU CEI PESTE 220 HA DE TEREN, LIEBESKIND ESTE UN FOARTE IMPORTANT INSTRUMENT DE PR PENTRU
DEZVOLTATORI (FORUM.KRSTARICA.COM)
BELGRADE / AUTUMN, 2008
ARCHITECT DANIEL LIEBESKIND PREPARES A MASTER PLAN FOR THE CONVERSION OF THE PORT OF BELGRADE.
PRIVATISED UNDER AMBIGUOUS CONDITIONS, THE PORT IS PART OF A DISPUTE BETWEEN THE CITY AND THE NEW
OWNERS (LOCAL TYCOONS). IN THIS BATTLE OVER 220 HA OF LAND, LIEBESKIND IS AN IMPORTANT PR TOOL FOR
THE DEVELOPERS. (FORUM.KRSTARICA.COM)
PULA / 8 IULIE, 2008
DEPARTAMENTUL ISTRIEI HOTRTE C FOSTA ZON MILITAR MUZIL DIN PULA VA FUZIONA CU DEZVOLTAREA TURISTIC
BRIJUNI RIVIERA BRIJUNI RIVIERA. DUP APROPE 200 DE ANI DE FUNCIONARE CA ZON MILITAR, TERENUL ESTE ACUM
DESCHIS DEZVOLTRII UNUI TEREN DE GOLF DE 18 PLUS 9 GURI I VA FI PRIN URMARE INACCESIBIL MAJORITII LO-
CALNICILOR. CA SUPRAFAA, MUZIL REPREZINT CAM UN SFERT DIN ORA, DAR NICI UN LOCUITOR CIVIL DIN PULA NU A
FOST VREODAT ACOLO.
PULA / 8 JULY, 2008
THE COUNTY OF ISTRIA RULES THAT THE FORMER MILITARY AREA MUZIL IN PULA IS TO BE MERGED WITH THE
BRIJUNI RIVIERA TOURIST DEVELOPMENT. AFTER ALMOST 200 YEARS OF BEING A MILITARY ZONE, THIS AREA IS
NOW OPENED TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF A 18-PLUS-9 HOLE GOLF COURSE AND WILL THUS STAY CLOSED TO MOST
OF THE COUNTRYS CITIZENS. IN SURFACE MUZIL COMPRISES OF THE CITY AND NO CIVIL INHABITANT OF PULA
HAS EVER BEEN THERE.
PULA / 23 IANUARIE, 2009
INIIATIVA CIVIC PENTRU MUZIL ESTE FORMAT (PENTRU A SE OPUNE DEZVOLTRII TERENULUI EXCLUSIV DE GOLF) I
ARE LOC PRIMA SESIUNE PUBLIC. APARE ZIARUL OTVORENI MUZI. SE FACE O CERERE PENTRU ACCESUL PUBLIC PERMA-
NENT N ZON.
PULA / 23 JANUARY, 2009
THE CIVIL INITIATIVE FOR MUZIL IS FORMED (TO OPPOSE THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE EXCLUSIVE GOLF COURSE) AND
THE FIRST PUBLIC SESSION IS HELD. THE NEWSPAPER OTVORENI MUZIL (OPEN MUZIL) IS PUBLISHED. A DEMAND
FOR PERMANENT PUBLIC ACCESS TO THE AREA IS MADE.
PULA / 8 MARTIE, 2009
CA REZULTAT AL PRESIUNII INIIATIVEI, MUNICIPALITATEA I DEPARTAMENTUL ISTRIEI ORGANIZEAZ O PLIMBARE PENTRU
LOCUITORII ORAULUI. 11 AUTOBUZE ADUC OAMENI N ZONA MUZIL. INIIATIVA CIVIC DECLAR : DESCHIDEREA ZONEI
MUZIL A NCEPUT I NU MAI POATE FI OPRIT. (CADRU DE FILM, CIVIL INITIATIVE FOR MUZIL)
PULA / 8 MARCH, 2009
AS A RESULT OF PRESSURE FROM THE INITIATIVE, THE MUNICIPALITY AND THE COUNTY OF ISTRIA ARRANGE A
WALK-THROUGH FOR THE PEOPLE OF PULA. 11 BUSES BRING PEOPLE INTO THE MUZIL AREA. THE INITIATIVE
STATES: THE OPENING OF MUZIL HAS BEGUN, AND IT CANNOT BE STOPPED ANYMORE. (VIDEO STILL, CIVIL INITIA-
TIVE FOR MUZIL)
PULA / 16 AUGUST, 2009
ORGANIZAT DE PULSKA GRUPA, CONFERINA ORAUL POST-CAPITALIST ARE LOC PE FOSTUL TEREN MILITAR DE LA MUZIL,
DUCND LA DECLARAREA ZONEI DREPT KOMUNAL TEREN CARE NU APARINE NICI STATULUI, NICI MEDIULUI PRIVAT.
PULA / 16 AUGUST, 2009
ORGANISED BY PULSKA GRUPA, THE CONFERENCE POST-CAPITALIST CITY TAKES PLACE ON THE FORMER MILI-
TARY GROUNDS OF MUZIL, LEADING TO THE DECLARATION OF KOMUNAL LAND THAT IS NEITHER STATE, NOR
PRIVATELY-OWNED.
SECTORUL IMOBILIAR: N MULTE RI DIN REGIUNE, REPREZINT UNUL DIN SECTOARELE PRINCIPALE ALE ECONOMIEI. UNII
SPUN C PN RECENT 80% DIN ECONOMIA ALBANEZ ERA CONSTITUIT DE CONSTRUCIILE DE PE PIAA LIBER.
REAL ESTATE: IN MANY COUNTRIES IN THE REGION, IT REPRESENTS ONE OF THE MAIN SECTORS OF THE ECONOMY.
SOME SAY THAT UNTIL RECENTLY 80% OF THE ALBANIAN ECONOMY WAS COMPRISED OF THE MARKET-DRIVEN
PRODUCTION OF BUILDINGS.
BELGRAD / OCTOMBRIE, 2008
DUP O LUPT DE TREI ANI PENTRU PREVENIREA TRANSFORMRII UNUI PARC LOCAL NTR-UN TEREN DE CONSTRUCIE,
CETENII DIN JURUL PETI PARK (PARCUL CINCI) AU REUIT S BLOCHEZE DEZVOLTATORUL. NOUL PRIMAR ALES, DJILAS,
NTR-UNA DIN PRIMELE SALE APARIII PUBLICE, VIZITEAZ PARCUL CINCI I PROMITE C DEZVOLTAREA IMOBILIAR SE VA
MUTA N ALT PARTE.
BELGRADE / OCTOBER, 2008
AFTER A THREE YEAR STRUGGLE TO PREVENT THE CONVERSION OF A LOCAL PARK INTO A CONSTRUCTION SITE,
CITIZENS AROUND PETI PARK (FIFTH PARK) SUCCEED IN HOLDING BACK THE DEVELOPER. NEWLY ELECTED MAYOR
DJILAS, IN ONE OF HIS FIRST PUBLIC APPEARANCES, VISITS FIFTH PARK AND PROMISES THAT THE DEVELOPMENT
SITE WILL MOVE ELSEWHERE.
66
OFENSIVA I APRAREA DEMAREAZ N JURUL TERENULUI DE BASCHET CU PREZENA POLIIEI. CETENII FAC FRONT
COMUN MPOTRIVA MAINRIILOR GRELE I A PROCESULUI DE DEMOLARE, REUIND S ORGANIZEZE O VEGHE DE 24 DE
ORE. (PARCUL CINCI)
OFFENCE AND DEFENCE START AROUND THE BASKETBALL COURT WITH POLICE PRESENCE. LOCAL CITIZENS PUT
UP A STRONG FRONT AGAINST THE HEAVY MACHINERY AND DISRUPTED DEMOLITION PROCEEDINGS, EVEN ESTAB-
LISHING A 24-HOUR WATCH. (PETI PARK)
PARCUL ESTE SALVAT. LOCUITORII NS RMN PN ASTZI, N 2011 CU VICTORIA ASUPRA UNUI LOC COMPLET
DISTRUS.
AFTER THE PARK IS SAVED, INHABITANTS ARE STILL LEFT UNTIL 2011 WITH THE VICTORY OVER A TOTALLY
DEMOLISHED SITE.
BELGRAD / APRILIE, 2009
CU TREI LUNI NAINTEA DESCHIDERII UNIVERSIADEI, DAR FR O AVERTIZARE CORESPUNZTOARE, ORAUL DEMOLEAZ
CU BULDOZERUL 20 DIN LOCUINELE ROMILOR DE LNG SATUL SPORTIV BELLEVILLE O ZON REZIDENIAL PLNUIT
PENTRU A FI VNDUT DUP EVENIMENT. PRESIUNEA PUBLIC OPRETE TERGEREA TOTAL A AEZRII.
BELGRADE / APRIL, 2009
THREE MONTHS BEFORE THE OPENING OF THE UNIVERSIADE, AND WITHOUT PROPER WARNING, THE CITY BULL-
DOZES 40 HOUSES OF THE ROMA SETTLEMENT RIGHT NEXT TO THE BELLEVILLE ATHLETIC VILLAGE A PRI-
VATE RESIDENTIAL AREA PLANNED FOR FUTURE SALE. PUBLIC PRESSURE HALTS THE TOTAL ERASURE OF THE
SETTLEMENT.
BELGRAD / IUNIE, 2009
RESTURILE AEZRII SUNT NGRDITE I SE TAIE CURENTUL ELECTRIC. VOLUNTARI AI UNIVERSIADEI SUNT INSTRUII S
SPUN C ESTE UN AMPLASAMENT PENTRU O FILMARE (VLADAN JEREMIC I RENA RDLE)
DE REMARCAT: N 2009, SERBIA DEINE PREEDINIA DECENIULUI ROMA, AVND LOCUINELE DRREPT UNA DIN PRIORIT-
ILE TEMATICE ALE EVENIMENTULUI.
BELGRADE / JUNE, 2009
REMAINS OF THE SETTLEMENT ARE FENCED AND THE ELECTRICITY IS CUT. UNIVERSIADE VOLUNTEERS ARE IN-
STRUCTED TO SAY THAT THIS IS A FILM SET. (VLADAN JEREMIC AND RENA RDLE)
NOTEWORTHY: DURING 2009 SERBIA HOLDS THE PRESIDENCY OF THE ROMA DECADE, WITH HOUSING AS ONE OF
THE EVENTS PRIORITY ISSUES.
BELGRAD / 1 14 IULIE, 2009
ARE LOC A 25-A UNIVERSIAD. PN LA NCEPUTUL ANULUI 2010, MAJORITATEA APARTAMENTELOR DIN SATUL SPORTIV
CONSTRUITE PENTRU PIAA PRIVAT LA UN PRE DE1800 /MP) NU SUNT NC VNDUTE. (NOVIBEOGRAD.RS)
BELGRADE / 1 14 JULY, 2009
THE 25TH UNIVERSIADE TAKES PLACE. BY THE BEGINNING OF 2010 THE MAJORITY OF THE APARTMENTS IN THE
ATHLETIC VILLAGE BUILT FOR THE PRIVATE MARKET (PRICE 1800 /M2) ARE NOT YET SOLD. (NOVIBEOGRAD.RS)
LEGISLAIE I LEGALIZARE: GNDITE CA INSTRUMENTE DE ORDONARE, N REALITATE ELE DEVIN MIJLOACE DE A DEREGU-
LATIZA ORAUL I SOCIETATEA.
LEGISLATION AND LEGALISATION: INTENDED TO BE REGULATORY TOOLS, IN REALITY TH
DEREGULATE CITY AND SOCIETY.
ZAGREB / 18 DECEMBRIE, 2008
NTR-O PROCEDUR DE URGEN, SE ADOPT O LEGE ASUPRA TERENURILOR DE GOLF, DECLARND GOLFUL DREPT SERVI-
CIU DE IMPORTAN NAIONAL. O PARTE A TERENULUI DE GOLF POATE FI FOLOSIT PENTRU DEZVOLTARE IMOBILIAR I
DEVINE POSIBIL EXPROPIEREA A PN LA 20% DIN VIITOARE ZON NECESAR. ACEASTA CONTRAVINE LEGII PROPRIETII
PRIVATE. (COURSESGOLF.ORG)
ZAGREB / 18 DECEMBER, 2008
IN AN EMERGENCY PROCEDURE, A LAW ON GOLF COURSES IS PASSED, DECLARING GOLF A SERVICE OF NATIONAL
IMPORTANCE. PART OF THE FUTURE GOLF COURSE CAN BE USED FOR REAL ESTATE DEVELOPMENT AND IT BE-
COMES POSSIBLE TO EXPROPRIATE UP TO 20% OF THE FUTURE AREA NEEDED. THIS VIOLATES THE LAW ON PRIVATE
PROPERTY. (COURSESGOLF.ORG)
BELGRAD / APRILIE, 2009
MINISTERUL MEDIULUI I DEZVOLTRII REGIONALE DECLAR C, DUP INTRODUCEREA LEGII CONSTRUCIEI I
PLANIFICRII DIN 2003, LEGISLAIA EUAT A DUS LA 50.000 DE NOI CLDIRI ILEGALE N BELGRAD. PREZENA CREDITE-
LOR DE CONSTRUCIE DIN ACEA PERIOAD A SERVIT DOAR PENTRU A FACE INVESTIIILE ILEGALE/ EXTRA-LEGALE I MAI
SOLIDE.
BELGRADE / APRIL, 2009
THE MINISTER FOR ENVIRONMENT AND SPATIAL PLANNING STATES THAT AFTER THE INTRODUCTION OF THE 2003
CONSTRUCTION AND PLANNING LAW, UNSUCCESSFUL LEGISLATION RESULTED IN 50 000 NEW ILLEGAL BUILDINGS
IN BELGRADE. THE PRESENCE OF CONSTRUCTION CREDITS SINCE THAT TIME HAS ONLY SERVED TO MAKE ILLEGAL /
EXTRA-LEGAL INVESTMENTS THAT MUCH MORE SOLID.
PRISTINA / 2009
ESTE FOARTE DIFICIL OBINEREA AUTORIZAIILOR DE CONSTRUCIE N PRISTINA. N 2008 DOAR 60 DE AUTORIZAII AU
FOST EMISE. ACEAST SITUAIE ABERANT FAVORIZEAZ N MOD EVIDENT CONSTRUCIA ILEGAL. (STEALTH.UNLIMITED)
PRISTINA / 2009
IT IS VERY DIFFICULT TO OBTAIN BUILDING PERMITS IN PRISTINA. IN 2008 ONLY SOME 60 PERMITS WERE GRANTED.
ACTUALLY, THIS CONDITION ONLY BOOSTS ILLEGAL CONSTRUCTION. (STEALTH.UNLIMITED)
PRISTINA / AUGUST 2009
ORGANIZAIA NEGUVERNAMENTAL ARCHIS INTERVENTION PRISTINA FINALIZEAZ MANUALUL DE LEGALIZARE AL CLDI-
RILOR REALIZATE FR AUTORIZAII DE CONSTRUCIE.
PRISTINA / AUGUST 2009
NGO ARCHIS INTERVENTION PRISTINA COMPLETES THE MANUAL ON THE LEGALISATION OF STRUCTURES BUILT
WITHOUT CONSTRUCTION PERMITS.
BELGRAD / 27 AUGUST, 2009
MINISTERUL PROTECIEI MEDIULUI I DEZVOLTRII REGIONALE NCURAJEAZ FINALIZAREA TUTUROR CLDIRILE CON-
STRUITE ILEGAL DIN SERBIA NAINTEA ADOPTRII LEGII PLANIFICRII I CONSTRUCIILOR DE CTRE PARLAMENT. ODAT
LEGEA ADOPTAT, VA FI MAI DIFICIL LEGALIZAREA, DAR MULT MAI RAPID OBINEREA AUTORIZAIILOR DE CONSTRUCIE.
(STEALTH.UNLIMITED)
BELGRADE / 27 AUGUST, 2009
THE MINISTER FOR PROTECTION OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND SPATIAL PLANNING ENCOURAGES ALL ILLEGALLY
BUILT BUILDINGS IN SERBIA TO BE FINISHED BEFORE THE NEW LAW ON PLANNING AND CONSTRUCTION IS PASSED
BY PARLIAMENT. ONCE THE LAW IS PASSED IT WILL BE FAR MORE DIFFICULT TO LEGALISE, BUT MUCH FASTER TO
GET BUILDING PERMITS. (STEALTH.UNLIMITED)
67 67
HEY BECOME MEANS TO ECOME MEANS TO
67
RND GOLFUL DREPT SERVI- RND GOLFUL DREPT SE
DEZVOLTARE IMOBILIAR I DEZVOLTARE IMOBILIA
TRAVINE LEGII PROPRIET RAVINE LEGII PROPR
CONSTRUIREA IDENTITII. N SOCIETILE DE TRANZIIE, INVESTIIILE (PUBLICE) JOAC ROLUL DE INSTRUMENTE N
CONTURAREA IDENTITII DE LA ANTIC LA EPOCA EUROPEAN.
BUILDING IDENTITY. IN TRANSITIONAL SOCIETIES, (PUBLIC) INVESTMENTS PLAY A ROLE AS TOOLS IN IDENTITY
SHAPING FROM THE ANTIQUE TO THE EUROPEAN AGE.
PODGORICA / 19 DECEMBRIE, 2008
PODUL MOSCOVA SE DESCHIDE N PODGORICA DE ZIUA ELIBERRII. PODUL PIETONAL ESTE UN DAR AL MOSCOVEI N
PROPORIE DE 60%, N TIMP CE 40% AU FOST FINAATE DE ORA. POZIIA PODULUI SE AFL N AFARA FLUXURILOR
DE CIRCULAIE DIN ORAUL, DAR SERVETE AMBIIILE INVESTITORULUI O ASOCIERE NOU, MAI STRNS CU RUSIA.
(STEALTH.UNLIMITED)
PODGORICA / 19 DECEMBER, 2008
THE MOSCOW BRIDGE OPENS ON THE LIBERATION DAY IN PODGORICA. THE PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE IS PARTLY A GIFT
IN FROM MOSCOW (60%) WHILE 40% IS PAID BY THE CITY. THE POSITION OF THE BRIDGE STANDS OUTSIDE THE
FLOW OF PEOPLE IN THE CITY; BUT IT DOES SERVE THE INVESTORS AMBITION A NEW, CLOSER ASSOCIATION WITH
RUSSIA. STEALTH.UNLIMITED)
SKOPJE / 2008
NCEPE CONSTRUCIA MUZEULUI LUPTEI MACEDONENE I MUZEULUI VICTIMELOR COMUNISMULUI, INIIAT I FINANAT
DE MINISTERUL CULTURII. N CADRUL CONCURSULUI DE ARHITECTUR, CTIG SINGURUL PROIECT DE FACTUR NEOCLA-
SIC. DUP ULTIMELE ALEGERI NAIONALE, STIL PSEUDO-ANTIC E CEL PREFERAT PENTRU A SUSINE NOUA ISTORIE A
MACEDONIEI.
SKOPJE / 2008
CONSTRUCTION BEGINS ON THE MUSEUM OF THE MACEDONIAN STRUGGLE AND MUSEUM FOR THE VICTIMS OF
COMMUNISM INITIATED AND FINANCED BY THE MINISTRY OF CULTURE. IN THE ARCHITECTURAL COMPETITION, THE
ONLY NEO-CLASSICAL ENTRY WINS. SINCE THE LAST NATIONAL ELECTIONS, A QUASI ANTIQUE-STYLE FUTURE IS
FAVOURED IN ORDER TO ENFORCE MACEDONIA'S NEWLY EMERGING HISTORY.
SKOPJE / 30 IANUARIE, 2009
CASA MAICI TEREZA SE DESCHIDE N ZONA PIETONAL DIN SKOPJE. CLDIREA ECLECTIC, PLASAT N MIJLOCUL CENTRU-
LUI MODERNIST, PROVOAC REACII INTENSE.
(SKYSCRAPERCITY.COM)
SKOPJE / 30 JANUARY, 2009
MOTHER THERESA HOUSE OPENS IN SKOPJES PEDESTRIAN ZONE. THE ECLECTIC BUILDING, PLACED IN THE MIDST
OF THE MODERNIST CITY CENTRE PROVOKES INTENSE REACTIONS. (SKYSCRAPERCITY.COM)
SKOPJE / 28 MARTIE, 2009
PRIMA ARHI-BRIGAD CTEVA SUTE DE STUDENI LA ARHITECTUR I CETENI NEMULUMII DE CONSTRUIREA BISERI-
CII ORTODOXE N PIAA PRINCIPAL A ORAULUI O SFIDEAZ A ORICREI LOGICI URBANISTICE ORGANIZEAZ PRIMA
REVOLT ARHITECTURAL. MOBILIZAI DE APELUL UNUI POPULAR SPECTACOL TV, O BAND DE CREDINCIOI I ATAC.
(PRVA ARHI BRIGADA AND MACEDONIAN TV DNEVNIK SNAPSHOT)
SKOPJE / 28 MARCH, 2009
THE FIRST ARCHI BRIGADE A FEW HUNDRED STUDENTS OF ARCHITECTURE AND CITIZENS UNSATISFIED WITH
THE ORTHODOX CHURCH TO BE BUILT ON THE MAIN SQUARE WHICH DEFIES ANY LOGIC OF URBAN PLANNING
ORGANISE THE FIRST ARCHITECTURAL UPRISING. MOBILISED BY A CALL FROM A POPULAR TV SHOW, A MOB OF
BELIEVERS ATTACKS THEM. (PRVA ARHI BRIGADA AND MACEDONIAN TV DNEVNIK SNAPSHOT)
SKOPJE / 7 MAI, 2009
SUBIECTUL DEZBATERII ASUPRA VIITORULUI PIEII MACEDONIEI SE MUT DE LA PLNUITA BISERIC ORTODOX LA STATU-
IA LUI ALEXANDRU CEL MARE (22 M NLIME I UN COST DE 4.5 MILIOANE EURO). (WEEKLY FOKUS)
SKOPJE / 7 MAY, 2009
THE FOCUS OF THE DEBATE ON THE FUTURE OF MACEDONIA SQUARE SHIFTS FROM THE PLANNED ORTHODOX
CHURCH TO THE STATUE OF ALEXANDER THE GREAT (22 M TALL, AT A COST OF 4.5 MILLION). (WEEKLY FOKUS)
INFRASTRUCTURA: UNUL DIN PUINELE DOMENII N CARE SE FACE O INVESTIIE PUBLIC SERIOAS, DAR I O ZON CARE
SE PRETEAZ LA RE-DIRECIONAREA UNOR SUME MASIVE.
INFRASTRUCTURE: ONE OF THE FEW DOMAINS IN WHICH SERIOUS PUBLIC INVESTMENT IS MADE, BUT ALSO AN
AREA THAT EASILY LENDS ITSELF TO THE RE-ROUTING OF LARGE AMOUNTS OF MONEY.
BELGRAD / MAI, 2009
NCEP NEGOCIERILE NTRE GUVERNELE SRB I CEL CHINEZ ASUPRA NOULUI POD PESTE DUNRE NTRE ZEMUN I BORA.
GUVERNUL CHINEZ L VA FINANA PRINTR-UN MPRUMUT DE LA BANCA DE EXPORT. SE CERE CA FIRMELE CHINEZE S CO-
ORDONEZE CONSTRUCIA, DEI COMPANIILE SRBE AU SUFICIENT EXPERTIZ. PODUL DESCHIDE POTENIALUL UNUI NOU
CARTIER AL ORAULUI AL TREILEA BELGRAD DE A FI DEZVOLTAT PE ACTUALUL TEREN AGRICOL.
BELGRADE / MAY, 2009
NEGOTIATIONS BEGIN BETWEEN THE SERBIAN AND CHINESE GOVERNMENTS ON A NEW BRIDGE OVER THE DANUBE
BETWEEN ZEMUN AND BORA. THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT WILL FINANCE IT THROUGH A LOAN FROM THEIR
EXPORT BANK. IT REQUIRES THAT CHINESE COMPANIES MUST BE COMMISSIONED FOR CONSTRUCTION, EVEN
THOUGH SERBIAN COMPANIES HAVE ENOUGH EXPERTISE. THE BRIDGE OPENS UP THE POTENTIAL FOR A NEW CITY
DISTRICT A THIRD BELGRADE TO BE DEVELOPED ON CURRENT AGRICULTURAL LAND.
KOSOVO-DURRS / 25 IUNIE, 2009
DOAR CU CTEVA ZILE NAINTE CA CETENII S MEARG LA URNE, PRIM MINISTRUL SALI BERHISHA SE NDREPT CTRE
ALEGERILE DE DUMINIC ANUNND O NOU SECIUNE FINALIZAT A AUTOSTRZII CARE LEAG DURRES DE KOSOVO,
CUNOSCUT CA AUTOSTRADA PATRIOTIC. CRITICII PUN, TOTUI, NTREBRI DESPRE TERMENE I FINANARE.
KOSOVO-DURRS / 25 JUNE, 2009
JUST DAYS BEFORE CITIZENS GO TO THE POLLS, THE ALBANIAN PRIME MINISTER SALI BERISHA HEADS INTO
SUNDAY'S ELECTION WITH ANOTHER MILESTONE TO HIS GOVERNMENT'S CREDIT A NEWLY COMPLETED SECTION
OF THE HIGHWAY LINKING DURRES WITH KOSOVO, DUBBED THE PATRIOTIC HIGHWAY. CRITICS HOWEVER, RAISE
QUESTIONS ABOUT THE TIMING AND FINANCING.
ROLUL PROFESIEI: ARHITECII I URBANITII SUNT ACTORI IMPORTANI DAR RELATIV LIPSII DE PUTERE N ECONOMIA
DUR A DEZVOLTRII IMOBILIARE. S FIE OARE GRUPURILE INSTITUIONALE DE LA MARGINEA PROFESIEI CONTIINA
RMAS A ACESTEIA?
THE ROLE OF PROFESSION: ARCHITECTS AND URBAN PLANNERS ARE AN IMPORTANT BUT RELATIVELY POWERLESS
ACTOR IN THE HARSH ECONOMY OF REAL-ESTATE DEVELOPMENT. ARE NON-INSTITUTIONAL GROUPS AT THE MAR-
GINS OF PROFESSION ITS REMAINING CONSCIOUSNESS?
#1
68
ZAGREB / 3 OCTOMBRIE, 2008
N DEFUNCTUL CINEMA MOSOR, PLATFORMA 9.81 INSTITUTUL PENTRU CERCETRI N ARHITECTUR INIIAZ UN CENTRU
SOCIAL TEMPORAR PENTRU EVENIMENTELE CULTURALE I ALE COMUNITII DIN ACEAST ZON A ZAGREBULUI. (OPERACI-
JAGRAD.ORG)
ZAGREB / 3 OCTOBER, 2008
IN THE DEFUNCT MOSOR CINEMA, PLATFORMA 9.81 INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH IN ARCHITECTURE INITIATES A
TEMPORARY SOCIAL CENTRE FOR CULTURAL AND COMMUNITY EVENTS IN THIS AREA OF ZAGREB. (OPERACIJAGRAD.
ORG)
PRISTINA / 2009
LEGEA NU REGLEMENTEAZ PROFESIUNEA ARHITECTULUI. NC DE LA NCEPUTUL ANILOR 90, NU EXIST O ACREDITARE
INDIVIDUAL PENTRU ARHITECI, DAR FIRME (CUM AR FI SUPERMARKETURILE) POT FI ACREDITATE CA BIROURI DE ARHI-
TECTUR. N ACELAI TIMP, PATRU MINISTERE DIFERITE AU PROPRIILE DEPARTAMENTE DE CONSTRUCIE.
(STEALTH.UNLIMITED)
PRISTINA / 2009
THE LAW DOES NOT REGULATE THE ARCHITECTURE PROFESSIONAL. SINCE THE EARLY 90S NO INDIVIDUAL LICENS-
ING FOR ARCHITECTS EXISTS, BUT FIRMS (LIKE SUPERMARKETS) CAN BE LICENSED AS ARCHITECTURE FIRMS. AT
THE SAME TIME FOUR DIFFERENT MINISTRIES HAVE THEIR OWN CONSTRUCTION DEPARTMENTS.
(STEALTH.UNLIMITED)
TIRANA / 22 IULIE, 2009
DUP TREI ANI ACADEMICI, UNIVERSITATEA POLIS COALA INTERNAIONAL DE ARHITECTUR I URBANISM PRIMETE
DEPLINA ACREDITARE UNIVERSITAR.
TIRANA / 22 JULY, 2009
AFTER THREE ACADEMIC YEARS, THE POLIS UNIVERSITY INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE AND URBAN
DEVELOPMENT IN TIRANA RECEIVES FULL UNIVERSITY ACCREDITATION.
TIRANA / 1997
ACEAST UNIVERSITATE A FOST INIIAT DE CO-PLAN, FONDAT N 1995. CO-PLAN ESTE O ORGANIZAIE NON-PROFIT
PENTRU DEZVOLTAREA SOCIETII CIVILE, CARE NTRETE PARTICIPAREA COMUNITAR LA DEZVOLTAREA URBAN.
PRIMELE LOR PROIECTE S-AU CONCENTRAT PE DESCHIDEREA DRUMURILOR I CONSTRUIREA INFRASTRUCTURII DE BAZ N
CARTIERELE DEZVOLTATE SPONTAN N TIRANA. CU 20 DE ANGAJAI PERMANENI, I RMNND N CONTINUARE UN ONG,
CO-PLAN LUCREAZ N PREZENT STRNS CU INSTITUIILE GUVERNAMENTALE LOCALE I CENTRALE, DAR I CU GRUPURI
ALE SOCIETII CIVILE, CU UN PUTERNIC ACCENT PE INFLUENAREA ADOPTRII POLITICILOR.
TIRANA / 1997
THIS UNIVERSITY HAS BEEN INITIATED BY CO-PLAN, FOUNDED IN 1995. CO-PLAN IS A NON-PROFIT ORGANISA-
TION DEVELOPING CIVIL SOCIETY AND EMPOWERING COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION IN URBAN DEVELOPMENT. THEIR
FIRST PROJECTS FOCUSED ON OPENING ROADS AND ENABLING BASIC INFRASTRUCTURE IN THE INFORMALLY
BUILT NEIGHBOURHOODS OF TIRANA. WITH 20 FULL-TIME EMPLOYEES, AND STILL AN NGO, CO-PLAN WORKS TODAY
CLOSELY WITH LOCAL AND CENTRAL GOVERNMENT INSTITUTIONS AS WELL AS CIVIL SOCIETY GROUPS, WITH A
STRONG FOCUS ON INFLUENCING POLICY MAKING.
ROLUL CETENILOR: NCET, DAR SIGUR, APARE O FOR CONTRAR, CE SE OCUP DEI CAZURILE SPECIALE DE DOMINARE
A SPAIILOR UBANE DE CTRE ANUMITE GRUPURI PRIVILEGIATE.
THE ROLE OF CITIZENS: SLOWLY, BUT SURELY A COUNTER FORCE EMERGES TACKLING P
DOMINATION OVER URBAN SPACES BY CERTAIN PRIVILEGED GROUPS.
ZAGREB / 12 AUGUST, 2009
NCEPE DEMOLAREA CLDIRILOR DIN PIAA CVIJETNI TRG DIN CENTRUL ORAULUI, N CIUDA C
DE LUPT A SOCIETII CIVILE I ACIUNI PUBLICE MENITE S ARATE CORUPIA I ILEGALITILE. SINGURUL REZULTAT
POZITIV: ASPECTELE URBANE AU DEVENIT ACUM O PROBLEM PUBLIC (PRAVO NA GRAD)
ZAGREB / 12 AUGUST, 2009
DEMOLITION OF BUILDINGS ON CVIJETNI TRG SQUARE IN THE CITY CENTER BEGINS, DESPITE ALMOST THREE YEARS
OF STRUGGLE BY THE CIVIL COMMUNITY AND PUBLIC ACTIONS INTENDED TO REVEAL CORRUPTION AND IRREGU-
LARITIES. THE ONLY POSITIVE OUTCOME: URBAN ISSUES NOW HAVE BECOME A PUBLIC MATTER. (PRAVO NA GRAD)
ZAGREB / 04 IULIE, 2007
54.000 DE PETIII SUNT PREZENTATE NCADRUL ACIUNII PIAA APRAT DE SEMNTURI. (PRAVO NA GRAD)
ZAGREB / 04 JULY, 2007
IN THE DEFENDING SQUARE WITH SIGNATURES ACTION 54 000 SIGNED PETITION CARDS ARE PRESENTED.
(PRAVO NA GRAD)
ZAGREB / 18 IANUARIE, 2008
ACIUNEA STRADA VARAVSKA MARCHEAZ SPAIUL DIN CADRUL STRZII PIETONALE PRINCIPALE CARE VA FI FOLOSIT
PENTRU RAMPA DE INTRARE N PARCARE.
ZAGREB / 18 JANUARY, 2008
THE ACTION VARAVSKA STREET MARKS THE SPACE IN THE MAIN PEDESTRIAN STREET THAT WILL BE USED FOR
THE PARKING GARAGE ENTRANCE RAMP.
ZAGREB / 26 IANUARIE, 2008
ACIUNEA ODUSTANITE (RENUN) UN APEL PUBLIC CTRE DEZVOLTATOR S RENUNE LA PROIECT.
ZAGREB / 26 JANUARY, 2008
ACTION ODUSTANITE (GIVE UP)- A PUBLIC CALL TO THE DEVELOPER TO QUIT THE PROJECT.
ZAGREB / 29 APRILIE, 2009
DREPTUL LA ORA I ACIUNEA VERDE ORGANIZEAZ MASA ROTUND CE FEL DE ORA NE DORIM? I PREZINT PUBLI-
CAIA ZAGREBUL PE CARE L VREM, MPREUN CU CONSILIUL URBANISTIC AL ACIUNII VERZI, DREPT CONTRIBUIE LA
STRATEGIA DE DEZVOLTARE PENTRU VIITORUL ZAGREB.
ZAGREB / 29 APRIL, 2009
RIGHT TO THE CITY AND GREEN ACTION ORGANISE THE ROUND TABLE WHAT KIND OF CITY DO WE WANT? AND
PRESENT THE PUBLICATION ZAGREB AS WE WISH IT, PUT TOGETHER BY THE URBANISTIC COUNCIL OF GREEN
ACTION AS A CONTRIBUTION TOWARD THE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY FOR THE FUTURE ZAGREB.
ACEST DOCUMENT, N CARE NUMAI O PERSPECTIV LIMITAT A ASPECTELOR URBANISTICE E MENIONAT, FACE LEGITIM
NTREBAREA CUI APARINE ORAUL? O NTREBARE CE DEVINE DIN CE N CE MAI RELEVANT, ATUNCI CND TERENUL DIN
ACEAST TEREN INTENS I DISPUTAT PE CARE L NUMIM ORAUL ESTE CONTURAT I MPRIT NTRE DIVERSE FORE DE
PIA, INTERESE PRIVATE, FORE LOCALE DE PARTEA GUVERNULUI I FORELE OPOZIIEI. (ALEKSANDAR BEDE)
THIS DOCUMENT, WHERE ONLY A VERY LIMITED OVERVIEW OF THE URBAN ISSUES IN THE CITIES IS MENTIONED,
MAKES IT OBVIOUS THAT THE QUESTION TO WHOM BELONGS THE CITY? BECOMES MORE AND MORE RELEVANT,
WHEN THE GROUND IN THIS INTENSE AND HIGHLY CONFLICTED FIELD WE CALL THE CITY IS DRAWN UP AND DI-
VIDED BETWEEN VARIOUS MARKET FORCES, PRIVATE INTERESTS, SIDING LOCAL GOVERNMENTS AND OPPOSITION
FORCES. (ALEKSANDAR BEDE)
69 69
RILE SPECIALE DE DOMINAR PECIALE DE DOMINA
PARTICULAR CASES OF RTICULAR CASE
69 69
ELOR APROAPE TREI ANI ELOR APROAPE TREI A
ILE SINGURUL REZULTAT E SINGURUL REZU
Hindemith.
Un lm sau mai
mult de-att
Film al absurdului despre cele mai
ludate bunuri ale societii noastre
o cas nou, dar plasat alturi de
vechile blocuri de apartamente, o
curte ngrdit cu grtarul sfrind
pe gazon i sucul obligatoriu cu multi-
vitaminele pentru micul dejun.
Text:
Todor Atanasov 70
#1
Hindemith.
A movie or more
Film of the absurd, about the most
prized possessions in our society
a new house, yet situated next to old
LPS blocks of ats, a fenced-off yard
with sizzling barbecue on the lawn
and the must-have vitamine-full juice
for breakfast.
71
H
indemith is a Bulgarian movie, written and
directed by Andray Slabakov. Te plotline
shows two families which move to their
new houses, located next to each other and
in close proximity to a complex of LPS buildings.
In this movie, Slabakov dissects the society of the
Transition period, when it has physically shaken
of the Communist Rule and is on hot pursuit of
the American Dream as seen from its perspective.
A society, taken over by consumerism, which obeys,
above all, the laws of market economy and market-
ing the new Bible, as well the laws as self-realiza-
tion through obtaining possessions.
Tis is a movie about the irrationality of our
choices of living and about the dreams of people
yearning so strongly for home, family and normal-
ity, that any alternative to their lives so far seems
wonderful. A true what a wonderful world, though
reality turns out to be diferent. A society of con-
trasts, depicted in the movie through a myriad of
material symbols. One of them the ostentatious
white limousine and the muddy potholed road
it drives over clearly shows that despite nancial
status, everyone is living in the common dustbin
and that pretensions to an unreal social status are
what you want, not what you have. Te social mix is
depicted not only through the members of the two
relatively af uent families but by the supporting
characters as well the cyclical entrances of these
strange characters that have their own specic prob-
lems. All of them are former employees of the funfair
which once existed nearby. Tey symbolize a certain
sample of the society the mobster, the underclass,
the clerks, the prostitute. In fact, every one of them
tells us truths but we seem to be unable to hear
them, pre-occupied with being normal and pursuing
dreams and ambitions instilled from the outside. Te
funfair itself is a metaphor of a circus show which
has passed away the Communist regime.
Of all their lines, perhaps the most impressive is
the one of the old man who introduces himself as
a hermit: I dont want to be part of the rat race! I
am a human being, not a hamster going around in a
wheel! I want to live my life through, from begin-
ning to end. From point A to point B.
From the onset of the movie, the director pro-
vides us with two viewpoints the one of the real
estate agent who wants to sell the ready construc-
tion product and the one of the future owners who
think they are obtaining the materialization of their
dreams. Tus we see how one and the same objec-
tive reality may seem completely diferent depend-
ing on how prepared the observer is to perceive it.
We see how the average person of the Transition
period imagines the architectural environment.
H
indemith este un lm bulgresc, scris i
regizat de Andrei Slabakov. Intriga arat
dou familii care se mut n noile lor case,
aate una lng cealalt i n vecintatea
apropiat a unui complex de blocuri socialiste. n
acest lm, Slabakov disec societatea perioadei de
tranziie care s-a eliberat de regulile comuniste i
caut intens Visul American privit din perspectiv
proprie. O societate absorbit de consumerism, care
ascult mai ales de legile economiei de pia i ale
marketingului noua Biblie, ca i de legile autorea-
lizrii prin obinerea proprietilor.
Film al iraionalitii alegerilor noastre de a tri
i despre visele oamenilor tnjind cu putere dup
cmin, familie i normalitate, astfel nct orice
alternativ la vieile lor de pn acum pare minu-
nat. O adevrat ce lume minunat dei reali-
tatea se dovedete diferit. O societate a contraste-
lor, descris n lm printr-o miriad de simboluri
materiale. Unul din acestea ostentativa limuzin
alb i carosabilul deterioriat pe care se merge arat
clar c, n ciuda statutului nanciar, toat lumea
triete n coul de gunoi comun i c preteniile
la un statut social nerealist sunt ceea ce vrei, nu
ceea ce ai. Combinaia social este descris nu doar
de membrii celor dou familii nstrite, dar i de
rolurile secundare intrri ciclice ale acestor perso-
naje ciudate care au propriile lor probleme specice.
Toi sunt foti angajai ai blciului care se aa odat
n apropiere. Ei simbolizeaz o anumit mostr a
societii infractorul, declasatul, funcionarii,
prostituata. De fapt, ecare ne spune adevruri, dar
prem incapabili s le auzim, preocupai s m nor-
mali i cutndu-ne visele i ambiiile inspirate de
exterior. Blciul nsui este o metafor a spectacolu-
lui de circ care a trecut regimul comunist.
Din toate replicile lor, probabil cea mai impresi-
onant este cea a btrnului care se prezint drept
pustnic: nu veau s iau parte la cursa de oareci!
Sunt un om, nu un hamster alergnd pe roat!
Vreau s-mi triesc viaa de la un capt la altul. De
la punctul A la punctul B.
De la nceputul lmului, regizorul ne ofer dou
puncte de vedere cel al unui agent imobiliar care
vrea s vnd produse de construcie i cel al unui
viitor proprietar care crede c obine materializa-
rea visurilor sale. Vedem astfel cum una i aceeai
realitate obiectiv poate aprea complet diferit, n
funcie de ct de pregtit e observatorul s o per-
ceap. Vedem cum ceteanul mediu al perioadei de
tranziie i imagineaz mediul arhitectural. Casa
este denit, nti de toate, de mobila din interior.
Enumerarea detaliat a mobilierului arat ct de
deformat este ideea oamenilor despre arhitectu-
r. Oamenii nu realizeaz c atunci cnd cumpr
72
n apropiere. Ei simbo n apropiere. Ei simb
ocietii infractoru ocietii infractoru
rostituata. De fapt, tuata. De fapt,
rem incapabili s le m incapabili s
mali i cutndu-ne v i i cutndu
xterior. Blciul nsu erior. Blciul nsu
H H
#1
o cas nu dein pereii, podelele i scrile, ci
mai degrab spaiile de locuit. Imaginea cumpr-
torului mediu e construit pe alte trsturi, dup
cum demonstreaz replicile vnztorului: Masa
Vanity stil pseudo-imperial!, Scaun antic!
Aceste replici capteaz perfect gustul de mas al
societii postmoderne.
Nonsensul urbanistic al plasrii celor dou cldiri
e indicat n cteva scene din lm, mai ales cnd cele
dou familii se a deja n mijlocul conictului i
sunt prezentate ntr-un decor aproape suprarealist
dou cupluri, aruncnd buci mari de carne unul
spre cellalt n faa caselor lor diferite, una bleu
i una roz, pe fundalul cldirilor vechi datnd din
timpurile realismului socialist.
Actorii principali din lm sunt Ernestina Shinova
i Deyan Donkov. Ambii joac roluri duble. Soii
sunt funcionari, nevestele sunt casnice. Pe toat
durata lmului, aciunea e prezentat n paralel
i continuu. Dialogurile dintre cele dou familii se
suprapun i urmeaz aceeai intrig. Personajele
i prsesc propriul traseu pentru a nu avea o via
identic. Cu ct ncearc s e mai diferii totui,
cu att sunt mai asemntori. Ceea ce arat ct
de comun este stereotipul uman de a diferit i
cum aceasta devine o surs a conictului dintre
protagoniti.
Personajele devin clone ale globalizrii care le
mpinge spre matricea vieii i nu exist nici o
ieire din asta. De aceea, personajele lmului nu au
nume, ceea ce accentueaz profunda durere provo-
cat de dorina de a diferii. Aceast dorin, cu
toat fora ei, se datoreaz temerii, care se instalea-
z n ei, c nu sunt diferii de vecinii lor. Le e fric
de gol, de lipsa valorilor personale i a viselor i, mai
presus de toate, de lipsa imaginaiei. Personajele
i fur chiar fanteziile erotice ale celuilalt. Este o
dorin isteric de a avea un copil extraordinar, unul
care s e mai mult dect sunt ei i care va obine ce
n-au reuit ei. Acest copil va centrul vieii lor, pe
care n-au fost n stare s-l gseasc, n locul copilu-
lui drept expresie a sensului vieii deja descoperite i
a uniunii a doi indivizi.
Durerea i teama ajung la isterie, la absurd i n
nal la crim. O parabol despre distrugerea unitii
i asemnrii impus din afar, a visurilor i vieii
care nu ne sunt proprii.
Te house is dened, above all, by the furni-
ture within it. Te detailed listing of this furniture
proves how deformed the idea of architecture actu-
ally is. People do not realize that by buying a house,
they do not own walls, oors and staircases but
rather, living spaces. Te image of the average buyer
is built up by other characteristics, as demonstrated
by the lines of the seller: Vanity table pseudo
empire style!, Chair antique! Tis captures very
well this societys mass taste post-modern.
Te town planning nonsense of situating these
two buildings where they are is shown in a few
scenes in the movie, above all, when the two fami-
lies are already in the midst of their conict and are
presented in a nearly surreal setting two couples,
throwing large pieces of meat at each other in front
of their diferent houses, one blue and one pink, at
the typical LPS background, dating back to the times
of socialist realism.
Te leading actors in this movie are Ernestina
Shinova and Deyan Donkov. Both of them play
two roles. Te husbands are of cials, the wives are
homemakers. Troughout the whole movie the ac-
tion is presented in parallel and continuously. Te
dialogues of the two families overlap and follow the
same plotline. Te characters go out of their way not
to have an identical life. Te more they try to be dif-
ferent, though, the more they are alike. Tis shows
how standard actually the human stereotype of be-
ing diferent is and how this becomes the source of
the conict that arises between them.
Te characters become clones of the globalizatio
which shoves them in the matrix of life and there
is no way out of it. Tats why the movie characters
have no names. Tis shows their deep pain caused
by their desire to be diferent. Tis desire, with all
their might, exists because of the fear, creeping in
on them, that they are nothing diferent to their
neighbors. Tey fear emptiness, the lack of per-
sonal values and dreams, and above all, the lack of
imagination. Te characters steal even their erotic
fantasies of each other. Tere is their hysterical de-
sire to have an extraordinary child, one who is more
than what they are and who will achieve what they
have not managed to. Tis child will be the focus of
the point of their living, which they have not been
able to nd, instead of the child being an expression
of the point of living already discovered and of the
union of two people.
Pain and fear escalate to hysteria, to the absurd
and nally, to murder. A parable about the destruc-
tion of the unication and sameness imposed from
the outside, of the dreams and life that are not our
own.
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33 73
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Obiceiuri
alimentare
nesntoase
n arhitectur
Atenie la cantiti! Dac mncai
exagerat, v putei deranja stomacul.
Dac v simii plini, luai Mezim Forte.
Text & FOTO / PHOTO:
Eli Chakarova 74
#1
Unhealthy
eating habits in
architecture
Mind the amounts! Overeating can lead
to an upset stomach. If you feel full,
take Mezim Forte.
75
T
he topic of healthy eating has recently
become very popular. Meanwhile it is quite
normal to become more conscious and selec-
tive about what we supply our bodies with.
Obviously, everything occurs because of a certain
reason, including healthy eating. We start talking
about it, because of the presence of its opposite in
our lives. Back in the past, when foods were au-
thentic (who knows?) cheese, tomatoes, milk, etc.
people didnt think of it. However, now theres eve-
rywhere some kind of a GMO a real one and meta-
phorical, lying in wait for us. We are stressed over
the fact, that everything we eat is disguised shit.
On the other hand, Bulgaria lags years behind
the West. Over-saturation is just now happening
in our supermarkets. Tere have emerged so many
chains of shops, competing with each other with
cheap products and promotions, that we get the
efect of the proverb put a beggar on horseback
and he'll ride to the devil. We, Bulgarians, lacked
so many nice and diverse things, even for eating,
before the nineties that now we are eager to try out
everything and lots of it.
Moving up slowly is of course also charming. So
we passed through our period of over-saturation,
and there comes revelation and awareness after it.
We must clear up our organisms from what weve
burdend them with, so that they can start func-
tioning properly again. Te same goes for not only
food but everything around us music pop folk
(so called chalga music), clothes, the brands mania
syndrome and the shopping malls, etc. For our social
environment too. Each one of us can easily notice it
in the streets of our cities.
Te changes after the communist regime led to
the so desired freedom of the people. But what hap-
pened to us is the same that occurs when you set
a dog on a leash free. We misinterpreted freedom,
S
ubiectul hranei sntoase a devenit recent
foarte popular. ntre timp, e relativ normal
s devenim mai contieni i selectivi des-
pre cum ne alimentm corpurile. Evident,
totul se ntmpl dintr-un motiv anume, inclusiv
hrana sntoas. ncepem s discutm asta datorit
elementelor opuse din vieile noastre. n trecut,
cnd hrana era autentic (cine tie?) brnza,
roiile, laptele etc. oamenii nu se gndeau la asta.
Acum, se a aproape pretutindeni hran modi-
cat genetic real i metaforic, ateptndu-ne.
Suntem stresai de asta, c tot ceea ce mncm e o
porcrie deghizat.
Pe de alt parte, Bulgaria e cu muli ani n urma
Vestului. Suprasaturarea se ntmpl acum n
supermarketurile noastre. Au aprut att de multe
lanuri de magazine n competiie unul cu cellalt,
cu produse ieftine i promoii, nct ajungem la
efectul de a pune un ceretor pe spatele calului i va
ajunge pn la dracul. Nou, bulgarilor, ne lipseau
attea lucruri frumoase i diverse, inclusiv mncare,
nainte de 1990, nct suntem dornici s ncercm
totul i ct mai mult.
Micarea treptat e de asemenea important.
Aa c am depit perioada proprie de saturare,
urmnd acum revelaia i contientizarea. Trebuie
s ne curm organismele de ceea ce le-a mpov-
rat, pentru a ncepe s funcioneze bine iar. Aceasta
se aplic nu doar hranei, ci tuturor lucrurilor din
jurul nostru muzica folk pop (aa numita muzic
chalga), haine, sindromul mania brandurilor i
cumprturilor la mall etc. Dar i mediilor sociale,
aa cum ecare din noi poate observa uor n viaa
st
Schimbrile de dup regimul comunist au dus
la libertarea dorit de oameni. Dar ni s-a ntmplat
ceva asemntor eliberrii brute a unui cine din
les. Am rstalmcit libertatea, ducnd-o la anarhie,
RULOU CU BISCUII I TREN, DIN CREM DE
CPUNI I VANILIE
(SE POATE GSI N PLOVDIV, PESTE RUL
MARIA, NTRE HOTELUL NOVOTEL I PRINCIPA-
LA STRAD PIETONAL).
PEREII EXTERIORI SUNT TIAI LA NTMPLA-
RE, SAU DUP UN GUST FOARTE PARTICULAR.
AMESTECAI BINE CTEVA MRIMI DE FERES-
TRE CU NCADRAMENTE ROII PN OBINEI
UN AMESTEC BUN. NU CONTEAZ DIMENSIU-
NEA, ATT TIMP CT SUNT MCAR TREI FELURI
DIFERITE. PUNEI PODEAUA (FRUCTIERA),
AMESTECAI PEREII PE LATERALE, DIFERII
CA NLIME I COMBINAI CU FERESTRELE
ANTERIOARE, TOT LA NTMPLARE (N MOD
CREATIV). FACEI O UMPLUTUR DE CIVA
PEREI DESPRITORI. ACOPERII CU UN
ACOPERI ARCUIT CA UN TOPING DE CIOCO-
LAT. NTINDEI BINE. ACOPERII PEREII CU
CREM DE CPUNI I VANILIE PE ICI, PE COLO.
E IMPORTANT S FOLOSII AMBELE CREME,
ASTFEL NCT S NU PIERDEI AROMA SPE-
CIFIC I IMAGINEA UNUI RULOU. PUNEI LA
FRIGIDER PN DEVINE RECE I TARE.
RULOUL CU CPUNI E GATA.
BISCUIT TRAIN-ROLL WITH STRAWBERRY AND
VANILLA CREAM
(YOU CAN FIND IT IN PLOVDIV, OVER MARITZA
RIVER BETWEEN HOTEL NOVOTEL AND THE
MAIN PEDESTRIAN STREET).
THE EXTERNAL WALLS RE CHOPPED TO
PIECES AT RANDOM AND AS WE SAY TO ONES
TASTE. STIR WELL A FEW DIFFERENT SIZES OF
WINDOWS WITH RED JOINERY TILL YOU GET A
GOOD BLENDING. IT DOESNT MATTER WHAT
THE SIZES ARE, AS LONG AS THERE ARE AT
LEAST THREE DIFFERENT ONES: ) .PUT THE
FLOOR (FRUIT) PLATE, STICK THE WALLS TO THE
SIDES, DIFFERING IN HEIGHT AND MIXED UP
WITH THE WINDOWS BEFOREHAND, AND DO IT
AT A RANDOM (BE CREATIVE). MAKE A FILLING
FROM A FEW GRATED PARTITION WALLS. COVER
IT WITH AN ARCHED ROOF LIKE CHOCOLATE IC-
ING. SPREAD IT WELL. COVER THE WALLS WITH
STRAWBERRY AND VANILLA CREAM HERE AND
THERE. ITS IMPORTANT TO USE BOTH CREAMS
SO THAT YOU DONT LOSE THE SPECIFIC FLA-
VOUR AND LOOKS OF THE ROLL. PUT IT IN THE
FRIDGE UNTIL COLD AND FIRM.
YOUR STRAWBERRY TRAIN-ROLL IS READY.
#1
76
urul nostru muzica urul nostru muz
halga), haine, sindro halga), haine, sin
umprturilor la ma rturilor la m
a cum ecare din n um ecare din n
rzilor noastre. zilor noast
Schimbrile de du Schimbrile de du
T S
turned it into anarchy, holy mess, rushed to
seize all opportunities in the sphere of building
technical, legislative, etc. Not accustomed to and
not knowing aesthetics in building and also lacking
a fair view over this issue, some of us approached
the matter in the following ways I want it to be
more twisted and wavy or Te more, the better
etc., etc. Tere are loads of similar examples. Laws in
building were evaded in numerous ways, which goes
on till now as something quite normal. Tere was
massive building going on everywhere without any
idea of urban planning or integrity. It was just sim-
ple satisfaction of investors needs. Some of them, as
well as designers, proted from that growth in the
sphere of building. Te results are a number of crazy
buildings, piece-work, excessive building on the
Black sea coast, in winter resorts, chaotic housing
estates, lack of quality
Just like the issue of healthy eating, there
emerged the one of steady architecture as a way
out of the superabundance in building and overow
of eyesores for the sake of prot. Yes, sometimes
when you gorge yourself, you have to vomit, thats
it. Teres no use attacking and criticizing, since
each period is part of something bigger and those
eyesores, that were built, are actually we our-
selves our state of mind, our pain, our complexes.
Its better to learn our lesson and start creating in
a healthier fashion. Whats left for us is to look
at the funny side of things and have a laugh at the
mess weve made.
Well, there are lots of unhealthy dishes that wer
cooked in the sphere of building and architecture
over the past years. However, some healthy ones
were initiated too. I have selected some of the un-
healthy dishes. Look at it form the funny side. Have
fun and cook with love!
Bon apptit!
dezordine, alergnd dup oportuniti in sfera
cldirilor din punct de vedere tehnic, legislativ etc.
Neobinuii i necunoscnd estetica construciei,
lipsndu-ne o perspectiv corect asupra acestui
subiect, l-am abordat de cele mai multe ori n chip
de vreau s u mai diferit i trendy sau cu ct
mai mult, cu att mai bine. Legislaia construciilor
a fost evitat n multe feluri care au devenit acum
ceva normal. S-au fcut construcii masive peste
tot fr nici un concept urbanistic sau etic. Era doar
simpla satisfacie a nevoilor investitorilor. Unii
dintre, ca i proiectaniii, au protat de pe urma
creterii din zona construciilor. Rezultatele sunt
cldiri nebuneti, cantitatea ca trstur primor-
dial, construirea excesiv pe coasta Mrii Negre,
n staiunile de iarn, imobile rezideniale haotice,
lipsa calitii...
La fel ca i subiectul hranei, a aprut o arhi-
tectur lent drept ieire din supra-abundena
din construcii i uxul durerilor de cap de dragul
protului. Da, uneori, cnd nghii lacom, trebuie
s vomii, asta e. Nu are rost s ataci i s critici, de
vreme ce ecare perioad e o pies dintr-un cadru
mai amplu, iar ororile construite sunt de fapt noi
nine propria stare mental, durerea noastr,
Pn atunci, putem privi partea amuzant a lucruri-
lor i s rdem de haosul pe care l-am creat.
Ei bine, sunt multe feluri de mncare nesntoa-
s pe care le-am gtit n sfera construciilor i ar-
hitecturii n ultimii ani. Dar i cteva sntoase, pe
care le-am iniiat. Am ales cteva din cele nesn-
toase. Privii-le cu umor. Distrai-v i gtii cu drag!
Poft bun!
CASTEL DIN FRIC I CPUNI
(PIAA SAEDINENIE, PLOVDIV, UOR OBSER-
VABIL DE LA DISTAN, VEI FI ATRAI SI DE
AROM)
PUTEI FOLOSI FOIETAJ GATA PREPARAT
PENTRU ACEAST PRJITUR. ORNAMENTUL,
FORMELE DIN FRIC I CPUNILE SUNT
TRSTURILE DE BAZ, RESTUL E SIMILAR CU
ALTE REETE PENTRU PRJITURI CU FRIC.
PENTRU CREM, AMESTECAI CIOCOLAT ALB
I FRIC I PUNEI LA FIERT N BAIN-MARIE.
AMESTECAI PN SE TOPETE CIOCOLATA
I AVEI GRIJ S NU FIERBEI AMESTECUL.
PUNEI FOILE DE FOIETAJ LA BAZA LOCAIEI,
NTINDEI CREMA PE MARGINI ASTFEL NCT
S NU CAD CPUNILE. ARANJAI CPUNILE
PE FARFURIE MPREUN CU CREMA DE CIO-
COLAT. FACEI ASTA REPETAT, ASTFEL NCT
DIAMETRUL FARFURIEI S SE MICOREZE PE
MSUR CE AVANSEAZ ETAJELE. IMPORTANT
E CA PRJITURA S FIE MAI MIC LA VRF,
ARTND DECI CA UN CASTEL. CND AJUNGEI
LA VRF, E ORNAT CU COLOANE CREMOASE.
ALINIAI DELICAT CPUNILE NTRE ACESTEA.
PENTRU AROM, PUTEI PRESRA BATOANE DE
CIOCOLAT N LOCUL CPUNILOR. PUNEI LA
FRIGIDER PN SE RCETE.
POFT BUN! O S FIE CONSISTENT I SIGUR
VEI MNC PREA MULT!
CREAMY CASTLE-CAKE WITH STRAWBERRIES
(SAEDINENIE SQUARE, PLOVDIV, ITS EASILY
SEEN FROM A DISTANCE, YOULL BE ATTRACTED
BY THE SWEET FRAGRANCE TOO)
YOU CAN USE READY-MADE PASTRY SHEETS FOR
THIS CAKE. DECORATION, THE CREAMY FORMS
AND STRAWBERRIES ARE THE CHARACTERISTIC
FEATURES HERE, ALL THE REST IS AS WITH
THE OTHER CREAMY CAKES. TO PREPARE THE
CREAM, MIX WHITE CHOCOLATE AND CREAM
AND PUT IT IN A POT FOR WATER BATH. STIR IT
TILL THE CHOCOLATE MELTS AND BE CAREFUL
NOT TO BOIL THE BLEND. PUT THE SHEET OF
PASTRY AT THE BOTTOM OF THE SITE, SPREAD
CREAM ROUND THE EDGE, SO THAT THE STRAW-
BERRIES DO NOT DROP DOWN. THESE YOU
ARRANGE OVER THE PLATE TOGETHER WITH
THE CHOCOLATE CREAM. DO THIS REPEAT-
EDLY SO THAT THE PLATE GROWS SMALLER IN
DIAMETER AS THE FLOORS ADVANCE. THE IDEA
IS TO MAKE THE CAKE THINNER TILL THE TOP,
THUS RESEMBLING A CASTLE. WHEN THE TOP
IS REACHED, IT IS SYRINGED WITH CREAMY COL-
UMNS. LINE UP DELICATELY THE STRAWBER-
RIES IN BETWEEN THEM. SOMEWHERE FOR AN
ACCENT, YOU CAN SPRINKLE WITH CHOCOLATE
STICKS, INSTEAD OF STRAWBERRIES. PUT IN
THE FRIDGE TO GET FIRM.
ENJOY YOUR MEAL! IM SURE ITLL BE TOO
MUCH AND YOULL HAVE HAD ENOUGH!
77
re
HOTCH-POTCH
(DISPONIBIL PE BD.BULGARIA, LNG MAGAZI-
NUL BILLA, SOFIA)
SE TAIE SECIUNEA PUBLIC N BUCI MARI,
DIFERITE I SE PLASEAZ N ZON ODAT
CU BALCOANE DECUPATE CIRCULARE I
DREPTUNGHIULARE. ADUGAI RESTUL DE
LEGUME NECESAR PENTRU ANCADRAMENTE,
PEREI-OGLIND, ADUGAI CTEVA BOVIN-
DOURI PENTRU AROM. AROMAI CU SARE,
PIPER, PAPRICA I MULT ULEI. PUNEI N
CUPTORUL PRENCLZIT PENTRU DOU ORE,
ASTFEL NCT INGREDIENTELE S FIE BINE
COAPTE. ADUGAI APOI FAADE VERZI I BEJ,
DAR I PLCI GRI I PUNEI IAR LA CUPTOR
PENTRU CTEVA ORE. CND E GATA, VEI FI
SURPRINI S VEDEI UNDE A AJUNS FIECARE
INGREDIENT.
POFT BUNA! SCUZAI, AI OMIS CEVA?
HOTCH-POTCH
(YOU CAN FIND THIS ONE ON BULGARIA BVD.,
NEXT TO THE BILLA SUPERMARKET IN SOFIA)
THE PUBLIC SECTION OF IT IS CUT UP INTO
BIG, DIFFERENT IN SIZE PIECES AND IS PUT
INTO THE SITE TOGETHER WITH THE CHOPPED
BALCONIES CIRCULAR AND RECTANGULAR.
ADD THE REST OF THE VEGETABLES NECES-
SARY FOR THE DISH GLASS RAILS, MIRROR
GLASSES, DROP A FEW BAY-WINDOWS FOR
FLAVOR. SPRINKLE WITH SALT, PEPPER AND
PAPRIKA AND LOADS OF OIL. PUT IT IN A
PREHEATED OVEN FOR TWO HOURS, SO THAT
ALL THE INGREDIENTS GET WELL COOKED.
AFTERWARDS, ADD GREEN AND BEIGE FACADE
PAINT, AS WELL AS GREY TILES AND INSERT
BACK IN THE OVEN FOR A COUPLE OF HOURS
MORE. WHEN THE MEAL IS READY, ITLL BE A
SURPRISE WHERE EACH INGREDIENT IN THE
HOTCH-POTCH IS TO BE FOUND.
BON APPTIT! SORRY, DID YOU MISS TO ADD
ANYTHING?
PORC MPNAT CU USTUROI I MORCOVI N
SOS DE MUTAR
(UN FEL SPLENDID N PLOVDIV, VIZAVI DE
BISERICA SF.PETCA, BULEVARDUL KNIAGHINA
MARIA LUIZA. NU-L PUTEI RATA)
MPNAI BUCILE DE PORC CU CEI DE
USTUROI I BUCI DE MORCOV. UNGEI
CU SOS DE SOIA I MUIAI N MUTAR, APOI
PRESRAI GHIMBIR, CIMBRU, AROME, PIPER
I NUCOAR. PUNEI BUCILE N CENTRUL
TIGII, URMND O LINIE SIMETRIC. SIMETRIA
E IMPORTANT PENTRU SENTIMENTUL
ARISTOCRATIC PE CARE L SUSCIT ACEAST
REET. ADUGAI DEASUPRA WHISKY
SCUMP. COACEI DUP CE AMBALAI N FOLIE.
SERVII-L DUP CUM DORII, TIAT N FILEURI
SA
ATENIE LA MIRODENII, S NU V NECAI!
LARDED PORK CHOPS WITH GARLIC AND CAR-
ROTS IN MUSTARD SAUCE
(THERES SUCH A SPLENDID DISH IN PLOVDIV,
OPPOSITE ST. PETKA CHURCH, KNIAGINIA
(DUCHESS) MARIA LUIZA BVD., THAT THERES
NO WAY TO BE MISTAKEN)
LARD THE PORK CHOPS WITH CLOVES OF
GARLIC AND CARROTS. RUB WITH SOYA SAUCE
AND ROLL IN MUSTARD, THEN SPRINKLE
WITH GINGER, THYME, SAVORY, PEPPER AND
NUTMEG. THE SHINY CHOPS ARE LAID IN THE
CENTRE OF THE PAN WITH A SENSE OF SYM-
METRY. SYMMETRY IS IMPORTANT FOR THE
ARISTOCRATIC FEELING WHICH THIS DISH
CREATES. POUR OVER EXPENSIVE WHISKY.
BAKE WRAPPED IN FOLIO. YOU CAN SERVE IT
HOWEVER YOU LIKE, CUT UP INTO FILLETS OR
WHOLE CHOPS.
JUST MIND THE SPICES, YOU CAN CHOKE
OVER!
PLCINT CU BRNZ I ARDEI
(GSII UNA MARE, BINE GTIT PE
BD.STAMBOLIISKI, LNG SOFIA MALL)
SE AMESTEC FII SEMICIRCULARE STA-
COJII CU CTEVA FERESTRE DIFERITE CA
MRIME I SORTIMENT (INCLUSIV LUCARNE),
AER CONDIIONAT I PTRUNJEL. FACEI
O UMPLUTUR DIN LINII DE ACOPERI CU
ACEST AMESTEC PREPARAT. ARDEIUL SE D
PRIN FIN, APOI PRIN OU I IAR PRIN FIN
I OU. SE PRJETE PN SE RUMENETE,
OBINNDU-SE O CULOARE NATURAL. DE
DRAGUL DETALIULUI, PUTEI ADUGA MAI
MULTE MIRODENII.
UNA E SUFICIENT, FIIND PRJIT, AA C NU
EXAGERAI!
A PEPPER CHEESE PASTY
(THERES A BIG, WELL FRIED ONE ON
STAMBOLIISKI BVD., NEAR SOFIA MALL)
GRASS AND SEMICIRCULAR RAILS IN CRIMSON
ARE STIRRED TOGETHER WITH A FEW DIFFER-
ING IN SORT AND SIZE WINDOWS (INCLUDING
DORMER WINDOWS), AIR-CONDITIONERS AND
PARSLEY. MAKE A FILLING FOR THE ROOF
LINES WITH THE THUS PREPARED BLEND-
ING. THE WHOLE PEPPER IS ROLLED OVER
IN FLOUR, THEN IN EGGS AND THEN AGAIN,
FLOUR AND EGGS. IT IS FRIED TILL THE
PLASTER GETS REDDISH, THUS ACQUIRING ITS
COLOUR NATURALLY. FOR THE SAKE OF THE
DETAIL YOU CAN GARNISH IT WITH SOME MORE
SPICES.
ONE IS QUITE ENOUGH, BECAUSE FRIED, SO
DONT OVEREAT!
78
,
MPORTANT PENTRU SENT MPORTANT PENTRU SEN
ISTOCRATIC PE CARE L SU ISTOCRATIC PE CARE L SU
ET. ADUGAI DEASUPRA ADUGAI DEASUPR
UMP. COACEI DUP CE AM COACEI DUP CE AM
RVII-L DUP CUM DORII, -L DUP CUM DORII
U BUCI NTREGI. UCI NTREG
ENIE LA MIRODENII, S NU IE LA MIRODENII, S NU
RDED PORK CHOPS WITH G DED PORK CHOPS WIT
PATEU CU BRNZ I UNT (FOIETAJ)
(UN EXEMPLU BUN PE BULEVARDUL BULGARIA,
SOFIA)
NTINDEI ULEI PESTE FUNDUL UNEI TIGI
LARGI (SITUL) I PUNEI PRIMA FOAIE DE
FOIETAJ. NTINDEI CU GENEROZITATE UN
AMESTEC DE OU, BRNZ, BUCI DE SPAII
LOCUIBILE, PEREI I FERESTRE. NU FACEI
ECONOMIE LA AMESTEC, E O CONDIIE PENTRU
UN BUN FOIETAJ! AEZAI FOAIA URMTOARE
I NTINDEI UMPLUTURA. FOIETAJUL POATE
FI PREPARAT UOR, FACEI-L PUFOS I PUNEI
CHIAR CTEVA ETAJE. DEASUPRA PUNEI C-
TEVA BUCI DE UNT DE ACOPERI PENTRU A
FI MAI GUSTOS. PLANURILE TREBUIE TIATE CU
UN CUIT ASCUIT.
SE SERVETE FIERBINTE, FIINDC RECE NU
MAI E BUN DELOC.
CHEESE AND BUTTER BANITSA (PASTRY)
(THERES A GOOD EXAMPLE SOMEWHERE ON
BULGARIA BVD., SOFIA)
SPREAD OIL OVER THE BOTTOM OF THE LARGE
BAKING TIN (THE SITE) AND PUT THE FIRST
SHEET OF PASTRY. SPREAD LAVISHLY A MIX-
TURE OF EGGS, CHEESE, BITS AND PIECES OF
LIVING SPACES, WALLS AND WINDOWS. DO NOT
SAVE ON THE MIXTURE, THIS IS A MUST FOR
THE GOOD PASTRY! THEN LAY THE NEXT SHEET
AND SPREAD OVER THE MIXTURE. THE PASTRY
CAN EASILY BE PREPARED, TRY TO MAKE IT
PUFFY AND WITH EVEN FLOORS. PUT ON THE
TOP SOME BIGGER PIECES OF BUTTER ROOF TO
MAKE IT JUICIER. THE FLOOR-PLANS ARE DONE
WITH A SHARP KNIFE.
EAT IT HOT, CAUSE WHEN COOLED,
ITS NO GOOD.
JELEU DE FRUCTE
(CHIAR LA NCEPUTUL PODULUI GHERDICIKA,
PE BULEVARDUL RUSKI, PLOVDIV)
MUIAI FERESTRE GELATINOASE N AP PN
SE NMOAIE BINE. ADUGAI BALCOANE I
BALUSTRADE I AMESTECAI. ARANJAI MA-
GAZINE CU NCADRAMENT CASTANIU LA BAZ.
PUNEI DEASUPRA AMESTECUL OBINUT I
LSAI LA FRIGIDER PN SE NTRETE SUFI-
CIENT. GARNISII CU LEMNRIE GELATINOAS
FERESTRELE CARE POT FI ADUGATE COMPO-
TULUI (FRUCTE SCZUTE) I FRUCTELOR. DAC
DORII, ORNAI CU TRANDAFIRI DIN CREM.
SERVII NAINTE S SE TOPEASC!
FRUIT JELLY
(JUST AT THE START OF GERDGIKA BRIDGE, ON
RUSKI BVD., PLOVDIV)
THE GELATINOUS WINDOWS SHOULD BE
SOAKED IN WATER TILL SOFTENED. ADD THE
BALCONIES AND THE BALUSTRADES AND STIR.
ARRANGE THE SHOPS WITH LIGHT BROWN
JOINERY AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PLOT. POUR
OVER IT WITH THE OBTAINED BLEND AND
LEAVE IT IN A FRIDGE TILL IT GETS FIRM
ENOUGH. THEN GARNISH WITH JELLY FRAMES
ROUND THE WINDOWS, WHICH CAN BE ADDED
TO THE COMPOTE (STEWED FRUIT) AND FRUIT.
IF YOU WISH YOU CAN DRESS WITH CREAMY
ROSES.
EAT BEFORE IT GOES TO PIECES!
PRJITUR DE CIOCOLAT
(UN BUN EXEMPLU PE STRADA MLADOST NR.2,
SOFIA)
TURNAI BETON I ARMTUR FIERBINI
PESTE UN PTRAT AMPLU I AMESTECAI
ENERGIC PN OBINEI O CREM DE CIOCO-
LAT. PSTRAI JUMTATE PENTRU TOPING I
FOLOSII RESTUL PENTRU SCRI, COLOANE
I BAZINE. ADUGAI UI, PEREI DE CR-
MID I AMESTECAI BINE. PUNEI TOTUL N
PTRAT I ATEPTAI S SE RCEASC I S
SE NTREASC. CND E GATA, ADUGAI DEA-
SUPRA RESTUL COMPOZIIEI. NETEZII BINE
FORMA MASIV DE CIOCOLAT I PRESRAI
TOTUL CU BUCI DE FAAD VITRAT.
PRJITURILE DE CIOCOLAT SUNT FOAR-
TE DULCI I SIOASE, AA C E BINE S
CONSUMAI CU MODERAIE.
CHOCOLATE CAKES
(THERES A GOOD EXAMPLE IN MLADOST 2,
SOFIA)
POUR HOT CONCRETE AND REINFORCEMENT
OVER A LARGE SQUARE SITE AND STIR WELL
TILL YOU GET A DENSE SMOOTH CHOCOLATE
BLEND. PUT ASIDE HALF OF IT FOR THE TOP-
PING AND THE REST IS USED FOR THE STAIRS,
COLUMNS, WASHERS. ADD THE DOORS, THE
BRICK WALLS AND STIR WELL. PUT ALL OF
THIS INSIDE THE SQUARE SITE AND WAIT
UNTIL IT GETS COLD AND FIRM. WHEN READY,
POUR OVER IT THE REST OF THE BLEND.
SMOOTH OUT WELL THE READY MASSIVE
CHOCOLATE FORM AND SPRINKLE IT WITH A
PREVIOUSLY CHOPPED GLASS FACADE.
THE CHOCOLATE CAKES ARE VERY SWEET
AND ONE GETS EASILY FULL, SO CONSUME
MODERATELY.
#1
Text & FOTO / PHOTO:
Alex Axinte, Cristi Borcan
(studioBASAR) 80
Evicting the
Ghost
Architectures of Survival
81
A
specic conictual case may be the op-
portunity to understand more about the
South-Eastern post-totalitarian city. We
explored the temporary works done by
evacuated families from nationalized houses by the
communist regime, which were returned to their
owners after 1990. Te nationalization and the ret-
rocession had in Romania the force of independent
urban phenomena, while nowadays the uncertainty
permanently fed by invisible conicts generates the
urban shape.
We learned about conicts, negotiation, self-
management and cohabitation, nding thus a
possible set of principles to take action in a dynamic
and chaotic environment, as a supplement and al-
ternative to the simple adjustment of standardized
urban tools.
Beginnings
I
n the autumn of 2006, walking down the street,
we passed by a compact volume of furniture
wrapped in blue foil. When we found ourselves in
the narrow space between the sidewalk pack-
age and the house facade, we heard several voices
and a clink of spoons and plates; we were passing
by a family who was having lunch inside the blue
parcel. We realized that the structure was actually
a dwelling, and its occupants were not homeless
persons in the strict sense of that word, but home-
less families who lived on the sidewalk and owned
tableware, furniture and apartment plants. Taking
a closer look, we noticed that the parcel at issue
had an opening onto the sidewalk, in the front of
which was placed a small wooden chair and an osier
carpet. Te slightly open door allowed the view of
a refrigerator and the blue foil revealed contours of
massive furniture, sofas and armchairs, wardrobes
stufed with pillows and blankets. We took several
O
O situaie conictual particular poate
reprezenta un prilej de a nelege mai multe
despre oraul post-totalitar sud-est-euro-
pean. Am studiat construciile provizorii
realizate de ctre familiile evacuate din case nai-
onalizate de ctre regimul comunist i retrocedate
dup 1990. Naionalizarea i apoi retrocedarea au
avut n Romnia fora unor fenomene urbane de
sine stttoare, iar astzi starea de nesiguran
intreinut permanent de conictele invizibile ge-
nereaz form urban.
Am nvat despre conicte, negociere, auto-or-
ganizare i coabitare, descoperind astfel un posibil
set de principii pentru a interveni ntr-un cadru
energetic i haotic, ca o completare i o alternativ
la simpla adaptare a instrumentelor urbanistice
standardizate.
nceputurile nceputurile

n

toamna lui 2006, mergnd pe strad am trecut

pe lng un volum compact de mobil nvelit

n folie albastr. n momentul n care ne aam

n spaiul strmt dintre pachetul de pe trotu-
ar i faada casei, am auzit de aproape un zgomot
de voci, de linguri i de farfurii: ne aam lng o
familie care lua masa de prnz n interiorul pache-
tului albastru. Am realizat c structura era de fapt
o locuin, iar ocupanii si nu erau persoane fr
adpost n sensul clasic al cuvntului, ci familii fr
a pe trotuar i aveau n posesie
vesel, mobil i plante de apartament. Uitndu-ne
mai atent am observat c pachetul avea o deschidere
spre trotuar n faa creia era aezat un scunel de
lemn i un pre de rchit. Prin ua ntredeschis
se distingea un frigider, iar prin folia albastr se
ghiceau contururi de mobilier masiv, de canapele
i fotolii, de ifoniere ndesate cu perne i pturi.
Am fcut cteva fotograi i am plecat convini
de un singur lucru: c nu aveam habar de ce astfel
de structuri se concretizau pe strzile oraului. n
ncercarea de a rememora i alte apariii similare
n centrul Bucuretiului am realizat c nu le putem
localiza. Structurile preau s rsar i s dispar
dup o regul misterioas, ca nite apariii fantoma-
tice ce bntuie obsesiv ntre dou lumi, cu insistena
trecutului rmas nerezolvat i un viitor nesigur. Am
devenit din ce n ce mai interesai de logica ascun-
s a fenomenului, cercetndu-i mecanismele care
i-au fcut posibile apariiile, descoperind uneori i
istoriile personale din spatele pachetelor albastre.
Am aat o poveste ciudat i complicat a naiona-
lizrilor i restituirilor proprietilor n Romnia, al
crei impact asupra mediului construit din oraele
noastre nu l bnuisem nainte: n culisele imagi-
nii cotidiene a oraului, cu strzi, case, copaci sau
trac, se deruleaz un conict de amploare, o lupt
invizibil ntre vecinii vechi i noi, ntre actualii sau
fotii proprietari, ntre chiriai i proprietari, ntre
ceteni i stat, i n nal chiar ntre stat i stat.
BALOT
PROTEJAREA BUNU-
RILOR PERSONALE
ADUNATE NTR-UN
PACHET MARE, CARE
SE SPRJIN DE FA-
ADA FOSTEI CASE I
OCUP PARIAL SAU
TOTAL TROTUARUL.
STRUCTURA ASTFEL
REZULTAT ARE N
PRINCIPAL ROLUL DE
PORTAVOCE A CAUZEI
FAMILIEI EVACUATE I
NU ESTE O STRUCTUR
DE LOCUIT: PACHETUL
ESTE PZIT DE CTRE
FAMILIE, FIE PRIN
VIZITE EFECTUATE PE
TOAT DURATA ZILEI,
FIE SUPRAVEGHEAT
CONSTANT DAC ACE-
TIA SUNT GZDUII
TEMPORAR N IMEDIA-
TA VECINTATE.
STUDIU DE CAZ:
STRADA ICOANEI,
BUCURETI, 2007
BALE
PROTECTING THE
PERSONAL EFFECTS
GATHERED IN ONE
BIG PACKAGE, WHICH
RECLINES ON THE FA-
CADE OF THE FORMER
HOUSE AND TAKES UP
THE ENTIRE SIDEWALK
OR PART OF IT. THE RE-
SULTING STRUCTURE
MAINLY FULFILS THE
ROLE OF SPEAKING
TRUMPET FOR THE
EVICTED FAMILY AND
IS NOT AN INHABITA-
BLE STRUCTURE: THE
PACKAGE IS EITHER
GUARDED BY THE FA-
MILY, THROUGH VISITS
PAID THROUGHOUT THE
DAY, OR CONSTANTLY
SUPERVISED, IF THEY
ARE TEMPORARILY
HOSTED IN THE IMME-
DIATE VICINITY.
CASE STUDY: ICOANEI
STREET, BUCHAREST,
2007
82
dpost n sensul clas dpost n sensul cla
dpost d care locuiau care locuiau
esel, mobil i plan esel, mobil i plan
mai atent am observa mai atent am obser
pre trotuar n faa c pre trotuar n fa
emn i un pre de r mn i un pre de r
#1
A O
photographs and left convinced of one thing: that
we had absolutely no idea why such structures ap-
peared on the city streets. In an attempt to recall
other similar apparitions in the center of Bucharest,
we realized that we could not locate them. Te
structures seemed to appear and disappear ac-
cording to mysterious rules, like ghosts obsessively
haunting between two worlds, with the insist-
ence given by an unsettled past and an uncertain
future. We became more and more interested in
the hidden logic of the phenomenon, researching
the mechanisms that had enabled such apparitions
and occasionally uncovering the personal histories
behind the blue parcels. We discovered a strange and
complicated story of property nationalization and
restitution in Romania, whose impact on the built
environment in our cities we had not suspected
before: in the backstage of our city as we see it on a
daily basis, with its streets, houses, trees or traf-
c, there goes on a vast conict, an invisible ght
between the old and the new neighbors, the current
and the former owners, the tenants and the owners,
the citizens and the state and nally even between
the state and the state.
A Law Story
S
tarting from 1950, a large part of Romanias
urban population was evicted, moved, re-
distributed or relocated from its dwellings
by the communist state. Te property status
became volatile and uncertain, and the inhabitants
of the big cities increased their mobility more and
O poveste a legilor

nc

epnd cu 1950, o mare parte din populaia

urban a Romniei a fost evacuat, mutat, re-

partizat sau relocat din locuine de ctre statul

comunist. Statutul proprietii a devenit volatil
i incert, iar locuitorii marilor orae din ce in ce mai
mobili, aai mereu n cautarea unei locuine. Dup
60 de ani, cltoria lor nc nu s-a ncheiat, unii din-
tre acetia nc mai campeaz i astzi pe strzile
oraelor din Romnia. Aceast stare de fapt i a
sursa n ecuaia complex a naionalizrii-retroce-
drii imobilelor de locuit, a crei rezultat este o cas
n plus: statul post comunist a tergiversat retroce-
darea n natur a imobilelor naionalizate i chiar a
emis acte de proprietate pentru imobile nerevendi-
cate nc de fotii proprietari. Aa s-au nscut casele
fantom care se ridic din senin pe strzi, campnd
pe trotuare, agndu-se de faadele caselor reale i
disprnd dup o vreme fr s lase urme. O cas
fantom nu are perei, ui, ferestre ori acoperi: este
doar mobilier, perne, covoare, cui, sau vesel, toate
aranjate n grmezi strns mpachetate n carton i
folie de protecie, inscripionate cu mesaje de pro-
test, materializnd n strad tot ce adun mprejur o
familie n decursul vieii de interior. Fr a reecta
ns o tendin general, astfel de situaii sunt doar
cazuri extreme. n doar cteva ore, o familie i poate
pierde domiciliul: pui n faa actului de evacua-
re forta, n situaie limit, chiriaii trebuie s i
strng toate lucrurile personale i s elibereze casa.
Acetia aleg s campeze pe trotuar, e ca form de
protest public, e ca unic opiune locativ. Situaia
este temporar, pn la gsirea unei soluii, dar se
poate prelungi chiar civa ani.
PACHET DE MOBILIER
FURNITURE PACKAGE
IMOBIL DISPUTAT
DISPUTED HOUSE
SPAIU PUBLIC TROTUAR
PUBLIC SPACE SIDEWALK
ACCESUL N CURTEA IMOBILULUI
ACCESS TO THE HOUSE YARD
COTE DE CINE
DOG HOUSE
SPAIU PUBLIC - CAROSABIL
PUBLIC SPACE - ROADWAY
83
-
st, t
more, as they were in search of a home. After 60
years, their journey has not ended yet; some of them
still camp on the streets of Romanian cities. Tis
state of afairs originates from the complex equa-
tion of the nationalization-retrocession of inhabit-
able houses, the result of which is an extra house:
the post-communist state delayed the retrocession
in kind of nationalized houses and even issued
ownership documents for houses not yet reclaimed
by their former owners. Tis gave rise to the ghost
houses which appear out of nowhere in the mid-
dle of the street, camp on sidewalks, hang to the
facades of real houses and disappear after a while
without leaving a trace. A ghost house has no walls,
doors, windows or roof: it is just furniture, pillows,
carpets, plants or tableware, all of them piled up in
heaps tightly wrapped in cardboard and protection
foil, bearing protest messages, materializing in the
street everything that a family accumulates during
its indoor life.
Tese are extreme situations which do not reect
the general trend. Within several hours only, a fam-
ily may lose its home: faced with the eviction order,
Paii evacurii
D
up ce decizia camprii a fost luat, acetia
devin practic homeless, avnd ns de
protejat bunuri personale voluminoase i
valoroase: ifoniere, aragaz, canapele, fotolii
sau vesel. Astfel, asigurarea bunurilor personale
devine prima regul dup care se organizeaz cam-
parea (evident, ilegal). Acestei reguli i se aduag
i condiionrile geograce ale locului unde are loc
evacuarea, pe trotuarul din faa fostei case, sau n
imediata apropiere a acesteia, relaia cu fotii vecini
devenind extrem de important.
Toate aceste condiionri genereaz o serie de
strategii de campare specice, de la forma primar
de organizare, aceea a unui balot mare, unde mobila
i bunurile personale sunt mpachetate strns fr
ca interiorul s e locuibil, pn la formele mai evo-
luate, att funcional, cu interiorul amenajat pentru
locuire, ct i tehnic, prin strategii de protecie
mpotriva intemperiilor i a agresiunii.
CAMPING
DERIVAT DIN TIPOLOGIA BALOT, REPREZINT O
AMPLIFICARE A NECESITII PRINCIPALE DE SE-
CURIZARE A BUNURILOR. SE DEZVOLT O UNITATE
EXTERIOAR CARE SUSINE PAZA PACHETULUI
DE MOBILIER - FIE O STRUCTUR EXISTENT DIN
IMEDIATA APROPIERE, CUM AR FI UN CHIOC
PRSIT, FIE O STRUCTUR AFLAT N PROPRIE-
TATEA EVACUAILOR, CUM AR FI UN AUTOTURISM
PARCAT N FAA FOSTEI CASE.
STUDIU DE CAZ: STRADA DIMITRI IVANOVICI
MENDELEEV, BUCURETI, 2006
CAMPING
DERIVED FROM THE BALE TYPOLOGY, IT REPRE-
SENTS AN EXPANSION OF THE MAIN NECESSITY
TO ENSURE THE SAFETY OF THE ASSETS. ONE EX-
TERIOR UNIT IS DEVELOPED, WHICH ENSURES THE
GUARD OF THE FURNITURE PACKAGE - EITHER A
STRUCTURE EXISTING IN THE IMMEDIATE VICINITY
OF THE CAMPING, LIKE A DESERTED KIOSK, OR A
STRUCTURE OWNED BY THE EVICTED, SUCH AS A
CAR PARKED OUTSIDE THE FORMER HOUSE.
CASE STUDY: DIMITRI IVANOVICI MENDELEEV
STREET, BUCHAREST, 2006
IMOBIL DISPUTAT
DISPUTED HOU OU HOU OU HOU OU HOU OOU HOU O HOU OU HOU HOU OU OUSE SSSE SSSSE SSSSSE SSE
PACHET DE MOBILIER
FURNITURE PACKA AAAAAAAAAGE GE GE GE GE E GE GE GE GE GE GE GE GE E GE GE GE G
ACCESUL N CURTEA IMOBILULUI
ACCESS TO THE HOUS OUS OUS US OUS US US US OUS OUS OUS OUS US OUS OUS US O E Y E Y E Y E Y E Y E Y E Y E Y E Y E Y E Y Y E Y E Y EE Y E Y YYARD AR AAR AR R AR AAR AR AR AAR AR AAAA
AUTOTURISM PROPRIETATE PERSONAL
PERSONAL CAR
SPAIU PUBLIC - CAROSABIL
PUBLIC SPACE - ROADWAY
BOLARZI DE PARCARE
PARKING BOLLARDS
#1
in a limit situation, the tenants have to gather all
their personal efects and evict the house. Tey
choose to camp on the sidewalk, whether it is a form
of public protest or their sole housing option. Te
situation is temporary until they nd a solution, but
it may also last several years.
The Steps of Eviction
O
nce the decision to camp has been made,
they practically become homeless; however,
homeless with sizeable and valuable assets
to protect: wardrobes, cooking machine, so-
fas, armchairs or tableware. Tus, the security of the
personal assets becomes the rst rule governing the
camp. Tis rule is altered according to the geograph-
ical conditionings of the place where the eviction
takes place: whether it is on the sidewalk in front of
the former house or in its immediate vicinity, the
relationship with ones former neighbors becomes
extremely important.
All such conditionings generate several spe-
cic camping strategies, from the primary form of
Vecintatea
S
chimbrile prin care trece o familie evacua-
t forat care decide s rmn n faa fostei
case, pe trotuar, ajung s i redeneasc ter-
menii legali fundamentali, precum dispune-
rea de proprietatea personal, dreptul la domiciliu,
accesul la domeniul public sau statutul ceteanului
n faa autoritilor. ns, n aceeai msur, sunt re-
formulate i alte noiuni ale relaiilor din interiorul
familiei, sau dintre familie, autoriti i comunitate.
Dintre toate acestea, redenirea strii de vecin-
tate este esenial n procesul de supravieuire de
lung durat. Astfel, persoanele evacuate forat, care
campeaz n apropierea fostei locuine, fac parte n
continuare din reeaua invizibil a relailor dintre
vecini. n cele cteva cazuri pe care le-am ntlnit,
de locuire pe trotuar pe o perioad care depete un
an de zile, am observat c sprijinul vecinilor ajut la
prelungirea strii de normalitate prin care familia
poate negocia mai uor situaia n care se a. Nu
este vorba doar de ajutorul dat evacuailor de ctre
vecini, indispensabil de altfel, cum ar accesul la
baie, la buctrie, depozitarea temporar a bunurilor
personale i a celor de valoare, gzduirea copiilor
NIRUIRE
CONDIIONRILE SPAIALE I RESURSELE
PROPRII (STRUCTURI DE CAMPARE) DETERMIN
O STRATEGIE A UNITILOR DE SUPRAVIEUIRE
MODULARE: O SUM DE UNITI DETERMINATE
FUNCIONAL, NIRUITE PE TROTUARUL DIN FAA
FOSTEI CASE, FORMND UN ANSAMBLU INTEGRAT
CARE SUSINE LOCUIREA NTREGII FAMILII, PE O
DURAT MAI NDELUNGAT, CU OPIUNEA CONSO-
LIDRII I EXTINDERII.
STUDIU DE CAZ: STRADA GRIGORE COBLCESCU,
BUCURETI, 2007
ALIGNED
SPATIAL CONDITIONINGS AND ONES OWN RESO
URCES (CAMPING STRUCTURES) ALLOW FOR A
STRATEGY OF MODULAR SURVIVAL UNITS: A SU
OF UNITS FUNCTIONALLY DETERMINED, ALIGN
ON THE SIDEWALK IN FRONT OF THE FORMER H
USE, FORMING AN INTEGRATED ENSEMBLE WH
SUPPORTS THE HABITATION OF THE ENTIRE
FAMILY, FOR A LONGER PERIOD OF TIME, WITH AN
OPTION OF CONSOLIDATION AND EXPANSION.
CASE STUDY: GRIGORE COBLCESCU STREET,
BUCHAREST, 2007
IMOBIL DISPUTAT
DISPUTED HOUSE
MOBIL I OBIECTE PERSONALE
FURNITURE AND PERSONAL OBJECTS
ACCESUL N CURTEA IMOBILULUI
ACC ACC CC CC CC ACC CC CC CC CC CC C CC CC CC CC CC CCESS ESS ESS ES ESS ESS ESS ESS ESS ESS ESS ESS ESS ESS ESS SS SS ESS ESS ESS TO TO TO TO TO TO TO TO TO TO TO TO TO TO TO TO TH TH TTTH TTH TH TH TH TH TH TH TH TH TH TH TH T E H EE H E H E H E H E H E H E H E H E H E H E H E H E H E H E H E H E OUS US US US US US US US US US US US US USS US US US UUU E Y EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE ARD
SPAIU PUBLIC - CAROSABIL
PUBLIC SPACE - ROADWAY
CORT CAMPING
TENT CAMPING
STRUCTURI DESTINATE LOCUIRII
STR STR STR STR STR STR STR STR STR STR STR STR TR STR STR STR TR TR TR RUCT UCT UCT UCT UCT UCT UCT UCT UCT UCT UCT UC UCT UCT UCT UCT UCT UCT UCTURES INTE TTE TE TE TTE TTTE TE TE TE TTTE TE TENDED FOR HABITATIO IO TIO TIO IO TIO OO TIO O TIO IO O TI TIO IONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
ELEMENTE DE PROTECIE / SUPLIMENTARE
(TOCURI, RAME, PLACAJE)
ADDITIONA OOOOOOOOOOOOO L PROT RO ROT OT O ROT OT RO OT OT O RO RO RO OO ECT CT CT CT CCT CT CT CT CT CT CT CT CT CCT TION ION ION ION ION IO ON IO ON IO O IO IO O IO IO O ELEME EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEENTS NT NT NT NT NNT NT NT NNT NT NT NT NT NNNT NN (D (D (D (D (D (D (D (D (D D (D (D (D D (D (D ( OOR OOOOR OOOR OOR OOOR OOR OOOR OOOR OOR O
FRAMES EESS, WIND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND D ND ND ND ND ND ND ND ND NN OW OOOOOOOOO FRA RA RA RA RA RRA RA RA RRRRRR MES MES MES MES ES ES ES ES ES ES ES ES ES ES ES ES EES, P , , P ,, P , , , , , , ,,, LYW LY LLYW LLY LLY LY LYW LLY LLYW LLY LYW LYW LL OOD OO OO OO OO OO OO OO OO OO OO OOO O OO OO OO OO O )
85
O- O-
UM M
ED D
HO- HO-
HICH HIC
AN N
organization, i.e. the sizeable bale, in which the fur-
niture and the personal efects are tightly wrapped,
allowing no habitation inside, to forms that are
more evolved from a functional perspective the
interior is arranged for habitation purposes as well
as from a technical one, i.e. strategies of protection
against the weather conditions and aggression are
put in place.
The Vicinity
T
he changes sufered by an evicted family who
chooses to go on living in front of its former
house, on the sidewalk, end up redening its
fundamental legal terms such as disposition
of private property, the right to domicile, access to
the public domain or the status of the citizen before
the authorities. Likewise, other notions of the rela-
tions inside the family or the relations between the
family, the authorities and the community are re-
worded. Of all these, the re-denition of the state of
vicinity is essential to the long term survival process.
Tus, the evicted persons who camp outside their
sau a altor membrii ai familiei pe perioada ano-
timpului rece, ci i de gesturile mrunte ale vieii
de zi cu zi, un salut, o vizit, o conversaie, o igar.
Rearmarea acestei reele de proximitate, survenite
de obicei n situaii dramatice, cum ar calami-
tile naturale (sau istorice, n cazul evacuailor
forat), pot luate drept argument n faa senzaiei
de ireversibilitate a procesului de izolare, segregare
social, dezinteres fa de suferina altora, neimpli-
care n problemele celorlali, care au devenit noua
paradigm a societii moderne.
Arhitecturi ale supravieuirii
F
ormele Formele de Arhitectur Conictual,
Paralel sau Periferic sunt o expresie a unei
ere a discontinuitii, a tulburrilor globale i
a fragmentrii accelerate n care trim.
Conictul invizibil cauzat de convulsiile istorice
genereaz periodic form urban i expresie arhi-
tectural. Aceast ntruchipare local de Arhitectur
Conictual readuce n prim plan, n modul cel mai
brutal, Lupta pentru Supravieuire, jucat aici n
CORIDOR
PASUL SUCCESIV AL STRATEGIEI DE UNITI NI-
RUITE L REPREZINT UNIREA ACESTORA NTR-O
AMPLASARE LINIAR, N CARE SPAIUL INTERIOR
DE LOCUIT COMUNIC NTRE UNITI, CU UN SIN-
GUR ACCES I PSTRND FAADA FOSTEI CASE CA
PERETE INTERIOR. SPAIUL INTERIOR DINTRE
BUNURILE PERSONALE SERVETE CA ZON DE
LOCUIRE, PE DURAT MEDIE, PENTRU NTREAGA
FAMILIE.
STUDIU DE CAZ: STRADA VLENI, PLOIETI, 2007
CORRIDOR
THE NEXT STAGE OF THE ALIGNED UNITS STRATE-
GY IS THEIR UNIFICATION IN A LINEAR LOCATION,
IN WHICH THE INDOOR HABITABLE SPACES OF
EACH UNIT COMMUNICATE, WITH ONLY ONE
ACCESS AND PRESERVING THE FAADE OF THE
FORMER HOUSE AS AN INDOOR WALL. THE INDO-
OR SPACE IN BETWEEN THE PERSONAL EFFECTS
SERVES AS A HABITATION AREA, ON A MEDIUM
TERM, FOR THE ENTIRE FAMILY.
CASE STUDY: VLENI STREET, PLOIETI, 2007
IMOBIL DISPUTAT
DISPUTED HOUSE
SPAIU PUBLIC - CAROSABIL
PUBLIC SPACE - ROADWAYYYYYYYY
ACCESUL N INTERIORUL STRUCTURII
ACCESS INSIDE THE STRUCTURE
PACHET DE MOBILIER LOCUIBIL
INHABITABLE FURNITURE PACKAGE
86
#1
former dwelling continue to form part of the
invisible network of relations between neighbors.
In the few cases of sidewalk habitation for a period
longer than one year, observed by us, we noticed that
the neighbors support is that which helps prolong
the state of normality, by means of which the family
can more easily negotiate its predicament. It is not
only about the helping hand given to the evicted by
their neighbors, which is actually vital, like access to
the bathroom, the kitchen, the temporary storage of
personal efects and valuables, sheltering the chil-
dren or other members of the family during the cold
season, but also about the small gestures pertaining
to every day life, such as greetings, a visit, a conver-
sation, a cigarette smoked together.
Te re-assertion of this proximity network,
which usually occurs in dramatic situations, such as
natural disasters (or historical disasters, in the case
of those evicted by force), may be taken as argument
against the sensation of irreversibility of the proc-
ess of isolation, social segregation, lack of interest
in other peoples sufering, lack of involvement in
other peoples problems, which have become the
paradigm of modern society.
Architectures of survival
C
onictual, Parallel or Peripheric types of
Architecture are the expression of an age of
discontinuity, global turmoil and intense
fragmentation in which we live. Te invis-
ible conict caused by historic convulsions regu-
larly generate the urban shape and architectural
expression. Tis local embodiment of Conictual
Architecture brings brutally back in the front the
Fight for Survival, currently played in the setting
of a contemporary city. Out of professional curios-
ity, we looked how such shelters react directly and
visibly, both to threats, as well as to the potential
provided by the surroundings, and how they satisfy
immediate needs. Hence an architectural expres-
sion, be it a protest, or the result of the skills of the
owner to surive in knife-edges and to adjust to the
surrounding environment through conquering,
taming and familiarization of neighbourhoods.
Tese represented a challange for us to understand
and re-learn the lesson of spatial and social organi-
zation, the abilities to develop hybrid structures, to
go beyond functional regulations, aesthetic dogma
or formal limitations.
Gradually, the research on the phenomenon
helped us to develop our own abilities to adjust to
the urban environment we work. Such micro-set-
tings actually re-told us the logic of functioning of
certain behaviours at a diferent scale, that of large
urban environments. We were to discover that such
urban settings, scrambled at rst sight, are actu-
ally governed by a surprisingly large number of tacit
regulations playing the role of of cial standards and
tools of urban intervention. We have thus started to
also investigate the local professional reexes, domi-
nated by an inherited state of discontent for the
modern expression of the Romanian and Bucharest
decorul unui ora contemporan. Din curio-
zitate profesionala, am privit cum rspund aceste
adposturi n modul cel mai direct i concret, att
n faa ameninrilor, ct i a potenialului oferit de
mprejurimi, cum satisfac nevoile imediate. De aici
rezult o expresie arhitectural, e ca o form de
protest, e ca rezultat al abilitilor proprietarului
de a supravieui in situaii limit, i de a se adap-
ta la mediul nconjurtor prin aciuni de cucerire,
mblnzire i familiarizare a proximitilor. Acestea
au reprezentat o provocare pentru noi de a descifra
i de a re-nva lecia organizrii spaiale i sociale,
a capacitilor de a dezvolta structuri hibride, i de a
trece dincolo de normativele funcionale, canoanele
estetice sau limitrile formale.
Treptat, documentarea fenomenului ne-a ajutat
s ne dezvoltm propriile capaciti de adaptare la
mediul urban in care activm. Aceste micro-nsce-
nri ne repovesteau de fapt logica de funcionare
a unor comportamente la alt scar, aceea a unor
aglomerri urbane mari. Aveam s descoperim c
aceste peisaje urbane nclcite la prima vedere sunt
guvernate de un numr suprinztor de mare de
reguli tacite care suplinesc de fapt normele ociale
i instrumentele consacrate de intervenie urbanis-
tic. Am nceput astfel s chestionm i reexele
profesionale locale, dominate de o motenit stare
de nemulumire vizavi de expresia contemporan a
mediului urban romnesc i bucuretean, i am in-
cercat s privim fenomenul i dincolo de o problem
social precis. Am devenit exploratori n cutarea
potenialului urban emergent. Cartograind aceste
structuri rezultate n urma evacurilor forate, am
nceput s acordm mai mult atenie att instru-
mentelor cu care operam, ct i deniiilor unor
termeni clasici nsuii pn atunci de-a gata. Astfel,
relaia antagonic care sttea la baza unor perechi
de comportamente urbanistice, a devenit din ce
n ce mai puin net, i mult mai ambigu i mai
permisiv la interpretare, ca n cazurile provizo-
riu-permanent, indiferent-atent sau static-elastic.
Fr s propunem o nou paradigm urban pentru
Bucureti, am ncercat s cristalizm un rspuns
operaional raportndu-ne la starea difuz n care se
gsete regimul proprietii n Romnia, principa-
lul indicator de psihologie urban conturat n urma
documentrii fantomelor de pe trotuare. Mutnd
unghiul de percepie dinspre o colecie de deza-
vantaje nspre o sum de valori adugate, am citit
Bucuretiul drept un ora tolerant, n care coabita-
rea ntre obiecte, subiecte i programe funcionea-
z implicit, n care soluiile urbane de felul ntre
Timp produc familiaritate i acomodare treptat, i
unde proiectele nu sunt lsate neterminate, ci mai
degrab rmn deschise unor evoluii sau muta-
ii naturale. Cum putem ns adresa caracterul
unui asemenea ora intervenind cu instrumentele
urbanistice convenionale, cu modele i referine
importate? Se poate imagina o zon profesional n
care observaia, intervenia i regula pot genera for-
m urban local? i dac aceast zon exist, cum
poate deveni operaional acest urbanism fr doar a
estetiza dezordinea?
87
-
urban landscape, and we tried to explore the case
beyond precised social issues. We have turned into
explorers in search of the emerging urban poten-
tial. Mapping such structures resulted from forced
evacuations, we started to pay more attention both
to the tools we worked with, as well as to deni-
tions of classical concepts which were learned by
heart until then. Te opposed relationship at the
bottom of various sets of urban behaviours has
thus turned increasingly smoother and a lot more
ambiguous and permissive for interpretation, as the
case of temporary-permanent, indiferent-careful
or static-exible. Without aiming at a new urban
paradigm for Bucharest, we tried to crystallize an
operational answer, in relation with the confused
state of the property in Romania, the key indicator
of urban psychology as indicated by the research
of the ghosts on the pavements. While moving the
angle of perception from a set of disadvantages to a
set of added values, we saw Bucharest as a toler-
ant city, in which the cohabitation between objects,
subjects and programmes works implicitly, in which
the urban soutions such as Meanwhile generate a
Dincolo de exotismul sau ineditul fundament-
rii, putem arma c problema reconstruciei n
Bucureti se poate pune i prin legalizarea unor noi
forme de construcii temporare, cu caracter public
sau comunitar, cu existen limitat i cu o utilizare
imprecis i variabil, ca o nou specie de structuri-
eveniment crescute printre crpturile teritoriilor
neocupate sau aate nc n stare de ambiguitate
legislativ. n aceeai msur, metoda extinderii
gospodriei ca o form de transformare organic i
poate gsi o aplicare i n situaia proiectului locuirii
colective moderniste, care se a n mare parte n
pragul datei de expirare, fr s i gsit nc solu-
iile de supravieuire. Tot ca o form de mblnzire
public, putem imagina o aciune de descentralizare
a monopolului mobilierului comun din ora, prin
localizarea, n alte spaii dect cele ocializate, sau
pur i simplu neglijate de planicarea urban, a
unor structuri temporare, punctuale, caracteriza-
te de o exibilitate a folosirii. Acestea ar campa n
spaii conictuale i de grani, unde ar propune un
armistiiu i ar trata ocuparea ca o form de inele-
gere i experien comunitar.
CAS
A MAI EVOLUAT STRATEGIE, ATT DIN PUNCT DE VEDERE SPAIAL SAU
NIC, CT I CA RELAIE FA DE DOMENIUL PUBLIC. PROTECIA ESTE
ALIZAT CU MATERIALE ADIIONALE, INDEPENDENTE FA DE PIESELE DE
BILIER. NCHIDEREA EXTERIOAR ESTE DIN FOLIE DE PLASTIC SAU CHIAR
MATERIALE TERMOIZOLANTE TIP POLISTIREN EXTRUDAT, IAR PENTRU
NA DE ACOPERIRE SUNT FOLOSITE FOLII DE CALITATE SUPERIOAR.
CESUL N UNITATE AJUNGE S FIE ASIGURAT DE O U NORMAL, CU
CLAN, NCUIETOARE I VIZOR. UNITATEA DEVINE COMPACT, EFICIENT I
PRAGMATIC, SUSINND LOCUIREA NTREGII FAMILII PE TERMEN MEDIU I
LUNG. N UNELE SITUAII, STRUCTURA DEVINE COMPLET AUTONOM FA DE
FAADA FOSTEI CASE, LSND LIBER TRECEREA PE TROTUAR, I DIMINU-
ND ASTFEL POTENIALE CONFLICTE.
STUDIU DE CAZ: BULEVARDUL SCHITU MGUREANU, BUCURETI, 2006
HOUSE
THE MOST EVOLVED IN TERMS OF SPACE OR TECHNIQUE, AS WELL AS IN
TERMS OF THE RELATION TO THE PUBLIC DOMAIN. PROTECTION IS ACHIEVED
WITH ADDITIONAL MATERIALS, INDEPENDENT FROM THE FURNITURE PIECES.
THE EXTERIOR COVERING IS MADE OF PLASTIC FOIL OR EVEN WATER PROOF
MATERIALS SUCH AS EXTRUDED POLYSTYRENE, AND HIGHER QUALITY FOILS
ARE USED FOR THE AREA TO BE COVERED. ACCESS INSIDE THE UNIT IS ENSU-
RED BY A NORMAL DOOR, WITH A HANDLE, A LOCK AND AN APERTURE. THE
UNIT BECOMES COMPACT, EFFICIENT AND PRAGMATIC, SUPPORTING THE ME-
DIUM AND LONG TERM HABITATION OF THE ENTIRE FAMILY. IN SOME CASES,
THE STRUCTURE BECOMES COMPLETELY AUTONOMOUS FROM THE FAADE
OF THE FORMER HOUSE, ALLOWING UNHINDERED TRAFFIC ON THE SIDEWALK
AND THUS DIMINISHING THE POTENTIAL FOR CONFLICTS.
CASE STUDY: SCHITU MGUREANU, BUCHAREST, 2006
PLAN DE SITUAIE
SITUATION PLAN
IMOBIL DISPUTAT
DISPUTED HOUSE
ACCESUL N INTERIORUL STRUCTURII
ACCESS SS SS SS SS SS SS SS S SS S SS SS SS SS SS SS SS SS S IN IN IN IN IN IN IN N IN IN IN IN IN IN IN IN INSID SSSSSSS E THE HE HE HE EEEE EEEE EEEEE STR STR STR STR STR ST ST STR STR R STR STR STR STR STR STR RRUCT CT CT CT CT CT CT CT CT CTT CT CT CC URE UUR UUUR UR UR UR UR UR UR UR UR UR UR UR UU
SPAIU PUBLIC - CAROSABIL
PUBLIC SPACE - ROADWAY
STRUCTURA DE LOCUIT
INHABITABLE STRUCTURE
ACCESUL N CURTEA IMOBILULUI
ACCESS TO THE HOUSE YARD AARR
88
CAS C
CEA CEA
TEH EH
REA REA
MOB M
DIN DIN
ZON ON
ACC ACC
CLA CL
#1
Metoda de cercetare
N
u am desfurat cutri sistematice sau
periodice pe strzi. Modalitatea de a repera
aceste structuri nu a fost alta dect hazar-
dul deplasrilor zilnice prin ora. Datorit
modului aleatoriu prin care acestea rsreau, nu
tim cte astfel de structuri au campat pe trotuarele
din Bucureti, ns pe parcursul a patru ani de inte-
res am adunat aproximativ 15 cazuri.
Studiul a luat forma unei arhive a ctorva cazuri
vzute ca nite diorame: nscenri punctuale ale
conictelor i convulsiilor suferite de statutul incert
al regimului proprietii din Romnia. Tratate cu
distana specic unui atlas tiinic, cazurile se
succed ntr-un limbaj de plane ilustrate, sistemati-
zate dup caracteristici reper.
Am observat gruparea cazurilor dup cteva
tipare de adaptare, n funcie de gradul de utiliza-
re al spaiului de locuit i de modul de adaptare la
contextul imediat. Am determinat o serie de cinci
grupri, aranjate n ordinea evoluiei gradului de
complexitate, ncepnd cu soluia cea mai simpl,
Balotul ca depozitare, i continund cu cele ceva mai
evoluate, Camping, niruite, Coridor i ncheind cu
tipologia cea mai complex, Casa.
gradual familiarity and adjustment, and where
projects are not unnished but rather stay open to
natural progress or mutation. How could we then
address the character of such a city which making
the intervention via conventional urban tools, with
imorted models and references? Could we imagine a
professional area in which observation, intervention
and rule are to generate the local urban shape? If
this area exists, how cold such an urban planning be
operational without beautifying disorder?
Beyond the exotism of the novelty of the argu-
ment, we could declare that the issue of reconstruc-
tion in Bucharest could also be done by authenticat-
ing new types of temporary constructions, either
part of the public or the community area, with a
limited life and an uncertain and variable use, as a
new species of event structures grown in the cracks
of unoccupied territories or those under legal ambi-
guity. To the same extent, the method of extending
the household as a type of organic transformation
could also be applied in the case of modernist col-
lective housings, most of which are close to their
life span,yet without nding ways of survival. In a
diferent way of public taming, we could imagine
an action of decentralizing the real estate monopoly
in the city, by localizing, in other spaces than the
legalized ones or in those simply neglected by urban
planning, of certain temporary, punctual structures,
with a clear exibility of use. Tey would be locate
in conictural and border-like spaces, where they
would come up with an armistice and would treaty
the occupation as a kind of undersanding and com
munity experience.
The Research Method
W
e did not carry out systematic or regular
searches on the street. We only used, as a
method of detection, our random walks
through the city. Given the arbitrary na-
ture of their emergence, we are not aware of the ex-
act number of structures camped on the Bucharest
sidewalks; however, during our four years of activity,
approximately 15 cases were documented.
Te project is an archive of several case studies
seen as dioramas: punctual stagings of the con-
icts and disturbances sufered by the uncertain
status of ownership in Romania. Approached with
the distance characteristic of a scientic atlas book,
the cases follow one another in a language of il-
lustrations, summarized according to reference
characteristics.
We noticed that they grouped according to sev-
eral adaptation patterns, depending on the extent
to which the inhabitable space was used and the
manner of adaptation to the immediate context.
We identied ve groups, arranged according to the
degree of complexity. Tey start from the simplest
solution, i.e. the Bale as a storage modality, continue
with the more evolved ones, i.e. Camping, Aligned,
Corridor, and end with the most complex typologi-
cal form, the House. T
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CHELCEA, LIVIU - STATE, KINSHIP AND URBAN TRANSFORMATIONS DURING
AND AFTER HOUSING NATIONALIZATION (BUCHAREST, ROMANIA, 19452004),
P 96
89
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9
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Expediia
autostrzii
pierdute
Text & Foto / photo:
Ivan Kucina 90
#1
Lost Highway
Expedition
91
L
ost Highway is the ctional name for the old
road made in Ex Yugoslavia to connect the
major cities of its republics: Ljubljana, Zagreb,
Beograd and Skopje. Te construction of the
road started from the 50s in the massive voluntary
campaign of the peoples of all nationalities that
constituted Yugoslavia. It was named according to
the most important state parole Te Highway of
Brotherhood and Unity. It was not accidental that
this ideological name signied the literal connec-
tion line among diferent nations.
Communism believed that it had the capacity to
overcome national diference in the pursuit of uni-
versal wellness. Tis illusion of eternity was brutally
shortened during the 90s. Te collapses of utopian
systems stripped down the concept of national uni-
cation. Old national conicts were awakened for
the new bloodshed of war. Yugoslavia was buried;
the term lost its sense and today the new tempo-
rary denition of Western Balkans is coming from
outside to be applied to countries waiting for the
future in the EU: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Croatia, Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro. Like
the highway today, Western Balkans is a territory
without content. Western Balkans has no mean-
ing of interconnections but rather a set of separate
obligations toward expanding Europe. Without
content it is emptied also of ideology.
Te highway, on the other hand, survived even
more improved. After the war new tracks and serv-
ices were added according to EU standards. Now,
it looks like any European highway, comfortable
and without local identity. Te ideological mean-
ing that once marked the belief of the people that
were building it has been lost. Highway of Post
A
utostrada tostrada Pierdut este nume-
le inventat al unei vechi drum din fosta
Iugoslavie, realizat pentru a lega princi-
palele orae ale republicilor: Ljubljana,
Zagreb, Belgrad i Skopje. Construcia autostrzii a
nceput n anii 50, n masiva campanie voluntar a
oamenilor de toate naionalitile care constitutiau
Iugoslavia. A fost numit dup cea mai important
deviz a statului Autostrada Friei i Unitii.
Nu e accidental faptul c acest nume ideologic sim-
boliza legtura literal dintre diferitele naiuni.
Comunismul credea c are capacitatea de a
nvinge diferenele naionale n urmrirea bine-
lui universal. Iluzia eternitii a fost scurtat cu
brutalitate n anii 90. Cderea sistemelor utopice a
despuiat conceptul unicrii naionale. Vechile con-
icte naionale au fost trezite dnd natere din nou
rzboaielor i vrsrii de snge. Iugoslavia a fost n-
gropat; termenul i-a pierdut sensul i astzi noua
deniie temporar a Balcanilor de Vest vine din
afar pentru a aplicat rilor care i ateapt vii-
torul n UE: Albania, Bosnia i Herzegovina, Croaia,
Macedeonia, Serbia i Muntenegru. Asemenea au-
tostrzii azi, Balcanii de Vest sunt un teritoriu fr
coninut. Termenul Balcanii de Vest nu are nici un
sens legat de interconexiuni ci pare mai degrab un
set de obligaii separate fa de o Europ n expansi-
une. Fr coninut, e golit i de ideologie.
Autostrada, pe de alt parte, a supravieuit i
chiar s-a mbuntit. Dup rzboi, noi trasee i
servicii au fost adugate conform standardelor UE.
Acum, arat ca orice alt drum european, confortabil
i fr identitate local. Semnicaia ideologic care
a marcat odat credina oamenilor care o con-
struiau a fost pierdut. Autostrzii Post-Friei i 92
hiar s-a mbuntit hiar s-a mbunti
ervicii au fost adug ervicii au fost adug
cum, arat ca orice a cum, arat ca orice
i fr identitate loca r identitate lo
marcat odat credin arcat odat cr
truiau a fost pierdut uiau a fost pierdut
L A
Brotherhood and Non Unity is missing its
contemporary meaning. It only functions as linear
mechanism in the framework of the recent EU po-
litical invention of Western Balkans.
Te reason for the Lost Highway Expedition is to
nd and study missing relationships on the high-
way and look at them as a model for diverse Europe.
Following the line along and around the Lost
Highway through the unknown territory of contem-
porary meanings of Western Balkans, imagined as
a model of future Europe, members of the expedi-
tion were exploring new modes of meaningful and
sustainable links among diferent entities. One
question that persists the changes of the territories
during the expeditions is whether it is possible to
construct a better life thatwould be non-utopian
and without ideological illusions.
Lost Highway Expedition began in Ljubljana,
and traveled through Zagreb, Novi Sad, Belgrade,
Skopje, Pristine, Tirana, Podgorica to be concluded
in Sarajevo, comprised of two days of events at each
city and one day of travel in between. Te events
included guided tours, presentations and forums
organized by local associations, workshops between
the participating travelers and local experts, discus-
sions,exhibitions, radio shows, picnics and other
events that were self-produced by the host cities.
Members of the Lost Highway Expedition did not
have to travel or stay together and could enter and
exit the expedition for any length of time and at an
point. Members were self organizing, supported an
realized their journey in as they liked. Everyone wa
free to participate in any of the events or to bring
their own to the highway. Word of the expedition
was traveling like a rumor from friends to friends,
Ne-unitii i lipsete un sens contemporan.
Ea funcioneaz doar ca un mecanism liniar ntr-un
cadru al inveniei politice a UE - Balcanii de Vest.
Motivul Expediiei Autostrzii Pierdute a fost
gsirea i studierea relaiilor lips de-a lungul auto-
strzii i explorarea lor ca un model pentru o Europ
divers. Urmnd linia de-a lungul i din jurul
Autostrzii Pierdute, prin teritoriul necunoscut al
sensurilor moderne ale Balcanilor de Vest, imagi-
nat drept model pentru viitoarea Europ, membrii
expediiei au explorat noi modele ale legturilor
semnicative i sustenabile ale diferitor entiti.
O ntrebare care persist schimbrii teritoriilor n
cursul expediiilor este dac e posibil s construieti
o via mai bun care s e ne-utopic i fr iluzii
ideologice.
Expediia autostrzii pierdute a nceput n
Ljubljana i a trecut prin Zagreb, Novi Sad, Belgrad,
Skopje, Pristina, Tirana, Podgorica pentru a se
termina n Sarajevo, avnd dou zile de eveni-
mente n ecare ora i o zi de cltorie ntre ele.
Evenimentele au inclus tururi ghidate, prezentri i
forumuri organizate de asociaiile locale, seminarii
ntre cltorii participani i experii locali, discuii,
expoziii, spectacole radio, picnicuri i alte mani-
festri auto-organizate de oraele gazd. Membrii
Expediiei Autostrzii Pierdute nu au trebuit s c-
ltoreasc sau s stea mpreun i au putut intra sau
iei din expediie pentru orice durat de timp i n
orice punct. Membrii s-au autogospodrit, au spriji-
nit i realizat cltoria dup cum doreau. Fiecare era
liber s participe la orice eveniment vroia sau s in-
troduc un eveniment propriu pe autostrad. Vetile
despre expediie circulau asemenea unor zvonuri
de la prieteni la prieteni, de la colegi ctre colegi. O 93
ny ny
nd nd
as as
colleagues to colleagues. A multitude of indi-
viduals, groups and institutions formed a massive
intelligent swarm. Te expedition generated new
projects, new art works, new networks, new archi-
tecture and new politics based on experience and
knowledge found along the highway.
All projects together yielded the production of
analysis, expressions and initiatives in wide forms
of visual, textual and design works, and were pre-
sented in exhibitions, publications, conferences,
workshops, interactive web, dynamic mappings,
participatory cultural contests and other events.
Te premise of these actions lied in the thought
that the fate of contemporary cities lies between
the uniformity of incorporated Europeanization and
the Balkanizing capacity of self-organizations, and
urban landscapes are the chosen spaces for cultural,
ethnic and religious conicts and resolutions. Lost
Highway expedition thought that this grim perspec-
tive of unstable and unpredictable future of Europe
can also bring the change necessary for building the
next free and civil society; a compelling quest would
like to imagine. And this all begins with the expe-
ditions that behave like a moving community, to
permeate the inexible lines of old borders and form
destined networks of new territories.
mulime de indivizi, grupuri i instituii au
format un roi masiv i inteligent. Expediia a gene-
rat noi proiecte, noi lucrri de art, noi reele, o nou
arhitectur i o nou politic bazat pe experiena i
cunotinele descoperite pe parcursul autostrzii.
Toate proiectele realizate au urmrit produ-
cerea n comun a unei analize, a unor expresii i
iniiative n diverse forme vizuale, textuale sau de
design i au fost prezentate n expoziii, publicaii,
conferine, seminarii, web interactiv, explorri
dinamice, competiii culturale participative i alte
evenimente. Premisa acestor aciuni se aa n ideea
c soarta oraelor contemporane se a ntre uni-
formitatea europenizrii incorporate i capacitatea
balcanizant a auto-organizrii, iar peisajele urbane
sunt spaiile alese pentru conicte i rezoluii
culturale, etnice i religioase. Expediia autostrzii
pierdute a considerat c aceast perspectiv sumbr
a viitorului instabil i imprevizibil al Europei poate
aduce schimbarea necesar pentru construirea vi-
itoarei societi libere i civile; o explorare convin-
gtoare a imaginat. i toate acestea au nceput
cu expediiile care se comport ca o comunitate
aat n micare, pentru a penetra liniile inexibile
ale vechilor granie i a forma reele ale unor noi
teritorii.
9
#1
THE LOST HIGHWAY EXPEDITION IS AN INTERDISCIPLINARY AND
CROSS-NATIONAL RESEARCH PROJECT TRIED TO IMAGINE ECONOMICAL,
POLITICAL, AND CULTURAL GEOGRAPHIES FOR THE UNKNOWN FUTURE
OF BALKAN. IT WAS SET UP AS MASSIVE MOVEMENT OF INDIVIDUALS
PLOTTING A ROUTE FROM LJUBLJANA TO ZAGREB, NOVI SAD, BELGRADE,
SKOPJE, PRISHTINA, TIRANA, PODGORICA, AND SARAJEVO FROM JULY 30
TO AUGUST 25, 2006. INITIATED BY CENTRALA FOUNDATION FOR FUTURE
CITIES (CFFFC), ROTTERDAM AND SCHOOL OF MISSING STUDIES: ANA
DZOKIC, MARC NEELEN, KATHERINE CARL, SRDJAN WEISS, MARJETICA
POTRC, KYONG PARK, AZRA AKSAMIJA, IVAN KUCINA. LHE SYMPOSIUMS
AT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY, NEW YORK AND CAVS, MIT BOSTON, OCTOBER
2006. LOST HIGHWAY EXHIBITION, SKUC, LJUBLJANA, 2007. LOST
HIGHWAY PHOTOBOOK, 2007. BUILDING LOST HIGHWAY, 2008, LEXICON
OF PROVISIONAL FUTURES, 2009
EXPEDIIA AUTOSTRZII PIERDUTE ESTE UN PROIECT DE CERCETA-
RE INTERDISCIPLINAR I TRANSNAIONAL CARE A NCERCAT S
IMAGINEZE GEOGRAFIILE ECONOMICE, POLITICE I CULTURALE ALE
VIITORULUI NECUNOSCUT AL BALCANILOR. A FOST ORGANIZAT CA O
MICARE MASIV A INDIVIZILOR PE UN TRASEU DE LA LJUBLJANA LA
ZAGREB, NOVI SAD, BELGRAD, SKOPJE, PRISTINA, TIRANA, PODORICA I
SARAJEVO DE LA 30 IULIE LA 25 AUGUST 2006. INIIAT DE FUNDAIA
CENTRALA PENTRU VIITOARELE ORAE (CENTRALA FOUNDATION
FOR FUTURE CITIES - CFFFC), ROTTERDAM I COALA STUDIILOR
LIPS (SCHOOL OF MISSING STUDIES): ANA DZOKIC, MARC NEELEN,
KATHERINE CARL, SRDJAN WEISS, MARJETICA POTRC, KYONG PARK,
AZRA AKSAMIJA, IVAN KUCINA. SIMPOZIOANE ALE EAP AU AVUT LOC LA
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY, NEW YORK I CAVS, MIT BOSTON, OCTOMBRIE
2006. EXPOZIIA AUTOSTRZII PIERDUTE, SKUC, LJUBLJANA, 2007.
ALBUMUL AUTOSTRZII PIERDUTE, 2007. CONSTRUIND AUTOSTRADA
PIERDUT, 2008, LEXICONUL VIITORULUI TEMPORAR, 2009
www.
europelostandfound.
net
9
Despre un anume hedonsim autodis-
tructiv i alte deniii
+ lmul Looking for October din pro-
gramul School of Missing Studies
+ alte articole noi i resursele de
text i imagine ale acestui proiect
Ur#1 pe dvd si web
About a self-destructive
hedonism and other denitions
+ the lm Looking for October made
under School of Missing Studies
program
+ many other features, texts and im-
age resources of this project
UR#1 on dvd and web
#1
Temele celor 3 volume
Urban Report sunt / The
Themes of the 3 Urban
Report Volumes are:
Vol 1: Poetica tranziiei n
derulare / The Poetics of
Transition on the Run
Vol 2: Condiiile urbanitii
autoreglementate / The
Conditions of Self-Regulated
Urbanity
Vol 3: Pionierii practicilor
emergente / The Pioneers of
Emergent Practices
Bucureti, Soa, Budapesta, Belgrad i
multe alte locuri ca acestea
Ce lipsete din orae, din arhitectura nou
nc? Plusvaloarea, o perspectiv coerent
n timp, savoir faire sau savoir vivre?
Numrul de fa nregistraz n cele patru
ri diverse tipuri de ciocniri, de cutri,
de energii, de situaii critice, dar a cror
constante rmn nostalgia i umorul (chiar
involuntar) care coloreaz rezultatele nale.
Bucharest, Soa, Budapest, Belgrade and
many other places like these
What is missing in those cities, from that
new architecture? The added value, a
coherent approach in time, a savoir faire or
savoir vivre?
This issue records various types of clashes,
energies, critical stances in the four
countries, whose common constant is the
nostalgia and humour (be it involuntary)
marking the nal results.
#1
2011
www.urbanreport.ro