Gilma Teodora Gylytė: notes after a walk with Deyan Sudijc | Culture

We gave the main awards to healing, unifying, connecting architecture:

to the pedestrian bridge that connected the two parts of the town cut off by the highway and finally people can move freely and not divide the town into two parts, but simply live in one town Litomysl;

in the former historical slaughterhouse for the art gallery, in a beautiful brick building that was literally cut into large doorways during the Soviet era, and subtly restored with moving concrete parts – a new quality, the historical impression tells regarding the historical and Soviet reality of the Czech Republic. By the way, this work has just been selected among the seven nominated by Mies van der Rohe, which is extremely important in our context;

The extension of the balconies of the Soviet apartment buildings, which fantastically demonstrated the power of the community and completely changed the quality of life for those living here.

Evaldos Činga’s photo/St. Calming church

With an international commission of architects from Great Britain, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, we discussed the projects through the prism of contemporary architecture and sustainability, and I was perhaps even obsessively reminded of the history of our Bloodlands, as Timothy Snyder wrote, and the legacy of spatial propaganda that cannot be forgotten and which it is necessary to transform.

And this seems to me to be much more important than surprising architectural forms for effect or changed colorful facades, when our schools and residential areas still carry that silent spatial propaganda that does not encourage community.

Half a year later, the honorable Deyan Sudijc came to Vilnius to present the book “Power Architecture” published by the Lapas publishing house, during the Book Fair. The Lithuanian translation is already the 15th edition of the book, which talks regarding totalitarian states and their power displayed through pompous architecture.

It seems to me that the real power lies in everyday life, not in fanfare, and it is precisely in such a cut – like a city that has been occupied 6 times throughout history, burned at least 4 times, but survived all that and is probably living its golden times today, I thought, I will present Deyan Vilnių , because I got a gift to walk together for half a day.

I thought that for the beginning of such a section through Vilnius, it is most appropriate to start from St. Soothing churches, not yet mentioning why its altar is on the deck..

Evaldos Činga’s photo/St. Calming church

Deyan, – I say, we will start the tour with the churches, because Vilnius is particularly famous for its churches and has probably the most church towers in Western Europe. I might see curiosity in his eyes, but nothing particularly burning, that’s what I was aiming for.

So we moved towards St. Tranquilizers.

We stopped at the City Hall, at the architect VEČekanauskas Contemporary Art Center, which is under renovation. Here I pointed out that the sensitive architects who created during the Soviet era were very cleverly looking for ways to respect the historical identity of Vilnius and its identity through the architectural language, so the architect Čekanauskas bowed and respected Pilies st. to the perspective of the tower of the Church of the Holy Spirit, and left exactly that part of the entrance grounded so that the building of the tower would not obstruct, but rather frame it. Lukas Rekevičius once told this, and I was deeply impressed by this architectural humility, which was possible even in the Soviet era.

We moved on.

When approaching St. Calming monotower, we paused.

Deyan sako, – That is beautiful.

Sakau, it is.

This church is the last baroque building in Vilnius, built around 260 years ago by the Augustinian brothers.

About 160 years ago, it was converted into a church as part of the Russification policy. Then the choir of monks was abolished, the iconostasis was built, the pulpit was demolished, and the ornate rococo altars with sculptures were removed.

Evaldos Činga’s photo/St. Calming church

Between the wars, 106 years ago, it was returned to the Catholics and restored, its spaces were used by the Stephen Batory University.

After World War II,

57 years ago, following the Second World War, Lithuania was occupied by the Soviets, it was converted into a vegetable warehouse, two reinforced concrete floors, a reinforced concrete staircase and a concrete freight elevator shaft were installed in its space.

6 years ago, 250 years following the opening, thanks to the efforts of priest chaplain Algirdas Toliats, Archbishop Metropolitan of Vilnius Amber Gruš celebrated St. The chapel of Virgin Mary the Comforter and the Comforter opened its doors once more to the faithful.

Today, the cafe Pirmas Blynas, a library, a children’s room, a conference space and a church, on the third floor, on the deck, operate here on the three floors of the church.

Vilnius appeared from a completely different angle, as a tireless city fighting for its freedom and its identity.

Deyan was silent as he climbed the reinforced concrete staircase to the church.

We climbed along the baroque walls, which are reinforced with monolithic stairs.

Architectural historian D. Vrubliauskas said that it seems that the person who designed the transformation of the church into a warehouse tried to preserve the most valuable decorative elements wherever possible.

Ascending to the church space on the third floor, seeing the concrete shaft of the freight elevator piercing the baroque vaults, cutting through the nearby wall capital, the old baroque painting that is torn, but still, still remains.

Evaldos Činga’s photo/St. Calming church

Deyan buvo abstulbintas, – How they might do this?

Yes, in this church, the altar is on the deck.

And yes, in our time, on Sundays, mass is held in this church.

We continued walking, and Vilnius appeared from a completely different angle, as a tireless city fighting for its freedom and its identity. Going further, we named and distinguished the streets and buildings that speak an architectural language – which of them connect and bring together, and which of them divide and destroy. Deyan later said that he did not expect to learn so much from Vilnius. Yes, Vilnius is a wonderful and patient teacher in the fight once morest evil.

I grew up in Vilnius, an old European city, torn apart by the Soviet era and modernism. As a Tranquilizer. I watched him all my conscious life, I compared such different parts of him, and I kept wanting to sew him up, heal him. While traveling around old European cities, I was constantly looking for such warm, lively spaces and objects, and at least in my mind, I adapted them to Vilnius.

That’s how I accidentally froze at low, dark street lamp posts, because they were too high and galvanized in Vilnius, I froze at the ivy on houses in London, nettles in Zurich, street markets in France, the coziness of public buildings compared to the spaces of totalitarian power in Vilnius. Gradually, during almost 20 years of such observation, and years of being carried back to the honeycomb, I gradually began to see those essential things that really change and shape human well-being.

And they are often not the ones that are written regarding by the press and not even architectural magazines, they often do not even have a separate budget line, and they are not on the list of objects that politicians are proud of. Most of the time, while observing the surroundings, I thought regarding what I would like to bring to my cut-off Vilnius, what I would also like to have, what they have and don’t notice.

For example, trees in the streets, floor lamps in the windows, unremarkable buildings of state institutions, black human-sized lighting poles, ivy on the walls. Also, I realized that not only Vilnius, not only all of Lithuania, not only almost half of Europe, which was occupied by the Soviets, was cut off, and the old cities, even though they have such strong roots, get lost in the modern noise. I am sure that the principles of the human-scale environment are humane and universal, corresponding to the constitution of man and nature.

We continued our walk.

After Ramintoja, to calm down, we passed the Bokšto quarter designed by Gvildžiai with the preserved old lime tree,

We visited the courtyards of Vilnius University, – This is astonishing!

Cathedral Square,

Vilnius mountains with former castles,

Šventaragis valley,

the canonized Vilnelė under Barboras Radvilaitė Street,

and when we got to Gediminas Avenue, we stopped.

Here is the Vilnius cross-section line, which, even in a coded bipolar way, tells such a complex friction and constant struggle in Vilnius – the Cathedral at one end of the avenue, the Church at the other. And perimeter houses, depending on the era, depending on the value scale of the person who built and designed them, telling and reflecting very different worlds and very different programs.

– Let’s move to the other side, I say, so that the idea of ​​the Algimantas and Vytautas Nasvyčiai Drama Theater would be better seen. Deyan is used to crossing the streets not through crosswalks, because in London, although the pedestrian crossings are very densely arranged (unlike in Lithuania, according to the Soviet law, two and a half London crosswalks fit into the minimum required distance), they are easy to cross and are not a barrier between the two sides, because the width of the streets is on a human scale.

We stopped. On the left, there is a piece of a seemingly old historical building, but it is newly designed by Nasvyčiai, as a continuation of the historical perimeter, so that the new facade of the Drama Theater might be deepened even more, and the opening space would be inviting and connecting people. And those gathering people would be a sign of invitation, because man attracts man, it is only necessary to create such conditions so that people gather naturally.

– I have never seen anything like this before. This is a landmark building without a building., Deyan ekspresyviai kaip britui išsakė.

Exactly.

It was with such values ​​that the brothers created, maneuvering between totalitarian politics and constantly thinking regarding humanism, regarding man, regarding everyday spaces, how to connect, not how to separate. I tell Deyan that it was Nasvyčiai who constantly said how extremely important it is for architects to design with warm hands. With love. With care.

We continue to experience the Central Post Office (Deyan especially liked the wall clock, and once more, he mightn’t be surprised by the harmony of old and new), was horrified by the scale of the Novotel, and when we stopped by Neringa, he himself offered to drink coffee there. Then I told regarding our next time – modernist Kaunas and holy Neringa, which Nasvytis loved so much and it was its color, materiality, even its name, that he coded in the Neringa restaurant.

He himself made sure that this creation of his lived and was restored, he knew how temporary and constantly changing our world is. That’s why I really like the table by the dressing room, which lists all the authors – architects, artists, textile workers.

It is an opportunity to extend the future, not with self-importance, but humbly, to help the future extend even better than was then conceived. “…the purpose of the profession of an architect is to realize ideas, not just to draw. And if you realize, you are also doing something good for your nation. And those so-called public interests are higher than your profession. Because you can”, I remember Algimantas Nasvytis.

We completed the section of Gediminas Avenue with the Dainava building, created by our team, at the intersection of Dainava and Jasinskis streets. I told you that when designing in Vilnius, you always want to tell the story of the erased memory in urban or architectural language.

I said that here, we turned the building from the perimeter to visually show the old route of Pakalnė Street, which today is erased, cut, destroyed. The Dainava-Pakalnė road was one of the main roads to Vilnius, blocked by an administrative building during the Soviet era, and duplicated with V. Kudirka’s main road, once more cutting through Vilnius. Therefore, that small turn of the building not only formed a miniature public space near the main entrance, but also silently, at least in its small section, immortalized the old Vilnius road.

As soon as we agreed on the design, the client firmly asked me the essential program of the future building – there must be a bright corner of Vilnius that would attract and connect, even when it is dark. Now, as I write this, I am thinking regarding how differently people create such a humanity program in various situations. I think that even those reinforced concrete ceilings, in a baroque church, can be a sign of humanity. Because it’s probably better to have a roof and a freight elevator than a demolished single tower. Thanks to everyone who joins, not warts.

– Vilnius taught me a lot and was much more interesting, said Deyan, already late, following many conversations over the dinner kugel.

*Deyan Sudij – director-emeritus of the London Design Museum, author of bestsellers published by my beloved Penguin publishing house, long-time columnist for The Guardian, editor of Domus.