Socialist Modernism on Your Smartphone: This Research Group is Raising Funds for a Crowdsourcing Mobile App
Recent years have seen a rapidly increasing interest in the architecture of the former Soviet Union. Thanks to the internet, enthusiasts of architectural history are now able to discover unknown buildings on a daily basis, and with the cultural and historical break caused by the collapse of the Soviet Union, each photograph of a neglected and decaying edifice can feel like an undiscovered gem. However, often it can be difficult to find more information about these buildings and to understand their place in the arc of architectural history.
That was the reason behind the creation of Socialist Modernism, a research platform started by BACU - Birou pentru Artă şi Cercetare Urbană (Bureau for Art and Urban Research) which "focuses on those modernist trends from Central and Eastern Europe which are insufficiently explored in the broader context of global architecture." Socialist Modernism already consists of a website on which BACU has cataloged a number of remarkable and little-known buildings. However, now the team is raising funds on Indiegogo's Generosity platform for the next step in their research project. With this money they hope to create an app on which users can add new sites and buildings to the database.
On their fundraising page, BACU describes the background to the project as follows:
The architecture of the Socialist period and more precisely the modernist tendencies of the period between 1955 and 1991, as a concept, is becoming more and more popular in specialists circles [...] Modernism in architecture first arose in the capitalist societies of Western Europe, following a series of essential principles such as "form follows function," the use of mass-produced materials, the adoption of industrial aesthetics, simplicity and formal clarity, and the elimination of unnecessary details. In the socialist countries of Eastern Europe, on the other hand, modernist trends manifested themselves as a result of their influence over professionals, an influence that was able to penetrate beyond the borders and the limits imposed by the Socialist ideology.
In Central and Eastern Europe there is a number of important architectural monuments that are representative of the post WWII identity of each county in which they are located, and express the aspirations of socialist era architects [...] Most of these buildings are found today in an advanced state of decay. Through this initiative we would like to encourage stylistic and architectural discipline and we invite the involvement of local authorities and civil society, so that the architectural value of these buildings would be acknowledged and, along with the surviving social and cultural tissue, be taken into account in the context of urban planning.
Speaking about the app they hope to create, they explain:
All the important socialist modernist landmarks would be included in this platform, allowing them to be accessed by anyone interested in these vestiges. Your contribution would help us create the interactive map and an application that would be made available in app-stores to be downloaded to any mobile device.
Correction update: This article was originally titled "Soviet Modernism on Your Smartphone:..." It was updated on September 25th to reflect the fact that the interests of BACU extend beyond just the former Soviet Union.
© BACU 
Bus stop in Tajikistan, built in the late 70s. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
25 May Sportcenter, now the Sportsko rekreativno poslovni centar, Belgrade, Serbia. Built 1973-75. Architect: Ivan Antic. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Housing complex, Manhattan, Wroclaw, Poland. Built 1968-1973. Architect: Jadwiga Hawrylak-Grabowska. Photo Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Public utilities building for telephone and postal services, Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Built 1966-69. Architect: Vasile Mitreaphoto. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Cast in place concrete housing complex, St. Petersburg, Russia. Built 1986-93. Architects: V. Sokhin, V. Sokolov, P. Kurochkin. Photo by Alla Rusu. Image © BACU 
Housing complex in Halle-Neustadt, Germany. Built 1970-75. Architects: I. Schneider, E.P. Morgner. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
16-story residential building, Minsk, Belarus. Built 1982. Architect: Vladimir Pushkin. Engineers: A. Poterschuk, R. Vigdorchik, T. Yakushkova. Photo by Alla Rusu. Image © BACU 
Former Restaurant NOROC, now Guguta Cafe, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova. Built 1960s. Redesigned in the late 70s. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Slovak Radio building, Bratislava, Slovakia. Built 1967-83. Architect: Štefan Svetko, Štefan Ďurkovič, Barnabáš Kissling. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Hotel Cosmos, Chisinau, Moldova. Built 1983. Architects: B. Banykin, I. Kolbayeva. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Residential building Bolshaya Tulskaya, aka Titanic, Moscow, Russia. Built 1970-86. Architect V. Voskresenskiy, V.Babad, L. Smirnova. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Cinema Oktyabr, Moscow, Russia. Built 1967. Architects: M. Posokhin, A. Mndoyants, V. Svirsky. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Bus Terminal, Nurek, Tajikistan. Built late 1970s. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Matei Ambrozie Commercial Complex, Bucharest, Romania. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Rectorat Building, Politehnica University of Bucharest, Romania. Built 1963-69. Architects: Octav Doicescu with Stephen Lungu-Perianu, Costin Paet, Peter Swoboda. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
State Bank Building, Chisinau, Moldova. Built 1974. Architects: V. Vaysbeyn, S. Shoikhet, G. Kałuszyner. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Housing building, Wrocław, Poland. Architect: Stefan Müller. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Romanita Collective Housing Tower for small family units, Chisinau, Moldova. Built 1978-86. Architect: Oleg Vronsky. Photo by Stefan Rusu. Image © BACU 
Belgrade, Serbia. Built 1971-73. Architects: Darko Marusic, Milenija Marusic, Milan Miodragovic. Image © BACU 
Federal Ministry of Defense, with Beogradjanka Building in the background, Belgrade, Serbia. Built 1956-65. Architect: Nikola Dobrovic. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Apartment building on Begovaya street, aka Centipede or Aviators House, Moscow, Russia. Built 1978. Architects: A. Meyerson, E. Podolskaya, M. Mostovoy, G. Klimenko. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Szell Kalman Ter Metro station, formerly Moszkva Ter, Budapest, Hungary. Built 1972. Architects: Czeglédi István, Székely László. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Hotel Forum Costinesti Resort, Costinesti, Romania. Built 1976. Architect: Stefan Steblea. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Former Ministry of Mineral Resources, Bucharest, Romania. Built 1960s. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Housing building Blocul Rotund, Militari neighborhood, Bucharest, Romania. Built 1978. Architect: Dumitru Aurel Badescu. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Hyparschale Ausstellungszentrum Kulturpark Rotehorn, Magdeburg, Germany. Built 1968-69. Architects: Ulrich Müther with Horst Freytag and Günter Ackermann. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Lower Cable Car Station, Park Butoias, Chisinau, Moldova. Built 1985-89. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Chisinau State Circus, Chisinau, Moldova. Built 1977-81. Architects: Ala Kiricenko, Simion Shoihet, Anatol Colotovkin. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Precast concrete waves, Exhibition Center Romexpo, Bucharest, Romania. Built 1960s. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
City Gates, Development of the entrance to the capital from the airport, Chisinau, Moldova. Built 1980s. Architects: Yu. Skvortsova, A. Markovich and A. Spasov. Photo by Stefan Rusu. Image © BACU 
Ion Mincu University of Architecture and Urbanism, new wing, Bucharest, Romania. Built 1960s. Architects: Elena Voinescu, Gh. Filipeanu and Al. Beldiman. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Romanita Collective Housing Tower for small family units, Chisinau, Moldova. Built 1978-86. Architect: Oleg Vronsky. Photo by Stefan Rusu. Image © BACU 
Hala W-4 Hutmen copper plant, Wrocław, Poland. Photo Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Romanita Collective Housing Tower for small family units, Chisinau, Moldova. Built 1978-86. Architect: Oleg Vronsky. Photo by Stefan Rusu. Image © BACU 
Bacau Sports Hall, Bacau, Romania. Built 1972-75. Architect: Gheorghe Chira. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
The Office of the Moscow Metrobuilding of engineering services, Moscow, Russia. Built 1982. Architects: V. Ginzburg, A. Taranov. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Pavilion of a former furniture store Emilia, Warsaw, Poland. Built 1960-70. Architects: Marian Kuźniar, Czesław Wegner. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Pavilion of International Exhibitions, Minsk, Belarus. Built 1980s. Architects: Leonard Moskalevich, Galina Laskavaya, Viktor Kopylov, Gavril Fedosenko. Photo by Alla Rusu. Image © BACU 
Hotel National, Chisinau, Moldova. Built 1974. Architects: O. Gorbuntov, V. Shalaginov. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
Winery Laboratory and Production Building of Ialoveni Research and Production Association, Republic of Moldova. Built 1980s. Architects: V.Shalaginov, G. Bosenko. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
18-storey Housing Building, Bishkek (formerly Frunze), Kyrgyzstan. Built 1985. Architects: B. Lebedev, I. Kombarbayev, A. Nezhurin, M. Baybekov, Ya. Grinshtein. Photo by Dumitru Rusu. Image © BACU 
House of Fashion, Belarus, Minsk. Built 1960s-70s. Architects: E. Levina, V. Gerashchenko, G. Svyatsky with B. Larchenko, relief Solidarity by sculptor A. Artimovich. Photo by Alla Rusu. Image © BACU
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