Issue 2(70)/2022

DOI: 10.5277/ARCHITECTUS

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Articles

Monika Ewa Adamska - Arthur Kickton (1861–1944) – architect of churches and his designs in Silesia. Between tradition and modernity

doi:10.37190/arc220201

Arthur Kickton is a German architect educated at the Technical University in Berlin, specializing in sacred architecture, professionally connected mainly with East Prussia and Silesia. The article presents Kickton’s most important implementations and designs of sacred objects in Silesia, in a chronological way, with an outline of the architect’s occupational biography. The aim of the publication is to indicate formal solutions applied by the architect, distinguish elements contributing to the individual character of his architectural works and define the features of his style. The article makes use of the method of historical investigations and interpretation and the method of logical argumentation based on analysis and synthesis. The research carried out has shown that Kickton’s sacred architecture in Silesia combines solutions between tradition and modernity. The architect freely drew from the heritage of the styles of past epochs. He creatively transformed and modernized historical patterns of sacred art using the language of contemporary forms and innovative material solutions.

Keywords:

    church

    sacred-architecture

    arthur-kickton

    silesia

Ewa Węcławowicz-Gyurkovich - The deconstructivist trend in Polish architecture of the 21th century – selected examples

doi:10.37190/arc220202

The article is devoted to the presentation and analysis of the aesthetics of the forms and structures of several selected realisations in Polish architecture, which represent a very elitist trend called Deconstruction. This trend appeared in world architecture mainly at the beginning of the 1980s. It arrived in Poland with a long delay of several decades, as it was only in the 2nd decade of the 21st century that several new cultural objects were realised. After outlining the most important features of this trend, the author analysed and discussed the following selected examples based on an analysis of realisations in Western Europe and the USA: the Fire Museum in Żory (opened in 2014), the Jordanki Cultural and Congress Centre in Toruń (opened in 2015) and the Museum of the World War II in Gdańsk (opened in 2017). In each realisation, as can be observed in the examples of well-known Western creators, the individual philosophy of the architects is important. The article presents the statements of the creators of these buildings. The author also pointed out that at the end of the 1990s, individual realisations of detached houses, private production workshops and interiors appeared in our country as part of this trend. In each case, the aesthetic analysis of these works showed that the selected buildings are representative of the discussed trend, implementing its avant-garde premises, depicting the emotions and moods of deconstruction.

Keywords:

    deconstruction

    realisations

    aesthetic

    structure-of-forms

Ivona Dlábiková, Martina Peřinková, Jan Kovář - Brief history of crematoria and mourning halls. Modern cremation history

doi:10.37190/arc220203

Cremation was a common way of burying in old cultures, for example in Ancient Greece, Celts, Ancient Rome, Vikings and many other cultures around the world. In Europe burial practices changed since the Christian culture ruled the society, because it did not support this kind of burials and later Charles the Great prohibited the cremation under pain of death. This ban lasted in Europe almost thousand years. The church started to tolerate the cremation as a way of burying only in 1963. In spite of the church’s opinion, the societies built the first crematoriums in Europe from 1874. But these buildings for cremation have nothing to do with the old cremation rituals when the body was burnt down on a big amount of wood which lasted several hours. The main part of new buildings are furnaces and chimneys where the body is burnt after around one hour. This old – new way of burying brought a new type of buildings and the discussion as to the style and symbolism of this architecture was huge. In the crematorium building a new type of space emerged, namely a mourning hall. Later this space was separated from a crematorium and created an independent unit. Mourning halls are now a common type of architecture in Europe and exist side by side with churches, where the religious funerals are generally held. In other parts of the world the old types of ritual cremation with wood are preserved until today, however, the modern cremation became more suitable in these countries as well.     The aim of the article was to clearly describe circumstances in which the spaces for modern cremation were built. The main method was studying styles of the first crematorium buildings and literature for this topic. These structures would never have been built without an effort of few personalities, who, despite the general Christian opinion, succeeded in establishing the first crematoriums.

Keywords:

    crematorium

    modern-cremation

    architecture

    mourning-hall

    history

    burying

    furnaces

    ash

Zuzanna Napieralska - Spontaneous transformation of single family house settlements from 1970–1989 on the examples of Polish cities

doi:10.37190/arc220204

The article presents a problem related to uncontrolled and spontaneous transformation of the landscape of single-family house complexes from the period of Polish Socialism. Analyzed transformations are the consequences of the need for house condition improvement, by thermo-modernizing them, building extensions or window frame replacement. These instances of building interference are unavoidable, due to poor house conditions. Currently there are no regulations and criteria describing the correct and effective modernization of single-family buildings in the context of the whole house settlement. Due to uncontrolled renovation of particular houses, chaos enters the unified and transparent layout of house complex. The article presents the current condition of several single-family housing estates from the years 1970–1989. The author intends to find an answer to the following question: is it possible to modernize and extend individual buildings belonging to one coherent housing estate, maintaining its integral character and spatial harmony?

Keywords:

    single-family-house-complexes

    residential-complex

    modernization

    socialist-architecture

    residential-common-space

Jolanta Sroczyńska - Preventive maintenance of historical buildings in European countries – analysis of selected examples

doi:10.37190/arc220205

Architectural heritage, due to its material nature, is extremely sensitive to factors contributing to its degradation. Preventive conservation is currently the best way to protect the material authenticity of heritage and is well established in archaeology and museology. The protection of immovable heritage still lacks a proper understanding of this type of action.     The article presents a few selected examples of the application of such a method of historic preservation in Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Italy and the region bordering France, Spain and Portugal. Several years of positive experience from such initiatives is reason enough to implement similar measures in Poland as well. Dissemination of knowledge of preemptive actions, which will allow the preparation of appropriate safeguards for the monument even before the threat occurs, is undoubtedly the most optimal solution. However, it is necessary to properly assist owners of monuments to provide them not only with additional funds for the ongoing maintenance of buildings, but also with a more complete and reliable knowledge about the vulnerability of a given building to various types of degradation. Modern historic preservation should replace the previous reactive approach with planned preventive maintenance.

Keywords:

    preventive-conservation

    risk-management

    architectural-monuments

    historic-buildings

Magdalena Wiśniewska - Form-based codes versus urban revitalization of historical city centers. Opportunities and dangers

doi:10.37190/arc220206

The aim of the article is the presentation of new methods and tools applied in city planning and revitalization projects. It is also a result of the wide interests and recognition of contemporary city spaces condition and methods which can be used to successfully shape harmonious urban space and create desirable living conditions for residents that will go forward their everyday needs.     The article draws attention to the challenges related with searching for new, effective tools and methods used in the urban planning in the face of contemporary transformations of historical downtown space, as well as in connection with the need to efficiently revitalize urban spaces in many Polish cities. It shows the complexity of activities undertaken on many levels, focusing on aspects of urban renewal and revitalization processes with the special context of cultural and historical heritage. It is also an attempt to recognize the assumptions of the SmartCode, a special type of form-based code proposed by the New Urbanism, and considers the possibility of the application of the method in local regulations – taking into account the cultural and spatial context of Polish cities. Author searches for an answer to the following question: Can form-based codes be an effective tool in the revitalization of urban, historical space? What is the potential of this tool – what opportunities it offers and what risks it entails?     The reflection on these issues is based on the analysis of the written sources, literature on the subject and analysis of case studies of selected architectural and urban cases. The selected examples are presented in the aspect of application of the local building tradition over the years, and how it can refer to that category in the context of the SmartCode methodology.     For this purpose, selected references were based on the explanations done by town planners and architects to apply the local building and historical tradition in, e.g., the post-war reconstruction of the city spaces, promotion of socialist realism, popularity of postmodernism, historicism, and retroversion. The analyses of this approach led us to look over the similar aspect of the SmartCode methodology. As a result, it is found that this approach [supported by a transect, charette workshops, and by relevant local legal regulations] is a coherent and comprehensive tool in urban planning, successfully applied in the American countries, both in newly designed city spaces and in the transformation of the existing ones.     The important aspect of the undertaken research was the recognition whether it is possible to simply copy that methodology in Poland. After acknowledgment of the subject it should be noted that due to significant cultural differences (e.g., a centuries-old and complex history of urban planing) and a different tradition of building, it can be defined that there is number of threats and fears related to the attempt to apply them directly in the revitalization of the historical space of Polish cities. However, it should be indicated that following on the SmartCode methodology, it can be a valuable inspiration to look for appropriately modified local solutions and it can also be an interesting starting point for a discussion on the role of cultural heritage in contemporary transformations of urban space and the purposefulness of contemporary references to historical forms.

Keywords:

    urban-revitalization

    smartcode

    planning-tools

    form-based-codes

    retroversion

Robert Idem, Katarzyna Zielonko-Jung, Aleksandra Karpińska - Vernacular and low-tech technologies in humanitarian architecture on the example of Senegal

doi:10.37190/arc220207

Humanitarian architecture belongs to the broader trend of socially engaged architecture, whose main goal is to introduce new values to the quality of life of particular communities. Specifically, humanitarian architecture deals with aid to poverty-stricken communities. The context of economic constraints poses a particular challenge to architects and builders. It is a matter of natural necessity to look for cheap, locally available materials and solutions that can be applied by unskilled labor. The above article discusses the applicability of native and low-tech technologies as basic construction methods for humanitarian architecture. The research focuses on Senegal, located in West Africa. The article aims to identify material and construction solutions in buildings related to humanitarian aid and social support on behalf of the local community, erected or designed in Senegal. An analysis of four examples in Senegal was conducted, namely, two implemented facilities and two planned ones. The basic criteria for the analysis were provided by the social purpose these objects serve, as well as by the materials and technologies applied. The conclusions concern the types and scope of vernacular and low-tech technologies applied, as well as the correlation between the analyzed objects’ design and construction and sustainable development.

Keywords:

    humanitarian-architecture

    vernacular-architecture

    sustainable-development

Ewa Cisek, Matylda Gacek - Color in eco-architecture as a representation of natural processes

doi:10.37190/arc220208

The article aims to analyze the relationships between natural processes of organic materials which are used in eco-architecture and the resulting color effects. It was indicated that images of objects may undergo irreversible changes, when the material used undergoes natural biodegradation over time, as well as cyclical changes – then the applied living matter is periodically reborn in colors consistent with year-round natural rhythms. These solutions, which are implemented on various scales, are defined as new forms of art forming a combination of architecture and biology. Our research on color is part of the framework considerations on the transformation of the urban landscape into environmentally friendly eco-structures of various scales. Analyses of ecological implementations show that the idea of an organic city and introducing nature to cities in various forms of eco-architecture are part of a long-term deep ecology movement initiated in Norway, which is becoming a means of fighting the climate crisis. This study proves a high value and great importance of these applications for achieving diverse and rich color ranges in architecture, while significantly reducing the negative impact of these practices on the natural environment, compared to, e.g., synthetic building materials. Such practices should be particularly promoted in the context of the advancing climate crisis, and research into materials of organic origin should be given priority.

Keywords:

    eco-color

    eco-architecture

    renewable-energies

    ecology

    colors-of-earth

Ewa Netczuk-Pol - Colour as an element ordering the common space in educational objects. On the example of Maria Dąbrowska Primary School No. 1 in Wrocław

doi:10.37190/arc220209

The article discusses general issues related to creating the space of educational objects in terms of colour. The perception of school space is influenced by many factors such as light, temperature, air quality, space flexibility, sense of belonging, space complexity and colour. The latter plays an important role in the perception of rooms and influences human behaviour, because apart from sound and smell, it is one of the most important stimuli perceived by our brain. Nevertheless, most of the existing schools in Poland which were built up to 1990 do not take into account colour as a factor influencing student behaviour. This issue has only recently received attention. This article presents a case study of Maria’s Dąbrowska Primary School No. 1 in Wrocław. For the needs of this school, as part of the “Constructing Cultural Educational Space” program organized by Wrocław Contemporary Museum, a project was prepared to introduce colour into the interior while maintaining the historical character and substance of the object and taking into account the influence of colour on the child’s psyche. The presented interior rearrangement project may become the beginning of further research on the issue of colour and its role in shaping educational spaces.

Keywords:

    colour

    primary-school

    composition

Katarzyna Słuchocka - Perception of architecture in the context of an extended-spectrum of cognitive factors. Selected issues

doi:10.37190/arc220210

Perception of architectural forms takes place in the processes of conscious and unconscious reception of architecture, during the observation or use of architectural spaces. Deepened perception as a result of sensory interpretation and reinterpretation may be of great importance in the processes of shaping the architectural environment, which is the context of our existence. The article discusses the problem of recognizing and categorizing architecture and the possibility of broadening the cognitive spectrum for the optimization of design processes.     An architectural object perceived as an image remains a multi-format commentary also in its written form, accompanying people at every stage of their life, often having an impact on its quality. By careful observation and comparative analysis, based on selected examples from both the country and the world, referring to the author’s artistic interpretations and semantics, an attempt was made to indicate a new opening in the procedures of recognizing architecture. The aim is to confirm the thesis that the choice of observations, according to the existing, specific conditions of shaping architectural forms, relates to the sphere of sensory experience and may constitute another element facilitating the understanding and shaping of architecture. It is also important to show the relationship and links between the data obtained during the analysis and interpretation of images as well as their influence on the shaping of architectural spaces.

Keywords:

    architectural-form

    remark

    image

    perception

Mirosław Nizio - From imagination to space. Architecture and museum exhibition as a dialogue and interaction

doi:10.37190/arc220211

The article presents the design philosophy of Mirosław Nizio, architect and sculptor, creator of many realised and conceptual museum projects, founder and owner of the Nizio Design International studio. The author of the paper pays particular attention to the idea of dialogue, to which he has subordinated all his projects, and which he understands in a multifaceted way as: a personal dialogue with the audience through architecture, a discussion between architecture and landscape, as well as an inner monologue touching on his personal feelings and experiences. The text presents Nizio Design International’s best-known projects, such as the Mausoleum of the Martyrdom of Polish Villages in Michniów, The Ulma Family Museum of Poles Saving Jews in World War II in Markowa or The Blessed Father Jerzy Popiełuszko Museum in Okopy.

Keywords:

    contemporary-architecture

    architectural-design

    architecture-of-dialogue

    museum

Editorial board - “Tomasz Mańkowski. Architecture is the most important thing”. The exhibition at the Museum of Architecture in Wrocław

doi:10.37190/arc220212

The subject of the review is the monographic exhibition entitled “Tomasz Mańkowski. Architecture is the most important thing”, which has been presented at the Museum of Architecture in Wrocław since June and is on up to October 2022. Tomasz Mańkowski (1926–2012), the main hero of the exhibition, was an architect, professor and lecturer at the Faculty of Architecture of the Cracow University of Technology. His professional activity, covering a period of over fifty years, focused on the issues of geometry and form, whereas in the structural and functional layer on prefabrication and housing. The exhibition presents the artist’s profile and his most important achievements, which were the result of independent or team work (including competition concepts from the period of the Gomułka Thaw, the Student Village of the Cracow University of Technology, a General Housing Program for Iraq, the Polish College in Przegorzały, the Village Children’s Hospital in Rajsko near Oświęcim, Radio Kraków). Tomasz Mańkowski’s architecture was presented against a broad background of social, political, and cultural events. The exhibition is distinguished not only by an interesting program concept which significantly contributes to the current state of knowledge about post-war architecture and urban planning, but also by an elegant arrangement.

Keywords:

    tomasz-mańkowski

    polish-architecture

    exhibition

    museum-of-architecture-in-wrocław