Postconstructivism

Moscow, Park Kultury, Entrance pavilion, by G.T.Krutikov, V.S.Popov, 1935, demolished 1949. Note the slim, square columns without capitals.

Postconstructivism was a transitional architectural style that existed in the Soviet Union in the 1930s, typical of early Stalinist architecture before World War II. The term postconstructivism was coined by Selim Khan-Magomedov, a historian of architecture, to describe the product of avant-garde artists' migration to Stalinist neoclassicism.[1][2] Khan-Magomedov identified postconstructivism with 1932–1936, but the long construction time and vast size of the country extended the period to 1941.

Existence of this style is evident, but Khan-Magomedov's explanation of its evolution as a natural process inside the architectural community, rather than as a result of political direction by the Party and State, is strongly disputed.[citation needed]

  1. ^ Russian: С.О.Хан-Магометов. «Архитектура Советского авангарда».Т1. Москва. Стройиздат. 1996 (S.O. Khan-Magomedov, "Soviet avantgarde architecture", 1996)
  2. ^ English 1987 version: Khan-Magomedov, "Pioneers of Soviet Architecture: The Search for New Solutions in the 1920s and 1930s", Thames and Hudson Ltd, ISBN 978-0-500-34102-5