Decommunization by Design: Analyzing the Post-Independence Transformation of Soviet-Era Architectural Urbanism in Kyiv, Ukraine
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Decommunization_by_Design_preproof_2022.pdf
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1.19 MB
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Author(s)
Vlasenko, Yegor
Ryan, Brent D.
Date Issued
May 30, 2022
Journal
Journal of Urban History
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Citation
Vlasenko, Y., & Ryan, B. D. (2024). Decommunization by Design: Analyzing the Post-Independence Transformation of Soviet-Era Architectural Urbanism in Kyiv, Ukraine. Journal of Urban History, 50(2), 247-288.
Version
Author's final manuscript
Abstract
This study investigates the spatial effects of the ongoing “decommunization” campaign in Ukraine, a state-led attack on Soviet symbols and ideology in the urban space of the capital, Kyiv. We examine decommunization through the lens of an extensive legacy of architectural, urban design, and monumental art projects erected for the celebration of the 1500th anniversary of the city of Kyiv held in 1982. We focus on four ideological narratives and examine the outcomes of decommunization on four monuments. We find that decommunization’s effect is limited; Communist symbolism has been annotated with Ukrainian identity symbols or neglected, not demolished. We conclude that decommunization has focused on the comparatively superficial qualities of toponomy and Lenin symbols, that the legacy of Soviet identity in Kyiv’s cityscape is much deeper and has proved surprisingly persistent, and that the historiography of the newly independent nation of Ukraine is still in a process of reformation and revision.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Urban Studies and Planning
Terms of Use
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-ShareAlike
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1177/00961442221079802
