Lliving in Estonia as an Architect
Not wanting to analyze the building of dwelling houses in Estonia
inefficiently and seemingly
scientifically (where would I have got competent statistics from), I
simply try to express the
thoughts which are connected with that topics somehow and have come
into my mind.
What kind of "scientific" analysis it could be or who should make it,
if even the architectural
critics seem not to manage with the simplest things. That reminds me
an article in the EE
some time ago about a Finnish lady (naturally in Finland) completing
or taking her doctor's
degree. She was examining Finnish post-war modern house, it's
morphology, the structure
of the Finnish family, the connections between them and making
conclusions which extend
to this day. Those observations about architecture were much more
smarter than those
that the most of self-confident architects could do. Unfortunately it
has to be confessed that
I don't remember such a research work or sentiments in Estonian
science, but no doubt,
they could be necessary. The typology of the houses used by most of
the architects goes
back to the living model of the middle class at the end of the 19th
century. That model was
idealized and carried on through a hundred of years up to the end of
this century. No doubt
that our living style is changing - repeating banalities: paradigm
changes - as well as the
composition and make-up of the family. There was a news in a
newspaper about Estonia
which declared that 50 % of the children are illegitimate (it is
possible, of course, that some
parents live together without getting married officially) and 12,5 %
of the born children
know nothing about their fathers. The living with grandparents is not
so popular any more.
(As to the models of living it is worth of observing what has
happened in North-America -
though some europercentage followers don't accept that - it may
happen that we will be
on the same development level soon. In that country the grown-up
children don't want to
live with their fathers and mothers, at least statistically). Even
such an every day activity as
cooking is changing essentially. An apartment or house is not a small
production unit with its
storages, kitchen and dining room any more. The kitchen can be as
presentable as the
dining room, also the furniture and the quality of the activities,
they can become more
melted. There are some theorists who admit that not only eating but
washing procedures
as well will leave the house to so-called town-social level. In the
house there will be only a
bed, a computer for communication and toilet. It won't happen so
soon, but one has to
keep an eye on that branch of development. Talking into account the
above mentioned
statements it seems rather logical that the present day "style of
living" which is
monofunctionally divided into the units, should be replaced by a
multifunctional and more
universal room. The architects can make their conclusions if they
want to. The society is
coming more and more complicated, more individual-centered /
individualized and that
ought to be reflected in the typological and functional development
of the house /
apartment. The situation in Estonia is a bit curious just now perhaps
even ridiculous. On the
one hand we have been left a huge amount of apartments - living
units, on the other hand
these don't satisfy the real needs of the society any more. The
problem doesn't lie in the
apartment or house, but in that complete, and if you wish, harmonious
world where these
houses are situated. And that is why it is very difficult to prevent
Lasnamae from turning to a
ghetto. The houses can be heated outside and apartments decorated
inside, but it gives
satisfaction for a short time only. The single coquettish villages
built in the old districts
between the houses look strange. The dissonance doesn't exist between
the houses
themselves but between the styles of living. The groups of 5 - 10
houses in the picturesque
landscape at the seaside also can't create the complete society if
they are situated next to
the fishery and sawmills. There are some districts in Estonia where
the small houses with
more complete treatment have come into being. The suburb romantic
idyll is ruling there,
also mentally as the motto of the area is to be similar and alike,
with no any differences
from the thoughts of dear neighbors. Those so-called new-rich who
have enough money to
build need the house as the symbol of status and they actually don't
value the environment.
I would like to pay attention to the matter that has annoyed me for
some time. I can't
understand these critics who treat the houses on the steep banks of
Tabasalu with irony,
calling them bad PM and admitting that the functionality with
stylistics originating from the
20ies is not so much PM, and a better one. Of course, that is the
question of taste. But if we
don't think the stylistics to be the most important and do not throw
away inevitably
everything "American"; then to be honest, those houses - purely
morphologically - are
composed very nicely if compared with sisters built somewhere else.
The main trouble in
that area results in so-called planning, or if you wish - town
building. Unfortunately it
seems that it is not yet the right time to discuss that complicating
matter in Estonia. Mainly
the highway engineers are handling these problems and town building
as the complex of
cultural decisions hasn't been discussed. Actually there is a
disagreement between the
frequency and character of the houses - that is where to look for
main mistakes. But
behind that are the desires of the customers, difficulties in getting
the ownership of land,
stereotype thinking of the planning architect - our cultural
background altogether. If to
think about the future, keeping an eye on the same cultural
background, I have to say that
the Estonians, if to express decently, are not too keen to fight the
challenge of age (by the
way, an excellent opportunity for the apologists of modernism) and
taking use of that
characteristics at least younger architects could accept the
possibilities offered by present
time. Certainly not everybody likes these possibilities and only a
few real estate agents will
be interested, but according to my own experience there are some of
them, in Estonia too.
It is also important that looking at the things otherwise and
spreading that vision we can
reach the situation where the words "cheap" and "ecological" have
great value. And
considering our relatively poverty it is not a bad result at all.
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