Rural Eastern Modernity - Campaign for the Construction of 100 new school buildings in the rural... - Instytut Pileckiego

An Exercising Modernity Scholarship Lecture

Rural Eastern Modernity - Campaign for the Construction of 100 new school buildings in the Rural Area

28.02, 18.00 | Pariser Platz 4A, 10117 Berlin | Register here: https://forms.gle/rYu7UdfaDK9nJrRk8

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Between 1936 and 1937, in just one year, the Second Polish Republic erected 100 schools in the province of Vilnius, each named after Józef Piłsudski. Serving as a commemorative act to honor the late founding father of Polish independence and the political leader of interwar Poland, these schools were constructed away from the architectural spotlights of the time, in the rural eastern part of Europe amid shifting borders. This ambitious project, until now, has remained overseen by researchers.

The Eastern Modernity Scholarship provided a perfect opportunity to delve into this almost undiscovered part of architectural history. In my presentation, I will share insights gathered during my scholarship period, including archival research, on-site visits, and typology studies. The presentation aims to highlight the monumental significance of these schools, portraying them as exemplars of rural modernism.

These schools were conceived as typical projects, blending new
functionalities of the time with international trends, incorporating elements of a national style, integrating local vernacular architecture, and employing pan-European ancient symbols of education.

Małgorzata Burkot is an architect based in Berlin. She graduated from Politechnika Krakowska (PL) and HAWK Hildesheim (DE) in 2014 with a project researching the problem of restoration of the shared German-Polish architectural heritage of the Second World War.

Małgorzata has practiced in the Netherlands, Poland, and Germany working on buildings, interiors, and exhibitions. She is a collaborator of kontektum architektur. Her main research interests are commemoration and lost heritage in architecture and urbanism, as well as gentrification and co-creation as urban processes. She is an enthusiast of modernism and an admirer of rural architecture.