An Aerochrome Soviet Saturday
I've been having a lot of fun doing the whole Aerochrome film emulation thing lately. Especially in areas with quite a few trees. One thing I really noticed though was that the colours really pull out that Soviet aesthetic on within the concrete jungle side of things. I figured I'd have some fun testing that out. Starting with a fun Soviet era monument in a park nearby. And following up with some large panelka high rise buildings from the Soviet 70s. There's something to these buildings which has a bit of charm to me, I find them aesthetically pleasing despite how others tend to view the Soviet aesthetic as a bit more depressive.
I think some of it comes from my love for the cyberpunk genre growing up, fascinated in the unique architecture the genre would bring in film and television, even games. The style of buildings which tower around all else and have that design that feels like it really has something to say. There's an atmosphere within such areas that feels old, but otherworldly. Where time and decay, much like within the cyberpunk genre, have reclaimed some of the surroundings with overgrowth despite the strong concrete tones and structures sitting around. Courtyards feel much that way too, where signs of the previous world remain in the form of old bins, park benches and playgrounds. Sometimes even paintings of old Soviet cartoon characters.
The density of these high rises can sometimes be a bit much. You often wonder how people get any sunlight at all in the lower apartments. Sometimes I walk through these areas and question it, seeing how dark they are even in the daytime. I often wonder how people live in them with that lack of light, how low their energy must be to be surrounded by shadow at all times, how the chaos of the city life right outside the windows can influence their comfort; did they get their apartments during the Soviet Union and just generationally cling to them? Did they buy these places and just don't really care? In some instances you see how people have illegally added extra rooms to these lower floors. Though here you can't really see that, which I suppose is a good thing after all given the sheer danger of such illegal structures.
I saved this last one because I think it's my favourite. The shape of this panelka is really different to the typical one. I think it's a little older than the 70s ones, these tend to be much wider buildings. You can see how people have covered up their balconies over the years, where the original ones remain open. The design of shapes is really interesting, where the building was basically placed together like a game of Tetris that got a bit out of hand. I plan to photograph architecture a bit more in the future with the wider lenses I now have. Though I shot these with the Sony A6000 on the 35mm lens, which equates to about a 50mm on full frame. So still a bit tight!
You're approaching the matter from the wrong direction.
During communism, companies offered apartments to workers and they paid rent. Many were happy to get an apparent and as you know, beggars can't be choosers and they were happy to have a roof over their head. Comfort, view area was a luxury many could not afford.
After the communist era ended, where it ended, many of these apartments could be bought at an affordable price and tenants had priority. When you lived there for X years, you call it home, so you buy it.
Another explanation is that when your budget is limited, yoh don't have the luxury to be fussy.
Oh this brought back some dormant memories!
I was living in Tbilisi in a classic Khrushchevka (four floors, no lift, built in the Stalin era). It was incredibly decayed but the location was near perfect. The apartment was basically a studio: tiny main living room/bedroom and a separate small kitchen room. This was a tiny place that was built shortly after the Second World War. I suspect it doesn't have much time left with the condition it was in. Even with few belongings, I have no idea how anyone could've lived in that! Though it was arguably built at a different time. The other apartments in the building were a little bit larger, only the middle ones were the smallest.
Though even so the building was constructed in such a different time before people needed so much space for all their extra belongings, no huge televisions and the likes taking up space. And I suppose all a single worker would need is a small room and a place to cook. The oldest buildings in that area of Tbilisi had natural sulphur water that would be taken from the earth below; newer buildings didn't have it because of the difficulties and preferences people now have (one being not having the smell of rotting eggs when you shower), but the water was definitely the best part of it!
Anyway, rambling on a bit. Yeah it's interesting to see how people lived back then. I've seen buildings constructed a few decades later have apartments that look like modern penthouses. Massive places. Fancy lifts. The most beautiful balconies and oddly shaped windows to heighten that creativity in the architecture. Really shows how much changes within just such a few short decades.
Maybe I should tell you about the mentality and goals back then. When the state built those apartment buildings, the goal was to fit as many apartments and buildings in a place as possible, at the lowest cost possible. This is why those buildings are what they are and people were happy to get a flat for free.
These people were mostly industrial workers, with limited education, so their needs were simple and therefore their life as well wad simple. There was no internet, there were no big screen TVs. They went to work, went shopping on the way home, they also stayed in long lines for groceries and basics as that's how communism was designed and then did chores at home, when there was electricity.
So life was pretty simple and dull, days were repetitive, each day was pretty much the same and life was getting worse every day.
So what we have today is luxury, compared to those days.