Lazdynai - sukonstruota vietos dvasia?

LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Vietos dvasia; Genius loci; Lazdynai.

ENThe residential area of Lazdynai in Vilnius fits ideally the type of the delocalized environment which was criticized by the architect Christian Norberg-Shulz; however, in the former Soviet Union, Lazdynai was highly regarded not only by specialists but also by the residents, who in their descriptions used unusually numerous categories uncharacteristic of the period discussed and alien for modernist architecture - cosy, quiet, good. Did the system, which planned everything, intend to accommodate genius loci in this residential area? The aim of this paper is to get acquainted with the spirit of the place of Lazdynai and its changes over the time from the point of view of its residents. The main source of research consists in the data obtained from interviews with the first residents of Lazdynai - the people who were given flats in the area still under construction and who have lived there until now. This information is compared with official documents of that period, which were intended for representative purposes. Lazdynai was an exceptional residential area in the context of Soviet residential spaces. Immediately upon completion, in 1974, it was awarded the Lenin Prize, the highest award at the time in the USSR, which for the first time went to a mass-construction residential area. Lazdynai at once became a propaganda object: it was 'advertized' in the press and in specialized publications, both in the USSR and abroad, with a mandatory picture of the commemorative stone.The statistics of the residents' excellent opinion was also actively promoted: in 1974, as many as 91.6 percent of its residents claimed that they would stay in Lazdynai even if offered a dwelling in any other part of Vilnius. On the other hand, the first residents of Lazdynai were following the euphoric reviews that used to appear in the press, therefore today, in the face of changing public opinion, the official discourse of the 1970s is frequently presented as personal opinions in attempts to highlight the advantages of the residential area. It seems that genius loci - although without using this concept, but speaking of exclusivity and coziness - had become part of the planning system of those times and was systematically implemented through a number of measures of 'soft' Soviet propaganda, which possibly explains why the spirit of the place of Lazdynai was hard to detect by an outside observer of today. O n the other h and, this practice is seen as successful in shaping the residents' opinion. Thus, although modernist architecture is blamed for destroying the spirit of the place, it becomes obvious that in modern society the feeling of the place could be successfully created not only by architecture but through the mass media. It can be based not only on the feeling, but also on the inculcated knowing which is highly persuasive, because it operates along with the common human quality to appreciate what is your own, at the same time rejecting existing problems that arise from the shortcomings, or - paradoxically - perfection of the environment as such. [From the publication]