Our architecture

Everything that has happened and is happening in the last twenty-odd years in architecture - I mean the categorical and unexplained demolition of the city's historic quarters and individual architectural buildings, regardless of their epochal affiliation - has led to the fact that even people with education fall into a kind of irrationality.

The proletarians demolished mansions of aristocrats or placed communal apartments in them for 40 people with a single latrine, they demolished religious buildings, not paying attention to their architectural and historical value, explaining about the first thing that the owners no longer exist and about the second, that there is no God and now some people express their opinion about the architecture of the Soviet period, which in their opinion was a "gray box".

It is an abuse of a whole layer of historical heritage is by no means Soviet, but global and already historical architecture of the period of 20-30-40-60-70s of the 20th century, which had the right to exist and not because architects did not know how to design in the old or classical styles, but because time goes forward, setting new prerequisites and requirements in architecture.

Famous Baku constructivism and modernism attract professionals to come and look at "that" Baku. When some part of society criticize this epoch rest thinks that this is probably true, because this is an opinion of an educated person.

How to make sure that everyone who is not competent in architecture, design and urban infrastructure stops having these bonds?

I believe that it is necessary to introduce public city lectures on the history of architecture and urban planning in Baku and Azerbaijan. We need to make Open Doors days at our universities for vocational guidance of applicants.

In addition, every professional, every person involved in urban planning, urban infrastructure management, architecture should know that he/she can decide something at his/her desk. The belief that your opinion is important and decides something, that you have a voice, fosters a sense of complicity. Why do people with higher education make such absurd decisions? Because they do not consider themselves to be involved in the process, they do not consider themselves to be complicit in the process.

All links in this process should feel both responsibility and the fact that their opinion is being listened to, and this is of a certain decisive importance. This circle of links needs to be expanded. There should be ordinary people, professionals, people managing the structure, architects, etc.