Brutalist Lviv
"Those who find beautiful meanings in beautiful things are the cultivated." (Wilde)
Some say there is no escaping a Soviet past, and that is true for hundreds of Ukrainian cities where thousands of people live in quasi-cacotopic blocks of flats, one indistinguishable from the next, ad infinitum. Let's explore Soviet Modernism in Lviv, aka Brutalism.
You might have seen them on TV, the grey buildings that house most of Ukraine. Typically ten or so levels of colourless misery, these are the result of Khrushchev's khrushchevkas.
On December 7th, 1954, Nikita Khrushchev called for an overhaul of Soviet architecture to replace the post-war communal flats where families were forced to live together in ghetto-like conditions. How ironic.
These were his khrushchevkas, five floors of prefabricated concrete, linoleum, and nothing else. Tens of thousands of khrushchevkas are still occupied today, and a similar number of the colourless ten storey tower blocks that followed in the 1960s and 1970s have come to define urban Ukraine.
The teetering, glazed "balconies" that resemble garden sheds allow the world to see another world of other people's laundry. Not pleasant. For many Ukrainians, their "balkon" is closet space. The horror.
This lingering Soviet legacy is ugly as Hell, but we don't tour the tower blocks, we just pass them by to deliver an insight on how Soviet, russian standards still blight the lives of many Ukrainian people.
We focus on the standalone examples of Soviet Modernism in Lviv, and there are some truly brutal examples in our city. One Pinterester has described a Socialist Modernistic edifice in Lviv as "Architecture of Doom". We go there, naturally.
It has to be said that the Ukrainian construction and property development sector has always had an eye for the main chance. Rampant profiteering is normal here. Swathes of Lviv have become building sites and corruption is rife.
Our cowboys haven't stopped and will never stop building 21st. century kruschevkas, the only difference this time around being coloured bricks instead of grey, a gym somehere inside and a kids creche, if you're lucky. Easy money. Ah, Ukraine.
Brutalist Lviv reveals Soviet Lviv and is led by a local historian expert Lviv tour guide. Connections by taxi are included, as brutalist sites in Lviv are rather dispersed.
Details and schedule will be sent to you in a direct confirmation e-mail from us shortly after you have received your booking confirmation e-mail. Flexible start time, 10am recommended. Let us know your prefered start time post-booking.
Wear comfortable shoes and bring a fully charged powerbank for your device.
Local historian expert Lviv tour guide and taxi connections.
All cancellation requests must be received by e-mail (send to info@inlvivtours.com). If you cancel more than thirty (30) days before travel date, you will be entitled to a full refund. If you cancel less than thirty (30) days before travel date, you will not be entitled to any refund.