Post-war amputations and implants of Kharkiv in the 19th and 20th centuries
The talk will delve into the pivotal urban transformations that have taken place in Gubkina’s hometown of Kharkiv, particularly in the aftermath of the major wars of the past two centuries. The most recent of these, which seemed to be the ultimate one in the city’s history, was World War II, followed by the efforts of Stalinist architects-patriarchs to reshape not only the city’s skeleton but also its face in Socialist Realist spirit. The recent great war of Russia against Ukraine has inflicted substantial damage on Kharkiv, not less than the impact of World War II. This prompts the question: What are the contemporary architects-patriarchs planning for the city’s reconstruction?

Ievgeniia Gubkina is a Ukrainian architect, architectural and urban historian, and curator. Her work focuses on architecture and urban planning of the 20th century in Ukraine, with a multidisciplinary approach to heritage studies. She is a co-founder of Urban Forms Center, a leading Ukrainian non-governmental organisation that specialises in the study, preservation, and popularisation of architectural and cultural heritage. Ievgeniia is the author of the books “Slavutych: Architectural Guide” (2015) and “Soviet Modernism. Brutalism. Post-Modernism. Buildings and Structures in Ukraine 1955–1991” (2019). In 2020–2021 Ievgeniia curated the “Encyclopedia of Ukrainian Architecture”, an online multimedia project that worked with architecture, history, criticism, cinema, and visual arts. In 2022, after Russia started the war against Ukraine, she was compelled to leave her hometown Kharkiv and found asylum in the UK becoming a Randolph Quirk Fellow at UCL. In 2023, DOM Publishers released her latest book, “Being a Ukrainian Architect During Wartime,” offering insights into her experiences against the backdrop of the war.
Date: 23 November 2023, 16:00
Venue: Dyson Perrins Building, off South Parks Road OX1 3QY
Venue Details: Atmosphere Room
Speakers: Speaker to be announced
Organising department: School of Geography and the Environment
Organiser: Dr Alex Vasudevan (University of Oxford)
Organiser contact email address: alexander.vasudevan@ouce.ox.ac.uk
Part of: SoGE Economy and Society Cluster Events
Booking required?: Not required
Audience: Public
Editor: Ariell Ahearn Ligham