The most recent pictures (15 of them) are from the construction at Vozdvyzhenska St.:
I'm not going to bother sharing my impressions of this nouveau riche neighborhood in the making. Instead, here's what the street looked like before - what a ghost town it used to be: photos by Vasyl Halayba.
I looked through all these photos on Flickr earlier today. . .
ReplyDeleteWho used to live there? And who will now?
ReplyDeleteLenin must toss and turn in his grave.
Genia
At the very least, these houses are a lot more original and diverse than what the Armenian nouveau riche is building in and around Yerevan. Those seem to be more or less all of the same colorless mold.
ReplyDeleteGenia, before the revolution Podol used to be partly a trade district, partly a Jewish quarter. So Vozdvizhenskaya was just a regular street of Kyiv, Mikhail Bulgakov was born at the other end of it. Now those who have enough money and not enough taste will be living there.
ReplyDeleteAs for Lenin - I hope he'll toss and turn in his grave forever.
Mishah
Thank you Mishah for the information (...and the Bulgakov hint!)
ReplyDeleteIt is really funny, I have been thinking back on those pictures.It is a puzzling feeling ... To me the houses look like 19th century Paris or Prague, but not in reality, rather in theatre decor.
I simply cannot imagine somebody moving in their furniture and their kids and LIVE there.
And, most to my shame, I CANNOT either find them outright ugly.
;)
Genia
Genia,
ReplyDeleteLook at some window's arches proportions and curves, look at railings' columns and combibation of different railings, look at color combinations and at some sausage-like decorative elements. You won't find it in any architectural history books, nor anywhere in reality. Maybe in theatre decor, yes, especially if it's a provincial children theatre of soviet time ;)
Mishah