Moderna arhitektura: problematika varstva in zaščite

Abstract

Certain buildings that were part of Slovenian modern architecture built after the Second World War and before the prevalence of postmodernism represent one of the greatest achievements of Slovenian architectural planning. Several architects that were part of the Ljubljana architectural school reached the pinnacle of their creativeness in the 1960s. Although the majority of the edifices that were built are no more than half a century old, they are mostly in very poor condition; some of the buildings have even been demolished. The relentless dilapidation of modern architecture in Slovenia raises many questions concerning the conservation of these buildings. The two crucial questions are how the protection of these buildings is regulated in Slovenia and which specific problems occur during the conservation process. The legal protection of modern architecture in Slovenia is based on legislation (the Cultural Heritage Protection Act, ZVKD-1), which came into force in 2008, and on an entry in the Register of Cultural Heritage. Two institutions play an important role in conservation: the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia, which is responsible for preserving and protecting cultural heritage in general, and DOCOMOMO Slovenija, an organization that focuses on the architectural heritage of the modern movement and acts on an international basis. The specific problems concerning the conservation of modern architecture derive from the characteristics of the buildings, social and formal tendencies, and the use of new materials and construction techniques. Modern architecture in Slovenia has not been sufficiently studied and recorded. It was often negatively evaluated and therefore inappropriately maintained. One of the essential problems is the renovation of concrete and “new” materials that rapidly degrade in an inconvenient way. Another problem is that nowadays modern architecture is often non-functional. All of these problems are difficult to solve because of the conflicting interests between the responsible institution, designer, contractor, architect, and so on. The critical condition of the majority of modern buildings and the wide range of problems concerning conservation of modern architecture in Slovenia indicate that a better understanding of the uniqueness of modern architecture and taking greater responsibility for Slovenian architectural heritage in general is necessary for optimal conservation.