Standardisation and architectural ideas for school buildings in Soviet Lithuania

Abstract

The architecture of secondary school buildings implemented according to typified and customised design projects in Soviet Lithuania has been analysed as a manifestation of certain timeframe conditions and possibilities. The research has revealed architects’ creativity, represented values, and ideas under the conditions of a strictly regulated and standardised state construction industry. The influences of changing educational paradigms, building construction regulations, and the political and cultural context on the architectural results of a certain typological group have been taken into account. The research results are relevant for a more detailed understanding of the development peculiarities of the Soviet era, as well as the rearrangement of schooling spaces by adapting them to contemporary needs. The research is focused on the period starting from 1955, when a shift was made to industrialised and standardised architecture, up to 1990 when Lithuania regained its independence.