The Modern Fine Plasters in Gdańsk as an Element of National Identification

Abstract

Fine plasters were an essential part of modern architecture. They were very popular in almost all of  Europe, both during the interwar period and after the Second World War. However, during the interwar period in Gdańsk, it is not possible to observe their general use. Its architectural landscape was created mainly by the brick  architecture. This was linked to the meaning imbedded in  modernist architecture, which was associated with modernity and utilitarianism, which in Gdańsk – deeply rooted in tradition and history – was perceived as a threat. The design of the city architecture on the basis of the brick facade was intended to express the German character of the city. The Polish authorities after the war also faced the problem of national identity expressed in an architectural landscape. An extensive campaign of plastering the facades was intended to alter the German character of the city reflected by the buildings. However, although after 1945 noble plaster became increasingly common in urban architecture, it is not possible to speak of a success of that campaign to “disguise the Germanism”, because to this day there are many quarters in the Gdańsk area dominated by brick facades. They rather reflect renovation works carried out at the time by the newimmigrant inhabitants,  who were familiar with the technology of fine plastering.
An element that led to changes in the cultural landscape of the city was however the construction of new buildings on the initiative of the authorities. Their forms differed fundamentally from those formerly typical of Gdańsk  architecture, and the fine plasters shaped their final expression. Thus, it can be seen as one of the elements that led to the shaping of the vision of Gdańsk as a Polish  city.