Stalin's Leftovers

Given that I'm back in Warsaw for a little while, I thought I'd write a short piece on the eyesore that is Warsaw's Palace of Culture and Science.

My first encounter with the building was a rather utilitarian one. I used it as a geographical reference point in making my way around central Warsaw because it happens to be the tallest building in Warsaw and if not, just short of it.

You may recall this, I cropped it from another photograph located in an earlier entry regarding a walk around my neighborhood. As you can tell, it towers over everything in Warsaw, visible from just about any location in the city. What's more, I had no idea when I was commenting on the earlier photograph that this monstrous building had a sordid history.

The building was finished in 1955. It required 40 Million bricks.

Who commissioned it? That's right, your friend and mine, Josef Stalin. It is surmised that Stalin was jealous of the skyscrapers that New York so triumphantly built before and after World War II. As we all know most architecture is phallic and this is no exception, symbolizing power and prowess (that's why I believe financial services are often the occupants of these structures; money is power for many cultures).

Originally, Stalin wanted eight of these to be built in Moscow, corresponding to New York's major skyscrapers. When all was said and done, seven were in Moscow, and the largest of them all found itself in Warsaw. Stalin really wanted the rest of Europe to know he was just around the corner.

And then the Wall fell and the USSR, slowly afterward, was no longer flexing its occupation muscle in Eastern Europe. But the Poles had no idea what to do with the Palace. Ideas for addressing this Stalinist leftover were elicited from different architects internationally in a competition. The winner wanted to shroud the Palace in skyscrapers, crowning it or hiding it, whichever term you prefer.

The Warsaw community vociferously objected and now pre-World War II land titles are being disputed in the courts. Everything is stuck, leaving Stalin's physically manifested legacy standing.

Personally, I hope it stays a little longer, if not for its historical significance (I'm not a Pole, so I really have no authority to speak to this effect anyway), then certainly it's views of the city:

And to add insult to injury, the Poles have a favorite joke they tell tourists:

Tourist: Do you know where to find the best view of Warsaw?

Pole: Of course, the top of the Palace of Culture and Science.

Tourist: Oh, because it's the tallest building in Warsaw?

Pole: No, because from there you can't see it.