Nordic Journal of Architectural Research / Nordisk Arkitekturforskning

Friberg, Tora

Larsson, Anita

Swedish

Bollnow, Otto Friedrich

Vara-i-rum och ha-rum. Utdrag ur Otto Friedrich Bollnow: "Mensch und Raum"

Tostrup, Elisabeth

Norwegian

Mellom erfaring og billedforbruk

Bergman, Bosse

This article was originally a lecture held at the Conference on "Building Bridges between Cultures of Users, Practitioners and Researchers within the Field of Architecture and Environmental Design" at Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, November 13, 1995

Hannerz, Ulf

English

The Network of Perspectives - Between the Division of Labor and Occupational Subcultures

Kaptikov, Anri

Chripunova, Lia

The Baroque Style on its Way 
to Siberia 
by Ann Kaptikov & Lia Chripunova 
The Nativity, or Stroganov, Church (17th and early 18th century). The Western facade and plan of the second floor. THE DYNAMIC AND SPLENDID baroque archi-tecture, one of the great international styles, has also manifested itself in Rus-
sia in a conspicuous way. The specific historical 
development of the country, its enormous terri-
tory, its religious and cultural traditions, contri-
buted however to an extraordinary partition in-
to periods of the Russian Baroque, and also to its 
artistic originality and variety. 
Already in the buildings of the 17th century a 
picturesque asymmetry of volumes and a rich 
facade decoration replaced the earlier severe 
forms, which had been influenced by the By-
zantine and Romanesque styles and were barely 
touched by the Renaissance. This so-called "pat-
terned" style is by most art historians considered 
as a pre-Baroque stage. 
In 1680-1690 the first wave of Baroque ar-
chitecture flourished in Russia, the so-called 
"Muscovite" or "Naryshkin" Baroque (named 
after the Boyar family Naryshkin, related to the 
mother of Peter I). In this style the traditional 
Russian tall building construction with dimin-
ishing volumes started in Moscow to interact 
with decorative details of the European Baro-
que. They were mediated by Poland and the 
FORUM 93 
Ukraine: twisting columns, quaint frontones and 
so on. Borrowed motives were reshaped, falsely 
interpreted and according to an expression of 
academician Igor Grabar, turned into curly in-
terlacing and flowering. The most colourful ex-
ampels of the "Muscovite" Baroque were the 
centralized tier churches with an "eightfold on a 
square" (i. e. an octahedron on a cube), such as 
the Pokrov Church in Phili (Pokrov= the Feast 
of the Protecting Veil of the Virgin) and our 
Saviour as Archpriest (Spas na Uborach) near 
Moscow and others. 
The reforms of Peter I, who founded the 
Russian empire, and his policy of European-
ization, led to the introduction of Western modes 
of architecture. To find models for his building 
enterprizes Peter chiefly oriented himself to Pro-
testant countries: Holland, Northern Germany, 
Denmark and Sweden. The Baroque architec-
ture of these countries with its characteristic 
simplicity and decorative restraint best suited 
the practical utilitarian mentality of the Tsar. 
Then began the second phase of the Baroque 
period in Russia - the Baroque of Peter the Great 
(in the first third of the 18th century). Foreign 
architects, invited by Peter, started to construct 
the new capital - Saint Petersburg - with ration-
ally planned buildings. They were impressive, 
not because of their modest and flatly decorated 
facades, but because of the unusually tall silhu-
ettes of the roofs and spines. Such creations of 
leading architects of Peter's time are his Sum-
mer Palace, the House of the Twelve Colleges, 
SS Peter and Paul Cathedral and others. 
The Russian Baroque culminated during the 
reign of Peter's daughter Elizabeth (1741-1761). 
The rise of a powerful Russian empire stimula-
ted a luxurious court life with growing demands 
in architecture, expressing itself in an extra-
ordinary rich and imposing style. It was demon-
strated by Elizabeth's favourite architect B. B. 
Rastrelli (in Peterhof, Tsarskoe Selo, the Winter 
Palace and the Smolny monastery) in an im-
mense scale, not finding its equal throughout 
Europe, combining clearly defined volumes into 
a strictly composed scheme. The decor was ar-
ranged with distinction. 
Also in this third and final stage of the Rus-
sian Baroque, the curvilinear outlines, the spa-
tial overflowing, the ponderous treatment of the 
walls and the intense contrasts of the chiaro 
scuro, so familiar in Italy, were almost absent. 
"The Baroque style of Eliza-
beth's time" professor B. Vip-
per characterized as "cheer-
ful and colourful ... sprinkling 
with sound optimism and 
ceremonial enthusiasm, 
but free from the mys-
tical exaltation and the 
affected refinement" of 
the West-European Ro-
coco of the time. 
Nowwe have sketched 
the evolution of the Baro-
que style in Russia. But 
the picture will not be 
complete unless we 
"Muscovite" Baroque: The Church of the Virgin of the Sign (Znamenie), at Dubrovitsi in the Moscow region. 1690-
1704. The Western fagade and the plan. 
94 FORUM 
Peter the Great's 
Summer Garden in 
Saint Petersburg 
1708-1711, general 
plan. 
Architect D. Trezzini. 
consider the fact that aside from its enfolding in 
the capitals (first in Moscow, then in Saint Pe-
tersburg and Moscow) there also existed another 
line of development in the boundless spatiousness 
of the country. It is necessary to point out that 
typical regional nuances often became establis-
hed as solid traditions, and this phenomenon can 
be traced throughout the history of Russian ar-
chitecture. 
National artistic features from earliest times 
were reinterpreted in an original way in separate 
regions and towns, where the environment con-
tributed to the specific formation of schools of 
architecture. These schools continued to main-
tain their influence also during the Baroque 
period. Moreover, the Baroque style was so 
deeply rooted into the Russian provinces that it 
dominated there until the end of the 18th and 
19th centuries. In the meantime the Neo-classi-
cal style had since long gained foothold in the 
capitals. 
Even if the Russian Baroque, introduced by 
foreign architects in Saint Petersburg, preserved 
its originality, the national features were mani-
fested more vigorously in the provinces. The 
reason for this was not only the remoteness from 
the centre, but above all a more conservative 
taste. The cultural innovations of Peter were en-
countered there with different degrees of hosti-
lity. The peasants, city-dwellers and the inclusive 
main part of the merchants were still attracted by 
architectural ideals of the time preceding Peter. 
Consequently, architecture in the provinces 
stubbornly held on to Old-Russian traditions, 
varying the devices of the "Muscovite" Baroque. 
From the Baroque of Peter's and Elizabeth's 
times, never accepted in detail, there were some 
retarded and uncoordinated influences, mainly 
in the decor. Misunderstood by the local 
masterbuilders, there was also some Bulgarian 
influence in "the clear volume" style, which was 
interpreted in an original and folkloristic way. 
The profoundly national character of the 
provincial creations can be explained by the fact 
that now since long there was no academic 
training in architecture and neither any influence 
of a proper European standard. The organization 
of the building activity was essentially medie-
val. The head of the building workshop (artel), 
the contractor, quite often combined the two 
functions of planning architect and that of con-
structor. He could move about without a preli-
Cave in the Summer Garden 1724, Western façade. 
FORUM 95 
minary composition of sketches, taking as a point 
of departure an already existing building, or cre-
ating a "model" on the basis of his customers in-
structions. It is also necessary to point out that in 
the provinces as in previous times most churches 
were constructed in stone. They were shaped in 
a local version of the Baroque style. 
The Baroque style of Northern Russia deser-
ves particular attention. According to scholarly 
opinion there the Russian tradition from time 
immemorial was preserved most carefully in its 
social antropological purity, in the life-style, 
folklore, architecture, icon-painting and art in-
dustry. This gigantic territory (called in Russian 
the Pomorje) is extending from Lake Ladoga to 
the Ural mountain range and adjoins to the White 
Sea and the Arctic Ocean. 
Here in 1584 the oldest Russian seaport sprang 
up - Arkhangelsk. Still in the 18th century, when 
Saint Petersburg had become the "window to 
Europe" it maintained its fundamental impor-
tance. 
It is essential to point out that through the 
harbour of Arkhangelsk, there was always export 
of commercial wares, not only from the whole 
Pomorje and its surrounding area (in particular 
with Viatka) but also to a considerable extent 
with Siberia. To put it more exactly, the emigra-
tion to the coastal region played a main role in the 
assimilation and colonization of Russian Siberia 
and the Far East. Some emigrants made impor-
tant geographical discoveries during the 17th-
18th centuries. For example S. Dezhnev dis-
Elizabeth's Baroque: 
Tsarskoe Selo 1752-1756 
main facade. 
Fragment of the main facade 
Architect B. B. Rastrelli 
covered the strait between Asia and 
America, subsequently named the 
Bering Strait. V. Atlasov explored 
the peninsula of Kamchatka and V. 
Shilov drew the first map of the 
Aleutian Islands. Important was al-
so the trade with the rich towns of 
the coastal regions of Siberia and 
Kitai, and in particular with Veliki 
Ustiug. This trade was concentrated 
into the hands of the Ustiug mer-
chant families and from them came 
the financial means to elevate in 
Ustiug and outside its boundaries 
4= 
Peter's Baroque in Saint Petersburg: SS Peter and 
Paul Cathedral 1712-1733. Architect: D. Trezzini 1721-
1733, Northern facade. 
numerous Baroque churches in stone. The in-
habitants of the towns in the Pomorje, in par-
ticular those in Viatka and the Ural competed in 
trade and church construction with the inhabi-
tants of Ustiug. 
As a result some interesting regional schools 
of Russian Baroque were formed, which "were 
thread" on the passing trade route. (This route 
passed from Moscow to Arkhangelsk through 
Vologda, Totma, Veliki Ustiug to Tobolsk, the 
96 FORUM 
capital of Siberia, through three seaport towns 
there and to the Ural towns Solikamsk and Verho-
Turie. There also existed a road to the Ural and 
Siberia through the territory of Vjatka. 
These schools usually were centered in a town 
within a strictly determined territory, subordin-
ate to secular and religious authorities, although 
the administrative borders not necessarily cor-
responded to the sphere of influence of the archi-
tectural schools. Besides, not every town, even if 
a big one, created its particular school. Thus, one 
cannot for instance count Vologda as a distinc-
tive school because of the extreme heterogeneity 
of its monuments. With all evidence, however, 
we have the right to speak of a school in Ark-
hangelsk, in Veliki Ustiug, in Totma, in Viatka 
and also in the Ural with its center in Solikamsk. 
The Siberian Baroque was partitioned into 
two schools, that of Tobolsk (including the 
mountain area and the eastern school of Ural) 
and that of Irkutsk. 
These schools often reflected 
the typical features of the Russ-
ian provincial architecture in 
the 18th century, in their style 
and building practices as well 
as the enormous height of 
the buildings. Their location 
along the common trade route 
enhanced the possibility for the 
customers and constructors ra-
pidly to get aquainted with 
the achievements of their 
neighbours. Nevertheless every 
school has its 
specific chrono-
logical develop-
ment, reflected 
in its compositio-
nal and decora-
tive devices. 
Unfortunate-
ly,foralongtime 
these monu-
ments were not the object of research. The art 
historians concentrated their interestto remar-
quable building complexes in the capitals and 
considered the monumen t s as stylistically 
re tarded and primit ive. This state of affairs 
did not promote their preservation. So many 
buildings have been annihilated or find them-
selves in an utterly neglected condition. 
This contempt for the local tradition naturally 
resulted in a featureless and monotonous con-
temporary architecture. Only in most recent times 
we began to realize in Russia the necessity to 
maintain regional specificity and historical con-
tinuity in new building construction and to as-
sociate to the idiom of the old local architecture. 
And as far as the silhuette and the spatial dis-
tribution of the volumes are concerned, many 
towns and villages in the Russian North, in 
the Ural and in Siberia are outlined by the 
forms of the Baroque cathedrals. Therefore 
it is very important to integrate 
the knowledge about these mo-
numents into the formal edu-
cations of the young generation 
of architects, in order to make 
them capable to revive the in-
terrupted local tradition. 
To this end students of the 
Sverdlovsk Institute of Archi-
tecture (at present the Ekaterin-
burg Regional Centre of Art Edu-
cation) regularly participated in 
expeditions under the direction 
of the author of this article. The 
aim of these ex-
peditions was to 
explore the variety 
of the regional ar-
chitecture of the 
Baroque style. The 
route conformed as 
a rule with the old 
lines of communi-
cation on land 
The Smolny Monastery in St Petersburg. Western façade of the church 1740-1757. Architect B. B. Rastrelli. 
FORUM 97 
Fundamental types of regional schools of Russian architecture. 1. A cathedral near Arkhangelsk (1709-1743). 
2. The Holy Trinity near Veliki Ustiug (1753-1778). 3. The Holy Trinity nearTotma (1788). 4. The Makarov Church 
near Viatka (1770-1775). 5. The Transfiguration near Kungur (1763-1781). 6. The Zaharev Church near 
Verkhoturie (1750-1776). 
Provincial Russian Baroque architecture: The Church of Students measuring the Pokrovski Church at the river 
Lalsk. Lusa. 
and on the waterways. Along these lines it was considerable quantity of little known and com-
logical to expect stylistic similarity of the mo- pletely forgotten churches of the 18th century 
numents and a possibility to group them into were recorded with measuring and photography, 
schools. Our expectations were not deceived. A A part of them has been identified as original 
98 FORUM 
masterpieces. This accumulation of material 
from the regional schools revealed their impor-
tance in all its plenitude. It was possible to clas-
sify the monuments into a typology according to 
the disposition of their volumes and the scheme 
of their façades and to systematize the character 
of their decorative elements: columns, pilasters, 
corniches, window ornaments and so on. 
The collected material is now actively exploi-
ted in the students courses. In the first course, 
when they are taught to master architectural de-
sign they are required to prepare drawings, 
perspective views and classical models of 
regional monuments. Consequently, a re 
gional approach to the history of archi-
tecture is a contribution to art criti-
cism and a patent stimulus for the 
reformation of contemporary ar-
chitecture. 
We hope to pursue this work 
by a detailed characteriza-
tion of the various Baroque 
Schools, to be found on the 
way to Siberia. Provincial Russian Baroque architecture: Students' drawing based on measuring. 
Ann Kaptikov, Dr. of Arch. Pro-
fessor, & Lia Chripunova, doc-
toral student in Architecture, The 
Ekaterinburg Centre of Art Edu-
cation, Ekaterinburg, (former 
Sverdlovsk) Russia. 
Translation from Russian: 
Elisabeth Piltz. 
FORUM 99 
Entrétaket av tunn kapellväv är upphängt i två pelare och det spänner över gaturummet mellan två 
ombyggda varvshallar. Foto: Ola Nyländer 
100 FORUM 


The Baroque Style on its Way to Siberia

Friberg, Carsten

Theory-based or Practice-based Research - What is the Difference?

Ericsson, Ove

Hidden Message in the Sociomateria. Design for Cooperation and Sustainability in two Ecovillages in Sweden

Larsen, Svend Erik

Michael Landzelius: 
Between Presence and Erasure. 
Signification and Spatial Restructuring 
Afh. under ph.d. studiet ved Institutionen Recenserad av 
för Kulturvård, Göteborg, nov. 1996 Svend Erik Larsen 
Den lille afhandling på ca. 100 sider er ikke offendiggjort. Jeg fore-
tager derfor ikke en egentlig anmel-
delse af afhandlingens dyder og mang-
ler, men prover at rejse en princip-
diskussion i forlsengelse af de proble-
mer den direkte og indirekte rejser. 
Hvis man venter gode råd til 
konservering af seldre huse i Stock-
holm, restautering af domkirken i 
Uppsala eller fredning af landskabe-
lige helheder, går man forgaeves til 
denne afhandling. Hvis man ventet 
udkast til principper for en frednings-
politik og dens langsigtede kultur-
påvirkning, er det heller ikke denne 
afhandling man skal gå til först. Hvis 
man venter en historisk oversigt over 
skiftende tiders prasferencer for be-
stemte ting der skal bevares, så laeser 
man forgasves. Men hvis man er inte-
resseret i teorier om hvad det vil sige 
at opleve noget som bevaret, så er denne 
afhandling ikke noget dårligt sted at 
tage fat. 
Afhandlingen leverer altså ikke 
anvendt forskning eller kultur-politisk 
idedebatog heller ikke kulturhistorie. 
Men filosofi. Filosofi beskasftiger sig 
med grundlaeggende sporgsmål om 
hvad bestemte ting er: hvad er moral, 
hvad er kultur, hvad er dödens rolle, 
hvad er natur osv. Man kunne derfor 
forvente at en afhandling som denne 
ville stille f. eks. disse sporgsmål: hvad 
er en oprindelig tilstand eller en 
oprindelig genstand for noget; hvad 
vil det sige at bevare; hvilke kulturelle 
vserdier har fortidsmindet, osv. Det 
gor den ikke. Jeg sagde ovenfor at af-
handlingen laver teorier om hvad det 
vil sige at opleve noget som bevaret. 
Det lyder måske ikke så forskelligt fra 
at lave teori om hvad det vil sige at 
bevare. Men det er meget forskelligt. 
Afhandlingens grundlasggende formål 
er at rykke opmasrksomheden fra den 
eller de ting der skal bevares og deres 
egenskaber, og fra den kunnen der skal 
tage til for at man kan arbejde prak-
tisk med bevaringens af fortidens gen-
stande. Den fokuserer på relationen 
mellem det bevarede og oplevelsen af 
det. Afhandlingen reflekterer over 
betingelserne for at nogen kan opleve 
noget som bevaret. 
Traditionel bevaringsfilosofi 
Lad mig prove at gore dette udsagn 
klarere ved at praecisere hvad det ikke 
drejer sig om. En traditionel bevarings-
filosofi tager hensyn til de elementer 
jeg har opstillet i strukturen på fig. i : 
64 NORDISK ARKITEKTURFORSKNING 1997:2 
Subjekt 
(kunnen, 
ideologi, 
institutionel 
placering osv. 
— Genstand 
(materiale, 
type, alder, 
kvalitet, osv.) 
Relation 
(bearbejdning, 
konservering, 
udstilling, 
oplevelse, osv.) 
Fig 1 : Elementer i traditionel bevarings-
filosofi. 
Traditionelt har man taget udgangs-
punkt i et vilkårligt element. M a n kan 
se på det subjekt åtv forholder sig t i l 
de bevarede genstande. Betingelserne 
for at et oplevende subjekt kan fun-
gere, er et vist uddannelsesniveau og 
en ideologisk opmerksomhed over 
for historiens betydning, hvilket 
eventuelt krever brug af guider, fol-
dere osv. For det professionelt arbej-
dende subjekt kreves der en faglig 
uddannelse, institutionel indplace-
ring for at man kan have ret t i l at ud-
velge, konservere og udstille tingene, 
osv. M a n kan også koncentrere sig o m 
de genstande der skal bevares, hvilket 
er det traditionelle centrum for en 
bevaringsfilosofi: de skal have en vis 
ålder, en vis materiel, herunder este-
tisk karakter, en vis status som enestå-
ende, typiske, representative osv. 
Endelig kan man fokusere på rela-
tionen mellem subjekt og genstand, 
hvilket sker i den 0gede interessere for 
den pedagogiske side af de museale 
aktiviteter, men jo også horer t i l beva-
ringsmetodik og -teknologi. Afhand-
lingen hér isolerer imidler t id ikke, 
som jeg har gjort, subjektet for sig, 
objektet for sig eller relationen for sig, 
hverken praktisk eller teoretisk, men 
overvejer hvad det er for en falles-
betingelse dergor at de med nodvendig-
bedfungerer sammen. 
Möderne bevaringsfilosofi 
Lad mig med et lille eksempel prave at 
vise at det er en vesentlig faglig og ku l -
turel problemstilling afhandlingen 
tager op. Den lille by Lexington i Mas-
sachusetts var scene for den förste stör-
re batalj e mellem oprarere og engelske 
tropper i 1775, og hvert år den 19. april 
genopfores slaget af byens borgere i 
kostumer og med 10st krudt , efterfulgt 
af felles morgenmad i kirken. På en 
lille bakke i udkanten af den gamle fe l -
led står et klokketårn af t re , nermest 
et lille skur. Det berer denne påskrift: 
This belfray was erected on this hil l in 
1761 and removed to the common in 
1768. In it was hung the bell which 
rung out the alarm on the 19th of 
April 1775. In 1797 it was removed to 
the Parker Homestead in the south 
part of the town. In 1889 it was 
brought back to this hil l by the Lex-
ington Historical Society. Destroyed 
by a gale in 1909. Rebuilt 1910. 
Hvis v i v i l förstå hvad der på fasrde 
hér, kommer vi ikke långt med ele-
menterne i Fig. 1. På trods af det 
f0rste manende this, så er genstanden 
ustabil og manipuleret. V i kan ikke 
tage udgangspunkt i subjektet, for der 
er mange med de mest modstridende 
g0remål og interesser: borgere der 
kleder sig ud hvert år; det lokalhisto-
riske selskab der er er klar t i l at bygge 
et klokketårn igen og igen og flytte 
omkr ing med det uden hensyn t i l his-
toriske fakta; de årlige turister den 19. 
april. Relationen mellem subjekt og 
genstand er inden for denne horisont 
hverken formidling, udstilling, konser-
vering, men regelret snyd og bedrag. 
Det hele drejer sig om noget andet: 
der er först og fremmest tale o m at 
subjekt og objekt får betydning i for-
hold t i l hinanden i én og samme be-
vegelse, begge dele endrer sig i og 
med de bearbejder hinanden. Så v i 
står med en relation der har med be-
tydningzx g0re, j o r d e n har med alt 
m u l i g andet at g0re, dvs. den semio-
tiske proces er i centrum. Der skal 
skabes et tegn, klokketårnet, der i en 
given kulturel sammenheng kan refe-
rere t i l fortiden og fastholde erind-
ringen o m den. Der kreves ingen ser-
l ig viden hos subjekterne, blot de op-
lever at de husker noget. Der kreves 
ingen serlig status af objektet, blot 
det virker som tegn. Pyt med o m det 
er oprindeligt, autentisk, bevarings-
verdigt og korrekt restaureret. 
Hvad er så betingelsen for at der 
kan vere en betydning som kan op-
leves ? Subjekt og objekt skal vere t i l 
stede i samme r u m . Det er rumligbe-
tydning vi tåler o m , ikke indirekte 
fortalt, erindret, beskrevet betydning. 
Det krever at subjektet fbrst og frem-
mest er et kröps ligt tilstedevxiende 
subjekt, og at genstanden er t i l stede 
som noget hvis t i l stedeverelse af-
henger af subjektets tilstedeverelse -
det er en genstand der kan forsvinde 
eller forandres, ikke en genstand med 
en serlig indre natur som skal bevares; 
det er en genstand der alene har inte-
resse i forhold t i l et oplevende krops-
ligt tilstedeverende subjekt. Baggrun-
den får at v i overhovedet tenker i be-
varingsbaner, er jo netop ikke at t ing 
er t i l stede, men at de v i l forsvinde. I 
et bevaringsperspektiv er for genstan-
RECENSIONER 6 5 
dene deres mulige forsvinden vigti-
gere end deres faktiske tilstedevaerelse. 
For subjektet derimod er tilstede-
vasrelsen vigtig: ting bevares for at 
blive oplevet af nogen som noget der 
er vasrd at bevare når man står ansigt 
til ansigt med dem. Ti l at give bevä-
ring en kulturel funktion i forhold til 
kollektiv erindring er det ikke nok at 
videzx. nogen bevarer ting for os og er 
dygtige til det. Vi skal kunne opleve 
ting som vasrd at bevare. Betingelsen 
for at noget opleves som bevaret, er at 
der udfoldes en rumlig semiotik for en 
subjektiv og sanselig oplevelse. Det er 
denne problemstilling der er i cen-
trum i Landzelius' lille afhandling. 
For dem der tror at den slags vidt-
loftigheder kun föregår i en disney-
ficeret möderne virkelighed, er det 
vasrd at notere at manipulationen med 
tårnet er foregået omkring århundred-
skiftet. Alle ved jo også fortidens hold-
ning til beväring, konservering og 
indretning af museer altid har haft en 
staerk ideologisk komponent. Man 
foretrak tegn for nationens eller kon-
gens storhed fremfor autentisk bevä-
ring af fortiden. Og for dem der tror 
at den slags overvejelser kun gaelder 
kulrurelle forhold og ikke naturlige, 
kan det vsere sundt at blive mindet 
om at naturbevaring folger prascis 
samme logik. Den danske Skov- og 
Naturstyrelse vil gerne bevare dansk 
naturskov, men kan ikke entydigt 
fastlasgge hvor långt man skal tilbage 
for at finde den, og om der overhove-
det findes noget der kan bevares. Men 
man er under alle omstjendigheder 
enige om, at man kan lave noget der 
ligner: de biologiske processer er lige-
glad med fortiden, og de mennesker 
der har glsede af skovene er ligeglade 
med om det er urskov og naturskov 
eller bare noget der ligner, blot man 
kan få oplevelsen af oprindelig natur. 
Hvad afhandlingen prover er at 
gore rum — krop — förändring!forsvin-
den — semiotiskprocès t i l de mest fon-
damentale faktorer i förståelsen af 
hvad beväring overhovedet er for 
noget, uanset hvilken type genstande 
(gamle, nye, bygninger, ting, natur-
fienomener, kulturfienomener); uan-
set hvilken rolle subjektet har (byg-
herre, konservator, turist, historiker); 
og uanset hvilken konkret betydning 
der er tale om (fascistisk nationalisme, 
individuel identitet, drom om turist-
indtsegtet, kollektiv bevidsthed). 
RUM 
betydning/ 
semiotisk 
proces 
Fig. 2: Elementer i en moderne bevarings-
filosofi. 
Rum og oplevelse 
En sådan filosofi er jo ikke opfundet 
af Landzelius til lejligheden. Der står 
isser navne som Jacques Derrida, Um-
berto Eco og Jean Baudrillard bag. 
Man kan derfor bredt tale om en 
semiotisk orientering af poststruktura-
listisk eller dekonstruktivistisk tilsnit. 
Den semiotisk orienterede dekon-
struktivisme er en sammensat sror-
relse, som jeg ikke her kan gå i detaljer 
med. Littetaturen om den er enorm. 
Lad mig kun nasvne folgende: den fin-
des i en europadsk version med en so-
lid filosofisk förankring i isser den euro-
padske fienomenologi (Husserl, Hei-
degger, Merleau-Ponty osv.); den fin-
des i en amerikansk version der isasr 
har med de asstetiske områder at gore 
(litteratur, arkitektur osv.). Den sidste 
har ofte kun teorierne på anden hånd 
og i engelske oversaettelser og er sjsel-
dent velorienteret i den filosofiske bag-
grund. Det er primsert den amerikan-
ske version der har prasget den bredere 
kulturdebat, herunder diskussionen af 
aestetik, arkitektur, beväring osv. og 
dermed også Landzelius' arbejde. Per-
sonligt er jeg mere t i l den fasnomeno-
logiske side, isser i overvejelsen over 
krop, sansning og tilstedevserelse. 
Jacques Derrida er en central figur 
begge steder. Her er det tilstrsekkeligt 
at gote opmajrksom på at Derrida 
analyserer to begreber der er vigtige 
for afhandlingens problemstilling: 
1) begrebet närvar, eventuelt meta-
fysisk naervser eller autenticitet, 
2) begrebet oprindelse eller 
oprindelighed. 
Derridas pointe er groft sagt at i den 
den europadske og europasisk inspire-
rede tradition forveksles den proces, 
hvormed ting bliver na;rvaerende for 
os eller får en oprindelse, med de egen-
skaber som dette naervser eller denne 
oprindelse afstedkommer: forestil-
lingen om at ting ikke rigtigt er nasr-
va;rende, men kun er overflade, falske 
og uautentiske erstatninger står her 
over for de autentiske eller egentlige 
ting. I förbindelse med beväring er 
det i hoj grad hvad der sker: vi prover 
at gore fortiden nxrvserende, ikke 
fysisk men i sit vassen. Men vi så ved 
66 NORDISK ARKITEKTURFORSKNING 1997:2 
klokketårnet at den kulturelle funk-
tion som beväring har, glimrende kan 
trives uden at fortiden faktisk er nser-
vasrende. Her har den traditionelle 
bevaringsfilosofi et problem der ikke 
löses ved stadigt mere raffinerede be-
varingsteknikker. 
Det samme gadder oprindelse og 
oprindelighed. V i ombyrter den myti-
ske oprindelse som vi uden for erfa-
ringen gennem fortadlinger udkaster 
idéer om - hvor kommer vi fra, hvor-
dan er verden skabt osv. —, med den 
historiske eller den kausale oprin-
delse, som ligger inden for historiens 
og erfaringens tid og rum. Ting der 
kan tilla;gges en mytisk oprindelse er 
oprindelige; oprindelighed vedrorer 
nemlig ikke konkrete ting, men iden-
titet - individuel og kollektiv. Når vi 
siger: oprindeligt kommer jeg fra 
Skåne, mener vi ofte at egentlig er jeg 
Skåning. Proces forveksles med egen-
skab. Men ting der kan föres tilbage 
til en historisk situation eller en kon-
kret årsag for deres oprindelse, er ikke 
oprindelige men blot lokaliseret i rum 
og tid. Når vi prover at bevare noget i 
sin oprindelige tilstand gennem en 
mojsommelig arbejdsproces, så er 
denne oprindelige tilstand jo selv re-
sultatet af en proces. Den oprindelige 
middelalderlandsby er jo selv et mo-
ment i en proces som vi baglams fik-
serer ud fra nogle aktuelle behov for 
historiefortolkning. Vi opfinder selv-
folgelig ikke for tiden ud af den blå 
luft, men udvadger de detaljer der 
giver os en fortolkning vi kan bruge. 
Og alligevel giver vi sådanne ting pra> 
dikatet oprindelighed, hvorefter alle-
hånde ideologisk fiksfakserier kan be-
gynde. Igen står vi med et principielt 
problem når konservering og oprin-
delighed knyttes sammen, som ikke 
löses af forfinede dateringsmetoder. 
Argumenrationsformen der ved-
rorer autenticitet og oprindelighed er 
- som Derrida påpeger - logisk uhold-
bar, men alligevel har den jo prakriske 
konsekvenser. Det er på den bag-
grund at Landzelius' bevaringsfilosofi 
skal ses. Og også den peger på prak-
riske konsekvenser, eller rettere åbner 
nogle praktiske perspektiver, hinsides 
den traditionelle bevaringsfilosofi i 
kraft af de to fokuspunkter den an-
lsegger: rum og krop. 
Hvordan tilpasset vi en praktisk 
beväring med det formål at udvikle en 
kollektiv erindring i rilknytning t i l 
konkrer erfaring? Når fokus er det 
rum hvori vi er til stede som opleven-
de subjekter, ikke så meget autenti-
citeten af de ting vi oplever, så blive 
sporgsmåler om beväring koblet sam-
men hele sporgsmålet om samfundets 
distribution af rum: hvor meget pläds 
og hvilke tum skal reserveres for beva-
ringsformål, og med hvilke ejendoms-
og adgangsforhold ? Alt kan jo ikke 
bevares selv om det er muligt. Ting-
enes bevaringsvserdighed og beva-
ringsmulighed styrer hverken sporgs-
målet eller svaret, kun de underord-
nede detaljer om bevaringsteknikker. 
Her ophorer skellet mellem natur- og 
kulturbevaring med at vsre funda-
mentalt og reduceres til en konkret og 
situationsbestemt detalje. 
Når fokus er på det oplevende krops-
lige subjekt, så er beväring i mindre 
grad knyttet til de indsamlede eller re-
gistterede og opbevarede genstande og 
mere ti l de kulturelle helheder de re-
prsesenterer. Den kollektive erindring 
udspiller sig mellem aktuelle rum for 
tilstedevajtelse og forridige rum, i det 
omfång de kan opleves i forhold til ud-
viklingen af aktuelle livstum - i kon-
trast, som forudsaetning, som parallel 
osv. Beväring dokumenterer ikke his-
torie, men tager den på sig på möderne 
menneskers vegne. Det betyder også at 
bevaringen selv, dens kriterier, gen-
srande og målsErninger selv et dele af 
denne historie, og derfor selv er et för-
bigående famomen. Vi bevarer ikke for 
evigheden eller for historien, men for 
de mennesker der er til stede samtidigt 
med de bevarede famomener. 
Kan vi laver en kollektiv forplig-
tende og engagerende beväring udfra 
sådanne grundlasggende problemer og 
sporgsmål ? Der er grundremaer i en 
nodvendig bevaringsfilosofi. 
Svend Erik Larsen 
Humanistisk Forskningscenter: 
Menneske og Natur, Odense Universitet 
Litteratur 
Kirkeby, Ole Fogh (1994), Verden, ordog 
tanke. Kobenhavn: Handelshoj-
skolens forlag. 
Larsen, Svend Erik og Jörgen Dines 
Johansen (1994), Tegn i brug. 
Kobenhavn: Amanda. 
Larsen, Svend Erik (1996), Naturen er 
ligeglad. Naturopfattelser i kulturel 
sammenhang. Kobenhavn: Rosinan-
te / Munksgaard. 
Miljöministeriet/Skov- og Naturstyrel-
sen (1989), Naturen iskoven. 
Kobenhavn: Miljöministeriet. 
Miljöministeriet/Skov- og Naturstyrel-
sen (1994), Strategi for bare-dygtig 
skovdrift. Kobenhavn: Miljöminis-
teriet. 
Miljoministeriet/Skov- og Natutstyrel-
sen (1994), Strategi for de danske 
naturskove. Kobenhavn: Miljöminis-
teriet. 
Miljö- og Energiministeriet/Skov- og 
Naturstyrelsen (1995), Rigereskov. 
Kobenhavn: G.E.C. Gad. 
R E C E N S I O N E R 67 


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