Cultural resistance or rebellious opportunism? Quiet Modernism as a strategy Lithuanian architects use in their recollections of the period of 1955-1995

Remiantis pirmosios pokario architektų modernistų kartos, vadinamos „lietuviškojo modernizmo mokyklos“ tėvais, Vytauto Edmundo Čekanausko, Vytauto Brėdikio, Algimanto ir Vytauto Nasvyčių, Algimanto Mačiulio, Justino Šeiboko atsiminimais, straipsnyje nagrinėjama, kas laikytina kultūrine rezistencija vėlyvojo sovietmečio (1955–1990) Lietuvos architektūroje, kodėl ir kaip buvo sukonstruotas kultūrinės rezistencijos architektūroje naratyvas ir kiek tai susiję su dabar atsirandančiais tyliojo modernizmo pasakojimais? The paper discusses the idea of ‘cultural resistance’ or ‘quiet modernism’ by analysing the records (in the form of interviews, papers and books) of the first generation of the post-WWII Lithuanian modernist architects (Vytautas Edmundas Čekanauskas, Vytautas Brėdikis, Algimantas and Vytautas Nasvytis, Algimantas Mačiulis, and Justinas Šeibokas), also known as the founders of the ‘Lithuanian school of modernism’. This generation of architects emerged in the late 1950s, when it started criticising the Stalinist architecture, realising important public objects in city centres, and occupying increasingly prominent positions in academia and the world of architecture, which eventually led to the formation of a particular cultural elite. This story of success might seem unrelated to the notion of ‘cultural resistance’ (or ‘quiet modernism’) often mentioned by the architects themselves. The paper concludes with the analysis of the evolution of and the ‘grand narrative’ behind this architect group that shared the same values and employed certain ‘quiet motifs’. The research also focuses on analysing how this myth has been reconstructed after the 1990. In conclusion, the paper argues that the notions of compromise, adaptation, and subversive opportunism—rather than ‘cultural resistance’—are more appropriate to describe the architectural and urban practices of the aforementioned generation of architects.