Andrew McKernan, '09
Ghosts of Stalin: Ruins and Revival in Contemporary Sculpture and Architecture in Moscow
Andrew McKernan, a Russian and linguistics dual major and Honors Program student from Bow, NH, received an International Research Opportunities Program (IROP) grant to research contemporary sculpture and architecture in Moscow. After spending the past academic year researching the architectural and artistic theories of 1930s Russia to understand why the Constructivism and Formalism movements gave way to the Palladian and Neo–Classical styles present in Stalinist architecture—a year which included one semester studying advanced Russian language in St. Petersburg—Andrew will visit a range of structures and display projects before choosing several locations to focus on this summer.
"This project will focus on the dynamic between Soviet and contemporary society as exemplified by the relationship of Muscovites to the architecture and monuments of the 1930s," he explains. "While the most sought–after apartment listings include buildings in the Soviet Classicist style, iconic monuments lie disassembled. My research will explore this relationship by examining and analyzing examples of Soviet Classicism from their creation to the current day."
Andrew will conduct much of his research at the Schusev State Museum of Architecture, as well as at the All–Russia Exhibition Centre , which contains many relocated monuments, and the Moscow Subway. Making use of his fluency in the Russian language, Andrew will interview stakeholders in the current debates about destruction and construction of monuments and buildings with a Stalinist pedigree, persons including an architectural historian, the director of the Schusev Museum, real estate developers, and local citizens. In doing so, he will seek opinions that he hopes reveal themes in contemporary Russian attitude toward Stalinist architecture. Andrew will then use this knowledge as the basis for his senior Honors thesis.
For this study, UNH history Professor Cathy Frierson will serve as Andrew's mentor; in Russia he will be guided by Vladimir Sedov. You may learn more about his research observations and experience at the International Research Opportunities Program Symposium on October 4, 2008.