Not about an “envelop”

This one is very long and it is just about me - self-reflection and a bit about Russia, sorry)

"For actually the earth had no roads to begin with, but when many men pass one way, a road is made." - Lu Xun

I spent my childhood in a marginalized industrial district of a provincial city during the years
after the last revolution (after USSR collapsed and the Russian Federation was established). My
parents were unlucky, they were educated professional engineers, but they were too young
and they did not have time to establish their lives in USSR, to get an apartment for example.

In the USSR such professionals as my parent would get a free apartment. There was no open
market in USSR and so the state would provide everybody with everything for free, for
example, the state would provide an apartment (as we are speaking about a relatively big
and developed city and you should take in account that people do not have the American
suburban lifestyles with private houses). But when people were young, starting their careers
they usually got not a full apartment but just a room (so-called “communal apartments”).
So I spent my childhood in one room with my parents with two other families living in the
other rooms in a district full of jobless workers (as after revolution all state management
systems collapsed and for about 10 years it was a mess, wild capitalism, the establishment of the
new state, all state facilities did not work properly, people were without money and sometimes
without normal food supply).

In the other apartments in the multi-story apartment building where I lived there were two
drug dealers and illegal stashes (I am not sure if it is a correct world) selling alcohol and stolen
things. My parents (from relatively wealthy families) were aliens there, but they did not have
a choice - nobody had money after the evolution. This district was built in 40es after WWII by
German military prisoners for the future workers of the biggest car factory of USSR. The
Stalinist politic of relocating people from rural areas to the cities for the development of the
industries required new apartment districts. In theory, these districts were the new clusters
of new Soviet ideal citizens. That partly worked: people had free education, free daycares,
social medical system, they had guaranteed places to live and work. And it worked in general -
my grandparents lived wealthy and had very successful careers (directors of the factories and
Soviet politics) and they were happy in the USSR.

But as I said after USSR collapsed all systems were broken and it was chaos. Since I was 4  years
old I remember myself paying - creating new houses and cities on my windowsill. These cities
were safe, even then I wanted to make a difference, change the environment, I wanted to
change cities and peoples life.

A long time after I had a chance to come back to this city from Moscow as lead architect and
actually make great changes (but this is another story).

My parents are now living in the historical center of the city (they worked hard and were able
to move and become standard representatives of the middle class in the Russian Federation).
The situation in the country also changed drastically: acceptable quality of life was achieved
(as in any European country), the economy was relatively stabilized in about 10-15 years after
the revolution. Now it is actually hard to remember and imagine the times right after the revolution.

I was always sure about this dream to make architecture/change something, I “fought” for my
future and education, I had to get scholarships, grants, and internships.

When I graduated I had a chance to work for private developers and did not feel that I could
change anything for good - “a customer is always right”.  Thus I decided to work for a consultancy,
work not only with a design but also with the standards and strategies. Usually, the state was our
customer. The private sector is not very interested in global changes for the citizens, but state
sometimes does, when it coincides with its goals.

I had a chance to live and understand the architectural industry in the Netherlands and France,
it is also another story.

Now I have a chance to explore and understand a completely different culture in terms of our
profession and the connection of the politics and the environment - the USA (and this is also for
another blog)))

It is obvious how tight our industry is rooted in ideology, history, and politics. How holistic it is.
I see it every day of my life in many countries in any cultures and any environment. And when I
was 4 I knew it and wanted to influence it)

What I know from my experience so far: all architects together with other specials have the
power to make changes, but without current political/social support it does not work. That is
why maybe several years ago for my first theses I was studying visionary architecture and all
possible utopian/idealistic/visionary theories of 20 century. It is always about ideology and it
never works. And I am a living witness of the disappointment and failure of the ideal.

Anyway, the search for the best way to make a difference is very exciting - on the road again)