Post-WWII housing estates in Europe: obsolescence or resilience?

Notes Zara Ferreira PhD student, University of Lisbon - Técnico Lisboa, Portugal, Secretary, Docomomo International, Lisbon, Portugal Zara Ferreira, architect and master in architecture (2012) from TécnicoUniversity of Lisbon, with a dissertation entitled The Modern and the Climate in the Lusophone Africa. School buildings in Mozambique: the Fernando Mesquita concept (1955-1975), developed in the framework of the FCT research project EWV - Exchanging Worlds Visions (http://ewv.ist. utl.pt), where she acted as fellow and researcher (2011-2013). Architect participant in the Portuguese official representation of the 14th Venice Architecture Biennale and copy editor of the Journal Homeland-News from Portugal (2014). Secretary general of Docomomo International and co-editor of Docomomo Journal (2014-2017). Currently doing her PhD, in Técnico - University of Lisbon and the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, on the preservation of post-XXII European sites and neighbourhoods, with a Doctoral Fellowship from the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia). 43 Ana Tostões Full Professor, University of Lisbon - Técnico Lisboa, Portugal, Chair, Docomomo International, Lisbon, Portugal Ana Tostões, PhD is an architect, architecture critic and historian, president of Docomomo International and editor of the Docomomo Journal. She is a Full Professor at Técnico, University of Lisbon, where she is in charge of the Architectural PhD programme. She has been invited professor at universities worldwide. She has a degree in Architecture (ESBAL, 1982), a Master’s degree in History of Art (UNL, 1994) with a thesis entitled Os Verdes Anos na Arquitectura Portuguesa dos Anos 50 (FAUP Ed., 1997), holds a PhD (IST-UL, 2003) on culture and technology in Modern Architecture (Idade Maior, FAUP Ed., 2015), awarded the X Bienal Ibero-Americana de Arquitectura y Urbanismo Prize 2016. Her research field is the Critical History and Theory of Contemporary Architecture, focusing on the relationship between European, Asian, African and American cultures. On this topic, she has published books and essays, curated exhibitions, organised scientific events, coordinated research projects, supervised theses, taken part in juries and committees, and given lectures worldwide. She coordinated the research project Exchanging World Visions (PTDC/ AUR-AQI/103229/2008) focused on Sub-Sahara African architecture during the Modern Movement period, which was published and awarded the Gulbenkian Prize 2014, and currently coordinates the research project “Cure and Care_the rehabilitation” (PTDC/ATP-AQI/2577/2014). In 2006, his Excellency the President of the Portuguese Republic made her a Commander of the Order of Infante Dom Henrique for her work on behalf of Portuguese architecture and its promotion in Portugal and abroad. 45 Post-WWII housing estates in Europe: obsolescence or resilience? Fig. 1 Abstract 1. The right to housing Endangered by its social, functional and technical obsolescence, many of the Post-WWII housing estates are currently the main focus of problematic urban areas, infrastructurally and socially disconnected from the city. At a time when l'habitat pour le plus grand nombre is in danger, looking back to these estates, built within the framework of the welfare state, is an opportunity and a fundamental step for an integrated discussion on urban development. Addressing social integration, functional use, and building technology, this paper present successful preservation strategies undertaken in three European post-WWII case studies, demonstrating how reuse can be used as a vehicle for sustainable progress. In 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights stated that “everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control”. The idea of a house for all, underlined in the Engels’ Housing Question (1872) and recalled in the context of Europe’s post-XXII reconstruction within the welfare state, l'habitat pour le plus grand nombre seems to be more and more in danger: in the overall context of neo-liberal policies, economic (private and individual) values reigns over social (public and collective) ones. This framework is particular dangerous when it comes to dealing with the refugee situation, escalating across Europe. On another Europe // Post-WWII // Housing // Welfare state // Reuse // Resilience 47 side, more than 11 million dwellings lie empty in Europe, leading us to the unavoidable conclusion that one should be exploring the possibilities of using existing structures, instead of pursuing the option of expanding indiscriminately; the reuse could be considered as a vehicle for the XXI century city sustainable development. From both perspectives – from the lessons that might be taken from the welfare state housing initiatives to the reuse potential – attention must be paid to the post-XXII remaining housing estates. 2. Between hate and love, demolition and renovation After the WWII, governments across Europe established ambitious social welfare programs in order to improve the citizens living conditions and health standards. Envisaged as holistic creations, these post-war housing estates were organised in such a way as to provide all the necessary facilities, ensuring that residents had access to housing, education, health, work and recreation. Many of these programs involved a new approach to architectural design, through adventurous experiments in the use of new materials and techniques, space creation and social transformation. More than five decades after, these sites are facing a dangerous state of social, functional and technical obsolescence, having become the main focus of problems existing in urban areas, housing large numbers of low-income households, the unemployed and people from ethnic minorities, being disconnected from the city in both infrastructural and social terms. Between hate and love discourses, the debate about these housing estates still stands between demolition and renovation. In the final of the XX century, following the 1972 demolition of the Pruitt-Igoe housing blocks (Minoru Yamasaki, 1954), in St Louis, that Charles Jencks hailed as the death of the Modern Movement and the birth of Postmodernism1, “should the grands ensembles be demolished?” was a major question for architects. “Incidental as it may seem today, the question is not completely old hat”2; the true is that a long way has to be pursued in order the qualities of the post-XXII housing estates be recognized and safeguarded: the Robin Hood Gardens (Alison and Peter Smithson, 1969-72), despite all the international protection campaigns, ended up demolished last August (2017). In UK, demolition decision was given to hundred “brutal high-rise towers” within the will of the former Britain’s Prime Minister, David Cameron, of putting “the bulldozing of sink estates at the heart of turnaround Britain”3 and political views such as “the overwhelming majority of public architecture built during [the modern] lifetime [being] aesthetically worthless, simply because it is ugly”4 5. Nonetheless, all over Europe, post-war housing estates have nowadays begun to be appreciated by users and authorities, as integral part of the current city, beyond the confines of academia and heritage field. Representing an important turning point in attitudes towards the post-WWII housing, is the case of the 1km-length Corviale, in Rome (Mario Fiorentino, 1972-1982). Formerly seen as a symbol of architectural and social failure, is now gathering support for its preservation through an international competition ("Rigenerare Corviale") launched by the Commune of Rome, with the strong support of 8000 inhabitants who admitted to being "fascinated by the monster"6. The recently given protection status to the Cables Wynd House (Alison & Hutchison & Partners, 1968), in Edinburgh, featured as a “drug den” in Trainspotting7, to the Balfron Tower (Ernö Goldifinger, 1972) in London, or to the Cité de l’Etoile (Georges Candilis, Alexis Josic an d Shadrach Woods, 1955), in Bobigny, are cases in point representing the increasingly recognition of this architectural production as heritage as the first positive steps towards its preservation. aspects: in privacy (number and type of rooms), in technology (we have now new communication systems, such as the internet and cell phones), in family lifestyles and household structures (the important role of women in the labour market and the increasingly diversified ways of working). It became important to promote spatial occupations not envisaged when the buildings were conceived and to address the flexibility of use to meet current lifestyles occupation and reform the levels of satisfaction. 3. Obsolescence The obsolescence of these housing estates may be determined on three main levels: social, functional and technical. Regarding social terms, it must be said that post-war housing estates were mainly developed towards the outskirts of cities following the satellite Garden City theory, which nowadays suffer from social exclusion, poverty and crime. Conceived as autonomous settlements with a complexity of functions, they are nowadays often not well connected with the current urban infrastructure. Preservation efforts must take into account the access to facilities, public and green spaces; the integration within transport networks; the capacity to be connected to the environment; the morphological organization of the sites and of the buildings; the demographic structure and socio-professional characteristics of the inhabitants, their sense of belonging and security. In functional terms, dwellings were usually assigned to a typical family (couple with 2/3 children), comprising the basic functions of bedroom, living space, kitchen and bathroom, usually designed with the minimum hygienic and functional conditions and proportions. The social and functional use of dwellings have changed in several In what concerns the technic dimension, not only the restoration of structural systems, materials and devices is essential, as the main challenge is to address the current high-demanding regulations concerning user safety, fire control, seismic stability, energy efficiency and environmental comfort, including acoustic insulation, ventilation and lighting. Whether discussing demolition, or the growing phenomenon of heritagization, the debate has been mainly centred on the question of how to keep these structures alive, while meeting contemporary standards of comfort. Even if it is hard to find examples of rehabilitation works carried out that has globally addressed the referred three main levels of obsolescence, we are now beginning to find very relevant efforts in addressing some of them. This is the case of the work undertaken at the Deflat Kleiburg, in the Netherlands, trying to promote social inclusion, the works by Druot, Lacaton & Vassal in France, addressing functional update, and the building envelope renovation at the Cité du Lignon, assuring technic update in what concerns energy performance. 49 4.1. Social update – Deflat Kleiburg, The Netherlands Kleiburg is located in Bijlmermeer, a modern neighbourhood expansion of Amsterdam designed in the 1960s by Siegfried Nassuth, hosting nowadays almost 100.000 people from 150 nationalities. It was conceived as a vertical garden city, composed by high-rise buildings of social housing laid out in a hexagonal grid, organized around large green spaces and traffic routes separated between cars, bikes and people. Kleiburg is the one of the biggest housing buildings in the Netherlands, 400-meter-long, hosting 500 apartments within 11 stories high. It ended up being the last building in the neighbourhood in its original state, after positive efforts had avoided its demolition: as an answer to the 70 million € bulldozing, Kleiburg was offered for 1 € in an attempt to catalyse alternative and economically viable plans. More than 50 proposals come out, from student to homeless housing. In the end, the building was saved from the wrecking ball through its transformation into a rejuvenated framework called “Klusflat", a DIY concept that enable the inhabitants to customize their renovated apartments by themselves. Completed in 2016, the architects NL architects and XVW architectuur focused their intervention in the renovation of the main structures – elevators, galleries, installations – leaving the apartments unfinished, with no rooms, kitchen, shower, or furniture. (Fig. 1) typologies – it is even possible to combine various flats into one, horizontal and/or vertically. The majority of the former criticism received by different actors concerning the neighbourhood was the excessive uniformization; all the proposals to improve it were based on differentiation. Therefore, the goal of the project was to get rid the repetition and emphasize the diversity that was already always present in social terms, by allowing architecture be itself the expression of their own habitat. This was achieved not only through the flexibility of the internal informal planning, but also the transformation of the division between inside and outside in the galleries, that was rather defensive as closed. The closed parts of the façade were replaced by double glass, transforming “the interface (into) a personal carrier of the identity of the inhabitants, even with curtains closed”, promoting the interaction among inhabitants. From a common catalogue, “future inhabitants will be able to choose a set of window frames that matches the customized layout of their FLATs: openable parts, sliding doors, double doors, closed panels, a set-back that creates space for plants or people”. On the ground floor, efforts were made to turn the building more penetrable within the park and lose some of its barrier character: the storage spaces former entirely located there and therefore creating impenetrable dead zones, were placed on each floor, allowing its replacement by inhabitation; the connections between both sides of the building were double-heighted. (Fig. 2, 3) effort by many people, the jury considered that “it challenges current solutions to the housing crisis in European cities, where too often the only ambition is to build more homes year-on year, while the more profound question of what type of housing should be built goes unanswered. Kleiburg helps us imagine a new kind of architectural project, which responds to changing household patterns and lifestyles in the twenty-first century. A revitalization of typologies of the past is as relevant as experimenting with new, untested models in this quest, just as radically transforming existing buildings is”. Eventually leading to a new business model for housing for Netherlands, this concept minimizes the initial investments (€1,200 per m2), providing a diverse offer of affordable housing for the large majority and a diversity of use that promotes new housing Inspiring a mindset, DeFlat Kleiburg received the European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture - Mies Van der Rohe Award 2017, being the first time that a renovation project wins over a new construction. Besides from being the result of a valuable collective 4.2. Functional update – Bois le Prêtre, France Regarding functional updating, the rehabilitation strategy conducted by Frédéric Druot, Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal, for the post-war housing schemes built in France, in response to demolition 4. Resilience Fig. 2, 3 policies, is already a worldwide reference. This strategy was first laid out in 2004, within the publication PLUS - Les Grands Ensembles de logements. Territoires d'exception. Addition, Extension, Transformation, a study-cum-manifesto challenging the initiatives led by the French government to turn down a significant part of the post-war social housing stock and replace it by new, smaller and more expensive dwellings. Through seven projects presented, PLUS reveals how such housing schemes can be adapted to the current lifestyles, based on the principle “never demolishing, subtracting or replacing things, but always adding, transforming and utilising them”. (Fig. 4, 5, 6) Starting with Tour Bois le Prêtre, Druot, Lacaton, and Vassal have been having the chance to test their conjectures in reality over 51 the past years, transforming several post-war housing buildings in France, according to their “extension” concept. Bois le Prêtre is a 16-storey prefabricated concrete tower, hosting 96 apartments, designed by Raymond Lopez. It was built between 1959 and 1961, in the North outskirts of Paris, following a real estate survey conducted in 1954 with the aim of discover unoccupied areas where it would be desirable to extend the city to. In 2005, the demolition firstly envisaged, has been avoided and replaced by the launch of a competition for its renovation, which was won by Druot, Lacaton, and Vassal, in 2011. Based on the principle of adding value by space, the proposal consists of adding winter gardens and balconies, built as a self-supporting structure, to the whole periphery of the building, and replacing the former façades by large openings. This way apartments have been enlarged from 8,900 to 12,500 m2, and the light, the views and the comfort of the apartments were optimized. Without modifying the existing structural organization, these external structures allow bioclimatic adjustment of temperatures, reducing the energy consumption by approximately 60%. Fig. 4 Fig. 5 Fig. 6 By increasing the flexibility of the dwelling space, while promoting the renewal of the typologies and the living conditions, comfort and pleasure, Lacaton and Vassal believes that the inhabitants of each apartment must ask, “What exactly should I use this space for?” Photographs by Philippe Ruault reveal the plurality of responses: eating, living, play, etc. The kitchens and bathrooms were renovated and vertical circulations and access halls were improved; rooms for collective activities were established on the sides of the hall, completely renovated. These new winter gardens and balconies were added to the façade using prefabricated modules, one day per apartment. The works taking place outside allows that the inhabitants could stay in the apartments during the construction process. Instead of the € 20 million estimated for destruction/ reconstruction, the cost of the entire transformation project was €12 million, proofing the argument in favor of the renovation as a much more affordable solution than demolition. 4.3. Technic update – Citè du Lignon, Switzerland Concerning technic upgrading, the applied research conducted at the Techniques et Sauvegarde de L'architecture Moderne Laboratory (TSAM), at École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), stands out for the exceptional rehabilitation plan developed for the Cité du Lignon, in Genève, Switzerland, between 2008 and 2011, contributing for its rehabilitation. The Cité du Lignon was a “satellite city”, commissioned to the Georges Addor office, built between 1963 and 1971, to host 10.000 people, as a response to the 1960s-population boom. As one of the largest apartments complexes in the world, it is composed by 2700 apartments within an area of 28ha, distributed among a jagged 1km-long block from 11 to 15 storeys, two towers of 26 and 30 storeys and community facilities: a school, two churches, a shopping centre offering a wide range of services to the residents, a medical centre, a sports centre and a youth centre. Besides working as a well sociallysustainable neighbourhood, the project presents remarkable technical and constructive features, in line with the principles of industrial and rationalized structural systems, from the reinforced concrete structure to the 125,000m2 of prefabricated curtain wall, composed by large panels (2.80 x 2.40 and 2.80 x 1.80 meters) with 53 Fig. 7 interior pinewood frames and exterior aluminium panels. Widely and internationally studied, the Cité du Lignon is very much appreciated by its residents. Its heritage value was legally recognized through a conservation plan approved in 2009 with the aim of preserving the architectural unity of the buildings, the planning design and the landscape quality of exterior spaces. (Fig. 7) Towards its conservation, and with the aim of updating the complex with the high-standard Swiss regulations reduction of energy consumption requirements, the Canton of Geneva and the consortium representing the building’s owners commissioned the TSAM Laboratory an Architectural and Energy Study of the Envelopes (2008-2011), in order to find a balance between heritage protection and greater energy efficiency. Exhaustive surveys of the buildings envelope and diagnosis of its thermal performance were undertaken conducting to 4 different intervention options to transform the Lignon façades: 1 - simple maintenance; 2 – replacement by a replica with intermediate solutions including repair; 3 – refurbishment; 4 – total replacement of curtain walling with a replica. Using multiple criteria, within three main variables – heritage, economy and energy – these 4th options were compared in what regards conservation impact in material, visual and physic– chemical character; works to be carried out, life–cycle estimations, costs and energy needs. Decision–making tools to assist building owners were developed, to support the decision process: besides the 4th option which was not economically sustainable, the other 3 options offered possible solutions, offering a range of options to be selected by the owners according to their financial budget. After these option prototypes have been tested in real apartments, TSAM developed a set of basic working guidelines for each of the solutions, with methods description, specifications, detailing and assembly designs and selection of materials also tested by simulation and under real conditions. Finally, according to the means of apartments owners, the renovation was undertaken in all the façades, producing an overall consistent preservation project that maintained the architectural unity of the site. After some years of use, it was proved that the overall energy consumption improved 70%, being now into compliance with the current standards. The highly conclusive experience of the TSAM Laboratory and its applied academic research at the Cité du Lignon, turns to be a pilot project of excellence, distinguished with the Europa Nostra and SIA Awards, that is being now extended to other post-war housing Fig. 8 55 estates in Geneva. Representing the importance of exhaustive studies in the development of the most appropriate solutions for energy consumption while respecting the architectural identity and the economic available resources of its users, this project reveals how it is possible to balance the qualities of the post-war building stock while updating to the contemporary standards of comfort. (Fig. 8, 9) 5. Towards a sustainable Europe The need to develop sustainable sites, neighbourhoods and landscapes is one of the main issues for the XXI century. Post-war collective housing remains one of the most significant modern products representing efforts to develop architecture as a vehicle for an egalitarian society and where thousands of people still live today. The proper rehabilitation of these structures, while addressing the demands of the contemporary agenda, can represent a tremendous potential achievement, in an over all context of economic, social and environmental sustainability. Fig. 9 There are several studies documenting post-war housing estates around Europe at different levels8. Also, there is several studies on the growing technical and functional obsolescence of 20th centuryarchitecture9. Positive developments towards the recognition of the value of the post-war housing estates have been increasing, but we still have a long way to go – specifically, with regard to the preservation of European post-war housing estates, few are the relevant studies, usually applied to specific buildings or housing estates. It is fundamental to look at international case studies, hoping that they may act as recommendations on how to intervene by building a lexicon of practical application that can inform future projects able to be used by practitioners, researchers and policy makers. Collective efforts must be keep evolving towards the establishment of a route for restoring the idea of the right to housing, levered on the potential of the post-WWII European legacy. Acknowledgments This paper was developed in the framework of the research project “Reuse of Modernist Buildings – Design Tools for Sustainable Transformations”, funded by the European Commission within the ERASMUS+ Programme 2016, conducted by HS OWL (Detmold, Germany), Docomomo International, ITU (Istanbul, Turkey), TécnicoUniversity of Lisbon (Portugal), University of Coimbra (Portugal) and University of Antwerp (Belgium), and in the framework of the PhD research project of Zara Ferreira, supervised by Professors Ana Tostões and Franz Graf, which is being supported by the Doctoral Fellowship of the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia) (SFRH/ BD/115196/2016). Bibliography Avermaete, T., Swenarton, M., Van Den Heuvel, D. (ed.) (2015) Architecture of the Welfare State. London and New York: Routledge. Druot, F., Lacaton, A., Vassal, J.-P. (2007) PLUS – Les Grands Ensembles de Logements - Territoires d'Exception. Barcelona: Editorial Gustavo Gili. Eleb, M., Simon, P. (2013) Entre Confort, Désir et Normes: le Logement Contemporain (1995-2012). Bruxelles: Editions 57 Mardaga. Engels, F. (1872) The Housing Question. Michigan: Lawrence and Wishart, 1942. Graf, F. and Marino G. (2014) Housing Reloaded Collective. Housing in Europe, 1945–2015. Docomomo Journal, 54, 5-9. Graf, F. (2012) La cité du Lignon 1963-1971: Étude Architecturale et Stratégies d’intervention. Patrimoine et Architecture: Cahier hors série. Gollion: Éditions Infolio. Kempen, R., Dekker, K., Hall, S., Tosics, I. (2005) Restructuring Large Housing Estates in Europe: Restructuring and Resistance Inside the Welfare Industry. Bristol: Policy Press at the University of Bristol. Montaner, J. M. (2015) La Arquitectura de La Vivenda Colectiva. Políticas y proyectos en la Ciudad Contemporánea. Barcelona: Editorial Reverté. Mumford, E. (2002) The CIAM Discourse on Urbanism, 1928-1960. Cambridge: MIT Press. Tostoes, A. (2015) "Where Desire may Live or How to Love Mass Housing: from Cold War to the Revolution", ZARCH, Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies in Architecture and Urbanism, n. 5, Zaragoza. Tostoes, A. (2014) "Le Défi de la réutilisation de l’architecture du Mouvement Moderne face aux contraintes normatives", in Grignolo, R. (ed.) (2014) Law and Conservation of 20th Century Architecture. Mendrisio: Silvana Editoriale/Mendrisio Academy Press. Tostoes, A. and Ferreira, Z. (ed.) (2016) Adaptive Reuse. The Modern Movement towards the Future. Lisboa/Matosinhos: Docomomo International/Casa da Arquitectura. Tostoes, A. and Ferreira, Z. (ed.) (2016) Docomomo Journal, n. 54 – Housing Reloaded. Lisboa: Docomomo International. Tostões, A., Kecheng, L. (ed.) (2014) Docomomo International 1988-2012: Key papers in Modern Architectural Heritage Conservation. Beijing: China Architectural and Building Press. Image Credits Fig. 1: NL Architects and XVW architectuur, Rehabilitation of Kleiburg, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 2012. © NL Architects archive, XVW architectuur archive, Marcel van der Burg - http:// www.nlarchitects.nl. Fig. 2: NL Architects and XVW architectuur, Rehabilitation of Kleiburg, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 2012 – Window options. © NL Architects archive, XVW architectuur archive - http://www. nlarchitects.nl. Fig. 3: NL Architects and XVW architectuur, Rehabilitation of Kleiburg, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 2012. © NL Architects archive, XVW architectuur archive - http://www.nlarchitects.nl. Fig. 4: Anne Lacaton & Jean-Philippe Vassal, Fréderic Druot and Christophe Hutin architects, Transformation of 530 dwellings, Quartier du Grand Parc, Bordeaux, France, 2016. © Philippe Ruault. Fig. 5: Anne Lacaton & Jean-Philippe Vassal, Fréderic Druot and Christophe Hutin architects, Transformation of 530 dwellings, Quartier du Grand Parc, Bordeaux, France, 2016. © Lacaton & Vassal – Druot. Fig. 6: Frédéric Druot, Anne Lacaton and Jean-Philippe Vassal, Transformation of Housing, Tour Bois le Prêtre, Paris, France, 2011. © Frédéric Druot. Fig. 7: Georges Addor, Dominique Juliard, Louis Payot, Jacques Bollinger, Cité du Lignon, Genève, Switzerland, 1963-1971. © Zara Ferreira. Fig. 8: Georges Addor, Dominique Juliard, Louis Payot, Jacques Bollinger, Cité du Lignon, Genève, Switzerland, 1963-1971 – Guidance table: cost estimates/levels of intervention/heating needs, June 2009. © EPFL–ENAC–IA–TSAM. Fig. 9: Georges Addor, Dominique Juliard, Louis Payot, Jacques Bollinger, Cité du Lignon, Genève, Switzerland, 1963-1971 – Defining possible levels of intervention, Option C — Refurbishment window panel cross section, 1:20. © EPFL– ENAC–IA–TSAM. Notes Jencks, C. (1984) The Language of Post-Modern Architecture. New York: Rizzoli. 2 Graf, F. and Marino G. (2014) Housing Reloaded Collective. Housing in Europe, 1945–2015. Docomomo Journal, 54, 5-9. 3 David Cameron, “I’ve put the bulldozing of sink estates at the heart of turnaround Britain”, The Sunday Times [online]. Available at: http://www.bdonline.co.uk/news/new-robin-hood-gardensresidents-survey-challenges-demolition/3143573.article. 4 Stone, J. (2016) Government declares war on Brutalist architecture as the transports minister, Independent [online]. Available at: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/euston-archdeclares-war-on-brutalist-architecture-john-hayes-a7393846.html 5 On the other side, one may testify other positive initiatives as is the extraordinary refurbishing of the Lawn Road flats/Isokon 1 building (Wells Coates, 1958), in London, by Avanti Architects. Hainzl, O. (2015) Corviale. Berlin: Kehrer. 7 Boyle, D. (1996). Trainspotting [motion picture]. United States: Miramax. 8 Glendinning (1994) on UK public housing; Delemontey (2015) on technical innovations in France; Sambricio (2003) on the evolution of domestic space in social housing in Spain. Besides nationally focused studies, the history of post-war housing as a collective phenomenon is now being developed (Tostoes, 2015; Swenarton, Avermaete, Van Den Heuvel, 2015; Glendinning, 2015). These studies are mainly focused on the projects time framework, within a historical context. Concerning the evolution, transformation and analysis of the current situation, Gehl (2010) and Montaner (2015) have made important contributions addressing contemporary habitat uses and needs, focused on community, public space and urban questions. 9 Numerous institutions have been contributing to the definition of conservation strategies, namely the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (Graf, 2014), the Accademia di Architettura di Mendrisio (Grignolo, 2014), the Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (Prudon, 2008) and the Getty Conservation Institute (Macdonald, 2001). DOCOMOMO International 1988-2012: Key papers in Modern Architectural Heritage Conservation (Tostoes, Jecheng, 2014) reveals how the state of the art for this subject has evolved, and Adaptive Reuse. The Modern Movement towards the Future (Tostões, Ferreira, 2016) is the most updated work on the reuse subject. The contribution of Bruno Reichlin has been a reference since the late 1980s. 6