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Concept
Panelák
Summary
Panelák (ˈpanɛlaːk) is a colloquial term in Czech and Slovak for a large panel system panel building constructed of pre-fabricated, pre-stressed concrete, such as those extant in the former Czechoslovakia and elsewhere in the world. Paneláks are usually located in housing estates (Czech: sídliště, Slovak: sídlisko).
Panelák [plural: paneláky] is derived from the standard panelový dům or panelový dom meaning, literally, "panel house / prefabricated-sections house". The term panelák is used mainly for the elongate blocks with more sections with separate entrances – simple panel tower blocks are called "věžový dům" (tower house) or colloquially "věžák". The buildings remain a towering, highly visible reminder of the communist era. The term panelák refers specifically to buildings in the former Czechoslovakia. However, similar buildings were a common feature of urban planning in communist countries and even in the West.
Interwar Czechoslovakia saw many constructivist architects in the country, such as Vladimír Karfík and František Lydie Gahura, many of whom would maintain prominence following the establishment of the Czechoslovak People's Republic in 1948. In the years following 1948, the Czechoslovakian architectural scene favored Stalinist architecture over more modern architecture. However, a 1954 speech by Nikita Khrushchev encouraging the construction of panel buildings, coupled by post-war housing shortages faced throughout both eastern and western Europe, encouraged the country's architectures to construct more simplistic, modernist buildings. Throughout the mid 1950s, the country's designers applied a modernist aesthetic known as the cs, named after the international attention it attracted during the 1958 World’s Fair held in Brussels. By the late 1960s, the country's paneláks often reached up to 16 stories in height. The
As of 2005, they housed about 3.5 million people, or about one-third of the country's population.
Following the country's Velvet Revolution in 1989, there was widespread speculation that the country's paneláks would fall out of favor, due to their simplicity and small size.
Official source
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