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Gdynia : happy city

Modernist architecture legacy

Abstract

In the 1920s the young port city of Gdynia in northern

Poland was established less than a century ago out of
necessity according to modernist principles.

In stark contrast to most other Polish cities, whose histories

extend centuries or even millennia, Gdynia has developed
an image and sense of identity closely associated with its
modernist origins which has come to equate to a clean,
efficient and, most intriguingly, happy city. This study is an
investigation of the relationship real and / or imagined
between modernism and happiness in the context of
Gdynia historically and contemporarily, where the citys
identity is based on it being Polands Happy City.

1
Gdynia : happy city
Modernist architecture legacy

Marta Malina Dabrowska

word count: 9,800

supervisor: Dr Edward Denison, Architectural History and Theory Director,

MA Architecture and Historic Urban Environments

London, 2017
 Contents

Introduction 8

1. Gdynia: History of Its Origins 13

1.1 Politics of the Modern Movement 17

1.2 Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski - a Man with a Vision 21
1.3 Economic Transaction - The Dream is Sold 27
1.4 Seaside Arcadia 28

2. Gdynia: Modern 33-37

2.1 Well-being + Health 42

2.2 Planning for Happiness 52

3. Gdynia: Selling the Dream 61-66

3.1 Film 68
3.2 Posters 70
3.3 Literature 76
3.4 Graphic Design 81

4. Gdynia: Revealing the Image 89

4.1 Modernist Heritage 94

4.2 Becoming History 97
4.2 Concluding Image 100

5. Gdynia: The Visual Essay 107

Bibliography 110
CONTENTS

4 5
 F i g. 0 1
Drawing showing German sea fleet in Gdansk Bay, near
Gdynia. The observer writes in the newspaper in 1884
about the event illustrated above
.
(source: Sawomir Kitowski, The City from the Sea and Dreams,
Alter Ego 2008, p. 2-3.)
F i g. 0 2
Aerial view from the Puck Bay looking at the city
centre of Gdynia and the jetty projecting out into the
sea.1
1 http://guide.trojmiasto.pl/

6 7
 Introduction
Gdynia is a port city on the Baltic coast of Poland. It is not as well known as other modernist
cities such as Tel Aviv, Chandigarh or Brasilia, but it shares qualities and characteristics commonly
associated with modernist cities globally; qualities born out of modernisms pursuit and promotion
of efficiency, cleanliness and rationalism. Gdynia was nurtured on this narrative and it has
nourished the city ever since, so much so that in the twenty-first century not only is modernism
as heritage the principal lens through which the city is projected domestically and internationally,
but also that this association has maintained modernisms original ideological pursuit of health,
well-being and happiness. The relationship between modernism and happiness that has caused
Gdynia to be coined Polands Happy City is the principal subject of this investigation.
Glancing over recent publications about Gdynia and its modernist architectural heritage, it is not
difficult to encounter this persuasive narrative that conflates modernist heritage and happiness.
The Polish architect from neighbouring Gdansk Polytechnic, Lucyna Nyka, encapsulates the
sentiment perfectly:
Gdynia is a very happy city because it has governance who looks at the development of
the city from a historical perspective, trying not to lose what is most precious in Gdynia.
And this city is truly unique, a city that was built in just 10 years.1
A few things can seem intriguing to a reader not familiar with Gdynia. Firstly, the mention of its
rapid success, secondly of its history. Nyka refers to Gdynias modernist history, but the question
which arises from her statement is why there is a link between its happiness, whether perceived
or experienced, and its modernist past?
In order to understand Polands political, economic and social situation at the time of Gdynias
success, one has to trace back the political decisions made just after the First World War. In
the 1920s the country seized a moment in history when Eugeniusz Kwiatkowskis, a politician,
economist, and Deputy Prime Minister of the Second Republic of Poland made the decision
to invest in building a new port city for the country. It replaced the existing and ancient port
in Gdansk, which had been designated a Free City, independent from Poland, at the Treaty of
Versailles in 1919. Poland had gained its sovereignty as an independent state, but the price was
much of its access to the Baltic Sea. Gdynia, then a small coastal village, became its sole point
of access and a window to the world. On the 23rd September the Lower House (The Lower House
of Parliament in Poland) passed a law allowing the construction of Gdynias port.2
These political machinations coincided with the global rise of the modern movement, with its
promotion of innovation, efficiency and simple architectural form, which resonated with the verve
and ambition to develop the old fishing village of Gdynia into a modern city.
Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski and an engineer Tadeusz Wenda who advised on the best location for the
port, brought a French consortium into the negotiations to help secure the investment. Soon after
1 http://mlodagdynia.pl/czytaj/co-sie-dzieje/18244
2 http://wyborcza.pl/alehistoria/1,121681,13095483,Gdynia___oczko_w_polskiej_glowie.html
INTRODUCTION
8 9
they had been put in place to build a new port, the city became a new destination in the newly
sovereign, post-war country, a magnet for a young workforce looking to make a fresh start and
to build their lives in a place which was intended to be the pride of Poland. The influx of people
looking for employment forced urban planners and architects to devise a strategy for the city
and understand how a new urban plan was essential in meeting the future needs of the people
and the country. Roman Feliski, a city planner from Polish Galicia*, was one of the masterminds
behind a holistic approach to incorporating industrial port areas of the city with the residential
quarters and the development of the seaside resort and the beach. His first sketch of the city
from 1925 establishes the way Gdynia would be perceived in the future - a place physically and
symbolically proudly projecting out into the world (Fig. 02).
Gdynia was given city rights on 11th February 1926 when its growth was booming due to a new
workforce and the ambition of its creators. The extraordinary vision of Kwiatkowski and Feliski
to realise their modernist vision of creating a new city from nothing soon paid off. Although
hampered by the Second World War, the citys growth seemed inexorable, and by the 1970s Gdynia
had become a significant international trading centre with well-established connections among all
countries sharing the Baltic Sea.
Memoires on Gdynia invariably refer to its modest past. The village becomes a mythical place
once the plans for the citys port construction are secured by the government. It not only exists
as an economic and political undertaking but it also grows in the hearts of its residents, bringing
hope to the citys future.
In the early years, Gdynias residents felt a special connection with the place by being actively
involved in its construction. The young workforce who arrived in the 1920s and 30s and who had
remained in the city felt a tangible bond with the place they had invested in. In a new series of
documentaries to be released to public in the summer 2017 at the Gdynia Film Festival, archive
footage collected from the general public, entrepreneurs and working class people who made their
living in Gdynia since its inception, speak about their sense of satisfaction and pride in their
contributed to creating what is now projected as the happiest place to live in Poland. This came
at a huge cost of an initial overflow of workers and lack of accommodation for them available in
a then poorly developed town. It exacerbated the growth of slums, which became the focal point
for Kwiatkowski and the local governing bodies and triggered new plans for a balanced future
planning of Gdynia.
To understand why modernism fused so well with the sentiment surrounding Gdynias foundation,
it is necessary to explain the political and economic circumstances that played an important role
in the formation of the city. Historically, modernity in Gdynia provided comfort to its residents
through a combination of erasing the past and starting anew. The spirit of modernity has today
morphed and adjusted to suit the times and this assimilation of modernity as a foundational
ideology and as a future identity is of particular interest to this investigation.
 Referring back to the statement made by Nyka, it is under the citys government curation that
Gdynias perceived happiness emerges as a concept. Having the right historical ingredients to
establish a successful place was one way to forge an identity. The contrast of the desperate
labourers coming to Gdynia, living in poorly constructed shacks by the beach, boats converted
into haphazard shelters, and the booming construction of the port shows the degree to which
the incoming workers and residents were desperate for a change. The promise of the new city,
however difficult it must have seemed at times, was in their eyes worth making the effort for.

In the process of analysing the relationship between the citys modernist character and notions of
happiness, this study employs the imagery used to portray the city historically and more recently
as a comparative method to shed light on Gdynias urban experience, which contrasts with most
places in Poland due to their being weighed down by the past. Gdynia possesses no buildings
over a century old; making it an exceptional place not only in Poland but also in Europe and
this fact has been exploited as an enduring and compelling form of positive propaganda that
associates modernity with happiness since the citys establishment. It is the aim of this study to
critically analyse this narrative in an attempt to decipher the truth, if any, in its foundation and
more importantly, an enduring appeal.
MODERN = HAPPY

10 11
 1.
Gdynia : History of its origins
MODERN = HAPPY

12 13
 ...a handful of
uniformly built thatched
cottages, which merged
with the landscape...

F i g. 0 3
View of the port prior to construction of the military
port in 1920s.

source: approx 1921, [author unknown], http://www.gdynia-moje-mi-

asto.pl/2010/04/port-dlaczego-w-1920-roku-wybrano.html
GDYNIAS ORIGINS

14 15
 1 . G d y n i a : H i sto ry of I ts O r i g i n s

1 . 1 P o li t i cs of t h e M od e r n M ov e m e n t

Duanfang Lu explains the term modern in his book of essays Third World Modernisms which
interrogate modernist architecture in Third World countries during the cold war. He writes: modern
originated from the fifth century Latin term modemus which was then employed to distinguish
the Christian present from the pagan past1. Although the severity of this distinction does not
apply to early 20th century economical and social construct of Poland, it resonates with the shock
of the political change that occurred between the Treaty of Versailles and the Second World War.
B A LT I C The Baltic coast cities of Gdansk and Gdynia belonged to the only slither of the Polish coast
SEASIDE
which remained part of the sovereign Poland. They were intertwined with the turbulent past of a
divided Poland after the Treaty of Versailles that left the country separated from Gdansk, which
G DYN I A had been declared a Free City.

GDANSK
In 1920, the Treaty of Versailles granted Poland around 140km of coastline and a ceremonial
marriage with the Baltic Sea was held on 10th February 1920. The Polish delegation led by Gen.
Joseph Haller came to Puck and celebrated with a mass on the coastline. A flag was hoisted on a
mast and the General threw a ring into the sea - after all, it was a marriage ceremony. The Bay
of Puck, however, was frozen and the ring rolled across the ice, never reaching the sea.
Illustration showing the geographic relationship between Gdynia and Gdask.
(author: Malina Dabrowska)

The preferred place to build a port is Gdynia, more precisely a stretch of land between
Gdynia and Oksywi, located at a distance of 16 km from the New Port of Gdansk

The news was brought by children
who retuned home from school and told their
parents about the teacher ... who hung up
on the board a map of Gdynia showing its
borders and talked about how the village
will become a port and a city. Maybe even
larger than Gdansk... 1
- wrote Tadeusz Wenda, a military engineer one of the main figures responsible for the citys
success, in a report to the then director of the Department of Maritime Affairs Ministry.
Engineer Wenda, who has been delegated to Pomerania to find the best place for the future Polish
port, argued Gdynia was the best choice of site due to its favourable hydrographic conditions, it
was sheltered from the winds, and it was close to an already established railway connection. From
this point on, the village was marked to become a modern port city.2

1 http://wyborcza.pl/alehistoria/1,121681,13095483,Gdynia___ocz- 1 Duanfang Lu, Third World Modernism: Architecture, Development and Identity, p.4
ko_w_polskiej_glowie.html 2 http://www.polskieradio.pl/39/156/Artykul/1136421,Gdynia-chluba-II-Rzeczpospolitej
MODERN = HAPPY

16 17
 F i g. 0 4
Photograph looking at new modernist residential blocks
under construction in Gdynia, 1960s.

(source: Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of

Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014.)

F i g. 0 5
Everyday life in the village, circa 1900.
(source: Sawomir Kitowski, The City from the Sea and Dreams,
Alter Ego 2008, p. 39)
GDYNIAS ORIGINS

18 19
 1 . 2 Kw i a t k o w s k i - A M a n w i t h a Vi s i o n
The location of the port established by Tadeusz
Wenda was only a part of the successful plan
to launch Gdynia on the map of Poland. It
could have not happened without a leading
figure present throughout the citys growth. -
Engineer Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski. Not only did
he become a romantic visionary, but also a
prominent political figure of the century.
Although Kwiatkowski was not solely
responsible for the success of Gdynia, his
conviction and drive made it possible for
the process of transformation of the city to
occur. Together with Wenda, he decided that
the stretch of coast between Gdynia and
Gdynia Oksywie would be the most suitable
part of the Baltic coast available to Poland at
the time for building a military port. Although
Kwiatkowskis conviction to build the port was
contagious and the Polish government decided
that it needed investment after the divisions
within the nation brought by the Treaty of
Versailles, the operation entailed a huge cost
and required complete faith in the architects
plan. It was not an easy task to forge a design
F i g. 0 6
that would fulfil the expectations for this
Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski and Marshall Jzef Pisudski, leader of the
Second Polish Republic between 1918-22 photographed in 1926. politically and socially charged location for
Poland (Fig. 07).
(source: NAC, http://wyborcza.pl/duzyformat/7,127290,21569451,stanisla-
wa-ryster-denerwuje-sie-polska.html)
Modernism, a dominant revolutionary ideology
at the time, fitted well with Polands ambition
to create a new city, representing new energy,
new future for the country, seen in other
examples of the newly established cities
across the world. Retrospectively, Brasilia, the
Brazilian capita,l designed a few decades later
in the 1950s by an architect Oscar Niemeyer
and urban planner Lucio Costa, sprung to life
A MAN WITH A VISION
propelled by the governments ambitions to
establish a successful precedent. It aspired
1 http://wyborcza.pl/alehistoria/1,121681,13095483,Gdynia___oczko_w_polskiej_glowie.html
20
to represent the nation and create a new
identity that did not rely on its colonial past.
Niemeyers task was to create an extraordinary
and unique place, a new modern city for Brazil
which would take precedent from no other
city in the country, and make an entirely new
identity for the nation.
Architecture seemed to possess a power no
political system at the time had, or perhaps
it was powerful enough to incite the hope
and energy into an idea which was otherwise
challenging to imagine. The Polish government
and Kwiatkowski had embarked on an
undertaking in the 1920s that was aimed at
constructing a town marrying the functionality
of a port town with a romanticised vision
of a new modernist urban development,
representing a forward-looking Polish society.
Kwiatkowski commented on the future of
Gdynias urban planning at a government
meeting in 1929 discussing its fast growing
port, expressing his ambitions to transform
Gdynia into a grand and impressive port city:
There should be a square like Piazza San Marco
in Venice. On the square there is a place for
the town hall and other representative buildings
and the basilica. As you continue to work, you
need to keep in mind the layout of the whole,
linking it to the pier and the monument (Union
of Polish Lands) located on the axis of the
artery leading to the station.1
The funds required for construction became
another stage of the project which was cleverly
manoeuvred by Kwiatkowski and led to the full
backing from the Polish government.
21
 F i g. 0 7
Plans for construction of the port in Gdynia.
Sketches made by Feliski in collaboration with Tadeusz
Wenda and Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski.

(source: http://www.dws-xip.pl/wojna/rozne/port1.html)

F i g. 0 8 ( n ex t pa g e )
A construction worker on Kamienna Gra, a hill
adjacent to the city centre, overlooking the port in
A MAN WITH A VISION

construction.

(source: Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of

Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014.)

22 23
A MAN WITH A VISION

F i g. X X
Photograph of a builder laying bricks on top of
Kamienna Gora, looking over the port. 1932, photography:
Kosycarz
24 25
 Construction of the port in
Gdynia, and with it over a
hundred thousand residents
town, was a source of pride
in pre-war Poland. In 1934, by
being only eleven year old,
Gdynias port turned over more
goods than Gdansk in the last
few hundred years. 1

1 http://wyborcza.pl/alehistoria/1,121681,13095483,Gdy-
nia___oczko_w_polskiej_glowie.html

1 . 3 E c o n o m i c Tra n s a c t i o n - T h e D re a m i s S o ld

From the citys inception, it seems that all
steps necessary to fulfil this vision required
careful curation in order to become reality. The
balanced growth mentioned by Kwiatkowski
meant that the slums had to be replaced with
comfortable and affordable housing for the
citys workers and the growth of villas on the
coast adjacent to the city centre had to be
balanced by the provision of other affordable
living quarters. The industrial, residential and
tourist areas of the city had to be designed
and maintained with equal care and secure
Gdynia a long-lasting urban plan, which would
towards the sea in turn make the city a destination for future
investments as well as a place for families to
settle.
Building an entirely new port may seem like
an unnecessarily extravagant operation, given
the cost of its construction and the proximity
to the Free City of Gdask. However, even
assuming that the cooperation with the Free
City of Gdask as a monopolist would not
dictate increasingly higher loading rates per
tonne (although it is known that there were
clashes on the Warsaw Gdask line) it
would appear that the problem was of different
nature: the capacity of that port. Kwiatkowski
in 1928 already pointed out the numbers
showing that the dynamic development of the
Polish economy in 1926-27 meant that even
the fastest pace of expansion of the port in
Gdask would not have answered its needs.
The decision to create the port in Gdynia was
also political, taken in the face of deteriorating
relations between Warsaw and Free City of
Gdask. Although it is difficult to investigate
the origin of the documents which have
investigated various economic aspects of
the project, it is clear that the price was not
instrumental in this equation.
The financial burden on the country in pursuing
this city building project has long been
overshadowed by its idealistic capital. The
vision of Kwiatkowski and Feliski of the most
important economic undertaking in Poland of
the 1920s.1 is shown as an investment for the
future and accepted and supported as such
by the government. In 1938, the president of
Poland Ignacy Mocicki appointed Kwiatkowski
as the Minister of Trade and Industries2.
Whether it was a cold economic calculation
justifying the huge cost of estimated 40
million Polish Zotych3 or a skilful political game
played by Kwiatkowski to deliver the nation
a much needed boost of morale, something
to build on in the future, motions had been
put forward to realise those plans. He said
with determination: My only concern is the
issue of the balanced development of Gdynia.
The exploitation of its port not supported by
a strong independent metropolitan structure
would be with detriment to the city4.

26
1 http://wyborcza.pl/alehistoria/1,121681,13095483,Gdynia___oczko_w_polskiej_glowie.html
2 http://wyborcza.pl/alehistoria/1,121681,13095483,Gdynia___oczko_w_polskiej_glowie.html
3 https://www.obserwatorfinansowy.pl/forma/rotator/gdynia-powstala-bez-wzgledu-na-koszty/
4 http://wyborcza.pl/alehistoria/1,121681,13095483,Gdynia___oczko_w_polskiej_glowie.html
towards Gdansk

F i g. 0 9
First sketch plan of the city by Roman Felinski, 1925,
Gdynia.

26 (source: Sawomir Kitowski, The City from the Sea and Dreams, 27
Alter Ego 2008)
 1.4 Seaside Arcadia

Aside from appearing modern and forward-
thinking as a newly established city, Gdynia
also promoted itself as an idyllic coastal
resort. Its beaches, sanatoria and warm climate
attracted tourism and wealthy residents of the
nearby towns and cities who could afford a
second home on the Polish coast. Kamienna
Gra, a district of the city centre adjacent to
the coast became famous for its modernist
villas, an expression of the radically different
way of living inspired by the city centre. They
are a response to the traditional villas found
in Gdask and Sopot, which relate to the
traditional ideal of a detached manor houses
found across Poland at the beginning of XXth
century1.
Gdynia inscribed itself in the international
modernist style of coastal cities like Tel
Avivs modern district of White City. This
marine-themed city became a perfect canvas
for architecture responding to the seaside
location by using forms which stand out on
its coastline as white clean cut blocks with
sweeping corners, inspired by the waves and
the sea (Fig. 12).
In Gdynia, not only were individual villas
inspired by the modern movement and their
coastal location, but also the urban grid
responded to the citys relation to the sea.
Its main axis leads from the train station in
a straight line to the pier projecting out in to
the origins of the layout of Gdynias Premiere
District2 , we must go back to the beginning
of the 20th century, when Gdynia was no more
than a village. The attraction of the landscapes
and the unique position between Gdansk and
other coastal towns and villages brought an
interest to residents of the nearby towns and
other larger cities across Poland to visit this
picturesque spot. Mainly renowned for its then
only Kurhaus Spa Hotel, a lido and a fifty-
meter long pier, the village.3
This idyllic image is in contrast with some
of the representations of Gdynia found in
F i g. 1 0
literature and testimonies of its residents. A family enjoying a day out on Gdynias beach, 1934.
In a publication on a previous exhibition held (source: personal archive, http://ambiente.gliwice.pl/plaze-baltyku/)
in Museum of Gdynia, the city is described as
a small and poor fishing village talking about
the settlement as a handful of uniformly built
thatched cottages, which merged with the
landscape. It may be the dissonance between
the citys modest past and its ambitious vision
for the future, which allows for the urban
planners, architects, artists and designers
involved in the creation of the citys image
to have an uninhibited projection of Gdynias Sad and pitiful parcel
trajectory towards an unknown, modern future. of land where goats
reluctantly feed off
All of these architectural and social ambitions fields burnt off by the
for the city had their foundation in the
sun.1
modernist movement of the early 1920s.
With the help of Kwiatkowski and the funding
from the Polish government and international 1 Stefan eromski talks about Gdynia.

the bay (Fig. 09) consortia, Gdynia was no longer a fishing

. village, it begun to transform into a modernist
In an essay on the beginnings of the modernist city.
city, Maria Sotysik writes: in order to learn

1 Arkadia, Gdynia Summer Resort of XIX and XXth centtury. by Maria Sikorska in 1936.
2 Gdynias district, unique (both on European and global scale) because of its location within an attractive landscape
SEASIDE ARCADIA

between the city and the sea. It has been inspired by From the design point of view, it can be compared with the concept of
Marshal Jozef Pisudski District in Warsaw. (Essay: Modern City Centre Evolution of the Idea of Gdynias Premiere District, Maria
Jolanta Soltysik, published in Modernism in Europe, 20th Century Architecture until the 1960s and its preservation, Gdynia City
Hall, 2015).
3 op.cit., p.67
28 29
 F i g. 1 2
Gdynias beach, changing rooms, inter-war period.

(source: http://www.naszagdynia.com/plaza)

F i g. 1 2
Curved balconies on a facade of a villa in Kamienna
Gra, Gdynia city centre.

(source: http://galeria.trojmiasto.pl/Owalne-balkony-modernizm-
Gdyni-434710.html?tag=modernizm&pozycja=21)
SEASIDE ARCADIA

30 31
 F i g. 1 3
Ciechocinek lido. photograph by Czesaw Olszewski.

(source: photograph by Czesaw Olszewski for exhibition on

modernism in Gdynias Museum, 2017, organizer press materials)

F i g. 1 4
Swimming pool on Polanka Redowska (Redowska Lea)
was 50m by 20m and had a 10m high jump tower.

(source: Photograph by Zbigniew Kosycarz, 1960s.)

SEASIDE ARCADIA

32 33
 2.
Gdynia : Modern

34 35
 F i g. 1 5
View of Gdynias shipyard looking from the bay, 1928.

(source: Photography by NAUTA, http://biznes.trojmiasto.pl/Stocznia-Nauta-ma-juz-90-lat-n106393.html)

MODERN

36 37
 2. Modern
The beginning of the 20th century saw
architecture radically change its agenda. One
of the pioneers of the growing modernist
movement, Le Corbusier writes in his seminal
book, Towards a New Architecture:
If we set ourselves against the past, we
can then appreciate the fact that new
formulas have been found which only
need exploitation to bring about (if we
efficient are wise enough to break the routine) a
genuine liberation from the constraints
we have till now been subject to. 1
This distinction between what is new and
what constitutes old has been a source of
fu n ct i o na l
debate between modernist architects since
old the beginning of the 20th century. Gropius,
Le Corbusier and Mies Van Der Rohe had an
interest in a new architecture which not only
looked to find a language of simple, floating
volumes and clear-cut geometries2, but
also provoked a cultural change, standing in
c lea n fo r m
contrast with past constructs. The new form
of architecture became known as modernism
and following the eponymous exhibition in
New York in 1932 acquired a stylistic title:
the International Style. The aesthetic quickly
became recognisable across not only Europe
but throughout the world, heralding new
approaches to the planning and development
of cities.
1 Towards a New Architecture, Le Corbusier, p.286
2 Modern Architecture Since 1900, William Curtis
MODERN
38
After the war, modernist architects faced a
difficult task when either building on tradition
or developing an entirely new language for
urban planners to exploit when reconstructing
cities after the war or building them anew. It
is useful to compare Gdynia in the context of
other modernist cities which have developed
under a similar set of circumstances.
To transform Gdynia into a resilient modern
city, the designers utilised the concepts of
modernist town planning and applied them to
residential and civic architecture devising a
strategy to fulfil the premise of the new city.
The architects of Gdynia had not only decided
on a well-situated coastal village to build the
future modernist city upon, but its neighbour,
Gdansk, served as a crucial political and
cultural counterpoint to the city.
Although the city of Tel Aviv was not
established for the same reasons as Gdynia,
its political and cultural agenda were similar,
manifesting a radical social change through
architecture. It was born out of the need
to contrast its radical architecture with the
neighbouring historic centre of Jaffa
Tel Aviv, the modernist so-called White City
had its counterpart in the historic city of Jaffa.
After Hitler came to power in 1933, German
Jews and Jewish pioneers from Palestine living
39
 in Dessau, who belonged to an architectural
school called Bauhaus were forced to flee. The
Jews among them fled to Little Tel Aviv, ()
where they revived the Bauhaus style and
built themselves a White City1.
Jaffa, the Black City in this comparison, the
neighbouring historic city with four thousand
years of historic heritage overshadowed Tel
Aviv2. After the White City was born Tel Avivians
suddenly, out of nowhere were presented with
their very own old city and historic centre,
phrases later used in a mayoral election3.
Although the Gdask / Gdynia juxtaposition
has a different role and does not openly play
on the fact that Gdynia is a direct response
to Gdasks inefficiencies and its cultural
stagnation, it certainly appears to have
purposefully been drawing on a sharp contrast
between its historical past and its layered and
eclectic architectural past. If Gdansk were
to be seen as the dark, black figure in this
comparison, a city of rich cultural heritage, yet
taken away from Poland and placed under the
rule of a foreign government, Gdynia is the
white pristine figure, a clean slate upon which
new history could be written.
The development of Brasilia, another renowned
modernist city, also bears similarities to
Gdynia. Although Brasilias reconstruction
took place several decades after Gdynias
success, authorities used the power of the
modern movement to advocate the idea of
creating a new national capital for Brazil, a
place where problems like overcrowding and
1 Rotbard, White City Black City, p.5
2 Rotbard, White City Black City, p.5
3 op. cit. p.11
4 Alan de Botton, Architecture of Happiness, p.142-3
5 Marshall Berman, All that Is Solid Melts Into Air: The Experience of Modernity, Verso, 2010, p. 30.
MODERN
40
poor infrastructure, common in its coastal
cities, could be overcome by building a new
modern city. It was hoped that with its broad
avenues and its undulating concrete and steel
buildings, would help erase Brazils legacy of
colonialism (...)4. Gdynia, decades earlier, was
framed as a new modern city in a similar
manner on the premise of creating a place
which does not relate to the past, but looks to
the future. Part of the charm of this idealistic
approach, which distinguished Gdynia from
numerous post-Second World War and post-
colonial examples like Brasilia, was the fact
that the radical changes across Europe and
the world had not yet stood the test of time
and hence still held an appeal as potential
solutions to problems yet to be resolved.
Marshall Berman says of modernists that
they can never be done with the past:... If
modernism ever managed to throw off its
scraps and tatters and the uneasy joints that
bind it to the past, it would lose all its weight
and depth, and the maelstrom of modern life 16
would carry it helplessly away5 Nevertheless,
it seems that Gdynia had the potential to
become a new city based entirely on the
modern infrastructure of its future port and
cater for its residents by building new living
quarters.
Brasilias construction was also propelled by
government ambitions to establish a place
to represent the nation and to create a new
identity that did not rely on its colonial
past, but over half a century later, the ultra-
modernist creation is often criticized for its
F i g. 1 6
Verlagshaus Rudolf Mosse, Berlin, 1923
(source: https://goo.gl/images/ukaiwQ)
17
F i g. 1 7
Polish Ocean Lines, 10 Lutego Street,
City Centre Gdynia, 1941
41
(source: http://gdynia.fotopolska.eu/667409,foto.html)
 failure to nurture the development of an
evolving and cohesive city. As Ricky Burdett
of London School of Economics, states, The
issue is not whether its a good city or a bad
city - it is just not a city its clean lines,
rational planning and space. Huge amounts of
it (...)5 do not necessarily constitute a well-
planned city. The lack of human scale in this
extravagant and ambitious project is often
cited as the main reason for the residents
dissatisfaction.

Gdynia was certainly a much smaller

undertaking than Brasilia, and lacked the
singular architectural vision and extraordinary
designs by a world-renowned architect like
Niemeyer, but it was planned from the outset
to be a city for the people rather than for
the government who set out to fund it. The
anonymous yet elegant architecture had a
human scale that contributed to the citys
transparency, making its streets legible,
spacious and yet not overwhelming to
residents and visitors.

The simplicity of Gdynias urban plan, the

technological attitude towards architecture,
modernity cult, all created a specific genius
loci of the city. No wonder then that modernist
ideas met with a favourable climate here. 1

1 Maria Jolanta Soltysik, Modernist Movement in Gdynia and in Europe - Inspirations and Analogies, p.71
MODERN

42 43
 2.1 We l l - b e i n g + h e a l t h
Modernism arose from a difficult period of
historical, economical and societal anxiety.
Duanfang Lu says the architectural discourse,
the very idea of modernism is culturally and
historically constructed into a heroic inter-war
modernism and a revisionist post- Second
World War modernism, which are characterised
by different manifestations of the modern in
architecture. 1. This period of history sought to
replace the old with new ideas and constructs
that stood in opposition to the anxieties of
the past. Modernism, in contrast, offered a set
of values that would have a cathartic effect
and would address societal concerns borne out
of political unrest.
Modernist architects like Le Corbusier and
Gropius advocated a new lifestyle architecture
based on efficiency, logic and purity of form,
opposing the existing tradition.
By purifying tradition restrictions and
decoration, re-conceptualising space-
time, following the logic of function,
and modularising its components,
modernist architecture was considered
to embody modern modes of living,
thinking and production based on
rationality, efficiency, calculation...2.
1 Duanfang Lu, Third World Modernism: Architecture, Development and Identity, p.4
2 op. cit., p.4
WELL-BEING + HEALTH
44
Lubetkins sketches aimed to paint a future facet of the citys character and celebrated not
Purity of both form and function became
picture of Britains public buildings, reminding only in photographs portraying the residents of
instrumental in creating a way of thinking
us of what the modernists aimed for in the young town since the 1910s, but also in its
of the built environment as a cure for the
realisation of their designs. architecture. The design of the buildings take
outdated mechanisms of the past. The new
inspiration from the Scandinavian trends in
movement created a clear distinction between
Architecture sought to be a vehicle for social spa resorts architecture, which aimed to create
the old and the new, the latter being considered
change as well as a way of aesthetic expression well-planned open spaces and cater not only
the way forward to create more efficient and
of the core values of the era - simplicity for the residents but also for potential visitors
perhaps happier cities (quote).
and functionality. To be modern is to find and sanatoria guests.
ourselves in an environment that promises us
Modernist architects practicing in the interwar
adventure, power, joy, growth, transformation Just as Lubetkins sketches encapsulated the
period often exploited modernisms potential
of ourselves and the world3 wrote Marshall radical changes modernist architecture would
to resolve the inherent problems of the
Berman in his introduction to All that is Solid bring to the consideration of well-being in
past. Berthold Lubtekins emotive proposals
Melts into Air. Gdynia also sought to promote our buildings, the imagery of sanatoria and
for the Finsbury Health Centre (Fig. 18 next
itself as an energetic, young and vibrant place the infrastructure built for the residents and
page) are an example of how these values
to be in since its inception, not only through visitors of Gdynia indicate a determination in
were projected to emphasise the positive
the industrial heartbeat of the town and the the citys architects to pursue the modernist
attributes of modernism at the expense of
port, but also through its sanatoria and beach vision of the ambitious orderly and restful
traditional forms of architecture and the built
resorts. The seaside lifestyle has been a central designs.
environments. The use of words like restful,
orderly and modern created an image of
the architecture which defined a new way
of living. By embracing the new vocabulary
and formulating dichotomous relationship
between existing buildings and the proposed
constructions of pleasant proportions and
clean and purposeful architecture, modernism
attempted to formulate a statement, a
manifesto for its designs which would stick in
peoples minds,
45
 19

20 21
F i g. 1 8
Drawings of the Finsbury Health Centre, Berthold Lubetkin.

(source: https://es.wikiarquitectura.com/finsbury_health_centre_dibujos_arq_4/?id=109294)

F i g. 1 9
Promenade by the sea in Gdynia. Interwar period. (source: https://goo.gl/images/bN9fiY)
F i g. 2 0
Alvar Aalto. Paimio Sanato for Turberculous 1931-2. Paimio, Finland. (source: https://goo.gl/images/K3IMsW)
F i g. 2 1
WELL-BEING + HEALTH

First sketch plan of the city by Felinski, 1925, Gdynia (source: https://histmag.org/Przedwojenna-plaza-okiem-fotoreportera-8071)

46 47
 F i g. 2 2
Playground in Gdynia, new modernist residential district
in the background. 1960s.
(source: Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of
Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014.)

F i g. 2 3
Former Kriesels pond nearby tower blocks on Wiejska
street in Gdynia-Chylonia. This view is from Chyloska
street. Before the war, boats used to sail down its
waters. During Polish Peoples Republic rule, there
WELL-BEING + HEALTH

was a proposal to build a swimming pool on its site.

On the brink of XX and XXIst century thanks to the
cooperation between Gdynias horticultural societies,
Kiloski Park was founded.

(source photograph by: Zbigniew Kosycarz, 10/02/1972)

48 49
 F i g. 2 4
People enjoying Gdynias beach, probably 1950s.

(source: http://strefahistorii.pl/gallery/3539-gdynia-i-gdynianie-na-starej-fotografii)

50 51
 26

27 28

F i g. 2 5
25 Hotel in Gdynias city centre.
(source: photograph by Czesaw Olszewski for exhibition on modernism in Gdynias Museum, 2017, organizer press materials)
F i g. 2 6
Aerial photograph showing a fragment of Gdynias airport in Gdynia-Rumia (source: https://goo.gl/images/V9nnU1)
F i g. 2 7
WELL-BEING + HEALTH

Beach in Gdynia, 1961, (source: Photograph by M. Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, 2010)
F i g. 2 8
Zina Dizengoff Circle, by architect Genia Averbuch | Library of Congress, Tel Aviv. (source: https://goo.gl/images/bxQShs)

52 53

2.2 Planning for Happiness
Having the sense of what modernism aimed to achieve through its designs locally, it might be
hard to picture how an entire city could be planned to reflect the ambition of an individual
city district/buildings, inscribing themselves in an already existing historical context. Feliski
formulated his local development plans for Gdynia:
() By zoning it according to scale and function as well as the introduction of wedge-
shaped green belts between quarters and inside housing blocks. It was also important to
preserve the function of the city centre while relocating some of the functions to other
districts.1
City plan and could be accessed via a long square leading up to the sea front (Fig. 30).
6. Gdynia, projekt dzielnicy handlowo-reprezentacyjnej, pro-
jekt Adama Kuncewicza pod kierunkiem Romana Feliskiego
Just as well-being and health have been portrayed in the modernist context of Gdynia, the wykonany w Wydziale VIII Departamentu Budowlanego Mi-
nisterstwa Robt Publicznych, maj 1926. Wg Architektura i
initial city plans are presented in a way which reinforces the modernist vision in the adoption Budownictwo II, 1926, nr 2 (sierpie), s. 14.
of new architecture and a radical urban grid. It is telling that the city is often portrayed a birds
eye perspective, looking at its main features - the sea and land intersecting and interdependent te stosowanie licznych placw handlowych, jak
i placw wypenionych zieleni przeznaczonych
through key infrastructure like the projection of the pier and the insertions of the wharfs of the
dla rekreacji mieszkacw. Gwne arterie ko-
port. (Fig. 09, p.26). Always portrayed as the marriage of the two elements, the water and the munikacyjne Feliski usuwa poza centrum i za-
land, the city becomes symbolic of a holiday resort with a climate that favoured a modernist pewnia korzystne poczenia z poszczeglnymi
dzielnicami miasta.
and human-scale architecture. Along the first boulevard built in the 1920s, smaller kiosks and
Przed powstaniem planu Gdyni Feliski
restaurants and cafs opened to the public. Tellingly, the resort was rarely represented in the by te autorem planw zabudowania Ochoty
winter season, where the public spaces and the architecture would have been displayed in a less (il. 8-9) oraz wsptwrc nigdy mu nie przypi-
sywanych fragmentw oliborza (il. 2) i Bielan12.
favourable light.
Niezwykle charakterystyczny by ukad i formy
. zabudowy tego rejonu miasta. Zaprojektowa
The buildings in the city centre do not have an individual presence in the streetscape, but have tam liczne symetryczne zaoenia wypenione lu-
n zabudow o wyranie zaplanowanych osiach
been planned and designed to create a uniform and spacious urban environment. In contrast with
i starannie przemylanym ukadzie niewielkich,
Brasilias monumental landmarks, Gdynias buildings become a backdrop for the citys functions wewntrz blokowych placykw. Wok starannie
and uses rather than displaying individual architectural qualities. Whether intentional or not, this rozplanowanych ulic precyzyjnie zaplanowano
wolnostojce budynki (il. 8-12). Ich ukad pod-
design decision of the urban planners could be read as a cohesive strategy aimed to design a
krela przebieg ulic. Domy byy zrnicowane
city for people with their needs, comfort and well-being in mind, rather than focusing on creating pod wzgldem wielkoci i programu funkcjonal-
spectacular modernist icons that would define the citys new identity instead. nego zaczynajc od niewielkich, jednopitro-
wych, skromnych budynkw stojcych wzdu
linii regulacyjnej ulic, a koczc na budynkach
What determined Gdynias pursuit of happiness and who decided upon the curation of its image?
wyszych, cofnitych w stosunku do linii zabudo-
From reading its urban plans which incorporate the modernist ideals, it might seem that the wy i w ten sposb tworzcych placyki oywiajce
cae zaoenie i wyznaczajce jego kompozycj.
architect played a crucial role in that process.
Dominoway niewielkie 2-3 kondygnacyjne domy
o strefowanej wysokoci zabudowy. Najbardziej
1 http://gdynia.pl/storage/__old/gdynia.pl/g2/2013_01/63798_fileot.pdf charakterystycznym elementem zaprojektowa-
nych urbanistycznych kompozycji byo wpro-
wadzenie wewntrz dziaek terenw zielonych
(il. 8; 13), ktre stanowiy przestrze rekreacyj-
n dla mieszkacw. Zabudowa z reguy wype-
PLANNING FOR HAPPINESS
12. Lewicki J., Roman Feliski, op. cit., s. 120-124.
54
niaa 40% terenu kwartau i tworzya dwa rw
nolege bloki. cile okrelono take tyln lini
niaa 40% terenu kwartau i tworzya dwa rw-
nolege bloki. cile okrelono take tyln lini zabudowy, co byo elementem czsto stosowa
zabudowy, co byo elementem czsto stosowa- nym przez Feliskiego i wynikao z jego pogldw
nym przez Feliskiego i wynikao z jego pogldw na ksztatowanie zespow mieszkaniowych. Po
na ksztatowanie zespow mieszkaniowych. Po- zostay obszar kwartau wypeniaa ziele, ktr
zostay obszar kwartau wypeniaa ziele, ktra porastaa zaprojektowane przedogrdki. Tak
porastaa zaprojektowane przedogrdki. Take pomidzy budynkami zaplanowano rozmiesz
czone klinowo niewielkie placyki przeznaczon
pomidzy budynkami zaplanowano rozmiesz-
czone klinowo niewielkie placyki przeznaczone do rekreacji. Wszystkie te elementy byy typow
do rekreacji. Wszystkie te elementy byy typowe dla projektw urbanistycznych Feliskiego. Roz
dla projektw urbanistycznych Feliskiego. Roz- planowanie omwionych dzielnic wzorowano n
planowanie omwionych dzielnic wzorowano na miastach ogrodach i dzielnicach ogrodowych
miastach ogrodach i dzielnicach ogrodowych. Innym wanym elementem inspiracji byo tani
Innym wanym elementem inspiracji byo tanie budownictwo mieszkalne, ktre architekt szero
budownictwo mieszkalne, ktre architekt szero- ko rozwaa w swoich ksikach i pracach nauko
wych (np. projekt kolonii z 1916 roku - il. 13)
ko rozwaa w swoich ksikach i pracach nauko-
wych (np. projekt kolonii z 1916 roku - il. 13). W Ministerstwie Robt Publicznych, gdzie praco
W Ministerstwie Robt Publicznych, gdzie praco- wa Feliski powstawao wiele projektw urbani
F i g. 2 9
wa Feliski powstawao projekt wiele projektw urbani- stycznych operujcych analogicznymi elementa
6. Gdynia,
Feliskis plan of Gdynia, aerial view.
dzielnicy handlowo-reprezentacyjnej, pro-
mi kompozycji urbanistycznej.
stycznych jekt operujcych
Adama Kuncewiczaanalogicznymi
pod kierunkiemelementa-
Romana Feliskiego
wykonany w Wydziale VIII Departamentu Budowlanego Mi-
mi kompozycji
(source: urbanistycznej.
Jakub Lewicki, Gdynia Development Plans under the Guidance of Roman Feliski,
nisterstwa Robt Publicznych, maj 1926. Wg Architektura
accessed: http://gdynia.pl/storage/__old/gdynia.pl/g2/2013_01/63798_fileot.pdf) i
Budownictwo II, 1926, nr 2 (sierpie), s. 14.
te stosowanie licznych placw handlowych, jak
i placw wypenionych zieleni przeznaczonych
dla rekreacji mieszkacw. Gwne arterie ko-
munikacyjne Feliski usuwa poza centrum i za-
pewnia korzystne poczenia z poszczeglnymi
dzielnicami miasta.
Przed powstaniem planu Gdyni Feliski
by te autorem planw zabudowania Ochoty
(il. 8-9) oraz wsptwrc nigdy mu nie przypi-
sywanych fragmentw oliborza (il. 2) i Bielan12.
Niezwykle charakterystyczny by ukad i formy
zabudowy tego rejonu miasta. Zaprojektowa
tam liczne symetryczne zaoenia wypenione lu-
n zabudow o wyranie zaplanowanych osiach
i starannie przemylanym ukadzie niewielkich,
wewntrz blokowych placykw. Wok starannie
rozplanowanych ulic precyzyjnie zaplanowano
wolnostojce budynki (il. 8-12). Ich ukad pod-
krela przebieg ulic. Domy byy zrnicowane
pod wzgldem wielkoci i programu funkcjonal-
nego zaczynajc od niewielkich, jednopitro-
wych, skromnych budynkw stojcych wzdu
linii regulacyjnej ulic, a koczc na budynkach
wyszych, cofnitych w stosunku do linii zabudo-
wy i w ten sposb tworzcych placyki oywiajce
cae zaoenie i wyznaczajce jego kompozycj.
Dominoway niewielkie 2-3 kondygnacyjne domy
o strefowanej wysokoci zabudowy. Najbardziej
charakterystycznym elementem zaprojektowa-
nych urbanistycznych kompozycji byo wpro-
wadzenie wewntrz dziaek terenw zielonych
(il. 8; 13), ktre stanowiy przestrze rekreacyj- 7. Gdynia, projekt dzielnicy mieszkaniowej, projekt Adam
Kuncewicza pod kierunkiem Romana Feliskiego wykonan
F i Gdynia,
7. g. 3 0 n dladzielnicy
projekt mieszkacw. Zabudowa
mieszkaniowej, projekt zAdama
reguy wype- w Wydziale VIII Departamentu Budowlanego Ministerstw
Kuncewicza
Feliskis plan pod kierunkiem
of Gdynia, Romana Feliskiego wykonany
aerial view.
w Wydziale VIII Departamentu Budowlanego Ministerstwa
Robt Publicznych, maj 1926. Wg Architektura i Budownic
12. Lewicki J., Roman Feliski, op. cit., s. 120-124. two II, 1926, nr 2 (sierpie), s. 13.
Robt Publicznych, maj 1926. WgPlans
(source: Jakub Lewicki, Gdynia Development Architektura i Budownic-
under the Guidance of Roman Feliski,
accessed:
two II, http://gdynia.pl/storage/__old/gdynia.pl/g2/2013_01/63798_fileot.pdf)
1926, nr 2 (sierpie), s. 13.
85
85
55
 31 32

33 34

F i g. 3 1
Court House, Gdynia
(source: http://www.bryla.pl/bryla/51,85298,6993010.html?i=10)

F i g. 3 2
Modernist tenement block, Gdynia.
(source: https://goo.gl/images/BRWqXx)
F i g. 3 3
Staircase in a modernist block of flats, Gdynia.
Photography: authors own.
F i g. 3 4
Balconies on a modernist block of flats, Gdynia. 36
Photography: authors own.
F i g. 3 5
Ship liner Batory leaving Gdynia.
(source: https://goo.gl/images/94YTWD)
F i g. 3 6
Modernist block of flats under construction.
(source: Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdy-
nia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014.)
35
PLANNING FOR HAPPINESS

56 57
 Discussing what makes us happy in relation to design and architecture can be problematic as it
is a subjective opinion each individual holds towards a piece of design. Happiness, as de Botton
discusses in Architecture of Happiness, can be defined by the buildings aesthetic appeal, which
brings our values and the sense of visual taste in a culmination of an object designed to make
us feel happy. The care with which we orchestrate our surroundings to create a sense of balance
and beauty would indicate our need to pursue happiness through form. In the case of Gdynia,
it appears as though the city has chosen to be identified as happy from the outset through its
imagery propaganda and its architecture.

In the 20th century a new modern way of living emerged, wherein a sense of happiness was
conveyed through advertising efficient, functional spaces. Families were portrayed in houses where
the main focus of the spaces was to cater for the precise needs of its inhabitants. Its meticulous
design allowed the house to be in tune with its residents, becoming a fine-tuned machine. This
notion was born out of the need for redefining the function of the house. Stripping it to its bare
framework, Le Corbusier described the houses as shelter against heat, cold, rain, thieves and
the inquisitive. 2. Receptacle for the light and sun. 3. A certain number of cells appropriated to
cooking, work and personal life.1 This comparison challenged our understanding of a house, which
previously acted as a vessel carrying objects of sentimental value and reflected the identity of
its inhabitants through a collection of artifacts and furniture. In contrast, the modern movement
proposed eradicating these artifacts and creating a functional environment where furniture was
replaced by equipment1.

In Gdynia, the line mentioned by de Botton between the cold and potentially soulless functionality
of the city and the pursuit of a balance and beauty, designed to make us happy, has been blurred,
allowing Gdynia to flourish as a place designed to be appealing, to attract, to convince through
its form and arrangement. This approach provided a unique advantage for the city which wanted
to become the countrys prime destination and pride.

F i g. 3 7
Building a New Europe - Portraits of Modern Architects, Essays by
George Nelson 1935-36, p. 132
1 op.cit., p.59
PLANNING FOR HAPPINESS

58 59
 F i g. 3 8
Modernist interior in Gdynia.

(source: photograph by Czesaw Olszewski for exhibition on

PLANNING FOR HAPPINESS

modernism in Gdynias Museum, 2017, organizer press materials)

60 61
 3.
Gdynia : Selling the dream
The following section will contrast chosen imagery
used to portray Gdynia. By subjecting them to analysis
as a collection, their reading might be different to the
reaction to individual pieces. By colliding those images,
the reader might think of Gdynia as a collage of the
citys representations in a new way.

62 63
 Google
search:
Gdynia - the happiest city
in Poland

Gdynia the happiest city in Poland? (RANKING),

30/11/2015

Do you live in Gdynia? It is the happiest city in Poland...,

24/06/2016

Gdynia is the happiest city in Poland, 22/06/2016,

24/06/2016

Gdynia, the happiest city in Poland celebrates its birthday,

10/02/2014

Gdynia, the happiest city in Poland celebrates its birthday,

10/02/2014

The happiest city in Poland - WP Tourism,

22/11/2011

The happiest city in Poland - current news

Results of the National Social Diagnosis 2013.

The happiest people live in Gdynia 06/06/2013

We found the happiest city in Poland - it is Gdynia,

2/02/2017

Gdynia - the happiest city in Poland / Ecosmee.pl

2/02/2017
SELLING THE DREAM

F i g. 3 9
The Google search of the statement: Gdynia - the happiest city in Poland
reveals numerous articles which relate to this phenomenon, all in a positive way.
(source: Google search screenshot, accessed 20 April 2017)
F i g. 4 0
Gdynia Design Days on Kaszubski Plaza. This most important summer design
festival in Poland grabs the attention of the residents as well as visitors,
especially the young ones.
(source: Zbigniew Kosycarz, Extraordinary ordinary Photographs of Gdynia)

64 65
 F i g. 4 1
Poster for a design festival in Gdynia, 2014

(source: http://interiorforms.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/wakacyjne-festiwale-i-targi-designu.html)

66 67
 3. Selling the Dream

Having the historical overview and an understanding of the circumstances that arose to allow the
construction of a new modernist Polish window to the world, it is easier to interpret the imagery
used to portray Gdynia. Alain de Botton talks about the term propaganda and focuses on the
agenda behind promotion. The architecture produced under the influence of an idealising theory
of the arts might be described as a form of propaganda. (...) A work of art becomes a piece of
propaganda whenever it uses its resources to direct us towards something1
F i g. 4 2
A screenshot from a Newsweek national paper which published an
A variety of media and events have been used to promote the city throughout history - posters, article in 2016 on Gdynia the happiest city in Poland. Why?. The
postcards, film, literature, poems, new developments - all aimed at a certain aspect of a curated images used in the piece communicate strongly the seaside relaxed
character of the place, not unlike the way Scandinavian countries
image of the city. More recently, the city municipality invested more in graphic design, promotion would be perceived.
of certain cultural events, including Film Festival, Expo, Trade Fairs and Music Festivals as well as
clear imagery supporting the portrayal of Gdynia as a happy city nationwide. A national weekly
newspaper from 2016 quotes Gdynia describing reasons behind its success as a city (Fig. 42).

The article Gdynia is the happiest city in Poland. Why? is split into four chapters with the
following titles relating to Gdynia - breath, body, feelings, memory. The author of the piece quotes 1. Residents of Gdynia are
a social psychologist and discusses how the principal qualities of the urban fabric like private the happiest in Poland.
and public space, access to civic services and its coastal location had influence on its popularity. They feel they can live
These aspects of the city are to do with the residents comfort and well-being and indicate a
true to their lifestyle.
general sense of satisfaction with living in a place which responds well to its inhabitants.
However, the articles approach is not purely based on subjective reaction to Gdynias charm, but
also attempts to refute its architectural intent and planning in contrast with another modernist
housing scheme, Pruitt-Igoe. The social and political context of the project in St Louis are
disregarded for a moment and its architectural merit is criticised for the lack of public/private 2. Christopher Alexander,
intermediate zoning, its long and anonymous corridors and a lack of integration with the an architect, author of
neighbourhood. In opposition to this unattractive image of the modernist architecture stands the so-called theory of
Gdynia, a place where one is happy to both work and live, grow up and grow old, relax and be timeless building claims
active. Happiness in this sense, comes from its modest and simple history, as the psychologist that humans can only be
Magorzata Osowiecka proposes: [Gdynia] was lucky to retain the beauty of the province, its happy in a place which
slower pace of life and attentiveness to others.2 gives them a chance to
grow old. Therefore, in a
The portrayal of Gdynia as breath body, feelings and memory in the above article uses vastly place which is developed
different vocabulary from how one would typically analyse its urban planning. Instead of discussing and buildings are added
architectural form, the city is related to as a place, evoking certain sentiments and reactions to, rather than destroyed
associated with our feelings and responses to it. The sense of comfort appears to be derived and build anew.
from being in the streets of the city and experiencing all its elements together, rather than
solely its architectural forms and well-planned streets. Perhaps this analysis, in contrast with an
3. Gdynias City Hall Resident
architectural study of Gdynia presented in previous chapters, makes the reader more inclined to Advise Bureau - the only one in
think of the city as a set of experiences, a place which is not only functional in its modernist
Poland - is open on Saturdays.1
sense but also responds directly to the visitors needs in other dimensions.
1 http://www.newsweek.pl/polska/
The following chapters will investigate in more detail how the city has been portrayed through diagnoza-spoleczna-2016-badania-szczesli-
wosci-polakow-,artykuly,387773,1.html
a chosen few media and how this imagery related to its modernist architecture and the notion
of happiness.
SELLING THE DREAM

F i g. 4 3
Poster advertising interactive art installations in Gdynias boulevard.
GDYNIA PLAYGROUND 2015: inter:AKCJA!

1 Alain de Botton, Architecture of Happiness, p.145 (source: http://urbnews.pl/wydarzenia/gdynia-playground-2015-interakcja/)

2 http://www.newsweek.pl/polska/diagnoza-spoleczna-2016-badania-szczesliwosci-polakow-,artykuly,387773,1.html
68 69

3.1 Film
There are not many films in Polish cinematography
representing Gdynia as a background to a story.
The two which are thought to be the only
examples of film mentioning the city are Baltic
Rhapsody by Konrad Tom and City from the Sea
by Andrzej Kotkowski The first was a post-war
film addressing positive influence of Gdynias
construction on Poland after the distress of WWI
and the latter told a story of a young worker
coming to settle in Gdynia.
The quote at the top of the page comes
from Konrad Toms film in 1930s set in then
fashionable Gdynia. Notably, it is the first film
to mention the city since its inception, and its
portrayal is that of a miraculous city which has
been born out of extreme efforts of the nation
which one of the film characters reacts to - I
am moved when I look at our only gateway to
the world. And I think that the same feeling
must be in the heart of every Pole..1
Another film which documents the history of
the city by setting its plot in the modernist idyll
1 Baltic Rhapsody, dir. Leonard Buczkowski, filmed 1935.
44
70
FILM
Notice the force
beaming from Gdynia,
and do you remember
what it looked like
15 years ago? Crazy
effort of the nation
has made this miracle
happen...
is City From the Sea . It bases its storyline on a
young man who comes to Gdynia seeking work
and hopes to build a new life out of nothing,
and grow with the city built from scratch by
its residents and supporters, who have invested
in it both emotionally and financially. (Fig. 45)
It also references the historical construction of
the port, placing a French character to represent
the consortium which invested in Gdynias
infrastructure. The image below (Fig. 44) shows
the first urban plan drawn by Feliski, later
adopted as the basis for Gdynias urban grid.
The parallel between the residents of the city 01
and the place itself creates an image of a
strong bond it is as if Gdynia could be their The main character in Baltic Rhapsody states the time or they were simply inspired by the
birthplace. As portrayed in the news article on that not only the residents of Gdynia but also extraordinary story of Gdynia, those films give
the Happiest Place in Poland, Gdynia is thought the entire country can see the citys unique now a new understanding of how the city was
of as an investment in experiences and in its qualities. Whether imagined or set out by the perceived at the time. Interestingly, they might
unique social and historical position versus the government to be the main line of propaganda, indicate that the city has always aimed to be
rest of Poland. It became a counterpart to other the city attempts from its beginnings to pursue portrayed as a miraculous modernist creation.
cities in the country and this otherness was a its modernist future.
main point celebrated by its residents. Even if the films were government funded and
aimed at boosting the countrys morale at
45 46
F i g. 4 4
First sketch plan of the city by Felinski, 1925, shown in City From the Sea
(source: City From the Sea, dir. Andrzej Kotowski, prod. 2009, screenshot)
F i g. 4 5
The main character comes to Gdynia to help construct the port.
(source: City From the Sea, dir. Andrzej Kotowski, prod. 2009, http://www.telemagazyn.pl/film/
miasto-z-morza-1131784/)
F i g. 4 6
Gdynias beach represented in Baltic Rhapsody. 71
(source: M. Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, 2010)
 3.2 Posters
Posters were a successful art and design form in
Poland from the beginning of the 20th century,
and were exploited as a way of portraying
Gdynia in a variety of images. From a working
city, modern and industrial, to a sunny travel
destination port. Interestingly, the use of
imagery to create the sense that the city is
a holiday destination rarely depicted specific
places or symbols which would be attributed
to the city. Since the new Polish port started
trading internationally, passenger travel allowed
for comparisons between the destination cities
and Gdynia. In case of the Palestine Line poster,
the illustration does not present objects specific
to Gdynia, it focuses on referencing universally
recognised imagery related to travel and modern
ship cruises.
In 1929 in agreement with the International
Association of Shipbuilding and Machinery the
construction of the shipyard begun. Kwiatkowski
was also keen to open the Marine School
educating fishing and military industry specialists.
Soon Poland opened regular connections with
Scandinavia and Holland and Kwiatkowski signed
trade deals with China, Persia, Rhodesia, Cairo
and Tel Aviv.
Modernity finally afforded people the luxury of
travel and the opportunity to not only pursue
new destinations, but also to be exposed to new
cultures by attracting tourism to the country.
Gdynia being The Polish Window to The World
had a unique status of being both the inlet and
the outlet to modernist ideas of the 1920s and
1930s, opening the city and the country to ideas
of modernity. Robert Burden in his introduction
to Travel, Modernism and Modernity talks about
being modern as a way of emancipation, greater
form of freedom of movement (social mobility
1 Robert Burden Introduction to Travel, Modernism and Modernity, p.3
2 Andrzej K Olszewki, American Stremline and European Modernism, Warsaw, Poland, p.35, available online: http://gdynia.
pl/storage/__old/gdynia.pl/g2/2012_11/60619_fileot.pdf, accessed 20/04/2017)
POSTERS
72
and travel) and opportunity.1
The global network of travel is very much part
of the optimistic and sunny narrative brought
to the posters advertising Gdynia and its port.
Since it became a travel destination, it inscribed
in an international trend and its posters
referenced imagery of other countries. The
series of posters advertising the port all feature
a large ship, always facing in the same direction,
welcoming the vessel into Gdynias port. One of
the first lines opening the citys port industry
was one connecting Poland to the U.S. Batory
and Pisudski were the first Polish ship liners
to leave the port to America and Africa. Those
departures took place from a building which
now serves as a Museum of Emigration (Fig.58,
p.77). In the 1930s, it was a symbol of the Polish
Window to the World and gave the city instant
mobility and connection with Europe and the
World. It was certainly seen as a privileged
position for Gdynia to have at such an early
time of its existence and the visual power of the
posters of that time offers a unique perspective
on how the city was portrayed nationally and
internationally.
The term nautical style was used in 1937 with
regards to Gdynia: brick and cement ships
are being built on land2. Gdynias architecture
became directly inspired by its marine influences.
This in turn helped to form a uniform image
of the city through various visual propaganda.
Advertised through tourism and trade at first, F i g. 4 7
the ideas about Gdynias character have later Poster, Palestine Line
Author: Trepkowski, Tadeusz
infiltrated into the architecture and the urban
(source: http://gornolesne.pl/p11,gdynia-nowy-port-nad-baltykiem-1925.html)
plan of the city.
73
 Another poster presenting Gdynia as an
industrial port (Fig. XX) is rich in information
and exudes vibrancy through the use of colour.
The scene captured in this image could be a
frame from a film depicting the construction of
the port in Gdynia. Framed by a black outline
of a crane an inherently modern device -
the poster focuses on a large ship being either
loaded or unloaded. The layering of modern
modes of transport and representation of the
port as a bustling import/export hub gives
Gdynia a sense of undergoing changes but also
in the midst of developing into a prominent
place of the map of Europe and the World.
Designed in 1925, the poster was aimed at
boosting the citys reputation and promoted
its recently launched port connection with the
U.S. However different America and Europe
were in their expression of modernism, main
trends in American art focus around three
phenomena: Art Deco Streamline moderne
(Andrzej K. Olszewski, American Streamline and
the European Modernism). Streamlined Moderne
in every inch () with its rounded corners, set
back upper floors, circular windows and railings
resembling those on a ship.

If not happiness, the posters and travel brochures

certainly offer an inviting and positive image
of Gdynia. As forms of representation, they
produce curated, carefully assembled imagery
marketed to people visiting Gdynia.

F i g. 4 8
Poster, Gdynia. Nowy port nad Batykiem
Author: Stefan Norblin 1925

(source: https://goo.gl/images/mWXHba)
POSTERS

74 75
 F i g. 5 7
Passengers by the Emigration Centre building in Baltic Rhapsody
(source: Baltic Rhapsody, dir. Leonard Buczkowski, filmed 1935)
49 50 51

52 53 F i g. 5 8
The above images are of the Emigration Centre building
located in Gdynias port. It served as a departure point
for passengers travelling abroad, mainly to America at
the beginning of 1930s, and later Jaffa, Tel Aviv, Pales-
tine, Istanbul and Scandinavian countries.

(source: https://goo.gl/images/L4BUE5)

F i g. 5 9
Image of Polish Travel Office Orbis in Gdynias port,
1960s.

(source: M. Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia,

2010., p. 14)

54 55 56

F i g. 5 3
F i g. 4 9 Emigration Museum Poster
(source: https://goo.gl/images/p95aIO)
Eugeniusz Szparkowski, poster for Gdynia-America Shipping Lines,
(source: https://goo.gl/images/pYIwlh)
F i g. 5 4
F i g. 5 0 Gdynia Spa Resort poster
(source: https://goo.gl/images/jXLvlY)
Gdynia America Lines - Italy New York service MS Sobieski Cosulic,
(source: http://www.muzeumgdynia.pl/wydarzenie/podroz-do-wnetrza-domu/) F i g. 5 5
Journey to the Interior of the House - poster advertising an architectural
F i g. 5 1
tour of Gdynias modernist residential buildings.
Polish Palestine Line, Zygmunt Glinicki, c.1933, (source: https://goo.gl/images/OC5kMc) (source: http://www.muzeumgdynia.pl/wydarzenie/podroz-do-wnetrza-domu/)

F i g. 5 2 F i g. 5 6
POSTERS

76 Poster for a design festival in Gdynia, 2014 (source: http://interiorforms.blogspot.

co.uk/2013/06/wakacyjne-festiwale-i-targi-designu.html)
Literary Festival in Gdynia poster, 2014
(source: https://goo.gl/images/HELcqX)
77
 3 . 3 Li te ra tu re
Stefan eromski is a writer who decided to
settle in Gdynia, inspired by its coast and a
slow provincial pace of life. As mentioned in
the first chapter, his first account of the village
is realistic and deals with the harsh conditions
of the new city. He describes a fishing village
struggling to morph into a modernist city.
The illustrations in childrens books often
represent the status quo in a simplistic fashion.
The naivety of the illustration on the right (Fig.
XX) has been used to portray an image of the
place but is not necessarily a literary tool used
by all authors. In a selection of childrens books
about Gdynia, a recurring theme has been
the sea, the history of the town as a fishing
village and fish. Although the above subjects are
symbolic of the place, they represent specific
type of history to the readers.
The childrens book telling a story of Gdynias
origins (Fig.61) has been published in 2014 and
is available in the citys Culture Box, a free
standing pavilion in the city centre, part of the
city council responsible for tourist information
and promotion of the city and its cultural
events. Along with other short stories about
Gdynias legends, it offers colouring books, a city
map and other tourist information. None of the
stories choose to present the citys modernist
past, but rather focus on its humble beginnings.
Gdynia has been represented as an idyllic fishing
village in the book, with the story telling a tale of
LITERATURE
F i g. 6 0
78 Alfred Wallis, The Hold House Port Mear Square Island Port Mear Beach,
circa 1932, Tate Gallery
(source: source: https://goo.gl/images/XLSXMK)
a young fisherman coming to the village to find
himself a wife, searching for a better life in a
place where fish was plentiful. This romanticised
account of the city is consistent with other
media like film and early historical photography.
The image uses vernacular architecture to
reinforce the citys past and the origins of its
happy and peaceful beginnings. The use of blue
and green tones within the image, both on the
sea and the land create an impression that the
two are interdependent and intertwined, defined
only by new roads and footpaths intersecting
the land side of the image. A large white seagull
appears to hover over Gdynia, spreading its
wings in an almost protective gesture. The
quote on p. XX reflects on the element of the
city which is crucial for his frame of reference
today. Its provincial character compliments the
architecture and perhaps brings it to life, giving
it a more humane dimension.
Childrens literature addresses the creation myth
of Gdynia to present an idyllic image. It is not
dissimilar from the way the films portrayed the
city, yet the use of vernacular architecture and
the naive imagery emphasise the happy coastal
village atmosphere. The images on the following
pages (p. 80-81) show the use of the same fish
in different promotional contexts - one on food
packaging from 1950s and the others in context
of childrens books and a statue of three fish on
Gdynias seaside boulevard. The idyllic imagery
F i g. 6 1
is used selectively to remind of Gdynias origins
Childrens book published by the Museum of Gdynia in 2014, author: Patrycja
and underline its impressive success to date. Wojtkowiak, illustrations Bogna Pniewska.
(source: http://www.gdyniarodzinna.pl/artykul/593,ksiazeczki-o-gdyni-dla-najmlodszych.html)
(...) Once upon a time,
when Gdynia was a small
fishing village and in the
bay fish was plentiful, a
young fisherman decided
to find himself a wife. (...)
79
(source: quote for the book Fig. 61)
 62

63

F i g. 6 5
A young woman advertising fish delicacies in a limited
edition packaging promoting Gdynia. 1960s.
64 (source: Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of
Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014.)

F i g. 6 2
Childrens book published by the Museum of Gdynia in 2014, author: Patrycja
Wojtkowiak, illustrations Bogna Pniewska.
(source: http://www.gdyniarodzinna.pl/artykul/593,ksiazeczki-o-gdyni-dla-najmlodszych.html)
F i g. 6 3
Cover of childrens book published by the Museum of Gdynia in 2014,
author: Patrycja Wojtkowiak, illustrations Bogna Pniewska.
(source: http://www.gdyniarodzinna.pl/artykul/593,ksiazeczki-o-gdyni-dla-najmlodszych.
LITERATURE

html)
F i g. 6 4
80 Photograph of a sculpture Three Fish on Gdynias Seaside promenade, 1960s
81
(source: https://goo.gl/images/ONv5o6)
 3 . 4 G ra p h i c Des i g n

Another medium, which potentially encompasses all aspects of Gdynias visual propaganda in general
is graphic design. Through presenting a sample of documents, posters and the citys website, this
part of the essay will reveal the care and attention to detail the city pays in order to remain
consistent with its modernist and optimistic imagery.

67
John Berger introduces Ways of Seeing, a series of visual essays by saying:

These purely pictorial essays (...) are intended to raise as many questions as the verbal essays.
Sometimes in the pictorial essays no information at all is given about the images reproduced
because it seemed to is that such information might distract from the points being made. (...)
Our principal aim had been to start a process of questioning.1

The reaction to visual material is as important as our reaction to beauty, balance, form or symmetry
66
mentioned by de Botton in Architecture of Happiness as triggers of happiness. The architecture in
this case is secondary, and the visual information about Gdynia takes the lead.

Seeing comes before words. The child looks and recognises and before it can speak.2 To anyone
not familiar with Gdynia, the image the citys municipality is projecting through its graphics comes
across as highly cohesive and consistent. The selection of images on the opposite page represents
70
a place which pays great attention to curating its identity. Alain de Botton tries to decipher how a
design of an object, a piece of furniture or a product can influence our perception of its character,
its attitude. A certain type of a personality might emerge from things seemingly as trivial as a
typeface. A straight back and alert upright bearing of a Helvetica f hint at a punctual, clean and
optimistic protagonist, whereas his Poliphilus cousin, with a droopy head and soft features, strikes
a sleepier, more sheepish and more pensive note.3 The use of a vocabulary which is akin to the
type of language used to describe modernist architecture could suggest that when looking at fonts
similar to Helvetica, one might think of it as a functional, efficient font, conveying a contemporary
68 69 and modern style. Gdynias intent throughout the decades has been to stick to the same forms of
representation and apply adequately modern and convincing graphics, suggestive of a place which
is established, balanced and happy.

1 John Berger, Ways of Seeing, Penguin Design Series 2008, p.5

2 op.cit., p.7
3 Alan de Botton, Architecture of Happiness, p.86

F i g. 6 6 F i g. 7 0
Gdynias logo, 1990s. Gdynia Literary Awards 2014
(source: - Gdynia Art Review 96 June/August 1996, Review of an (source: http://booklips.pl/wydarzenia/juz-na-poczatku-wrzesnia-final-nagrody-literackiej-gdynia-2015/)
exhibition curated by Museum of Gdynia)
F i g. 6 7 F i g. 7 1
Map of Gdynia, (source: https://goo.gl/images/FkbnPv) Gdynias logo, (sourcce: https://goo.gl/images/qc2BTa)
F i g. 6 9 F i g. 7 2
GRAPHIC DESIGN

Gdynia Film Festival poster 2014 Gdynia Literary Festival 2016 poster. (source: https://goo.gl/)
(source: https://goo.gl/images/BU5lje) images/MR827k))
F i g. 6 9
Gdynia Film Festival poster 2013
82 71 72
(source: https://goo.gl/images/pIFsI8) 83
 F i g. 7 3
The unusual perspective of the photograph representing Gdynias seaside reveals its
strong connection with the imagery of well-being. The aerial image dissects the snippet
of the beach, exposing the visitors in their most relaxed position.
SELLING THE DREAM

(source: Photograph from Sun and Fun Series by Kacper Kowalski,

http://culture.pl/pl/tworca/kacper-kowalski)

84 85
 F i g. 7 4
Impression of Gdynias main square (Skwer Kosciuszki) and the pier adjacent to the port.
The modernist plan has been faithfully maintained as part of the citys identity.
SELLING THE DREAM

(source: - Gdynia Art Review 96 June/August 1996, Review of an exhibition curated by Museum of Gdynia)

86 87
 1

2 2

1
1 1
2
2

1
1
2

1
2

F i g. 7 5
Poster from Miasto Slowa, could be translated to City of Word, an annual literary festival.

The image is an architectural representation of fragments of the city. The chosen

SELLING THE DREAM

themes of the promotional illustration were education, literature and the city. The
image presents collated fragments of modernist buildings and fish symbolic of the city
and found in its logo. The representation looks like a generic modern city centre, only
at closer inspection it reveals Gdynias iconic modernist buildings and symbolic fish
monuments.

The diagram above indicates fish (1) and (2) modernist buildings used in the illustration.
88 89
(source: https://goo.gl/images/RlVKLD)
 4.
Gdynia : Revealing the Image
MODERN = HAPPY

90 91
 F i g. 7 6
Detail of a modernist mosaic at Gdynias train station.

(source: authors own photograph of the interior)

92 93
 F i g. 7 7 F i g. 7 8
A modernist mosaic at Gdynias train station. The success of Gdynia can be measured in many ways. One of them is that its

(source: authors own photograph of the interior) reputation across the country attracts not only tourists every year to enjoy its climate,

but also political figures who take active part in the citys growth and development. The

President of Poland who visited the city to celebrate its 90th birthday in February 2016

(Fig. XX). For the residents of Gdynia this perhaps is not a striking contrast between

this seemingly small event on the national scale and its attendee. Objectively speaking,

for anyone who does not know the city, the gravity of this event has been exaggerated

by the Presidents presence at the celebrations.

(source: https://goo.gl/images/VQ4UhL)
MODERN = HAPPY

94 95
 4. 1 M od e r n H e r i ta g e - B eco m i ng H i sto ry
The documentation and conservation of
historical artifacts produced during the
high noon of the modern movement in
architecture has something paradoxical
about it, since the modern movement
proclaimed the rejection of tradition
and the end of history. 1
The conservation of modernist architecture
in Gdynia has been launched by the citys
conservation officers some 15 years ago. Since,
the city centre received a status of a national
monument, one of prestigious 60 in Poland
in total. On Gdynias website, the conservation
section says: Recognition of downtown Gdynia
a monument of history was preceded by
years of preparation carried out by the City
of Gdynia.2
The conservation of the modernist inheritance
as an international movement was launched
in 1990. At the heart of the enterprise lies a
paradox: how can the conservation of buildings
dedicated to the future and to change, be
intellectually justified? Architects of the
Modern Movement were intent on building
permeable borders: transparent walls, mobile
installations and transportable houses. They
even designed buildings which did not resist
wear and tear of time, but rather incorporated
this inevitability into their structure... The
architects of the Modern Movement did not
build fortresses or bunkers, ... This makes the
conservation of their permeable structures so
difficult.3
1 Allen Cunningham, Modern Movement Heritage Preface by Robert Maxwell, Routledge 1998, p.4
2 http://gdynia.pl/o-gdyni/aktualnosci-3,3709/srodmiescie-gdyni-pomnikiem-historii,434194
3 Helmut Lethen, Between the Barrier and the Sieve: finding the border in the modern movement, The Journal of
Architecture, Volume 1, Number 4, 1996) p.302-303
4 http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/asia/chandigarh-indias-modernist-marvel-6255751.html
MODERN HERITAGE
96
The city centre has been at the forefront of
the citys attempts to establish and validate
its position on the international stage, among
other modernist cities like Tel Aviv, Brasilia
or Chandigarh. Is Chandigarh unique? There
cant be too many cities in the world that
have been designed from scratch to resemble
a living organism, complete with head, heart,
limbs and circulatory system.4 - starts his
article for the Independent David Quinn on
2nd November 2011. There is no reason why
Gdynia could not be measured by the same
standards, after all it has been granted a status
of a unique modernist city centre and has
been recognized by other architects worldwide
as a case for future preservation and a unique
type of modernist urban planning.
The recognition from the city municipality of
Gdynias modernist legacy brings up a nostalgic
theme of the citys history. Once the period of
modernist Gdynias rise to unexpected success
has ended, the citys natural progression
was to reflect upon its past. This important
conversation with its history leads to a peculiar
discovery - its history is encapsulated in the
intense period when modernist ideas thrived
and the city grew on its foundations. Gdynias
modernist architecture became monuments,
and a need arose to think of the citys now
unclear future.
With the preservation of history came the need
to devise a strategy for its development and
the city municipality relied more than ever on
Gdynias image to attract investment and to
keep its residents satisfied. With the creation
of the various myths oscillating around
Gdynias past, and its modernist heritage, an
image of a successful, young and thriving city
started to emerge. Unsurprisingly, Gdynia has
become popular across Poland as a holiday
destination and as a destination to start a
new career and to settle down. As the earlier
chapters prove, its popularity can be pinned
on the well crafted promise it has built as an
urban environment.
97
 4.2 The Modernist Image
Whether the city chose to use iconography and
vocabulary of modernism in order to portray
itself as the happiest city in Poland or the
modernist architecture and urban planning
created a unique, happy place on the Polish
coast of the Baltic Sea is not as relevant as
how we, the readers, the viewers, the visitors,
receive Gdynia.
Alain de Botton says that an architecture
produced under the influence of an idealising
theory of the arts might be described as a form
of propaganda1. If that is indeed true, then the
thought behind constructing Gdynias modernist
F i g. 7 9 future in the 1920s has been successfully
A screenshot from Gdynias website on modernist
buildings in the city. This separate section promotes its
translated into a city which both embodied the
modernist heritage. hopes and dreams of the new residents flowing
(source: http://modernizmgdyni.pl/, accessed 10/03/2017) into this new urban development as well as the
potential for new developments from the Polish
government. An important part of this process
has been curation of an image which would
allow for the city to be maintained in the same
format as the original plans have intended. The
promotion of the city served tourism, marine
industry and other businesses attracted by the
potential of Gdynia.
In a recent article which publishes an interview
with an Art Historian Jacek Friedrich Search for
a Modernist Identity (published 20/03/2017),
the issue of modernist identity is discussed in
relation to Gdynias unique standpoint as a city
which has proudly been built by the generations
of its residents. This pride is often translated
in the satisfaction and a sense of belonging
to the place, which is unprecedented in other
modernist cities in Poland. The conclusion of
the interview is perhaps the most arresting -
1 Alain de Botton, Architecture of Happiness, p.45
2 http://noweidzieodmorza.com/9432-jacek-friedrich-poszukiwanie-modernistycznej-tozsamosci
MODERNIST IMAGE
F i g. 8 0
Gdynias week with architecture poster, 2011,
(source: http://www.bryla.pl/bryla/56,85301,10042260,weekend-architektury-w-gdyni,,1.html)
98
the most undiscovered aspect of Gdynia has
become its way of portraying itself to the world.2
This paper focused on collecting evidence
-imagery to determine the origin of Gdynias
happiness as a modernist city and question it.
The essay has not only become a propaganda
material itself through a careful selection of
modernist and happy imagery of the city, but it
also maintains the same position - modernism
and happiness are indeed synonymous in case
of Gdynia.
It is difficult to understand this city without
looking at three unique aspects which constitute
it - the people-oriented modernist architecture,
the investment of its residents into building
the city and maintaining the reputation of the
place, and the efforts to curate an image used
to portray it as the happiest place to live in
Poland. The dissection of Gdynias 90 years of
existence through imagery has no precedent
yet, but it reveals an interesting truth about
the modernist=happy statement the city has
been trying to pursue. Regardless of whether
the portrayal of the city is successful or not,
it seems that the combination of the factors
mentioned earlier is what makes Gdynia a
happy place. No single image could sell the
dream of The Polish Window to The World
without the hard work of its residents which
lead to its success in the 1920s. However
cynical one might be about Gdynias agenda, or
however critical architecture writers might be of
its plain and unspectacular modernist buildings
and a rational yet unimpressive urban plan, the
unquestionable fact is that its residents are
happy and have been happy living in Gdynia
99
 for the past 90 years.

In his writings about utopian cities in On

representation, Louis Marin, French philosopher,
historian, semiotician and art critic, points
to the idea of self-reflexivity. He points to
cartography and the way in which it becomes
a project in itself, driven by the need to make
a political statement about cities. The curation
of the map is a careful and measured decision
made on propaganda of the city, as are the
images portrayed by Gdynia.1

The image and architecture perhaps play a

joint role, but the key ingredient in the success
of this modernist port city is the human
element. The Concluding Image becomes an all-
encompassing illustration presenting a variety
of Gdynias aspects which do in fact compose
an image of a happy city. The concluding part
of this paper, the visual essay, invites the reader
to make their own connections between the
juxtaposed imagery of Gdynia.

1 Louis Marin, On Representation, Stanford Press 2001, p. 203

CONCLUSION

100 1 01
 4.3 Concluding Image
MODERN = HAPPY

F i g. X X
Postcard showing Gdynias City Centre

102 103
 5.
Gdynia : The Visual Essay
THE VISUAL ESSAY

106 1 07
The following collection of images is chronologically arranged to present
Gdynia from its earliest depictions to its current representations. Images
have been presented without reference to encourage the reader to devise
their own interpretation and curate an image of the city based on this
archive. A full list of image references can be found at the end of this
chapter.
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1
2
3
4 5
6
7 8
9 10
11 12
13 14
15 16
17
18
19
20 21
22 23
24 25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32 33
34 35
1 - http://www.dziennikbaltycki.pl/artykul/3472015,archiwalne-zdjecia-gdyni-od-lat-20-przez-ii-wojne-swiatowa-az-do-lat-80-zdjecia,id,t.html
2 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014.
3 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014.
4 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014
5 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014
6 - Photograph by Czesaw Olszewski for an exhibition on Modernism in Gdynias Museum, 2017, organiser press materials.
7 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014
8 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014
9 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014
10 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014
11 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014
12 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014
13 - http://urbnews.pl/wydarzenia/gdynia-playground-2015-interakcja/
14 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto
15 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto
16 - https://goo.gl/images/p95aIO
17 - Photograph by Czesaw Olszewski for an exhibition on Modernism in Gdynias Museum, 2017, organiser press materials.
18 - https://goo.gl/images/mWXHba:
19 - https://goo.gl/images/94YTWD:
20 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014
21 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014
22 - source: https://goo.gl/images/HELcqX
23 - Maciej Kosycarz, Extraordinary Ordinary Photographs of Gdynia, KFP Kosycarz Foto Press, 2014
24 - Photograph from Sun and Fun Series by Kacper Kowalski, http://culture.pl/pl/tworca/kacper-kowalski.
25 - http://www.gdyniarodzinna.pl/artykul/593,ksiazeczki-o-gdyni-dla-najmlodszych.html.
26 - https://goo.gl/images/Ve9vsS.
27 - https://goo.gl/images/DYyA5q.
28 - https://goo.gl/images/dMlUJU.
29 - https://goo.gl/images/DF8YeG.
30 - http://interiorforms.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/wakacyjne-festiwale-i-targi-designu.html.
31 - https://goo.gl/images/pIFsI8.
32 - Authors own photograph.
33 - http://www.muzeumgdynia.pl/wydarzenie/podroz-do-wnetrza-domu/.
34 - Gdynia Art Review 96 June/August 1996, Review of an exhibition curated by Museum of Gdynia.
35 - https://goo.gl/images/QjhrIz