Дожинки и архитектурное наследие: Возможности и испытания для беларусских городов
Dozhinki and architectural heritage: opportunities and challenges for Belarusian cities

Summary/Abstract: Belarusian harvest holiday "Dozhinki" is held annually since 1996. 15 regional centers already became its "capitals". The main feature of the preparations for this festival is a large-scale renovation of the city centers. Rebuilding can be compared to the transformation of the Belarusian cities after the Magdeburg Law adaptation in XV-XVI ct. or by post-war reconstruction. Transformations includes changes in the traces of central streets, building of the major sporting infrastructure and of course renovation of architectural heritage (demolition of buildings – nearly 2-3 monuments in every city; renaming streets; alterations to historic neighborhoods and reconstruction of the iconic monuments; revitalization of central streets, etc.). The result of transformation was the serious changing of the cultural landscapes of these cities, disappearing of conventional spaces of memory and artificially implantation of the outside ones. The article highlights the question of how these changes reflect the views of local communities on the semantic filling of the local cultural landscape. How the cultural landscape changes affect the traditions of memory, do they really increase prestige of the cities and the quality of life as it is stated in the official media?

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