Towards the reuse of materials in Polish architecture. Working in the post-socialist context

The article provides a discussion on how socialism, its aesthetics and architecture have influenced contemporary architecture in Poland, especially the choices of materials and aesthetics present in Polish society. The article focuses on current problems grounded in the socialist ideology, which can be seen as: the negations of socialism (e.g. denial of maintaining habits, homogenous aesthetics, temporary solutions), the remnants of the previous system (e.g. denial of natural, local, old materials) or the effects of westernization (e.g. the use of new, ‘luxurious’ materials). The post-socialist reality is a challenge for a sustainable approach to architecture and materials. This paper aims to analyse a specific, Polish context and to establish guidelines for the future development of sustainable concepts and architectural applications of reused materials in architecture in Poland.