Kaunas Cafe (Vilnius Quarter)

Location: Slavutych, Ukraine

Completed: 1988

Architect: A.V. Krasilnikova

Genre: Modernist, Soviet architecture, former USSR

Slavutych is a purpose-built city in the north of Ukraine that was created from scratch to house civilians evacuated from the Chernobyl disaster of 1986. The city was designed and built by architects and workers from eight different countries, all of which were part of the Soviet Union at the time. These were Armenia, Azerbaijan, Estonia, Georgia, Latvia, Lithuania, Russia and Ukraine and representatives from each one were tasked with planning and building a section of the city that was indicative of the architectural style in their own country.

As well as prefabricated apartment buildings, the Vilnius Quarter is also scattered with one-family houses which are characteristic of Lithuania but a rare sight in Ukraine. The district’s planners opted for functionality over creative appearance which resulted in a part of the city that was simple in design but high on quality. More information about Slavutych.