Art Centers

Dec 2, 2024 | architecturalrecord.com | Joann Gonchar |Art Centers

Warsaw’s Plac Defilad (Parade Square) has a complicated history. Built by the Soviets amid the ruins of World War II, the vast space—the largest public square in Europe—was used for propaganda rallies and to host a Papal visit in 1987. Post-communism, it included a makeshift bus station, food kiosks, and market halls, and was the site of clashes with police over the latter’s removal. Its land was the subject of several lengthy legal disputes involving the reprivatization of real estate.