The Conference entitled ‘Modernism in Europe – Modernism in Gdynia’ was held on 20-22 September 2012 in Gdynia, Poland. It was already the third conference in the series – previous ones took place in 2007 and 2009. With regard to more and more frequent discussions on postwar modern architecture, the time frames of this year’s edition were extended to the 1960s. The conference series is organized by Gdynia City Hall and the units responsible for arrangements and coordination of the conference are: City Monuments Protection Office and Foreign Relations Departments. In the preparations for this year’s edition were involved also the Faculty of Architecture of the Gdańsk University of Technology and the Faculty of Navigation of the Gdynia Maritime Academy. The seat of the latter, located at 3 Jana Pawła II Alley (former Polish Sailor’s House), served as the conference venue. The event was held under the patronage of Ministry of Culture and National Heritage. The Conference attracted scientists, conservation officers, architects as well as enthusiasts of modernism from several countries and important research centres from Poland and Gdynia itself. Presentations and lectures on modern architecture were given by the specialists from: Stockholm, Espoo, Vilnius, Zurich, Tel Aviv, London and Polish cities such as: Warsaw, Katowice, Wrocław, Łódź, Poznań, Gdańsk and Gdynia. Conference program in English The first day of conference, which main theme was: ‘Trends and models in architecture and urban planning until the 1960s’, aimed to familiarize the participants with, among others, modern architecture of the Baltic countries (Sweden, Finland, Latvia and Lithuania), interwar architecture of such cities as: Szczecin, Gdańsk, Warszawa or Chełmek as well as with architecture seen from more thematic perspective, like for instance: modern villas, port structures, wooden architecture or the realizations of Wacław Tomaszewski. Besides, the presentations covered postwar architecture of Nowa Huta and Katowice and also the urban planning of the interwar period. On the second day sessions concerned: ‘Protection and conservation of modern architecture – current situation and prospects’. During the speeches, one could get acquainted with different methods of conservation, achievements and also with the conservation issues connected with modernist cities (Tel-Aviv, Masera, Le Havre, Zurich), building complexes (Dessau Bauhaus buildings, Werkbund housing estate in Wrocław, ‘Służewiec’ horse-race track in Warsaw), single buildings (‘Glass House’ in Warsaw, sanatorium in Trzebiechowo, Gdynia Railway Station, tenement house at 13 Foksal Street in Warsaw, apartment building at 18 Pomorska Street in Gdynia) and the architectural detail itself. The issue of legal protection of the modern architecture monuments, and especially the way of its valuation with a focus on postwar realizations, was mentioned as well. The day ended with two lectures related to the popularization of modern architecture among tourists. The third day traditionally included an outdoor presentation of certain examples of modern architecture, ranging from such popular buildings as: the office building at 24 10 Lutego Street (former seat of Social Insurance Institution and Polish Ocean Lines, todays City Hall), located at the same crossroads FE BGK apartment building (so called ‘banking building’), District Court building and Gdynia Railway Station to the less known postwar buildings of Coastal Navigation Station at 2 Jana Pawła II Alley or the Sacred Heart Church at 46 Armii Krajowej Street. The most important examples of modern architecture of the Gdynia Port were also presented to the participants. To conclude, taking part in the Conference one could get acquainted with the wide range of examples of different trends in modern architecture, both from interwar and postwar period. The lectures covered most recent research on modern architecture as well as current issues related to conservation and preservation of these structures. The publication with articles on modernism will constitute a long-lasting effect of the Conference. During the Conference, there was an opportunity to buy souvenirs connected with Gdynia modernism (miniatures of buildings, pins, magnets, postcards, etc.) on the Gdynia Development Agency’s stand. Moreover, on the stand of the Vademecum bookshop from Gdynia, participants could equip themselves with the most important specialist literature titles, both from Polish and foreign publishers. Besides, all of the speakers were given miniatures of ‘Polish Sailors House’ as a keepsake provided by the Gdynia Development Agency. photographs by: Alina Limańska, Office of City Monuments Protection, Gdynia City Hall Opublikowano: 06.11.2012 00:00 Autor: _Alina Limańska - Michalska (a.limanska@gdynia.pl)