UNOVIS & Malevich
Student of Malevich, led UNOVIS architectural studio.
Unofficial Site
Avant-garde Architecture • Suprematism
Lazar Khidekel (1904–1986): Suprematist Architect
From Vitebsk and UNOVIS to futuristic eco-cities, Lazar Khidekel carried Suprematism into architecture and urban utopias.
Disclaimer: This site is for educational purposes only and is not affiliated with the Lazar Khidekel Society or his heirs.
Biography
1904 — Born in Vitebsk, Belarus.
1919–1922 — Student at Vitebsk Art School under Chagall, Lissitzky, and Malevich; joined UNOVIS.
1926 — Designed the Workers’ Club, pioneering Suprematist architecture.
1925–1930s — Visionary projects: “Floating City,” “Aero-City,” eco-cities on stilts.
1934 — Head of a workshop at Lenproekt in Leningrad.
1940s–1980s — Professor at LISI, dean of architecture faculty.
1986 — Died in Leningrad (St. Petersburg).
Focus: Khidekel applied Suprematism to architecture, exploring floating volumes, new urban forms, and eco-urbanism.
His projects, though largely unbuilt, influenced modernist architecture and inspired later visionaries.
Key Facts
Suprematist Architecture
First architect to systematize Suprematist principles in buildings.
Future Cities
Created eco-cities concepts anticipating climate adaptation.
Educator
Professor at LISI, trained a generation of Soviet architects.
Themes
Suprematist Compositions
Geometry, abstraction, structural logic.
Geometry, abstraction, structural logic.
Public & Housing Projects
New typologies for a new society.
New typologies for a new society.
Eco-urbanism
Sustainable urban planning ahead of its time.
Sustainable urban planning ahead of its time.
Teaching
Developed methods for architectural education.
Developed methods for architectural education.