Small and medium towns of nizhegorodskoe povolzhie region: in search of the lost harmony. Part 2

The second part of the article highlights the processes of historical and architectural environment transformation in small and medium-sized towns of the Nizhegorodskoe Povolzhie region during the Soviet and post-Soviet periods. The author analyzes the factors that led to the loss of architectural landscapes visual harmony that had developed by the beginning of the 20th century. The historical and architectural environment is interpreted as a phenomenon of the region architectural and urban culture. It is considered in the context of topical historical and theoretical problems of architecture and urban planning: problem of traditions and innovations; problem of mass and unique; problem of style and image; problem of global and identical. The general regularities of the historical and architectural environment formation and development throughout the life cycle of the New and Newest times are investigated.