Before falling in love with the curves of Art Nouveau, it's worth understanding the origins. Modernism is not just a beautiful style; it is a response to the challenges of the time. To truly understand it, one must look a little deeper - into the era when new ideas were born, foundations were shattered, and the first glimpses of an impending aesthetic breakthrough appeared. In the lecture "Preface. Modern. New Opportunities," listeners will be transported to that pivotal moment when architecture, painting, and applied arts began to speak a new language. However, the discussion will focus not so much on the works themselves but on the soil that made them possible. On the material and spiritual crisis, on the change of eras, on technical progress, and on the desire to imbue every object - from the facade to the doorknob - with meaning and beauty. We will tell you how to organize leisure in St. Petersburg.