Stalinist Architecture (or Socialist Classicism) refers to the architecture of the Soviet Union between 1933, when Boris Iofan's draft for the “Palace of Soviets” was officially approved, and 1955, when Nikita Khruschev condemned excesses of the past decades and disbanded the Soviet Academy of Architecture.
Stalinist architecture is not, per se, an architectural style characterized by its distinct appearance. Instead it describes an architecture that resulted from the way the state communicated with the masses through its constructions, using them as an expression of state power. The combination of striking parade monumentalism, patriotic art decoration and traditional motifs has become one of the most vivid examples of the Soviet contribution to architecture.