ЖЭК (together with Max Bykov), 2019The word "ЖЭК" ("housing office") has not existed since 1996: it was transformed into "homeowners' associations", then other abbreviations appeared. But when you say "ЖЭК" [zhek], Russians immediately understand what you are talking about.
The housing office of Basmanny district in Moscow is a wooden house in Khomutovsky tupik, presumably built in 1911, which used to be a studio of the artist Leonid Brailovsky before the revolution.
The housing office of one of the oldest districts of Moscow turned out to be a visual embodiment of the idea of the housing office, the housing office in its ontological sense. The workers live there: they decorate walls with posters and icons, have their own beds, fridges and TVs.
