Starting from January 17, the press and the Internet are full of articles dedicated to standard projects of Moscow stalls, developed by the Moscow Committee for Architecture and Construction on behalf of Mayor Sergei Sobyanin.
The Moskomarkhitektura itself in the description of projects emphasizes the "modularity" of the developed objects, designed so that they can be assembled like a children's Lego construction set from blocks of two sizes, ninety meters by one and a half, and one and a half to one and a half meters. The Committee on Architecture also emphasizes that the stalls are designed in several different styles, intended for different parts of the city - for the center, of course, "classic", for the rest "modern", "minimalism" and a particularly funny definition of "free style" (there is a suspicion what is meant by eclecticism).
The outstanding architectural critic Grigory Revzin compares the projects shown with the student's work, done well. And, reasoning further logically, he comes to the conclusion that this initiative belongs to the Moskomarkhitektura and is not a commercial project of any business structure trying to seize a large and profitable order without a competition.
Businessmen (for example, ARPP, the Association of Printed Products Sellers), in turn, commented with fear on the situation, rightly reminding that small and medium-sized businesses would go bankrupt from such initiatives. Later, other businessmen evaluate the projects positively.
But few who discuss this topic, apparently, know that the project is not at all as new as it wants to seem. At least two and a half years ago, at the Public Council under the mayor of Yuri Luzhkov, a draft of the so-called "Proposals for the withdrawal of advertising structures from the Kremlin's security zone", developed in workshop 14 of Mosproekt-2, was discussed. In addition to general planning items and recommendations for removing stretch marks, this concept included a rich set of improvement objects: supports for billboards and other advertisements, lanterns, benches, trash cans, toilets and bus stops. They were designed in six different styles, among which were "classic", "minimalism", "free style", "modern". Then no one noticed this project, because everyone was accustomed, apparently, to the efforts of Yuri Luzhkov to combat advertising and other attempts to ennoble Moscow.
So, comparing the pictures, it is easy to see that the stalls of the early 2011 model for the Mayor Sobyanin are based on the draft billboards for the Mayor Luzhkov of the mid-2008 model. They are divided into similar styles and are also surrounded by urban amenities. And the appearance of these elements has changed little.
Take the classics, for example. It is clearly seen that the image of the stall was borrowed from the information kiosk of the 2008 classic series. Or Art Nouveau: the concept of the 2011 stall was definitely influenced by the architectural solution of the WC cubicle from the previous Art Nouveau series, recommended for placement in areas around the Kremlin. Benches and fences remained practically unchanged, and the lantern received a symmetrical branch, and became two-horned instead of one-horned.
Of course, the projects have been finalized and drawn. So, there were drawings of facades, identical full face and profile, shadows of human figures, a list of materials from which it is necessary to make stalls, and the details in the projects of 2011 have become somewhat larger. Billboards and other advertising media have disappeared altogether, being replaced on fences - social advertising, raising the mood of Muscovites, and on the facades of stalls with large images of sold products that awaken the appetite of citizens. It cannot be ruled out that the objects-carriers of advertising were removed because they were the main part of the project, made especially for the former mayor. However, this is difficult to prove.
Strictly speaking, we are dealing with the fact of taking a project out of the table and adjusting it to new needs. Which fact, on the other hand, can also be interpreted as creative development and refinement of design intent. This often happens in the architectural and design field. Classical art in general almost entirely consists of the development of well-known themes, plots and iconography. So one could say that in this case we are dealing with the development of the iconography of the booth, which, as a result of this development, grows to the booth, following the wishes of the customer.
Here I would like to agree with the respected critic, the participation of business in these projects is felt little, rather the plot is suitable for the theme of "power and creativity". In this connection, I would like to recall two more, not so close, but recognizable analogies from the past. It seems that in the 1980s, Arkady Raikin-father talked about typical coats, sewn at Soviet enterprises according to a single pattern, for boys with a gray strap, and for girls with an orange one, "… because girls tend to strive for the bright." At the same time, the cartoon "Gosstandart" was filmed, where panel boxes merrily covered the entire globe. This is probably a feature of a typical construction on a state order - to cover everything around.
The first in Russia to come up with the idea of building cities according to standard projects was Peter the Great. In order to accustom the Russian people to European architecture, as well as to update the openly spoiling the appearance of cities and morally obsolete buildings, he ordered Trezzini's architects to draw standard designs of houses "for the vile", that is, the poor, for the wealthy, and for eminent residents of St. Petersburg. … This made it possible to distinguish what kind of inhabitants could meet behind one or another facade, and also so that the wealthy did not spit too much on the famous for luxury. But the main thing for which it was needed was for aesthetics. The new mayor and the revised project of the Moskomarkhitektura definitely follow in the footsteps of Peter the Great.
One could, of course, look among his contemporaries for someone like Trezzini (he built the Cathedral of Peter and Paul) and Leblond (he drew the general plan of St. Petersburg). Order, for example, classics Ilya Utkin, business style to Boris Levyant, modernism to Vladimir Plotkin, minimalism to Nikolai Lyzlov, hi-tech to Pavel Andreev … But the project three years ago probably seemed more reliable. Or maybe there was no time: between the attack of the new mayor on the stalls and the publication of the projects, two and a half months passed, minus the New Year holidays. But there was still a decision to be made, so there was no time left for design. But is it worth it to hurry up and save on designing something that can be multiplied in huge quantities? However, representatives of the small wholesale business have already voiced their agreement with the projects, saying that "they exclude all possible claims to the appearance."
