In one of the greenest districts of Moscow - near Vorobyovy Gory, behind a dense curtain of trees separating the site from Vorobyovskoye Shosse, on the site of a brick office center "with turrets" - a classic building of the nineties, defined today for demolition, construction of a multifunctional residential complex has begun. From the east, the park approaches the very borders of the site, and a little to the north, in the lowland, the Setun river bends lazily in a smooth loop. The almost non-urban landscape and complex relief with a steep cliff to the river is a natural intrigue, a landscape in which the ADM architects created a fragment of an absolutely metropolitan building, but with a cozy courtyard and its own rhythm of life.
The park is a park, the river is a river, but from the north side, typical residential buildings that dictate altitude restrictions are almost close to the complex. In addition, the work had to reckon with the boundaries of the nature protection zone, diagonally cutting off the northeastern corner of the site. As a result, a fairly simple and clear composition of three volumes of different heights - from 5 to 16 floors - standing around the space of a common, almost internal, courtyard was almost forced. At the same time, there is neither a classic quarter, nor a regular square, nor a courtier, in which the buildings themselves form a courtyard. It seems that all three volumes are free: two tall, extended blocks are located parallel to each other with a slight offset. The third - five-story - covers the south-western corner of the composition.
All stand separately and all are connected: underground - common two-level parking; above the ground - a large, easily recognizable canopy, drawn in one line, encircling the hulls from all sides. Such awnings, from which laconic rational buildings grow, as well as consistently high-quality landscaping, can be seen in many ADM projects. Appealing to the name of the workshop - Architectural Dialogue with Megapolis, one can almost say with confidence that this is their manner of speaking with the city, their voice, clearly articulating the understanding of the unity of volumes in the composition. In general, the possibility of correct, without excessive distortions, human perception of the building at close range, the feeling of comfort and peace in the immediate vicinity are things that are important for Andrey Romanov and Ekaterina Kuznetsova. And this project is no exception.
Here, the canopy plate is not just a part evenly protruding around each hull, providing residents with protection from the rain. A wide canvas, punched through by circles of large holes, letting in a sufficient amount of sunlight and, oddly enough, rain into the courtyard, it hangs over the car turning circle, throwing a long bridge from a compact five-story volume to a high vis-à-vis building. Thus, it is possible to close the town-planning composition, define the boundaries of the courtyard and tie the whole complex together. The upper surface of the canopy - for the sake of the apartments located above - has been turned into a green lawn with flowers, multi-colored dumping and climbing plants.
The visor fixes the main, front part of the complex - it is not only a spatial and structural detail, it is a fundamental element of the navigation system, giving a reference point for coordinates both horizontally and vertically: all three entrance groups are visible from here. Their glass walls allow a glimpse into the warm, wood-clad and well-lit lobbies. The outer border of the first floors with small cafes and shops also has solid glazing in order to preserve the view of the park and the city. One of the buildings is office, the other two are residential.
Simple in form - and in terms of all three blocks are strictly rectangular - the buildings are distinguished by the detailed elaboration of the facades, where, despite the almost complete identity, each has its own individual features. “On the one hand, we wanted to make a very modern architecture,” says Andrei Romanov, “and on the other, there was a clear idea that quite conservative people would live here. For them, it was necessary to create a calm and comfortable environment in which there is no place for giant residential anthills with monotonous nondescript facades."
The architects tried to avoid the feeling of cumbersomeness and monotony by resorting to methods of visual change in proportions, because of which a person, for example, will see only eight floors instead of sixteen, and the extended walls will seem to him extremely embossed and slender. After all, it is known that a person, feeling most comfortable in a building no higher than 5-7 floors, reacts sensitively to a proportional series, changing which, you can soften the scale. This is exactly what was done on the facades of the projected complex: plastic horizontal cornices united the floors in pairs, and various emphasized vertical wall patterns transformed the horizontal proportions.
At the same time, the entire grid of facades is built on the rhythmic alternation of three main materials. The combination of dark brickwork with wood grain and elongated window shading on one of the buildings echoes the larger design of the five-story block. There, the main material is natural rusticated stone, which gives the building a special patinated gloss. All windows on the facades differ greatly in width - either stretching into a thin strip, or moving apart to a glass panorama. The balance is provided by porcelain stoneware panels that imitate light wood. The juxtaposition of dark and light panels creates a deceiving 3D effect: flat walls suddenly acquire volume and depth.
The building facing the river and the park is made similar, but even more diverse: its facades have real, pronounced plastic drops, emphasized by the same combination of three materials - light stone, dark brick and “wooden” inserts. The longest of all, it seems to be the lightest - either because of the dominant milky tones, or because of the softened shape. If the other two volumes are solved in strict, straight and clear lines, then this house is like a stone washed off by water: all its corner elements are made of round and glass. And it seems that only thin lintels of cornices hold this whole weightless structure. Through the semicircular "corner" windows, radically changing the quality of the apartments, panoramas of the city and the Moscow River open up. The dotted line of the French balconies, drawn along all their planes, adds relief to the facades. Exactly the same balconies adorn the house opposite, once again emphasizing the kinship of all three buildings of the ensemble.
But the main unifying element, as always in the works of ADM, is the courtyard. Located above the underground parking lot, open towards the Setuni River valley, it becomes a continuation of the adjacent park. The problem of the need for a sufficiently high soil layer for planting trees has been solved due to the numerous fill mounds. Overgrown with plants and shrubs, they occupy most of the yard, forming an interesting relief and at the same time zoning it. Naturally, there are no cars here, but there are playgrounds, benches, cobbled sidewalks, and in the summer there are also tables of open cafes in the light of street lamps.
