Vyazniki is a small town on the Gorky highway, halfway between Vladimir and Nizhny Novgorod, not far from Gorokhovets, on the right bank of the Klyazma. In 1919, Alexey Fatyanov, a famous Soviet poet and author of many famous songs about the war, was born here, in the family of the owners of the icon-painting craft: "Nightingales", "Where are you now, fellow soldiers?", "A soldier is walking through the city", " Because we are pilots”,“Darkie”,“Talyanochki”and many others (you can listen to Fatyanov's songs here). Since 1974, the Fatyanovo Song Festival has been held in Vyazniki, since 1988 it received the status of an All-Russian one, and last year the city celebrated the 100th anniversary of the poet on a grand scale. Now the festival is called the cultural brand of the Vladimir region.
The park is located in the northern part of the city, over the slope towards the Klyazma, where they ride down the mountain on tubing in winter. On the side of the river, on a promontory between two ravines, there is the main object of the park - Fatyanovskaya Polyana with a summer stage, built in 1978, and benches in front of it. Now the stage is a rather simple structure, if not a typical one, but with a concrete base.
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zooming Fatyanovo festival
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zooming Fatyanovskaya site
According to media reports, Vyazniki received a grant from the Ministry of Construction for the improvement of small towns on the third attempt. In 2018, there was a discussion of the ideas expressed by the townspeople; the opinion of the residents was taken into account in the subsequent development of the park improvement program by the Strelka Design Bureau. The project that won the 2020 competition will receive 70 million for implementation (in March it was announced that 80 million, but in April the information changed). Here's what its authors, the architects of the Moscow bureau A4, say about their idea:
“The main idea of the new site was the creation of a landmark object, a memorable and individual image. The emphasis is placed on the scene called "Scene_360". Its versatility will give great freedom, add variety to life in this part of the park and city. After the reconstruction, the site of the Fatyanovo festival will turn into a new center of public life and development of the park's economy. The stage and the amphitheater will become the venue for cinema events, concerts, lectures, and private events."
So, the stage remains the key object - the center of the festival. According to the wishes of the residents, the authors keep it, like other elements of the park, in the same place, but make it multifunctional and all-season, designed for daily use. It is planned to build in the volume a mini-cafe and a point of sale of sports equipment, on the roof to create an observation deck with a small amphitheater and a view of the Klyazma. The project also provides for the improvement of the tubing track on the slope behind the stage.
Instead of the audience benches, which are now grouped in a "fan" of straight rows, the authors build an arched amphitheater into the slope in front of the stage. It is divided into 2 parts: all the seats in the project receive a concrete base and a wooden covering, but backrests are provided for the rows closer to the stage, as well as a removable awning from rain or sun. The far rows, located in the open air, are designed to expand the "auditorium" for good weather - the festival time, when the maximum number of visitors is in the middle of summer. Here the rows are arranged irregularly and gradually "dissolve" in the grass and flowers. A trample-resistant lawn is provided.
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zooming 1/5 Scene 360 with an amphitheater. Improvement of the Fatyanovsky Park in Vyazniki © А4 Architectural Bureau, KB Strelka
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zooming 2/5 Functional use of space. Improvement of the Fatyanovsky park in Vyazniki © А4 Architectural Bureau, KB Strelka
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zooming 3/5 Constructive solutions and climatic comfort. Improvement of the Fatyanovsky Park in Vyazniki © А4 Architectural Bureau, KB Strelka
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zooming 4/5 Scene 360 with an amphitheater. Winter. Improvement of the Fatyanovsky Park in Vyazniki © А4 Architectural Bureau, KB Strelka
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zooming 5/5 Site section. Improvement of the Fatyanovsky Park in Vyazniki © А4 Architectural Bureau, KB Strelka
To the south, on the edge of the hill, there is a platform with a cafe pavilion and a terrace above the slope - here, according to the plan, it will be possible to “celebrate birthdays and weddings with the best view in the city”. View - the Annunciation Monastery and the Fatyanov family house, nationalized in 1917, 2 years before the poet's birth; now there is a museum of songs of the XX century. The theme of wedding photographs, which is relevant for any small town, should be supported by an installation on Solnechnaya Polyana, named after one of Fatyanov's songs.
The authors turn the technical volumes of the boiler house located at the entrance into a group of technical rooms with pakra and hide behind banners, decorative slats and climbing plants. It is proposed to place graffiti of young artists on the concrete walls, and the bathrooms are decided in the same spirit as the other two pavilions - with a rounded plan. All buildings are united by a common solution, simple and functional; the main finishing material is tinted larch.
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zooming 1/3 Alley. Improvement of the Fatyanovsky Park in Vyazniki © А4 Architectural Bureau, KB Strelka
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zooming 2/3 Site plan. Improvement of the Fatyanovsky Park in Vyazniki © А4 Architectural Bureau, KB Strelka
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zooming 3/3 Graffiti wall near the Boiler room and technical area. Improvement of the Fatyanovsky Park in Vyazniki © А4 Architectural Bureau, KB Strelka
The park flora is now in its prime, mostly 50-year-old trees, mostly birches; they are planned to be supplemented with new landings. The thickets on the slope, also according to the wishes of the townspeople, are planned to be cleaned up, revealing the views, and replacing the felled trees with plants, whose root system is able to prevent landslides.
The implementation of the project, scheduled for 2021, should not only make the circumstances of the festival more modern and comfortable, but also reveal the potential of the park, making it “work” constantly, and add new functions and ideas, make it more diverse, and even develop the economy of the park. The authors of the project hope that the Fatyanovskaya platform will become a place of creative inspiration and freedom.
