More Than a Museum: The Winner of the Competition for Uspenskoe Estate Development Concept Was Elected

On September 17, 2024, the finalists of the Nationwide competition for the development of social and cultural concept of Uspenskoe Estate development, the Competition Jury and media representatives gathered at TASS press center in Moscow. The awarding ceremony of finalists and honoring the winner was celebrated. Consortium of AI-Architects + Sheredega consulting + Irina Krymova won the Competition. The second place was taken by the Consortium of .ket bureau + V bureau + Yuliya Gaponenko + Andrey Ivanov + Stanislav Guzhov. The third place was shared by the Consortium of HORA + Institute of Urban Social Development + Gravity Communication Agency and NOWADAYS office.

The Competition Organizer – DOM.RF AO. The Operator: the CENTER Lab International Urban Laboratory. “Evokorp Management Company” OOO is a partner and investor to the project, which in 2022 acquired rights to the Estate based on the results of open public tendering.

The competition started on May 28, 37 companies formed into 18 teams took part in it. In the final stage the jury consisting of recognized experts in the field of architecture, urban planning and construction, design of public spaces, landscape design, socio-cultural programming and specialists in cultural heritage sites chose from four projects.

The Estate ensemble is a unique architectural monument of the turn of the ХIХ-ХХ centuries, an object of cultural heritage of regional significance located on the territory of the Odintsovo city district of the Moscow region. According to Anton Finogenov, Chairman of the Competition Jury, Director for Urban Development of DOM.RF AO, the project is of great importance for all historical estates in Russia: DOM.RF has extensive experience in engaging cultural heritage sites in the new life. The President of Russia set the task to scale up this initiative and implement the program for the preservation of cultural heritage of the Russian Federation. As for the Uspenskoe complex, it is a good example of the transition to a new quality of design at restoration of other cultural heritage sites. On the one hand, we maintain all strict requirements for restoration, and on the other hand, we try to find and integrate new meanings for the development of territories. “

Kirill Aleksandrovich Zavrazhin, Head of the Territorial Administration of Odintsovsky District, Vlasikha, Krasnoznamensk districts, Committee for Architecture and Urban Planning of the Moscow region told about the importance of the project of the Moscow region, “The once famous estate, which was abandoned by fate, had no heating for several years and could be destroyed, was acquired by a patron for its restoration. The fascinating concepts were presented at the competition of projects, they all deserve a chance to be implemented, however the task was to select the most promising and relevant ones. It was required to find such project so that, on the one hand, there was no additional anthropogenic impact on the existing road and transport network, the ecological state of the Moscow River valley, and on the other hand, the investments should be paid off, so that the place became a new point of attraction.”

The contestants’ projects suggest rethinking of the concept of use of the entire complex, including the park and the premises of the Medical Building fitted to the estate in the 70s of the 20th century. Sergei Andreevich Georgievskii, co-founder of the CENTER Lab International Urban Laboratory, representative of the Competition operator, noted, “Massive research is being carried out now aimed to restore the Uspensky Castle. It will become one of the important elements of the ensemble of the cultural and educational center. The contestants’ ideas unite the Medical Building, the castle and the entire territory of the park. Together they form a new ensemble, a new form. “

Yuri Sheredega, representing the winning consortium, co-founder, managing partner of Sheredega Consulting, outlined his vision of the estate future, “The mission of the project is the development and support of modern Russian culture. “Uspenskoe” could act as a springboard to the art at different stages. Young talents will have a chance to get a unique educational infrastructure here, experienced artists – the opportunity to find a potential investor, entrepreneurs – a new format of interaction with cultural figures. We adhered to the idea of protection of cultural heritage site in our project: everything valuable in the Estate should be preserved. In our opinion, the central point of attraction can be a stage on the exploitable roof designed for demonstrations and holding various events. The metaphor lies beyond the bright image: the fountain that existed even before the construction of the Medical Building forms the center of the composition. Part of the roofing space can be used as a small restaurant. Our idea was to make the building look up-to-date with the minimum interference with the building itself. We took care of children, moms with strollers — we tried to design a regulatory ramp that leads to the slope. We have provided a parking on the territory of the Estate, the unloading area. The estate park can perform therapeutic and educational functions, it can become a platform for exhibiting the works of art of the estate residents. Art installations may appear on the banks of the Moscow River forming a new point of attraction – an open-air art park. “

According to the jurors, the works of all the finalists deserve to be used in renovation of the Uspenskoe Estate and scaling this experience to other cultural heritage sites throughout Russia.