“Public Spaces of Northern Cities” Now Available in the TATLIN Library

A new study by the International Urban Planning Laboratory CENTER Lab is now accessible in the open online library of TATLIN — Russia’s leading publishing house specializing in architecture, design, and art. “Public Spaces of Northern Cities” aims to rethink the approach to creating “third places” in settlements facing some of the most challenging environmental conditions.

The research covers 141 settlements — from Dalnegorsk, the southernmost city classified as part of the Far North, to Pevek, Russia’s northernmost city, where the polar night lasts 47 days a year. The significance of this analytical work lies in its comprehensive and systemic perspective on developing public spaces in cities located in extreme environments — an approach often missing from standard urban improvement methodologies. The study identifies eight specific groups of northern cities and dozens of types of public spaces. Such typology enables more targeted infrastructure development solutions.

In 2025, the research received an award at the Golden Section festival organized by the Moscow Union of Architects in partnership with the Union of Architects of Russia. “Throughout its history, our company has invested part of its profits into independent research. We are pleased that the Russian North has been receiving increasing attention in recent years, and we sought to contribute analytically to its development,” noted Ketavan Khelaia, Co-Founder and CEO of CENTER Lab.

In spring 2023, another study by the Laboratory — “Comprehensive Assessment of the Development Potential of Norilsk” — was also added to the TATLIN collection. The full catalogue of the library’s publications (more than 3,000 titles) is available at tatlin.ru/lib.