Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Hotel Metropol; a beautiful example of Style Moderne, Russia's take on art nouveau.
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Soviet Moscow
The revolution gave rise to young constructivist architects, who rejected superficial decora-
tion; they designed buildings whose appearance was a direct function of their uses and ma-
terials - a new architecture for a new society. They used lots of glass and concrete in un-
compromising geometric forms.
Konstantin Melnikov was probably the most famous constructivist, and his own house off
ul Arbat is one of the most interesting and unusual examples of the style. The former bus
depot that now houses the Jewish Museum & Centre of Tolerance is a more utilitarian ex-
ample. In the 1930s, constructivism was denounced, as Stalin had much grander predilec-
tions.
Stalin favoured neoclassical architecture, which echoed ancient Athens ('the only culture
of the past to approach the ideal', according to Anatoly Lunacharsky, the first Soviet Com-
missar of Education). Stalin also favoured building on a gigantic scale to underline the
