Taking Flight

The pavilion that represents Russia at EXPO 2015 in Milan was designed by Sergey Choban.

Written by:
Julia Tarabarina
Translated by:
Anton Mizonov

14 May 2015

Object

The pavilion representing Russia at EXPO 2015 is located in the western part of the mile-long axis of the world exposition, which the organizers called in the spirit of antiquity: decamanus. It is rather far, about a thirty minutes walk, from the main entrance, back from the main square of the exposition. However, the pavilions of Japan, Turkey, and the USA are also situated nearby, and the territory was evidently divided by way of lottery – there is no logic to be seen in their mutual alignment – it seems to be quite random. The sections of the national pavilions are densely collected around the main axis and are cut up in three different ways. Middle-sized sections – narrow lines, bigger sections that have a P-shape in plan: a narrow arm leads to the decamanus and the wide convenient rectangle is placed deeper; a corner cut on the side of the main street forms another small lot of the next pavilion. The section of the Russian pavilion is one of the large P-shaped ones. The project by Sergey Choban, Alexey Ilyin and Marina Kuznetskaya was selected at a closed selection organized by the selection committee of the Russian section in February 2014. According to Sergey Choban, the result was in particular determined by the right choice of the high-rise accent in the context of a dense development, limited viewing angles and exact height restrictions. It was also important that SPEECH was able to offer a bright, distinctive volume, that develops the traditions of the Soviet and Russian buildings at world expositions in the previous years and, what also matters, a volume that could be built within a limited time and budget.

zooming — Russian Pavilion at EXPO 2015 in Milan. SPEECH. Photo © Aleksey Naroditsky

So the densely cut master plan of the exposition set a tough task before the architects: how to make the entrance noticeable if it faces the main street only with its narrow fore part? EXPO offers plenty of answers to this question: ramparts, amusement arcades, maze gardens… The version introduced by Sergey Choban is one of the most architectural ones - his pavilion falls into line with the well-defined plastic gesture: the long canopy of almost extreme proportions. Its sharp peak with a slightly bowed mirror backing strip easily soars up over the narrow square paved with wood attracting the visitors with the wholeness of its shape and the clarity of its image – particularly attractive in the background of the prevailing complicated solutions. A lot of other pavilions for some reason preferred to hide their entrances by placing it in some unusual spot: on a side of the building, behind it, or even by “protecting” it with a maze – which turned the exposition into a challenging quest with long runs that are not always entertaining for the visitor. The Russian pavilion is one of the lucky exceptions – its entrance is not only easy to find but it also becomes the central architectural attraction. The authors underline: the mirror allows for making selfies quite conveniently – and indeed, already on the opening day, despite the unpleasant drizzle, few would walk past it, everyone went onto the wooden platform with interest, threw their heads back, and, yes – took their photos in the giant mirror.

One must say that mirror surfaces are one of the favorite themes of Sergey Choban and SPEECH architects in general. It is enough to recall the NHow hotel in Berlin and the Russian pavilion at Venice Biennale 2015, where the dome – like in a pantheon – reflected itself placing the spectator into the center of the imaginary sphere. Renaissance patios of the Milan University is currently hosting an exposition by Interni magazine, where an installation by Sergey Choban, Sergey Kusnetsov and Agniya Sterligova makes its centerpiece – and it as well is completely glassy, so as to dissolve in the surroundings at times.

The foundation of the soaring, smoothly curved canopy is supported by four large mirror columns inside of a transparent glass tambour: thin joints of the glass slabs make the entrance area of the pavilion completely see-through. The cantilever seems to be lying on the glass. The image is completed by the hatch of the wooden lamellas that visually extend the line of the canopy where it is practically no longer there – on the facades of the volume of the main exposition that, as opposed to the tambour, are made of black glass. The canopy visually rises from the volume and seems even longer because of that – the idea can be best appreciated looking from south-east: the view point that Sergey Choban calls the main one, is located in the way of the main flow of the visitors, so the majority of the spectators will not miss this perspective anyway.

The black volume with the exposition itself is built in the deep of the lot and following its contours spreads eastwards. Its upper part is on all sides finished with wooden lamellas which, according to Sergey Choban’s idea, are supposed to remind the traditional Russian building material. The oval reception stand inside of the glass vestibule is decorated with similar ribs. There is not that much wood however, and it only slightly masks the glass-metal volumes.

SPEECH bureau designed the architecture of the pavilion and the reception stand inside the tambour. The exposition “Growing for the World. Cultivating for the Future” was made by another team. Right after the entrance, in the lobby, the visitors face a painting by Vinogradov-Dubosarsky named “Rye”, then, behind the transparent lobby, it gets dark. The walls in the first hall are covered with pictures of plants from Vavilov’s seed collection, and in the second hall – with Mendeleev’s Table interlaced with scripts about elements valuable for nutrition. The concept of the exposition was based on an idea of a recipe catalog suggested by Yuriy Avakumov, but was later transformed. The book of recipes however was published specially for EXPO. The first hall meets the visitors with a glowing model of a distillation still, the visitors are treated to alcohol-free drinks; in the second hall, they can take part in food tasting; at the back, there is a restaurant. The halls of the first floor are arranged along the perimeter of the technical rooms located in the middle, and all together it reminds a styled letter P. There is a boardroom and a VIP-stanza on the second floor, and the roof, built in a form of a smoothly rising rampart is made green and, according to the architects, will soon be open for the visitors.

Back to the canopy: the mirror surface of its cantolever reflects not only the people taking photographs on the square in front of the pavilion, but also the glass tambour, and, when viewed from afar, it is even misleading: it seems that the lobby with the red letters “RUSSIA” above the entrance extends upwards, curving, growing into the surface of the canopy, there seems to be twice as many people coming in and it forms a kind of a swirl – only in a couple of seconds the illusion is unveiled and you start to understand what is real and what is a reflection. It is also a part of the idea, and unlike many other mirror attractions that are more often hidden inside the pavilions of EXPO, here the plot is brought outside. Architecture has become a significant part of the exposition, besides in a way it summarizes the many years of Russian participation in previous world expositions, calling on the historic pavilions and summing up their methods.

Of course, first of all, I asked Sergey Choban why his project remind Mikhail Posokhin’s Montreal pavilion at EXPO’67 so much – the likeness is obvious, in both cases there is a soaring canopy placed upon a glass volume emphasizing the effect of a levitating roof line. In response the architect suggested me to recollect a wider historical context. According to Choban, the Montreal pavilion is simply the most famous example of a general tendency connecting a whole series of other soviet pavilions at world expositions. In particular, Sergey Choban reminded a project that Konstantin Melnikov drew in 1962 for a world exposition in New York, 1964 (the project remained on paper, the USSR did not take part in the exposition). Opinions concerning the connection between the Montreal pavilion and the unimplemented Melnikov’s project have been already aired (for example, see here).

You can learn more about the the sequence of the Soviet pavilions at world expositions from a recent review made by archspeech website. Part of them really does follow the “up and ahead” urge, like “The Worker and Kolkhoz Woman”; others are more pompous, but also fly to somewhere, maybe into space. The flying theme does not go down to world expositions – the titanium monument of the “To the Conquerors of the Space” is just as energetic.

In other words, the project of Sergey Choban not only continues the line famous due to the Montreal pavilion, but to some extent restores historic justice, returning both to Mikhail Posokhin and to Konstantin Melnikov. It is interesting that Melnikov planned to execute his pavilion “at the end of tether” – and Sergey Choban speaks practically the same words about the canopy built in Milan. The overhang of the cantilever is 98 feet – the maximum possible for such a construction. The rise in the highest point – 55 feet, which is 15 feet more than the height of the main building, subdued to the 40 feet of height restrictions set in the master-plan of the exposition. At that, according to Sergey Choban, the rise of the console could start only outside of the main volume, in the glass vestibule. It gives a feeling that the architect aims to use up this theme completely, develop it up to the limit of technical and emotional possibilities. The pavilion in Milan is more scaled-down than the Montreal one, but its long narrow console flies up more energetically and the mirror adds to the effect giving staginess of the exposition installation to the architectural solution. The impression really is closer to Melnikov’s draft where the console aims towards stars and visually, and symbolically – there is even a cosmic drawing on it, and the project description, in keeping with the best traditions of the 60s, tells about the “hidden power of celestial mechanics”. It reminds both of the first satellite and the passion for the starry sky – zodiac and astrological – of the Renaissance architects, and the scientific, astronomical interest in it of the Empire. And here we probably reach the essence of the plot: Sergey Choban’s mirror console makes us look up at the sky – to see ourselves in it. There is something special in it. But on the other hand what difference does it make, for what reason exactly we looked at the sky – even seldom? Even for the sake of a making a selfie today? The mere fact of us looking up is great!

14 May 2015

Headlines now

The Big Twelve

Yesterday, the winners of the Moscow Mayor’s Architecture Award were announced and honored. Let’s take a look at what was awarded and, in some cases, even critique this esteemed award. After all, there is always room for improvement, right?

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Above the Golden Horn

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Nuanced Alternative

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Blinds for Ice

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Campus within a Day

In this article, we talk about what the participants of Genplan Institute of Moscow’s hackathon were doing at the MosComArchitecture booth at the “ArchMoscow” exhibition. We also discuss who won the prize and why, and what can be done with the territory of a small university on the outskirts of Moscow.

Overview

Vertical Civilization

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Interview

Marina Yegorova: “We think in terms of hectares, not square meters”

The career path of architect Marina Yegorova is quite impressive: MARHI, SPEECH, MosComArchitectura, the Genplan Institute of Moscow, and then her own architectural company. Its name Empate, which refers to the words “to draw” in Portuguese and “to empathize” in English, should not be misleading with its softness, as the firm freely works on different scales, including Integrated Territorial Development projects. We talked with Marina about various topics: urban planning experience, female leadership style, and even the love of architects for yachting.

Interview

Andrey Chuikov: “Optimum balance is achieved through economics”

The Yekaterinburg-based architectural company CNTR is in its mature stage: crystallization of principles, systematization, and standardization helped it make a qualitative leap, enhance competencies, and secure large contracts without sacrificing the aesthetic component. The head of the company, Andrey Chuikov, told us about building a business model and the bonuses that additional education in financial management provides for an architect.

Object

The Fulcrum

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Object

Crystal is Watching You

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Object

The Secret Briton

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The Wrap-Up

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Faraday Grid

The project of the Omsk airport by ASADOV Architects is another concept among the 14 finalists of a recent competition. It is called “The Bridge” and is inspired by both the West Siberian Exhibition of 1911 and the Trans-Siberian Railway bridge over the Irtysh River, built in 1896. On one hand, it carries a steampunk vibe, while on the other, there’s almost a sense of nostalgia for the heyday of 1913. However, the concept offers two variants, the second one devoid of nostalgia but featuring a parabola.

Review

Midway upon the Journey of Our Life

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Inverted Fortress

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send.project

Transformation of Annenkirche

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The Paradox of the Temporary

The concept of the Russian pavilion for EXPO 2025 in Osaka, proposed by the Wowhaus architects, is the last of the six projects we gathered from the 2022 competition. It is again worth noting that the results of this competition were not finalized due to the cancellation of Russia’s participation in World Expo 2025. It should be mentioned that Wowhaus created three versions for this competition, but only one is being presented, and it can’t be said that this version is thoroughly developed – rather, it is done in the spirit of a “student assignment”. Nevertheless, the project is interesting in its paradoxical nature: the architects emphasized the temporary character of the pavilion, and in its bubble-like forms sought to reflect the paradoxes of space and time.

The Forum of Time

The competition project for the Russian Pavilion at EXPO 2025 in Osaka designed by Aleksey Orlov and Arena Project Institute consists of cones and conical funnels connected into a non-trivial composition, where one can feel the hand of architects who have worked extensively with stadiums and other sports facilities. It’s very interesting to delve into its logic, structurally built on the theme of clocks, hourglasses and even sundials. Additionally, the architects have turned the exhibition pavilion into a series of interconnected amphitheaters, which is also highly relevant for world exhibitions. We are reminding you that the competition results were never announced.

Mirrors Everywhere

The project by Sergey Nebotov, Anastasia Gritskova, and the architectural company “Novoe” was created for the Russian pavilion at EXPO 2025, but within the framework of another competition, which, as we learned, took place even earlier, in 2021. At that time, the competition theme was “digital twins”, and there was minimal time for work, so the project, according to the architect himself, was more of a “student assignment”. Nevertheless, this project is interesting for its plan bordering on similarity with Baroque projects and the emblem of the exhibition, as well as its diverse and comprehensive reflectiveness.

Report

The Steppe Is Full of Beauty and Freedom

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The Snowstorm Fish

The next project from the unfinished competition for the Russian Pavilion at EXPO 2025, which will be held in Osaka, Japan, is by Dashi Namdakov and Parsec Architects. The pavilion describes itself as an “architectural/sculptural” one, with its shape clearly reminiscent of abstract sculpture of the 1970s. It complements its program with a meditative hall named “Mendeleev’s Dreams”, and offers its visitors to slide from its roof at the end of the tour.

The Mirror of Your Soul

We continue to publish projects from the competition for the design of the Russian Pavilion at EXPO in Osaka 2025. We are reminding you that the results of the competition have not been announced, and hardly will ever be. The pavilion designed by ASADOV Architects combines a forest log cabin, the image of a hyper transition, and sculptures made of glowing threads – it focuses primarily on the scenography of the exhibition, which the pavilion builds sequentially like a string of impressions, dedicating it to the paradoxes of the Russian soul.

Part of the Ideal

In 2025, another World Expo will take place in Osaka, Japan, in which Russia will not participate. However, a competition for the Russian pavilion was indeed held, with six projects participating. The results were never announced as Russia’s participation was canceled; the competition has no winners. Nevertheless, Expo pavilion projects are typically designed for a bold and interesting architectural statement, so we’ve gathered all the six projects and will be publishing articles about them in random order. The first one is the project by Vladimir Plotkin and Reserve Union, which is distinguished by the clarity of its stereometric shape, the boldness of its structure, and the multiplicity of possible interpretations.

Object

The Fortress by the River

ASADOV Architects have developed a concept for a new residential district in the center of Kemerovo. To combat the harsh climate and monotonous everyday life, the architects proposed a block type of development with dominant towers, good insolation, facades detailed at eye level, and event programming.

Object

In the Rhombus Grid

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Generational Connection

Another modern estate, designed by Roman Leonidov, is located in the Moscow region and brings together three generations of one family under one roof. To fit on a narrow plot without depriving anyone of personal space, the architects opted for a zigzag plan. The main volume in the house structure is accentuated by mezzanines with a reverse-sloped roof and ceilings featuring exposed beams.

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Three Dimensions of the City

We began to delve into the project by Sergey Skuratov, the residential complex “Depo” in Minsk, located at Victory Square, and it fascinated us completely. The project has at least several dimensions to it: historical – at some point, the developer decided to discontinue further collaboration with Sergey Skuratov Architects, but the concept was approved, and its implementation continues, mostly in accordance with the proposed ideas. The spatial and urban planning dimension – the architects both argue with the city and play along with it, deciphering nuances, and finding axes. And, finally, the tactile dimension – the constructed buildings also have their own intriguing features. Thus, this article also has two parts: it dwells on what has been built and what was conceived

Object

New “Flight”

Architects from “Mezonproject” have developed a project for the reconstruction of the regional youth center “Polyot”(“Flight”) in the city of Oryol. The summer youth center, built back in the late 1970s, will now become year-round and acquire many additional functions.

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The Yauza Towers

In Moscow, there aren’t that many buildings or projects designed by Nikita Yavein and Studio 44. In this article, we present to you the concept of a large multifunctional complex on the Yauza River, located between two parks, featuring a promenade, a crossroads of two pedestrian streets, a highly developed public space, and an original architectural solution. This solution combines a sophisticated, asymmetric façade grid, reminiscent of a game of fifteen puzzle, and bold protrusions of the upper parts of the buildings, completely masking the technical floors and sculpting the complex’s silhouette.