Julius Borisov: “We worked on this project at a highest

On the outskirts of Ivanteevka, the construction of a low-rise housing estate is reaching completion: it is low-cost but attractive, thoroughly elaborated by the architects, and implemented practically exactly as the authors planned.

Written by:
Anna Starostina
Translated by:
Anton Mizonov

10 December 2015

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Two years ago, we described in detail the project of the housing estate “Dutch Quarter” in Ivanteevka near Moscow – an example of a low budget, low-rise ribbon development that the architects managed to make manifold plastically and in design – within the allocated budget. Now, “the Dutch Quarter” is finished. The first stage is already put in operation: one of these days, the apartment owners are to receive the keys. Works on the second stage will be finished by the end of this year. The architects claim that practically all the ideas of the project have been implemented exactly as it was planned. And as we know, it is a rather rare thing.

The estate has at once become the winner of the urban residential property prize Urban Award 2015 in the nomination “Complex of the Year with the Best Architecture”.

Besides, the “Quarter” is an example of search for an actual alternative of panel dormitory districts that in recent years has finally become one of the main topics for consideration among the Russian architects. Julius Borisov, the co-founder of UNK project bureau and the chief architect of the project, told us about the solution found for this case.

Archi.ru:
What in your opinion is the key to success of such bold but low-cost projects?

Julius Borisov: Although the complex is positioned as “comfort class” the participants of the project did everything at a highest – you may say “finest” level. Both the clients, and the consultants, as well as our architects worked exactly in the same way as with the expensive individual orders. It applies equally to the facade, planning, structural, architectural and engineering components of the project. As a rule, we have to deal with very low budget for designing; in this situation, even the most excellent architect cannot do much more than replicate a single designed section. In this case, we had to engage in earnest already on the stage of elaboration, and efficiently organize the process. In the end, the right “message” set originally by the client played the key role.

So, do the wish and awareness of the client play a crucial role?

Julius Borisov: Of course! There are enough four-five-storey complexes in Podmoskovye that have similar characteristics with “The Dutch Quarter”, but they all look like one-type barracks. It is a good thing if they have an inclined roof, other than that – they are just the well-known Khrushchev-era apartment blocks. In our case, the big experience of the client and his orientation towards the most advanced solutions, including those from abroad, played a significant role. Already on the planning stage, it was clear: we have to offer the best possible variant to the market. Curiously enough, severe city-planning limitations (we were allowed to build no higher than a four-storey complex) have also played a positive role. But for them, maybe our well-informed client would have also taken the easier way, and would have simply built twelve-storey houses on the site – they are economically much more efficient. But the monitoring bodies stood their ground, which was not taken by the client as an unfortunate obstacle, but as an additional challenge to create an unusual interesting product. And our merit is that we could design it.

zooming — "Dutch Quarter" residential complex in Ivanteevka. Construction, 2015 © UNK project

There are also some obviously parallel features in the solutions suggested by UNK project for the tenth residential quarter in Skolkovo innovation center and for “The Dutch Quarter”: interchange of driveways and pedestrian walkways, fractionality of the volumes, different solutions for the composition, planning and the facades of each section, with the common typology and so on. Can it be defined as common trends?

Julius Borisov: The difference between an economy- and premium-classes must not affect the basic characteristic of the accommodation, such as comfort and safety. Many large architecture firms turn cheap accommodation into a sort of ghetto. But why should the residents feel like second-class people if they cannot afford expensive apartments? We are convinced that there are some basic principles that must be applied to any type of accommodation. Children must no case get ran over by cars when getting out of their homes or playing on playgrounds, that is why we separate driveways and public areas. Everyone needs communication – that is why we provide special places where people of different ages can get together, that is, we found and form public life already on the project stage. In any case, people need shops and at least a minimal set of services; and since the complex is located on the outskirts of the city, we had to create the whole infrastructure. Yes, we did all that in Skolkovo too. And finally, people must not have a hard time thinking where to park their car. Even if we are not making underground parking-lots but just surface parkings, we are guided by people’s needs, rather than by the standards. Yes, in low-cost projects, the cars will just stand on the street, not in garages, but there will be enough space. Obviously, architectural solutions affect the psychological comfort of people.

In Skolkovo, in order to diversify the environment, we used a play of volumes and materials, and in “The Dutch Quarter” we developed about 17 different types of houses. Such site development does not feel monotonous and boring: different textures and colors of the façade finish, interchanging height of the sections and irregular rhythm of the windows allow the residents to easily find their section. The functional comfort is also elaborated: for example, we went away from the central cold supply system, but provided everything necessary for installation of ACs beforehand. If the decide to get one installed, the outside units hidden behind special panels will not interfere with the look of the building; and thanks to the sound-subduing screens, will not be too noisy. By the way, when working on low-cost accommodation, one must not only consider the cost the project itself, but also of home ownership. It was hard for us to drop the idea of lifts, but both the machines themselves and their maintenance are expensive. Basically, it is not such a big problem to go up the stairs to the fourth floor, only if you are not with a baby stroller: so, in order to reduce the negative consequences of such economy, we have provided special areas for baby strollers on the ground floor.

And still, what are the exact methods for achieving the required visual comfort?

Julius Borisov: We tried to give the residents an impression that they live in a complex of a higher class, and for that reason we used expensive finishing materials. For example, Flemish brick, which was formerly often used in the elite Ostozhenka. To be more exact, we have two types of brick and two types of plaster that form the decorative “pattern” of the development. Ochre and white colors of the plastered facades create bright accents and remotely remind Holland. The brick facades are meant to graphically demonstrate the quality of the created environment. There are also some important details: for example, the spaces between the windows are in some places filled with HPL-panels which makes the pattern even more manifold, the stair flights and conditioning packs are “protected” with special colored aluminum battens that “catch” the textured pilaster-side lines at the corners of both plastered and brick buildings. Besides, instead of the standard glass units, we used ones of a higher quality and more presentable appearance, with dark, laminated profile. Well, and the sections themselves sooner remind European townhouses, rather than multicompartment buildings, that they actually are.

Have you used any elements of green construction, some technological novelties, or is there no place for them in a low-cost project?

Julius Borisov: I guess I cannot name any unique solutions, like pneumatically operated garbage chute in Skolkovo. However, there are some important details. First of all, we have installed a double-pressure boiler in every apartment, like they do in Germany. This solution allows us to use the natural resources effectively and significantly reduce utility charges: when they leave, the residents can set the minimal temperature and not heat the rooms in vain. The user can personally regulate the heat – which is a great advantage. We used efficient LEDs in the landscape illumination and lights of public areas, so the energy consumption for the light of the whole settlement is relatively low. We thought of placing lower lamps that are more effective and efficient, instead of the standard city lights. This solution turned out to be very important also from the point of view of general comfort, since we managed to fully eliminate the bothering blinding lights in the windows. And finally, the high-quality winterization of the facades allowed the architects to reduce the consumption of heat in winter and conditioning in summer. It is also important to mention the thorough program of landscaping of the territory, developed by Swiss specialists engaged in the project.

“The Dutch Quarter” is not located in the center, but on the outskirts of Ivanteevka, on the borderline with the forest. Nevertheless, how does it interact with the environment and the city?

Julius Borisov: Indeed, all the main boulevards here lead from the entrance to the forest. Obeying the natural rhythm of life, people can leave home and go for a walk. On the other side of the site, there is a low-rise district; we placed low buildings with the cheapest studio-apartments there – they form a certain “buffer”. Of course, we took the surrounding development into consideration, but since it is completely commonplace, it is our quarter that must become “the driver of growth” of the whole district in the near future. Further development will be guided by this quarter.

10 December 2015

Headlines now

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.

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.

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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.

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In the Rhombus Grid

Construction has begun on the building of the OMK (United Metallurgical Company) Corporate University in Nizhny Novgorod’s town of Vyksa, designed by Ostozhenka Architects. The most interesting aspect of the project is how the architects immersed it in the context: “extracting” a diagonal motif from the planning grid of Vyksa, they aligned the building, the square, and the park to match it. A truly masterful work with urban planning context on several different levels of perception has long since become the signature technique of Ostozhenka.

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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

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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

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Architecture and Leisure Park

For the suburban hotel complex, which envisages various formats of leisure, the architectural company T+T Architects proposed several types of accommodation, ranging from the classic “standard” in a common building to a “cave in the hill” and a “house in a tree”. An additional challenge consisted in integrating a few classic-style residences already existing on this territory into the “architectural forest park”.

Overview

The U-House

The Jois complex combines height with terraces, bringing the most expensive apartments from penthouses down to the bottom floors. The powerful iconic image of the U-shaped building is the result of the creative search for a new standard of living in high-rise buildings by the architects of “Genpro”.

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Black and White

In this article, we specifically discuss the interiors of the ATOM Pavilion at VDNKh. Interior design is a crucial component of the overall concept in this case, and precision and meticulous execution were highly important for the architects. Julia Tryaskina, head of UNK interiors, shares some of the developments.

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The “Snake” Mountain

The competition project for the seaside resort complex “Serpentine” combines several typologies: apartments of different classes, villas, and hotel rooms. For each of these typologies, the KPLN architects employ one of the images that are drawn from the natural environment – a serpentine road, a mountain stream, and rolling waves.

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Opal from Anna Mons’ Ring

The project of a small business center located near Tupolev Plaza and Radio Street proclaims the necessity of modern architecture in a specific area of Moscow commonly known as “Nemetskaya Sloboda” or “German settlement”. It substantiates its thesis with the thoroughness of details, a multitude of proposed and rejected form variants, and even a detailed description of the surrounding area. The project is interesting indeed, and it is even more interesting to see what will come of it.

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Feed ’Em All

A “House of Russian Cuisine” was designed and built by KROST Group at VDNKh for the “Rossiya” exhibition in record-breaking time. The pavilion is masterfully constructed in terms of the standards of modern public catering industry multiplied by the bustling cultural program of the exhibition, and it interprets the stylistically diverse character of VDNKh just as successfully. At the same time, much of its interior design can be traced back to the prototypes of the 1960s – so much so that even scenes from iconic Soviet movies of those years persistently come to mind.

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The Ensemble at the Mosque

OSA prepared a master plan for a district in the southern part of Derbent. The main task of the master plan is to initiate the formation of a modern comfortable environment in this city. The organization of residential areas is subordinated to the city’s spiritual center: depending on the location relative to the cathedral mosque, the houses are distinguished by façade and plastique solutions. The program also includes a “hospitality center”, administrative buildings, an educational cluster, and even an air bridge.

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Pargolovo Protestantism

A Protestant church is being built in St. Petersburg by the project of SLOI architects. One of the main features of the building is a wooden roof with 25-meter spans, which, among other things, forms the interior of the prayer hall. Also, there are other interesting details – we are telling you more about them.

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The Shape of the Inconceivable

The ATOM Pavilion at VDNKh brings to mind a famous maxim of all architects and critics: “You’ve come up with it? Now build it!” You rarely see such a selfless immersion in implementation of the project, and the formidable structural and engineering tasks set by UNK architects to themselves are presented here as an integral and important part of the architectural idea. The challenge matches the obliging status of the place – after all, it is an “exhibition of achievements”, and the pavilion is dedicated to the nuclear energy industry. Let’s take a closer look: from the outside, from the inside, and from the underside too.

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Rays of the Desert

A school for 1750 students is going to be built in Dubai, designed by IND Architects. The architects took into account the local specifics, and proposed a radial layout and spaces, in which the children will be comfortable throughout the day.

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The Dairy Theme

The concept of an office of a cheese-making company, designed for the enclosed area of a dairy factory, at least partially refers to industrial architecture. Perhaps that is why this concept is very simple, which seems the appropriate thing to do here. The building is enlivened by literally a couple of “master strokes”: the turning of the corner accentuates the entrance, and the shade of glass responds to the theme of “milk rivers” from Russian fairy tales.

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The Road to the Temple

Under a grant from the Small Towns Competition, the main street and temple area of the village of Nikolo-Berezovka near Neftekamsk has been improved. A consortium of APRELarchitects and Novaya Zemlya is turning the village into an open-air museum and integrating ruined buildings into public life.

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Towers Leaning Towards the Sun

The three towers of the residential complex “Novodanilovskaya 8” are new and the tallest neighbors of the Danilovsky Manufactory, “Fort”, and “Plaza”, complementing a whole cluster of modern buildings designed by renowned masters. At the same time, the towers are unique for this setting – they are residential, they are the tallest ones here, and they are located on a challenging site. In this article, we explore how architects Andrey Romanov and Ekaterina Kuznetsova tackled this far-from-trivial task.

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In the spirit of ROSTA posters

The new Rostselmash tractor factory, conceptualized by ASADOV Architects, is currently being completed in Rostov-on-Don. References to the Soviet architecture of the 1920’s and 1960’s resonate with the mission and strategic importance of the enterprise, and are also in line with the client’s wish: to pay homage to Rostov’s constructivism.

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The Northern Thebaid

The central part of Ferapontovo village, adjacent to the famous monastery with frescoes by Dionisy, has been improved according to the project by APRELarchitects. Now the place offers basic services for tourists, as well as a place for the villagers’ leisure.

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Brilliant Production

The architects from London-based MOST Architecture have designed the space for the high-tech production of Charge Cars, a high-performance production facility for high-speed electric cars that are assembled in the shell of legendary Ford Mustangs. The founders of both the company and the car assembly startup are Russians who were educated in their home country.

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Three-Part Task: St. Petersburg’s Mytny Dvor

The so-called “Mytny Dvor” area lying just behind Moscow Railway Station – the market rows with a complex history – will be transformed into a premium residential complex by Studio 44. The project consists of three parts: the restoration of historical buildings, the reconstruction of the lost part of the historical contour, and new houses. All of them are harmonized with each other and with the city; axes and “beams of light” were found, cozy corners and scenic viewpoints were carefully thought out. We had a chat with the authors of the historical buildings’ restoration project, and we are telling you about all the different tasks that have been solved here.

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The Color of the City, or Reflections on the Slope of an Urban Settlement

In 2022, Ostozhenka Architects won a competition, and in 2023, they developed and received all the necessary approvals for a master plan for the development of Chernigovskaya Street for the developer GloraX. The project takes into account a 10-year history of previous developments; it was done in collaboration with architects from Nizhny Novgorod, and it continues to evolve now. We carefully examined it, talked to everyone, and learned a lot of interesting things.

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A Single-Industry Town

Kola MMC and Nornickel are building a residential neighborhood in Monchegorsk for their future employees. It is based on a project by an international team that won the 2021 competition. The project offers a number of solutions meant to combat the main “demons” of any northern city: wind, grayness and boredom.

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A New Age Portico

At the beginning of the year, Novosibirsk Tolmachevo Airport opened Terminal C. The large-scale and transparent entrance hall with luminous columns inside successfully combines laconism with a bright and photogenic WOW-effect. The terminal is both the new façade of the whole complex and the starting point of the planned reconstruction, upon completion of which Tolmachevo will become the largest regional airport in Russia. In this article, we are examining the building in the context of modernist prototypes of both Novosibirsk and Leningrad: like puzzle pieces, they come together to form their individual history, not devoid of curious nuances and details.

Julius Borisov: “We worked on this project at a highest – you may say finest level”

On the outskirts of Ivanteevka, the construction of a low-rise housing estate is reaching completion: it is low-cost but attractive, thoroughly elaborated by the architects, and implemented practically exactly as the authors planned.