LOT 23. RENOVATION: VISUAL IDENTITY

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The competition bid, from the idea to façade typology development, was carried out in collaboration with Petitdidierprioux Architectes. The renovation project’s goal was to reintroduce diversity to urban development, while preserving the environment’s integrity. It is important to move away from cookie-cutter residential blocks scaled to fill the entire urban space. The challenge was to create a complex, colorful concept of diversity, harmoniously and holistically added as a layer on top of a common basis.

The map of Moscow is like a mosaic, heterogeneous like a patchwork blanket. The downtown houses an architecturally and coloristically diverse historical core, surrounded by generic residential districts with preciously little diversity and local spirit preserved.

The Tsaritsyno District, with consideration for the upcoming changes under the renovation program, is an area of complex development with new construction dominating. The preserved housing consists mainly of prefabricated residential buildings, whose façades will require remodelling using the developed design code. The draft project aims to create a new, unique and memorable image of the district.

The architecture proposed as part of the competition bid responds to the historic urban environment that forms it, including the proximity to Tsaritsyno Park and the space around the recently restored Elbrus Cinema, which will be an important point of attraction for residents. The historical nature park and the railway station located on this plot hint at a particular color scheme and materials that must be taken into account in the design.

A unified principle for the creation of individual architecture solutions was laid down. The entire development is split into 10 types; with different combinations of materials, they will create an infinite number of options. This helps create a genetic code with modules to choose from for any specific situation, without fear of dullness.

This principle will add dialogue into the urban environment, make the differences between the districts evident and bring back the lost "human scale," so important for a harmonious sense of oneself in space. Each district will be augmented with a unique visual design code, mandatory for use in the further development of the façades.
It is crucial to give the residents the idea to identify themselves with their homes and the surrounding development, so the human connection to the place can become more real and tangible.