Vasily Bazhenov

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Vasily Bazhenov
Tsaritsyno Park

Vasily Ivanovich Bazhenov (

Peter I of Russia.[1]

Bazhenov's early success was followed by a tragic professional and private life. His two main construction projects were abandoned for political or financial reasons. His

Prokofi Demidov and led Bazhenov into bankruptcy
. Before his death, Bazhenov implored his children to stay aside from the treacherous construction business.

Bazhenov's legacy remains debated. The attributions of Pashkov House and lesser projects to Bazhenov, backed by a sketchy paper trail, deductions and conjectures, are uncertain to the point where his life and work became subject of conspiracy theories.[2] Even his place of birth and the location of Bazhenov's grave are unknown. His life story, as reconstructed by Igor Grabar and popularized by the historians of the Soviet period, is regarded by modern critics as the "Bazhenov myth",[3][4] and even most recent academic research[5] fails to replace this myth with a reliable biography.[4]

Biography

Early career

1764 artwork by Bazhenov

The exact year and place of Bazhenov's birth is uncertain; he was born in 1737 or 1738 in a family of a church clerk either in Moscow or in the village of Dolskoye near

Kremlin-based architectural company of Dmitry Ukhtomsky
, then the only Moscow institution providing basic architectural training. There Bazhenov acquired practical construction skills; poverty forced him to seek paid work instead of classroom training.

In 1755 Bazhenov joined the first class of the newly opened

Metropolitan of Kiev since 1822), wrote that Bazhenov also studied at the Slavic Greek Latin Academy but this opinion is firmly refuted by 20th century biographers.[6] Bolkhovitinov, perhaps, knowingly twisted the facts to raise the prestige of clerical colleges.[7]

In the beginning of 1758 the University, requested by

Russian Admiralty, worked on the construction of the Saint Nicholas church and became a personal mentor and blood brother of younger Starov.[11]

Three years later Bazhenov and painter

French neoclassicism in Russia[12] and set the stylistic canon of neoclassical Moscow along the ideas of De Wailly.[13]

He returned to Russia in May 1765 possessing "unusual and impeccable credentials for a Russian of that day"

captain of artillery, and commissioned him the Arsenal in Saint Petersburg.[12] Next year, Bazhenov followed Orlov into Moscow where he would live for most of his remaining life "giving a Russian reality to French Classical and Italian Palladian modes to which he was exposed."[14]

Kremlin Palace

Final draft of the palace, 1770 or later (planned structures dark, older structures in light shading).

Catherine suggested the idea of rebuilding the decrepit palaces of the

Moscow Kremlin into a new government center of the reformed country (in 1767 Moscow hosted an elected congress framing a new code of laws)[15] and Bazhenov eagerly responded; as early as 1767[14] he produced first drafts of his opus magnum, the utopian Grand Kremlin Palace. Orlov, fascinated by the proposal, rightfully questioned the feasibility of the enormous edifice, but Baznenov went forward and finalized the design by the end of summer of 1768. The largest neoclassical complex in Europe,[16] if ever completed, would have replaced the Kremlin itself, leaving only its cathedrals intact.[16]

According to his plan, the new four–storey

Moskva River. Instead of building the palace on the top plateau of the Kremlin Hill, Bazhenov placed it right on the steep slope between the plateau and the Kremlin wall slated for demolition, employing enormous stone buttresses to prevent it from sliding into the river. The river itself should have been cleaned up, regulated and flanked by an embankment sided with logs.[18]

Layout of the new Kremlin "was the most inventive planning effort of Catherine's reign".[14] Bazhenov retained the historical Cathedral Square and proposed creation of a new square in the eastern part of the Kremlin that would become the new center of Moscow and the start of three new radial streets projecting due north, north-west and north-east.[19] The northern radius, passing through a planned opening in the Kremlin wall, would directly connect the palace with Tverskaya Street.[19] Bazhenov expanded his planning into modernizing the city itself, which eventually led to the Projected Plan officially accepted in 1775, a joint effort led by Pyotr Kozhin and Nicholas Legrand.[20]

At the

modernization of the Empire,[26] the demise of constitutional assembly[27] or the simple fact that by 1775 "Catherine had nothing more to prove."[17]

The original wooden model of the planned palace (1:44 scale, 17 meters long),

Donskoy monastery the model was publicly displayed in its main cathedral. In 2001 City of Moscow proposed building a dedicated museum pavilion to display the model in Alexander Garden[28]
but the proposal was rejected.

Tsaritsyno

Bazhenov's 1776 panorama of Tsaritsyno

Bazhenov, at least in the first half of Catherine's reign, perfectly understood her taste and stylistic program, that of

Tsaritsyno to Bazhenov.[32][33]

In summer of 1775 Bazhenov designed the first draft of Tsaritsyno, now lost.[32] It followed Catherine's affection to "peasant style", featuring numerous neo-Gothic, country style lodges scattered on a carefully planned "natural" landscape.[32] The same approach was employed in the second, "completely non-classical"[34] master plan approved by Catherine in spring of 1776.[32] This time Bazhenov added a dominant main palace, designed as two identical buildings connected with a greenhouse.[35] One wing was intended for Catherine, another for her son and heir Paul. Bazhenov planned to decorate Tsaritsyno with traditional Russian coloured tiles, izraztsy, but Catherine objected and insisted on a simpler red (brick walls), white (ornaments) and yellow (glazed roof tiles) colour scheme.[32] Roof tiles did not last long in Russian winters and were soon replaced with sheet iron.[32]

Figurny Bridge, the earliest completed structure (1776), also features the finest ornamental work.[35]

Bazhenov began construction with the "front row" of small buildings, gates and bridges.

Cantemirs, former owners of Tsaritsyno, and started construction of the main palace.[35] Shortage of government funds plagued the project from the start; in fact, most of Bazhenov's written legacy consists of business letters pleading the state treasury for money, skilled labor, and counting his private debts incurred in Tsaritsyno.[35] In 1783 he actively sought new jobs, writing that "he was now quite free in Tsaritsyno."[36]

The main palace, with an added central annex for Paul's children,

Melchior Grimm as a "dark place with low vaults and narrow stairs, unfit for living."[35]

By 1785 Bazhenov's palace layout became

Free Masons[39] or his Gothic styling; in fact, Kazakov retained both Gothic and Masonic features and most of Bazhenov's auxiliary buildings survived to date.[34][38]

Demidov affair

By the middle of 1780s Catherine, once fascinated by the art of Bazhenov and

alumni who actually designed and built it.[13] According to Shvidkovsky, residential Moscow before the fire of 1812 was influenced, through Bazhenov, by works of Charles de Wailly and his circle; Bazhenov enhanced the French style with use of sculpture and garden architecture.[13] Kazakov lacked Bazhenov's refinement but his buildings "were considerably more practical than Bazhenov's, more adapted to Moscow life."[41]

Bazhenov, eager to improve his finances, accepted what looked like a generous offer from

Prokofi Demidov, a wealthy and whimsical patron of arts. Demidov planned to donate a new building to Moscow University; he agreed to refinance Bazhenov's debts in exchange for his design and management services. Relations soon turned sour; Demidov, literally having Bazhenov in his pocket, rejected his design for a downtown campus and ordered Bazhenov to design a new green field campus on the Sparrow Hills. This cat and mouse game (as presented in Bazhenov's own writing) continued for nearly a decade; the architect wasted years on a dead end project and remained bankrupt at the mercy of Demidov. Once again Kazakov picked up the job and completed the "old" downtown core of the University in 1793.[42]

In 1792 Bazhenov relocated to Saint Petersburg and accepted an uninspiring but stable job of an architect of

Christopher Wren"[44] and the theory that he was a long-term agent of martinists tasked with winning Paul's support.[45] Paul was aware of Bazhenov's real or alleged mission but by 1792 he stepped aside from freemasonry and personally warned Bazhenov against further conspiracies.[46]

Late recognition

Emperor

his despised mother. Shortly upon ascension to the throne (1796) Paul summoned Bazhenov to Saint Petersburg and made him vice-president of the Imperial Academy of Arts.[47] The Academy of this period, influenced by the ideas of its second President Ivan Betskoy, admitted boys at the age of six to nine years old, and provided nine-year general (elementary and secondary) education followed by at least six years of professional training in arts and architecture.[48] Bazhenov believed that the Academy must dispose with elementary education and focus on its core subjects, admitting literate teenagers who could prove their talent in an open contest.[48] He did not live enough to materialize this program; it was gradually implemented by Alexander Stroganov (1802) and Alexey Olenin (1830).[49]

Paul's main construction project, Saint Michael's Castle, was awarded to his house architect, Italian Vincenzo Brenna, while Bazhenov was appointed to supervise Brenna. Historians of the 19th and early 20th centuries could not clearly separate the input of each architect and attributed the design to Brenna and Bazhenov jointly. Nikolay Lanceray (1930s) and subsequent Russian historians give full credit to Brenna; according to Lanceray, Bazhenov did not interfere in Brenna's designs that were, to a large extent, Brenna's renditions of Paul's own romantic vision.[50] According to Dmitry Shvidkovsky, Bazhenov worked on an earlier design of the castle and this fact was later interpreted as his participation in actual design; Brenna "was given the task of adapting Bazhenov's design" but created an independent work.[47] At any rate, Bazhenov died in the middle of the project leaving Brenna in full control; the castle turned out not a Neoclassical building, but "a rare example of an imperial palace genuinely redolent of the Romantic era."[51]

Paul also commissioned Bazhenov to design a new hospital near Danilov Monastery. Bazhenov, again, responded with an extravagant plan that did not proceed past wooden frame and was replaced by Kazakov's extant Pavlovskaya Hospital built in 1802–1807.[52][53] Shortly before his death Bazhenov began compilation of an album on Russian Architecture, collecting drafts of "all large buildings in two capitals."[54]

Attribution problem

Pashkov House
Yushkov House
Dolgov House
Church in Starki

Reliable attribution of private 18th-century buildings in Russia, even those that retained original styling and floorplans, is rarely possible. Wealthy patrons eagerly hired architects who made themselves famous by working on government megaprojects, but in many instances original drawings are missing.[55] In these cases historians used general design features or specific features to deduce probable author.[55] Uncertainty led to frequent misattribution, particularly in case of Bazhenov and Kazakov[55] and subsequent changes in attribution or admitting inability to make one.

Buildings in Moscow

Attribution of specific Moscow buildings to Bazhenov in this article is based on the academic Pamyatniki arhitektury Moskvy (Russian: Памятники архитектуры Москвы) series of books issued in 1983–2007.

Tradition of the first half of the 20th century, started by Igor Grabar, credited Bazhenov with designing numerous high-profile private buildings in Moscow. Later research has shown that in most cases his input cannot be reliable ascertained. Pashkov House, most likely, has been designed by Bazhenov while other residences once credited to him are now listed under "unknown architect" heading.

Country estates and churches

Even less certainty applies to attribution of country estates and churches:

References

  1. ^ Shvidkovsky, 2007 p. 260
  2. ^ For example, Belyavsky, M (1969). "Tainstvenny 18 vek (Таинственный 18 век)". Znanie - Sila (in Russian) (1).
  3. ^ Sokolov, Boris (2002). "Review: Yury Gerchuk's 2001 edition of Vasily Bazhenov (in Russian)". Nashe Nasledie. 62–64.
  4. ^ a b Sedov, Vladimir (2002). "Review: Yury Gerchuk's 2001 edition of Vasily Bazhenov (in Russian)". Retrieved 2009-09-11.
  5. ^ Gerchuk, 2001
  6. ^ Ritsarev, p. 71
  7. ^ Ritsarev, pp. 71, 73
  8. ^ a b c Voronov, p. 100
  9. ^ Voronov, p. 112
  10. ^ See the official May, 1758 student roster ranked by grades, reproduced in Voronov, p. 112
  11. ^ a b Voronov, p. 113
  12. ^ a b c d Shvidkovsky 2007, p. 240
  13. ^ a b c Shvidkovsky 2007, p. 246
  14. ^ a b c d Schmidt 1989, p. 38
  15. ^ Shvidkovsky 2007, pp. 242–243
  16. ^ a b c Shvidkovsky 2007, p. 243
  17. ^ a b c Schmidt 1989, p. 40
  18. ^ Schmidt 1989, p. 104
  19. ^ a b Pamyatniki 1983, p. 287
  20. ^ Schmidt 1989, p. 44
  21. ^ Russian: Планы знаменитого архитектора Баженова уподоблялись Республике Платоновой или Утопии Томаса Моруса: им можно удивляться единственно в мыслях, а не на деле - Karamzin, 1817, "Notes on Moscow landmarks". In the same paragraph Karamzin bitterly ridiculed the archaic and pompous language of inscriptions made on the model.
  22. ^ Schmidt 1989, p. 50
  23. ^ Unlike Bazhenov, Kazakov left a standing legacy inside the Kremlin, the Senate building.
  24. ^ Schmidt 1989, p. 34
  25. ^ Russian: В сей день обновляется Москва, - Pamyatniki 1983, p. 293
  26. ^ a b c d e Pamyatniki 1983, p. 293
  27. ^ Shvidkovsky 2007, p. 244
  28. ^ a b Khachaturov, Sergey (February 7, 2001). "Vse v sad (Все в сад! Для радости "души гуляющего")" (in Russian). Kultura (newspaper). Retrieved 2009-09-12.
  29. ^ Schmidt, p. 33: "Making models doubtless consumed these students' time; one may imagine budding young architects working long hours on Bazhenov's wooden model..."
  30. ^ "Photograph of the model in the Museum of Architecture collection". Retrieved 2009-09-12. The photograph shows eastern side of the palace (about a third of its total length) as viewed from the river.
  31. ^ a b Shvidkovsky 2007, p. 259
  32. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Pamyatniki 2007, p. 227
  33. ^ Shvidkovsky 2007, p. 261
  34. ^ a b Shvidkovsky 2007, p. 252
  35. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Pamyatniki 2007, p. 228
  36. ^ Russian: Будучи въ селѣ уже Царицынѣ гдѣ онъ весма съвободнѣе, Василій Баженовъ - Panukhina 1994.
  37. ^ Russian: Для поправления здоровья и исправления домашних дел - Pamyatniki 2007, p. 228
  38. ^ a b Shvidkovsky 2007, p. 282
  39. ^ Shvidkovsky 2007, p. 281
  40. ^ Schmidt 1989, p. 4
  41. ^ Shvidkovsky 2007, p. 249
  42. ^ Pamyatniki 1989 (Bely Gorod), p. 99
  43. ^ a b Murrell, p. 107
  44. ^ Akinsha et al., p. 29
  45. ^ Akinsha et al., pp. 29-30
  46. ., ch. II
  47. ^ a b Shvidkovsky 2007, p. 294
  48. ^ a b Lisovsky, p. 23
  49. ^ Lisovsky, pp. 27, 30
  50. ^ Lanceray, p. 85
  51. ^ Shvidkovsky, p. 295
  52. ^ Schmidt 1989, p. 121
  53. ^ The hospital became Kazakov's last significant job. In the process he was accused of mismanaging state money, and fired into retirement.
  54. ^ Schmidt 1989, p. 54
  55. ^ a b c Cracraft, Rowland p. 68
  56. ^ Schmidt 1989, p. 77
  57. ^ a b Pamyatniki 1989 (Bely Gorod), p. 55
  58. ^ Pamyatniki 1989 (Bely Gorod), p. 57
  59. ^ Schmidt 1989, p. 96
  60. ^ Pamyatniki 1989 (Bely Gorod), p. 251
  61. ^ Pamyatniki 1989 (Bely Gorod), p. 253
  62. ^ Scmidt 1989, p. 88
  63. ^ Pamyatniki 1989 (Bely Gorod), p. 79
  64. ^ Schmidt 1989, p. 109
  65. ^ Pamyatniki 1989 (Zemlyanoy Gorod), pp. 316-317
  66. ^ Schmidt 1989, p. 112
  67. ^ Pamyatniki 1994, p. 132
  68. ^ Pamyatniki 1994, p. 203
  69. ^ Pamyatniki 1994, p. 204
  70. ^ Schmidt 1989, p. 174
  71. ^ Panukhina, p. 24
  72. ^ Murrell, p. 142
  73. ^ Murrell, pp. 142–143
  74. ^ Murrell, p. 150
  75. ^ Murrell, p. 48
  76. ^ Murrell, p. 238
  77. ^ a b Pamyatniki 2004, p. 197

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