NUST MISIS has become a prize winner of “Moscow Restoration — 2016” for the “The Best Organization of Maintenance and Restoration Work” in the “Objects of Civil Architecture” category.
Earlier this year, NUST MISIS finished the reconstruction of the Commune House, the monument celebrating Constructivism, the in fluential early 20th-century art movement. Today, it`s a student residence hall complex, and is recognized as one of the best in Russia. The competition for the best project in the field of preservation and popularization of objects of cultural heritage has been conducted by the Moscow Government since 2011.
Sergei Sobyanin, the Mayor of Moscow, opened the ceremony and noted that the restoration boom is now occurring in the Russian capital. “In 2016, the works were carried out on a record number of objects of cultural heritage — 370 are being restored or renovated, and 100 are finished already. Since 2011 in Moscow, 719 objects have been restored or renovated. The number of monuments that were in improper condition has been reduced by 6.5 times. I would like to thank everyone for their tremendously selfless work and their reverential attitude to history, and my gratitude goes out to the city of Moscow, to Muscovites, and to our historical past”, he noted.
The large-scale reconstruction project of the Commune House and the creation of a modern and comfortable student residence hall for 600 NUST MISIS students began back in 2009, and was fully completed this year. Architect Vsevolod Kulish was the mind behind the reconstruction project.
When reconstructing the building, all of the original architectural solutions and decorative elements were preserved, and many of Ivan Nikolaev’s technical and engineering ideas were recreated. At the same time, the Commune House has become noticeably more customized for today`s students: it features a sports-grounds, modern technologies, and a cozy period-design interior. When reconstructing the building, the latest environmentally-friendly materials, energy-saving technologies, and original engineering solutions were used. The building represents the historical reconstruction of “the residential module” originally designed by Nikolaev.
In 2013, NUST MISIS became the winner of the “Moscow Restoration” for the best project in the field of preservation and popularization of objects of cultural heritage.
“Talented and motivated students from every Russian region and from 69 countries study at NUST MISIS. We strive to provide the most comfortable conditions for their studies and leisure time and to develop a creative environment to bring their talents to light. NUST MISIS’s Commune House has become a part of this environment. In 2017, the NUST MISIS Cultural Collider will start to operate. Its aim is to help young scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs to create a cooperative interface between knowledge and technology with colleagues from Russia and other countries”, said Alevtina Chernikova, Rector of NUST MISIS.
The initial construction of the Commune House occurred in 1932 upon the blueprint from the outstanding Soviet architect Ivan Nikoaev, and in 1964 the premises were given to NUST MISIS. Today, the Commune House is one of the most significant monuments of the architecture, history, and culture of Moscow, as well as one of the most modern and comfortable student residence halls in the Russian capital.
In November 2014 at the specialized exhibition Denkmal (Leipzig, Germany) on the preservation, restoration, use, and popularization of cultural heritage, NUST MISIS was awarded an international gold medal. The award was presented by Markus Geisenberger, the Director of Leipziger Messe, and Professor Gerd Weiss, the chairman of the judges and head of the Council for the Protection of Monuments in Germany.
Earlier this year, the NUST MISIS Commune House became the winner of the all-Russian inspection-contest for the best student dormitory, which was organized by the Russian Ministry of Education and Science. NUST MISIS won the category for “The Best Student Residence Hall Built No More than Five Years Ago”.
Such well-known NUST MISIS graduates as Vladimir Miklushevsky, the Governor of Primorski Krai; the film director Yuri Kara; Valery Kazakiev, an independent non-executive director of Metalloinvest; and Karl Doerling, a member of the NLMK board of directors, have resided in the Commune House over its NUST MISIS years.
