Cultural and leisure center in the Strogino area

The development of each district of Moscow in Soviet times was supposed to include a standard set of social, service and cultural facilities. District cinemas were an obligatory element of the infrastructure, which played an important role in the life of the region: leisure and public events were held here, meetings were held, and news was learned. But in the new socio-political realities they have lost their function. Many cinemas were repurposed, some were even demolished. This is exactly the fate that befell the Tajikistan cinema in the Strogino region.

Since 2015, in Moscow, on the initiative of the city government, a program has been launched to revive district cultural centers, into which former cinemas are being converted. In Strogino, in connection with the demolition of the old building of the Tajikistan cinema, the opportunity arose to go further and develop a new type of socio-cultural regional center, the functionality and architectural and planning solution of which would meet the requirements of today.

The site intended for the construction of the center is conveniently located among residential buildings, in close proximity to a busy highway and within the historically established recreational pedestrian zone running from the Moskva River to the Strogino metro station.

The configuration of the new center is as simple and efficient as possible. In plan, the building has an almost square shape. The layout of the center reflects its two main functions: club and entertainment activities. Approximately half of the building is dedicated to the first. It includes an entrance group, exhibition and recreational space, a library, music and dance halls, creative clubs, classes, studios, offices and a workshop. The second is represented by a large multifunctional hall with 510 seats with a spacious foyer, artistic and dressing rooms, and a decoration warehouse. For summer events, there is a stage outside the building, connected to the main entertainment complex. Between themselves, these two main groups of premises are separated by an exhibition and recreational double-height space, forming the so-called “urban living room” - a covered street, the direction of which coincides with the usual route for residents of the area from the metro to the houses and recreation area by the river.

In the new architectural solution of the Center, the authors tried to reflect the image of an old cinema familiar to residents of the area, which had a pronounced modernist character with a spectacular concrete portal framed by a stained glass window. This element – the “portal-frame” – has been preserved, but modified taking into account modern architectural trends. In the new project, it represents an elegant structure set back from the main volume of the building, thereby introducing airiness and three-dimensionality into the volumetric-spatial composition. The portal frame is accentuated by a spectacular cladding with black marble-like hanging panels. It stands out well against the background of the façade, made of wood-look panels in contrasting tones: bleached pine and dark walnut. A large media screen on the main facade is an integral part of the graphic design of the facade, designed to give it dynamics.