mimicry

new approach to neighborhood identity

location:
Moscow
client:
MKA
year:
2021

How to create a local identity of the new neighbourhood in the existing urban environment?

The open international competition "The Image of Renovation" was initiated by Moskomarhitektura, organized by the Institute of the General Plan of Moscow, and aims to find modern architectural solutions for the renovation sites and to create a high-quality urban environment in Moscow.
A consortium led by CM International has brought together EtalonProekt and MODUL architectural bureau to search for the identity of the area and create an architectural concept that takes into account the local context.
For Site 3, the consortium's concept "Mimicry" was chosen as the winning bidder. The CM International team studied the area in detail and identified several iconic objects: the weaving factory, the church, the Golovinsky Monastery bell tower, Druzhba Park, and Soviet modernist buildings.
We have set ourselves the task to preserve the historical and cultural experience of the district and to quote it in the architectural concept. In the design concept, the key factors of the iconic objects - the materials and the color tones - diverge in a gradient deep into the building zone and overlap with each other. From the uniformity or layering of fields of influence depend on the factors underlying the formation of the appearance of the facades and landscaping. In this way, an individual architectural style will be formed, by which the inhabitants will be able to identify their neighbourhood.
The digital façade and landscaping configurator technology was used in the creation of the project.
In the competition concept the jury members also noted the originality, the inclusion in the urban planning context and congruence with the human scale, the adaptability of the project proposal to different building technologies, the replicability of the project proposal and the effectiveness of the proposed project from a financial point of view.
Thanks to the competition, the city has received a rich library of visual techniques, the application of which will result in the renovation neighbourhood gaining architectural individuality, integrity, and its unique identity.
The total area of the district is 1,089 hectares, and the site area is 251 hectares.