Regeneration of the manor in Uglich

Project idea

Ancient manors are significant elements of culture and history. In Russia, they represented a unique socio-cultural phenomenon that combined architecture, everyday life and social life of the nobility. However, the function of the manor as a form of life and management has disappeared, and the architectural heritage has gradually declined. The increased interest in national history and culture in recent years has led to a revival of attention to manors as a form of existence and architectural typology. Unlike European lands, in Russia, conservation and adaptation of ancient manors are just beginning to gain momentum, and scientific and comprehensive restoration has a clear advantage in the method.
The Grigoriev-Suponev manor in Uglich has a complex history: from a rich noble estate to a youth club, a mental hospital and a kindergarten… It lost most of its volume during the construction of the Uglich reservoir (1930s-1940s), and almost all structures in the 1990s after an unsuccessful attempt at adaptation. Today, the remains of the manor have been destroyed, and we are close to its complete loss.
The idea of the project is to subtly recreate the lost volumes of the manor with preserving the historical silhouette through a clear visual separation of new elements from the authentic ones. An important task was to avoid stylistic imitation and preserve the readability of the object in conditions of high volume the loss of historical heritage, the ruin of the preserved fragments, their inaccessibility due to their location on a steep coast, as well as the limited availability of archival text and graphic materials.

Project description

The main object of regeneration in the project is the Grigoriev-Suponev manor, a protected cultural heritage
site of provincial classicism of the 18th century, reflecting the early and mature periods of the style's development. The design area is visually and functionally divided into two main zones: the infield and the park. This decision reflects the historical structure of the area, where the manor complex existed separately from the peasant buildings. Both zones have received a regular layout, but each carries its own functional load.
The main manor house is being adapted as a hotel. It has 18 rooms of various capacities, as well as recreational spaces for guests. Administrative offices are located on the ground floor. The only rooms that have retained their ceilings have an audio and video room. On the second floor, in addition to the hotel rooms, there is a game area and a historical "Chinese room" adapted for a tea room. The attic level houses quiet relaxation spaces, and the belvedere is used as an observation deck.
Winter gardens are organized in the galleries of the manor, combining the functions of a coworking space and a coffee shop for hotel guests.
The catering function is performed by a cafe located in the restored volume of the west wing. Its dining room is focused on the Volga River and reveals views of the historical landscape and the restored silhouette of the Vvedenskaya Church.
The eastern two-storey wing houses a museum and exhibition function. There are two exhibition halls dedicated to the history of
the manor and its owners, as well as the relics and board games found at the site. Nearby there is a transformable conference hall for lectures, concerts and events.
The complex is complemented by pottery workshops, ceramic painting and glazing, a souvenir shop and a flower shop. Thus, a cultural and educational center is being formed, combining hotel, museum, educational and recreational functions.
A regular pond in the ancient linden park has been preserved on the territory of the manor. Relative to the main axis between the manor house and the pond, the composition of the household territory is built. The manor park is interconnected with a larger park, on the site of which there used to be a village with residential streets. The composition of the axes of the park is subordinated to the modern and historical structure of the streets. The axes of the modern streets continue into the park to the berth. Recreated directions of historical streets are integrated into the system of park walks roads and alleys along which pavilions reproduce the silhouette of the buildings of peasant houses. The park includes a "pilgrim trail" connecting three key historical sites on the territory: the Grigoriev–Suponev manor, the lost Church of All Saints and the Church of the Introduction of the Lord, as well as a memorial cross to the prisoners who built the Uglich reservoir.
Due to the complications described earlier, only conservation and fragmentary cleaning of late layers are used to restore the manor. Regeneration is seen as a careful and informed decision aimed at preserving the authenticity of the architectural heritage and preventing excessive direct re-creation. The recreated volumes are executed contextually in modern materials, that is, while preserving the historical silhouette, scale and rhythm of the facades, limiting themselves to tectonics and large-scale plastics, visually contrasting with authentic elements. The conceptual image of the project is defined as ghostly images of the replenished past in contrast to the remnants of the present. All the elements and objects being implemented, recreated in the context of historical silhouettes, are background and give way to valuable fragments of history, culture and landscape.

Technical information

The main manor house and the eastern wing are valuable authentic cultural heritage sites. The project provides for their complete preservation and preservation with the removal of paint layers to reveal the rich brick decor. The plaster and paint are preserved only in the central part of the wing, as they are well preserved only here.
The preserved parts are made of multi-modulus bricks belonging to different periods of manufacture (the manor itself was built gradually through extensions, and not according to a single project).
New volumes are being built using fibrous concrete, metal frame and glass.

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