House with Chimaeras

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Coordinates: 50°26′42″N, 30°31′43″E

House with Chimaeras

A side view of the House With Chimaeras, a major art nouveau building, in the historic Pechersk neighbourhood.
Building Information
Name House with Chimaeras
Location Kiev
Country Ukraine
Architect Vladislav Gorodetsky
Construction Start Date 1901
Completion Date 1902
Cost 133,000 rubles[1]
Structural System Concrete piles
Continuous foundation
Style Art Nouveau

The House with Chimaeras or Gorodetsky House (Ukrainian: Будинок з химерами; translit. Budynok z khymeramy) is a major Art Nouveau building in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It was built in the period of 1901-1902 by Vladislav Gorodetsky, who was regarded as the Gaudí of Kiev.[2]

The building is commonly dubbed as "The House With Chimaeras" because it contains various scenes depicting exotic animals and hunting scenes, as Gorodetsky was an avid hunter. It is situated on № 10, Bankova Street, across from the president of Ukraine's office in the historic Pechersk neighbourhood of Kiev. It is currently used as a presidential residence for official and diplomatic ceremonies.[3]

Contents

[edit] History

[edit] Construction and early history

The building was designed by the architect Vladislav Gorodetsky in 1901-1902.[2] It was built on Gorodetsky's own expenses and was intended to be used as a commercial building for rent.[4][5] The house was designed in such a way that the tenants would occupy the whole floor, as a separate apartment, each connected by an elevator and stairs.[6] Gorodetsky himself occupied the whole fourth floor of the building, being about 380 m².[4][7]

On February 1, 1901, Gorodetsky bought the first lot of land. On March 18, 1901, the construction work was commenced, on August 21, the construction of the exterior walls was finished, and on September 13, the roof was installed and all masonry work was completed.[4][5] Due to the economical hardships within the Russian Empire, the completion of the building was delayed. In May of 1903, only one apartment on the lowest level and Gorodetsky's own apartment were occupied.[4] The total cost for the land and its construction equaled to 133,000 rubles. The projected annual profit from the rentals was 7,200 rubles.

During that time, a cowshed was located on the premises of the building.[2][5] It was specifically placed in a way the smell of cows would not disturb the tenants. On a lot adjacent to the building, a miniature alpine garden (approx. 320 m²) and a fountain were built.

In 1916, Gorodetsky sold the building, to become the ownership of Daniel Balakhovsky. The new owner rented the apartments until the end of the Civil War (1918-1921). In 1921, after the Bolsheviks gained control over Kiev, several of the departments of the Kiev Military District took office in the House with Chimaeras.

[edit] Ownership after 1917

A furnished interior room of the House with Chimaeras, seen with elaborate decorations.
A furnished interior room of the House with Chimaeras, seen with elaborate decorations.

After the Russian Revolution of 1917, the building was converted for communal living. Each apartment was occupied by about nine to ten families.[4] During the Second World War (1941-1943), the building was abandoned. The fact that the building was exposed to the harsh elements during the war caused significant damage to its structure.[4] After the war, the building housed the polyclinic (clinic) №1 for Communist Party elite.[4] The polyclinic had used the building almost until the end of the 20th century. During that time, the building almost split into two separate halfs. One part saged at 22 cm, and a major vertical crack formed, having a width of about 40 cm.[4] Some of the building's architectural details had either chipped away, or had cracked.

When the building's restorational work was scheduled, the polyclinic did not want to move out, as it had occupied the building for more than 40 years. Drastic measures were taken to evacuate the building: the workers boarded up all of the windows and would do the same to the doors if the polyclinic did not vacate the premises. Only the president's involvement in the matter forced the polyclinic to move out completely.[2]

[edit] Reconstruction and official use

During the time of the restoration, conducted by UkrNIIProektRestavratsia and headed by Natalia Kosenko, the workers had unearthed the whole lower floor, which was filled in during Soviet times to strengthen the building's foundation.[2] Restoration of the interior, the elaborate decor, had to be fully redone. In the courtyard, the restorers had placed an artificial lake, fountains, and a miniature garden — all of which had been in Gorodetsky's original plans.[2]

In April of 2005, the Kiev City Council paid 104 million hryvnias (approx. USD 20 million) to the Ukrainian Government for reconstruction and restoration of the House with Chimaeras.[8] The Kiev City Council also allowed the Ukrainian government to construct a new square in front of the building for use in official ceremonies.[8] Currently, the building serves as an official presidential residence, used for official and diplomatic ceremonies, despite the House with Chimaeras already being officially opened as a cultural museum in 2004.[3][9] Recently, the House with Chimaeras was used as a meeting place between Ukrainian President Viktor Yushenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin, when he visited Kiev on December 22, 2006.[10]

[edit] Architecture

A detailed view of the architectural statues of chimeras and others, designed by Emilio Sala.
A detailed view of the architectural statues of chimeras and others, designed by Emilio Sala.

The House with Chimaeras is recognized as a major Art Nouveau building in Kiev designed by Vladislav Gorodetsky, regarded as the Gaudí of Kiev.[2]

Due to the nature of the steep slope the building sits on, the building had to be specially designed out of concrete to fit into its foundations correctly. From the front, the building appears to have only three floors. However, from the rear, all of its six floors of the building can be seen.[11] One part of the building's foundation was made of concrete piles, and the other — as a continuous foundation. Usually, these two approaches do not mix well but the architect somehow succeeded in doing that.

“ The House of Vladislav Gorodetsky can only be compared with the works of Antoni Gaudí, escpecially the famous Casa Milà in Barcelona, Spain, however being constructed a couple years later (1905-1910).[12] „

—Volodymyr Yasiievych

The Italian sculptor Emilio Sala made both the internal and external sculptural decorations, such as mermaids, dolphins, and frogs on the roof of the building, sinking ships and hunting trophies on the exterior walls, and exuberant interior decorations, such as grand stairways and chandeliers depicting huge catfish strangled in the stems of lotus flowers. The building is commonly dubbed as "The House With Chimaeras" because it contains various scenes depicting exotic animals and hunting scenes, made out of cement. Production of the cement was done by the "For" company, which is interesting because Gorodetsky was the company's co-director.[13] During that time, using cement was not popular, so the architect decieded to use cement as a publicity for both the house and the building material.[13]

[edit] Layout

Gorodetsky's original blueprints of the sixth floor (his own apartment) for the House with Chimaeras; early 1900s.
Gorodetsky's original blueprints of the sixth floor (his own apartment) for the House with Chimaeras; early 1900s.

On the lowest level of the building, which is located deep into the hill, were two stables, two rooms for coachmen, a shared laundry, and two separate apartments. Each of the two apartments consisted of a foyer, a kitchen, one bathroom, and a storage room. The first apartment had two residential rooms, and the second — three rooms.[14] Each floor above the lowest level was designed for one apartment only.

The apartment on the second floor consisted of six residential rooms in addition to a foyer, kitchen, buffet, three servant's rooms, a bathroom, two toilet rooms, and two storage rooms. There were also four wine cellars on the same level.[15] The cellars belonged to the apartments on the upper levels. On the third floor, the apartment consisted of 8 residential rooms, a foyer, a kitchen, dish washing room, two rooms for servants, a bathroom, and two toilet rooms.[16] This apartment was placed slightly lower than the level of the Bankova Street, from the front entrance.

The best apartment, which belonged to Gorodetsky, consisted of a study, a great room and a living room, a dining room, a boudoir, a bedroom, a children's room, a room for a governess, a guest room, three rooms for servants, a kitchen, dishwashing room, bathroom, two toilet rooms, and two storage rooms.[4] One floor above was an apartment similar in size and design to Gorodetsky's apartment. [17] On the last floor, the apartment had one less room, but to make up for this, the apartment had a dining room with a connected terrace, providing a magnificent view of the city.[4][18]

[edit] Legends

Rear view of the building; Gorodetsky's former apartment being the highest floor.
Rear view of the building; Gorodetsky's former apartment being the highest floor.

Throughout the years, the House with Chimaeras had many legends revolving around it:

According to the first legend, Vladislav Gorodetsky's daughter had committed suicide in the Dnieper because of either some unfortunate love or of a family feud.[19] As a result, Gorodetsky went slightly mad and built this gloomy house for his daughter's memory.[20]

The second legend has it that Gorodetsky made a bet with some other architects, including the architect Alexander Kobelev, who had tried to prove that is impossible to built a house on such terrain, because the site (near the Ivan Franko Theater) overhangs a swamp (Koz’ye boloto). The Construction Committiee of Kiev, prohibited construction of any structures on this particular lot. Eventually Gorodetsky won the bet.[20]

According to the third legend, Vladislav Gorodetsky had cursed the house; all of the house's tenants would be either unhappy or would meet some sort of financial misfortune. This is backed by the fact that all the businesses who rented a portion of the building, went bankrupt, all funds were stolen, and all organizations were dismissed.[2]

[edit] References and footnotes

  1. ^ This price is as of 1903. Derzhavnyi arkhiv mista Kyieva - Fond № 143, Series 2, File № 520, Item № 9. Malakov, Dmytro (1999). Architector Horodetskyi. Kyi, 123. ISBN 966-7161-30-7. 
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Ivanenko, Anna. Gorodetsky (Russian). City Histories. Optima Tours. Retrieved on September, 17, 2006.
  3. ^ a b Shokalo, Marta (April 1 2005). The aura is fine, but the place is too small (Ukrainian). BBC Ukrainian. Retrieved on September 30, 2006.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Malakov, Dmytro (1999). Architector Horodetskyi. Kyi. ISBN 966-7161-30-7. 
  5. ^ a b c Malikenaite, Ruta (2003). Touring Kyiv. Baltia Druk, 50. ISBN 966-96041-3-3. 
  6. ^ The only exception to this fact was that the lowest floor of the building contained two separate apartments.
  7. ^ His apartment is apt. № 3, the main floor, if looking from the level of the Bankova Street.
  8. ^ a b «House with Chimaeras» received the status of an official governmental residence (Ukrainian). proUA. Retrieved on September 30, 2006.
  9. ^ A cultural museum centre opens in the House with Chimaeras (Ukrainian). Korrespondent. Bigmir-Internet (November 19 2004). Retrieved on September 30, 2006.
  10. ^ Yushenko and Putin decided their goals for two years ahead (Russian). Korrespondent. Bigmir-Internet. Retrieved on November 22, 2006, 2006.
  11. ^ Vlasenko, Petro. "Residential house (Gorodetsky's), 1904." (Russian). Monuments of architecture of Ukrainian SSR. Retrieved on September 16, 2006.
  12. ^ Yasievich, V. Y. (1988). Architecture of Ukraine at the turn of the XIX-XX centuries, 96. 38730. 
  13. ^ a b Klymenko, Sergiy. «Budynok z Khimeramy» (Ukrainian/Russian). Photographs of Kyiv. Retrieved on September 30, 2006.
  14. ^ The annual rental in 1903 was 540 and 420 rubles, accordingly. Malakov, Dmytro (1999). Architector Horodetskyi. Kyi, 120. ISBN 966-7161-30-7. 
  15. ^ The price for this apartment was 1,200 rubles in 1903. Malakov, Dmytro (1999). Architector Horodetskyi. Kyi, 120. ISBN 966-7161-30-7. 
  16. ^ The initial annual rent for the apartment was 2,000 rubles. Malakov, Dmytro (1999). Architector Horodetskyi. Kyi. ISBN 966-7161-30-7. 
  17. ^ Both of these apartments were rented out for 3,500 rubles annually in 1903. Malakov, Dmytro (1999). Architector Horodetskyi. Kyi, 121. ISBN 966-7161-30-7. 
  18. ^ The rental cost for this dwelling was at 2,750 rubles annually, considering that an average sallary for a librarian was about 50 rubles per year. Ivanenko, Anna. Gorodetsky (Russian). City Histories. Optima Tours. Retrieved on September, 17, 2006.
  19. ^ In fact, it was the previous owners' (Professor Mering) daughter, who drowned.
  20. ^ a b Pavlovsky, Viktor. House with Chimaeras (English). Kiev Info. Optima Tours. Retrieved on February, 16, 2006.

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons — Media on House with Chimaeras
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