Visiting the Club
We now arrive at the Zuev Workers’ Club, an example of ASNOVA Constructivist architecture. Designed by Ilya Golosov in 1926 and completed in 1928, the Workers’ Club was made for the workers of Moscow, in order to provide various facilities and utilities.
According to one of the founders of ASNOVA, El Lissitzky, the clubs were designed so that the masses and members could be directly involved. The spaces that the clubs provided were not for the passive consumption of entertainment. Similar to OSA architects, the ASNOVA architects designed these spaces for individuals to socialize and form relationships, and to combat the isolationism and anonymity typically felt in city living.
However, you might be asking yourselves what the difference is between OSA and ASNOVA, then? While OSA architects designed with function in mind and worked to actively shape the social interaction through the buildings’ architecture itself, ASNOVA was geared more towards the emotional effect, especially for spectators outside of the building.
Therefore, the architecture of the Zuev club was used to help inspire expression indirectly, while buildings like the Narkomfin or the Mostorg directly acted as social condensers and shaped inhabitants’ and visitors’ actions and interactions. As you look at Golosov's Zuev Club, recall the architecture of the Mostorg Department Store and the Narkomfin appartment building. Remember how these structures were mostly plain?
Contrary to OSA's functional view of architecture, Golosov was interested in expressive and dynamic form, in order to create a dramatic and emotional final product. With its glazed staircases, meshing of the cylinder against flat floor planes, and photogenic glass and concrete collaboration, this emotional and awe inspiring effect was achieved. Similarly to Constructivist apartments and living spaces, constructivist clubs like the Zuev club contributed to the goal of providing for a more utopian Russian vision. By providing spaces for the workers, and by uniting the most important materials for advancement under one roof, a better functioning Soviet society could form. Again, Golosov used the latest materials available, glass and concrete, while providing modern amenities for workers and creating a functional and practical space for socializing, in true Constructivist form. Similarly, the pure aesthetics of the building were meant to evoke emotions of admiration for the innovative and modern style and understanding of Russia. Much like the other Constructivist sites that we have visited so far, the building with its modern materials, advanced amenities for the workers, and cutting-edge and bold style was used to display Russia's political, economic, and industrial emersion and superiority.
The building still stands today as a cultural center. While much of the surrounding area has since been modernized, the structure still stands as a reminder of the amenities provided to the people by the state at the time. Even though it is no longer the newest or most cutting edge building, ironically, with its fresh coat of pink paint, the structure still boldly stands out from its brick neighbors, ushering in a wave of bold difference to the community.
Now we will go to our last stop, the Rusakov Workers’ Club, perhaps one of the most famous architectural destinations!