Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Summer 2011 - (Page 83)

Soviet ConneCt ion Left and below: In the Tretyakov Gallery, works feature a postcommunist perspective in art; the Gogol Museum shows off the well-preserved home of the great 19 thcentury author. Far left: The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour is a faithful reconstruction of the Byzantine original, which Stalin ordered demolished in 1931. OstentatiOus gilt and glitter Overwhelm and impress; it is mOdern mOscOw in a bejeweled nutshell, still trying tO find its relatiOnship with its fraught histOry. five giant onion domes made of real gold. It is the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, a grotesque monument on the embankment of the Moscow River whose story encapsulates the city’s. Built in the late 19th century to celebrate Russia’s victory over Napoleon, it was dynamited in 1931 to make room for a new Palace of the Soviets, a building with a massive dome topped by a statue of Lenin. But construction dragged to a halt as funds ran low, and the foundation continued to flood with river water. It was a hole in the ground until Nikita Khrushchev turned it into an outdoor swimming pool. The cathedral was rebuilt in the 1990s. Inside, ostentatious gilt and glitter overwhelm and impress; it is modern Moscow in a bejeweled nutshell, still trying to find its relationship with its fraught history. Across the river, you’ll find a hub of newly opened galleries, restaurants, shops and nightclubs in a 19th-century red brick industrial complex that used to be the Red October chocolate factory. Though the galleries are very small — and very hit-or-miss — it’s hard to go wrong with the Lumiere Brothers Center for Photography. Entering it feels like going into a small hollow under a popular nightclub, yet the center is spacious, well lit and modern. It hosts a rotating series of exhibits on Soviet and Russian photography, dredging up some of the country’s forgotten gems. A recent exhibit, for instance, highlighted the work of three Lithuanian photographers from the ’60 and ’70s, including the understated yet emotionally powerful work of Antanas Sutkus. Around the corner, you’ll find an outpost of Akademia, the upscale Moscow pizza chain. This location, however, is different; called Art Akademia, it is used by the chain’s owners, Evgeny Mitta and Vladimir Dubosarsky, to showcase some of their wide-ranging art collection, a virtual who’s who of the contemporary Russian art world. This being Russia, however, history is never far from the glitz of modernity. Next door to the Red October complex is the House on the Embankment Museum, named after the strict, gray constructivist building in which it is located. Originally known as the Government House, it was built from 1928 to 1931 as a home t h e r i t z - c a r lt o n m a g a z i n e 83

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Summer 2011

Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Summer 2011
Table of Contents
Contributors
Editor’s Letter
President’s Letter
Falling in Love with … Hawaii
On the Boulevards
Design
Shopping In New York City
Jewelry
Watches
Wine
Wellness
Sports
Portugal
Moscow
Fashion
Culinary
The Guide
Heritage

Ritz-Carlton Magazine - Summer 2011