Giacomo Antonio Domenico Quarenghi designed the Alexander Palace and the Hermitage Theatre. (The architect's name most heard in Saint Petersburg is Rastrelli, the architect of Catherine's Palace and the Winter Palace itself.)
My first career choice in middle school was architecture up until my drafting teacher told me that women do not get jobs as architects. That was 1959. I'm sure much has changed since then.
The Alexander Palace was the home of the last Czar and his family, Nicholas II and Alexandra. Unfortunately, time did not allow a trip to this Palace.
Photo: By Flying Russian (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Quarenghi designed the Academy of Sciences Building below:
The Hermitage Theatre as seen from the palace Embankment - Photo by A. Savin - A picture of the Theater interior may be seen at the link I gave above. My pictures did not turn out due to the dim lighting.
Tolkien Bonus: Q is the Quenta Silmarillion, a history of the early days of Arda.
I do believe that the brief given to all the architects of the bygone era in Russia consisted of a single word: Expansive. No wonder almost everything is built on such a lavish scale. And so well maintained to this day.
ReplyDeletePeter the Great wanted that western European feel and in these buildings he got it.
DeleteMagnificent buildings, quite stately. I'm glad history has changed enough since 1959 so that my daughters won't be told they can't do something because they are girls.
ReplyDeleteYou pulled off the "Q" post very well, Denise - good job!
ReplyDeleteIt was a struggle. There was a blogger today who used the word 'quintessential'. I'm going to remember that for the future.
DeleteI love the green of the Theatre-I can see, just from these 2, a similarity in style which makes sense considering:) My mom and you have something in common. She always loved building things. When she was a kid there was a n evergreen forest right across the road. She would take the needles and make floor plans when she was as young as 5. She wanted to take architecture but thought there was no way for her to do that since she was a girl(and she was 17 when the war ended so where would she go to school). When my parents built the addition on the the home, she designed the addition and had it built!
ReplyDeleteEverything in Russia was very colorful. I guess you need that when you live so far North.
DeleteBeautiful buildings, but that seems to be so true of many Russian palaces and such. Lots of columns in this case. I believe they were very fond of French designs and many Russian nobles spoke French in preference to Russian.
ReplyDeleteMost of the architects were Italian. Different pictures for tomorrow.
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