The Russakov Workers Club by Konstantin Melnikov [Architecture Enthusiast]

The Rusakov Workers’ Club in Moscow is a notable example of Constructivist architecture. Designed by Konstantin Melnikov, it was constructed in 1927-28. The club is built on a fan-shaped plan, with three cantilevered concrete seating areas rising above the base. Each of these volumes can be used as a separate auditorium, and combined they result in a capacity of over 1,000 people. At the rear of the building are more conventional offices. The only visible materials used in its construction are concrete, brick and glass. The function of the building is to some extent expressed in the exterior, which Melnikov described as a “tensed muscle
Architect Konstantin Melnikov designed the Rusakov Club as a theater and social meeting place for factory workers. Built in 1927, the structure reflects the Constructivist style that developed in Russia from the 1920s through the early 1930s. The distinctive façade of the avant-garde building reflects Melnikov’s experimental interior design, in which three large galleries slope upward from the central stage area in the form of cantilevered seating sections. Mobile walls in each of these galleries allow for adaptability to different seating and staging arrangement.
The club's fan plan is developed around the central space where the stage area and the three areas that house the spectator galleries meet. The arrangement of all elements is done following a rigorous axiality and symmetry. Access is made directly by the ground floor at its central point or from two exterior stairs located at the ends of the main facade and leading directly to the second floor. On the ground floor and the first we find secondary spaces such as service areas and warehouses. The auditorium itself is located on the second floor. In the third, the three cantilevered volumes that mark the exterior image of the set begin to develop. Melnikov skillfully places the evacuation stairs of these volumes in the interstitial spaces between them, managing to evacuate the spectators as quickly as possible to the outside of the building. Each of these spectator spaces can be used individually by separating them from the central area of the auditorium through folding doors. Below the central volume we find a space that functions as a classic theater. The irregular shape of the stage can be delimited with moving walls to create the different sets or adapt the space to different activities.
The natural lighting of the room is done tangentially through large windows located on the sides of the building.
The novel facade has classical compositional features. The main facade is formed from a plinth, which is set forward from the rest of the buildings perimeter in which we find two symmetrical exterior stairs leading to a terrace; the main body is formed by the hree cantilevered volumes. All this is reinforced by the total symmetry of the whole. Color also plays a role in the composition of the club's image. The entire building is white except for the back body, where the stage area is located. This difference in use is marked by the red color of the bricks seen on the facade.
The overall structure of the club is reinforced concrete. A series of trusses cover the blank space above the entrance. The main materials used in the project are concrete, brick and glass. The facade finish is stucco.
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The Russakov Workers Club by Konstantin Melnikov [Architecture Enthusiast]
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