At one time, the outstanding architect Lev Kekushev was able to avoid the military career that his father, an outlandish adviser, had predicted for him. The son managed to convince the parents of his relevance. He became the first brilliant architect working in the Art Nouveau style. An architect in the form of a lion marked all his work in Moscow by architect Kekushev.
Family Counselor Family
The biography of the brilliant architect Lev Nikolaevich Kekushev is replete with dark spots. Some researchers of his work and biography believe that he was born in 1862 in Saratov. Others argue that the architect was born in Vilna, in the Warsaw province. We will build on this fact.
Lev Nikolayevich Kekushev grew up and was brought up in the military family. His father served as a major in the Pavlovsky regiment, which was stationed in the Kingdom of Poland. Apparently, it was there that he met for the first time with his future wife. Her name was Constance. She was the daughter of a Polish landowner.
In 1861, the head of the family decided to resign. He entered the civil service. His new job was the engineering corps. Repeatedly in the service he had to move to other regions. At different times he lived in St. Petersburg, Pskov, Novgorod, until he settled in Vilna. It was there that his son, the future architect, was born. By this time, the father of the family rose to the rank of court adviser.
In addition to Lev Kekushev, who was the 3rd child, there were 6 more children. The family lived rather poorly. That is why parents oriented their offspring to getting a decent education, since it made it possible to count on a good career in the future.
First experiences
By 1883, the young Leo Kekushev graduated from a real school in Vilna. And since he had already shown obvious artistic abilities and hated the military drill, he went to St. Petersburg. He was determined to enter the Institute of Civil Engineers, which happened the same year.
Within the walls of this educational institution, he studied with such future famous architects as V. Velichkin, I. Ivanov-Shits and N. Markov.
When he was a student, Lev Nikolaevich Kekushev had to carry out a number of independent student work, where he once again showed his extraordinary ability to painting.
At the end of his studies, he defended his graduation project, which was called "Slaughterhouse in St. Petersburg." Shortly before the diploma, he managed to find a job in the Technical Construction Committee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. As a result, in 1888, he graduated from college, becoming a professional civil engineer. In addition, he was awarded the Silver Medal for his successes in architecture.
After that, Lev Kekushev worked for a short time as an assistant to the town planner. However, already in 1890, he decided to resign, leaving for the Mother See.
Mentor
In the capital, Kekushev decided to devote himself mainly to private architectural practice. So, he began an internship with fashionable architect S. Eibuchitts, and also became his assistant. In this capacity, he took part in the constructions of Okhotny Ryad and Central Baths.
By and large, these lessons of a prominent architect helped not only to crystallize the style of the young architect, but also to form a circle of potential customers, among whom were wealthy people from merchant families.
In addition, during the internship, Kekushev managed to master the skills of various applied decorative techniques. This refers to forging, electroplating, as well as etching on glass and metal.
Own architectural workshop
Kekushev completed his internship in 1893. After that, he opened his own architectural firm. Unfortunately, documents on the activities of this workshop were practically not preserved. But there is information about the architects who performed his tasks, observed the construction of a number of construction objects and developed decorative decoration of interiors and facades.
Such assistants were, for example, the Shutzman brothers. They, among others, took part in the design of the Korobkov mansion and Frank's apartment building. They also monitored the construction of the Nikolsky shopping arcade.
Other assistants to Kekushev were V. Voeikov and N. Shevyakov. In addition, prominent Russian architects A. Kuznetsov and I. Fomin passed through the school of the architect.
In addition to working in the bureau, Kekushev worked as a teacher at the Technical School in the capital. For the needs of the institution, he managed to build a chemical laboratory.
Kekushev also taught at the Stroganov School of Industrial Art. He gave students his lessons in silvering, iron forging, and composition. Then he began working in one of the engineering schools.
For five years, Kekushev served as a district architect. And he independently was able to erect a building with elements of the Moorish style for the Hera almshouse.
Imperial order
By the mid-90s, the first glory came to Kekushev. Gradually, he began to turn from an ordinary architect into a famous architect. It was then that he received an order from Emperor Nicholas II himself.
During these years, the official coronation of the new autocrat was preparing. For the event, it was decided to arrange part of Tverskaya Street, the building of the City Council and Voskresenskaya Square. For this, a corresponding competition was announced, where the best architects took part. As a result, the order was in the hands of Kekushev. And after a while he successfully completed this work. Since then, the name of the architect was already known throughout the empire.
New direction
The same period of the master’s life was also marked by the fact that the architect Kekushev, whose biography is full of interesting facts, gradually moved to the architectural style of modernity.
The first such work was the Khludov apartment building, which is considered one of the brightest examples of this direction. To date, this building has been rebuilt, but the facade has been preserved.
This style of architect was supported by a number of metropolitan developers and famous patrons, among whom were the Kuznetsovs, Nosovs and many others.
Savva Mamontov and apartment buildings
By this time, Kekushev had serious financial success. He became a popular specialist in this field. The famous entrepreneur Savva Mamontov decided to attract a famous architect to his projects. For example, Kekushev took part in the construction of the Northern Railway, and also designed a water tower at one of the metro stations.
But perhaps the most ambitious joint project was the construction of the Metropol Hotel.
At this time, Kekushev was appointed chief architect of the two organizations. These were the insurance company, which planned to build fashionable turnkey mansions in the Art Nouveau style, and the House-building society, which was just involved in the construction of the Metropol. The idea belonged to the owner of the hotel S. Mamontov. Unfortunately, at some point, he decided to give the contract to architect V. Wilcot. Construction began, but Mamontov could not implement the project, because he was accused of major embezzlement and arrested. After a while he was acquitted, but the business was ruined.
The new owners of the hotel again invited Kekushev so that he could do the processing of the entire Wilcot project. Professionals in their field believe that Kekushev’s participation ensured tremendous success for the entire enterprise.
In addition to the construction of the Metropol, Kekushev began to build his own apartment buildings. The architect also built his own mansion on Ostozhenka. Entrepreneur G. Liszt was delighted with the house of architect Kekushev. He offered a huge price for the building. Kekushev could not refuse.
The culmination of creativity
The creative peak of Lev Kekushev fell at the beginning of the twentieth century. At the turn of the century, he was already considered the founder and loyal follower of the capital's Art Nouveau. It was during this period that the Moscow architect Lev Kekushev designed and built such buildings as the mansions of I. Mindovsky and Nosov, Iversky shopping arcades, as well as the Railway Station in Tsaritsyno. Also, according to his sketches, the entrance from the Arbat and a number of premises of the Prague restaurant were designed. In addition, Kekushev had to arrange the halls of the mansion I. Morozov, which is on Prechistenka.
In general, all the work in Moscow, the architect Kekushev performed at a high level. His soul is embedded in these buildings. They are worthy of attention. All of its objects are characterized by an almost perfect interior design.
Age of Troubles
When the first Russian revolution broke out, public tastes began to change. If before the events of 1905, luxurious early Art Nouveau prevailed in architecture, then after this the new trend was a laconic and restrained Northern Art Nouveau.
Unfortunately, the architect Lev Nikolaevich Kekushev either did not want or could not work in a new direction, and his popularity and authority began to decline.
In 1907, he was going to build a restaurant called Eldorado. In fact, this project was supposed to be one of the largest designs of the architect. However, another specialist began to erect the building. As a result, the construction was completed, but with large and serious deviations from the drawings of L. Kekushev. The last bright creation of the architect is the hospital in Preobrazhensky. It was erected on the eve of the First World War, in 1912.
The subsequent work of the architect Kekushev performed without much expressiveness and personality.
Death
After 1912, the fate of Kekushev gained a truly tragic connotation. It seemed that the architect did not begin to take contracts at all. He only posted photographs of his old creations in various publications.
Also, there was no mention of him at all. True, in professional magazines one could make sure that he, fortunately, was alive and sometimes moved to new apartments.
Such self-elimination, according to the architect’s biographers, was caused by a mental illness. Other historians believe that the architect Kekushev became introverted due to recent personal and career failures.
Be that as it may, when the October Revolution and the Civil War began, the master disappeared altogether. It is still unknown when he died and when he was buried … True, according to one of his relatives, Lev Kekushev died in 1917 in a hospital. And they buried him in one of the capital's graveyards … As the architect Kekushev of the building in Moscow left a memory of himself. Photos of his work you have the opportunity to see in the article.
In the bosom of the family
The architect’s personal life is eventful. At the same time, family dramas also happened. In the late 90s of the XIX century, Kekushev met Anna Bolotova, the daughter of a retired staff captain. She was born and lived in Kremenchug, in the Poltava province. At the time of the meeting, this charming girl turned only nineteen. The successful metropolitan architect was almost 35. Despite the difference, the lovers got married. This happened at the end of April 1897.
Initially, the couple were sincerely happy. They had children. In the property they had a cottage in the magnificent Silver Forest. Also, a few years after the wedding, they moved to their own mansion on Ostozhenka, as previously mentioned. In fact, this “exclusive housing” spoke of the real rise of the architect’s professional career. You must admit that the luxury houses that were built according to the author's projects were owned by units.
According to the stories of the only grandson of the architect, Kekushev had a wonderful character. He was cheerful and kind to relatives, friends, colleagues. Loved the draws. But his real passion has always been architecture. As a rule, he got up at six in the morning, after which he began to work in his office. According to the recollections of the wife of Kekushev, he was a very enthusiastic person. And when he designed, he often exceeded the necessary estimates. In such a situation, he sometimes paid for the missing from his wallet in order to see the embodiment of his plans. Unfortunately, precisely because of this character trait, in the future he left nothing behind him, except for debts.
At least family happiness lasted about ten years. In 1906, Kekushev decided to move to a rented apartment. According to unconfirmed sources, the reason for the gap was treason on the part of the wife of the architect. According to the researchers, she made an affair with one of her colleagues in the workshop of Kekushev.
Nevertheless, the couple repeatedly tried to establish their relationship. In any case, there was a period when they again lived together. But then they parted again. All these attempts to save the marriage were futile.
