Anatoly Ottovich Gunst (Russian: Анатолий Оттович Гунст; 19 November 1858,

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

- 27 November 1919, Moscow) was a Russian architect, artist, teacher and actor.

Biography

He was born to a family of Russified Germans from

Kazan Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering ...

. His father, , and cousin Alexander Gunst (1862—1938), were also architects. His youngest brother,

Yevgeny Yevgeni, Yevgeny, Yevgenii or Yevgeniy (russian: Евгений), also transliterated as Evgeni, Evgeny, Evgenii or Evgeniy, is the Russian form of the masculine given name Eugene. People with the name include: :''Note: Occasionally, a person may be ...

, was a composer and pianist. In 1878, he entered the

Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture The Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture (russian: Московское училище живописи, ваяния и зодчества, МУЖВЗ) also known by the acronym MUZHZV, was one of the largest educational insti ...

, from which he graduated in 1882. During his studies, he was a construction assistant for the

Cathedral of Christ the Saviour The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour ( rus, Храм Христа́ Спаси́теля, r=Khram Khristá Spasítelya, p=xram xrʲɪˈsta spɐˈsʲitʲɪlʲə) is a Russian Orthodox cathedral in Moscow, Russia, on the northern bank of the Moskv ...

, as well as several smaller projects, and taught drawing at the . From 1882 to 1884, he was a teacher at

Moscow State School 57 Moscow State School 57 (russian: Пятьдесят седьмая школа) is a public school located in the Khamovniki District of Moscow, Russia. The school was founded in 1877 and is best known for its specialized secondary program in math ...

. He later took study trips to Austria, Germany and Italy. In 1886, with support from the

Rumyantsev Museum The Rumyantsev Museum evolved from the personal library and historical collection of Count Nikolay Rumyantsev (1754–1826). Its origin was in St. Petersburg in the Rumyantsev house or mansion, building number 44 on the English Embankment overl ...

, he founded the ; the first private art school in Russia. It offered six-year courses for both men and women. Especially talented students were allowed to attend for free. Exhibitions were held where they could sell their work. He applied for government certification, to give his students the same status as those in public institutions, but both major schools in Moscow, his alma mater and the

Stroganov Moscow State Academy of Arts and Industry Moscow State Stroganov Academy of Industrial and Applied Arts (russian: Московская Государственная Художественно-Промышленная Академия им. С.Г. Строганова) informally named S ...

, were against the proposal. It closed, for financial reasons, in 1891. In 1894, he became a member of the . Two years later, he was appointed a district architect. In 1904, he received the post of supernumerary technician of the Construction Department of the

Moscow Governorate Moscow Governorate (russian: Московская губерния; pre-reform Russian: ), or the Government of Moscow, was an administrative division (a '' guberniya'') of the Tsardom of Russia, the Russian Empire, and the Russian SFSR, which ...

. From 1905 to 1906, he served on the municipal Construction Council. He was also an amateur actor; participating in the Drama Salon Society, whose members included Maria Yermolova and

Alexander Yuzhin Alexander Ivanovich Yuzhin (russian: Алекса́ндр Ива́нович Ю́жин; 1857–1927) was a stage name of the Georgian Prince Sumbatov (Sumbatashvili), who dominated the Malyi Theatre of Moscow at the turn of the 19th and 20th c ...

. In his later years, he was a member of the "League of Performing Arts Lovers". Together with

Yevgeny Vakhtangov Yevgeny Bagrationovich Vakhtangov (also spelled Evgeny or Eugene; russian: Евге́ний Багратио́нович Вахта́нгов; 13 February 1883 – 29 May 1922) was a Russian-Armenian actor and theatre director who founded the ...

, he helped create the Studio of Dramatic Art which, in 1921, became the . In 1917, he acted at the

Maly Theatre The Maly Theatre, or Mali Theatre, may refer to one of several different theatres: * The Maly Theatre (Moscow), also known as The State Academic Maly Theatre of Russia, in Moscow (founded in 1756 and given its own building in 1824) * The Maly Theat ...

. He was married to Matilda Caesarevna Rober-Niku, a native of Switzerland. Their son, , was a well-known translator and literary critic.

Sources

* Maria Nashchokina; ''Архитекторы московского модерна. Творческие портреты'' (Moscow Art Nouveau architects. Creative portraits), 3rd ed. Жираф, 2005 pp.161—164 * ''Зодчие Москвы времени эклектики, модерна и неоклассицизма'' (The architects of Moscow of the time of eclecticism, modernity and neoclassicism), Museum of Architecture, А. V. Shchuseva et al. (Eds.), 1998 pgs. 86-87 * ''Московская энциклопедия'' (Moscow encyclopedia), S. O. Schmidt (Ed.), Издательский центр «Москвоведение», 2007 pg.465

External links

Gunst, Anatoly Ottovich
@ Biografiya * Galina Kirillova

(Palace of Arkharovtsy and Academicians) @ Moscow Perspective {{DEFAULTSORT:Gunst, Anatoly 1858 births 1919 deaths Russian architects Russian male actors Russian people of German descent Architects from Moscow Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture alumni