Domenico Gilardi (; 1785–1845) was a

Swiss Italian The Italian language in Italian Switzerland or Swiss Italian (, ) is the variety of the Italian language taught in the Italian-speaking area of Switzerland. While this variety is mainly spoken in the canton of Ticino and in the southern part ...

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

who worked primarily in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

Neoclassicist Neoclassicism, also spelled Neo-classicism, emerged as a Western cultural movement in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiquity. Neoclassici ...

style. He was one of the key architects charged with rebuilding the city after the Fire of 1812. Gilardi's legacy survives in public buildings like

Moscow Orphanage The Moscow Orphanage or Foundling Home ( or ) was an ambitious project conceived by Catherine the Great and Ivan Betskoy, in the early 1760s. This idealistic experiment of the Age of Enlightenment was intended to manufacture "ideal citizens" for ...

, Widows’ House, Catherine's Institute and the Old Hall of

Moscow University Moscow State University (MSU), officially M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University,. is a public research university in Moscow, Russia. The university includes 15 research institutes, 43 faculties, more than 300 departments, and six branches. Al ...

Early life

The Gilardi family of architects, originally from

Ticino Ticino ( ), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino, is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eight districts ...

, established itself in Russia in the middle of the 18th century. Domenico's father Giovanni, also known as ''Ivan Dementievich'', was well known in Moscow. Domenico was born in

Montagnola Montagnola () is a small Switzerland, Swiss village in Collina d'Oro municipality. Located in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, it is close to the border between Switzerland and Italy. It looks over Lake Lugano and the city of Lugano upon it ...

and lived there until his mother brought him to Russia in 1796. Domenico longed for a career in painting, so in 1799, his father sent him to an Italian workshop in

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

. After the death of

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, dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna awarded him a scholarship, and eventually a state-financed study tour to Italy. From 1803 to 1810 Domenico studied art in

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

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and

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. Domenico returned to Russia in June 1810, and in January 1811 joined his father, who was the architect of the enormous

(, ''Foundling House''). The first two stages of this enormous structure, conceived by educator Ivan Betzkoy, were completed in 1764-1781 and required continuous additions and improvements. Domenico remained in the employ of the Orphanage for the rest of his career. Moscow 05-2012 Mokhovaya 05

Professional career

In 1812, after the

Battle of Borodino The Battle of Borodino ( ) or Battle of Moscow (), in popular literature also known as the Battle of the Generals, took place on the outskirts of Moscow near the village of Borodino on 7 September 1812 during Napoleon's invasion of Russia. ...

, Gilardis fled Moscow. The city burnt down in September 1812, the disaster creating a wealth of opportunity for architects. In 1813, Domenico joined the Kremlin Building Commission, restoring

Ivan the Great Bell Tower The Ivan the Great Bell Tower () is a church tower inside the Moscow Kremlin complex. With a total height of , it is the tallest tower and structure of the Kremlin. It was built in 1508 on Cathedral Square for the three Russian Orthodox cathed ...

and other war losses. In 1817, his father retired and returned to Ticino; Domenico inherited his job as lead architect of The Orphanage. Giliardi_gagarin

In 1817-1819 he completed his first independent job, the reconstruction of

Matvei Kazakov Matvey Fyodorovich Kazakov (; 1738 – 7 November 1812) was a Russian Neoclassical architect. Kazakov was one of the most influential Muscovite architects during the reign of Catherine II, completing numerous private residences, two royal palace ...

’s

University A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

in Mokhovaya Street. Gilardi retained the basic floorplan, but considerably changed exterior styling. In 1818, he also received commissions to rebuild the Widows’ House (Вдовий Дом) and Catherine's Institute (Екатерининское училище). In a very short time, Gilardi concentrated the efforts to restore the four largest public buildings in the city, with the aid of

Afanasy Grigoriev Afanasy Grigorievich Grigoriev (; 21 January 1782 – 13 May 1868) was a Russian Neoclassical architect, who worked in Moscow and its suburbs. Grigoriev is remembered for his refined Empire style mansions, completion of Great Ascension Church ( ...

, a recently emancipated serf architect. Kuzminki Konny dvor J Rauh 1820

Gilardi's style goes back to the Milan variety of Empire Classicism,

Luigi Cagnola Marchese Luigi Cagnola (9 June 1762 – 14 August 1833) was a Neoclassical architecture, Neoclassical Italian architect. Biography Early years and education Cagnola was born in Milan. He was sent at the age of fourteen to the Clementine Colleg ...

and in particular Antonio Antolini's Bonaparte Forum. Grigoriev later followed the same canon. Gilardi's architectural talent is disputed, but his success in construction management and ability to lead concurrent major projects is unquestionable. His first work in new construction was the Board of Trustees building, a new block on the Orphanage lot (Solyanka Street, now Academy of Medical Science). It was followed by private commissions from the Gagarin (Povarskaya street) and Golitsyn ( Kuzminki Estate, 1820–1832) families. In 1826–1832, Gilardi supervised the rebuilding of Slobodskoy Palace in Lefortovo, a subsidiary of the Orphanage. Grigoriev replaced him when Gilardi travelled to Europe and back. After less than twenty years of active practice, Gilardi retired and left for Switzerland in 1832. Back home, he completed only one project – a chapel near Montagnola. Giliardi's students and junior partners continued work in Moscow: *

(1782–1868) *

Alessandro Gilardi Alessandro Gilardi (born 8 January 1995) is an Italian football player. Club career He made his Serie B debut for Pro Vercelli on 18 May 2017 in a game against Frosinone Frosinone (; local dialect: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Itali ...

(1808–1871) *

Yevgraph Tyurin Yefgraph Dmitrievich Tyurin (Russian: Евграф Дмитриевич Тюрин) was a Russian architect and art collector, famous as the builder of Elokhovo Cathedral in Moscow, the main cathedral of Russian Orthodox Church in 1945–2000, a ...

(1792–1870)

Notable buildings

New Construction *1814-1822 Lunin House (Nikitskie Vorota Square) *1820-1822 Gagarin House (25,

Povarskaya Street Povarskaya Street (, known from 1924–1991 as ''Vorovsky Street'' (улица Воровского), is a radial street in the center of Moscow, Russia, connecting Arbat Square on Boulevard Ring with Kudrinskaya Square on the Garden Ring. It ...

) *1820-1832 Kuzminki Estate: Riding Court, Manor, ServicesKuzminki: Photo Gallery
/ref> *1823-1826 Trustees House at The Orphanage (14a, Solyanka Street) *1829-1831 Usachev House (Zemlyanoy Val Street) Reconstruction *1813-1817 - Kremlin: assistant architect for Ivan the Great bell tower *1817-1819 - Moscow University *1818-1824 - Catherine's Institute (present-day Suvorov Square, Moscow) *1818-1823 - Widow's House (Kudrinskaya Square) *1826-1832 - Slobodskoy Palace (Lefortovo)

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilardi, Domenico Russian neoclassical architects Architects from Ticino Italian neoclassical architects 1785 births 1845 deaths