paul de vroom + sputnik complete dutch-style residential complex in moscow

situated in the western part of moscow amidst the white and light grey apartment buildings, the ‘dutch house’ residential complex catches the eye with its outstanding red brick color. designed by paul de vroom + sputnik architects, the two buildings with a height of 75 and 65 meters, host 360 apartments on top of two-layered underground parking.

all photos by ilya ivanov

the rectangular building plot is enclosed by residential slabs that are mostly higher than the two new blocks — because of this, the site acts as a large confined space with only a few openings. what was therefore needed was a strong concept to make living in the new apartments into a pleasant experience. in the project of the dutch house, the enclosed site is considered as a stage on which the two new buildings are the actors. in order for these actors to perform well, they need to have a specific identity and moreover to be in harmony with each other and with the ‘theatre’ around them. therefore, on this location the buildings and the public space needed to be designed in close coherence. the positions of both buildings seem to be random, but in fact, they are derived from the strict russian rules regarding the insolation.

because of the play of light and shadow, the appearance of the two buildings together changes from every angle. the materials and details of the project follow the same principle — authentic dutch, orange brickwork, rounded bay windows with curved glass and monumental wooden entrance doors are all incorporated in the design, be it in their modern-day versions. the communal areas within the buildings have rich use of materials and refined details. 

project info:

architects: paul de vroom + sputnik 

team: paul de vroom, henk bultstra, bert karel deuten, rik de ruiter, oksana savchuk, danuta kiedrowska, nicolette jongebreur

collaborator: a-project

landscape design: sia florius

graphic design of parking garage: archetype

head contractor: krost, moscow

client: krost, moscow

address: wellton park, marshal zhukov ave., moscow

completion: december 2018

photography: ilya ivanov

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edited by: maria erman | designboom