New Holland is a small artificial island in the historic center of Saint Petersburg that covers a total area of 59000 square meters. It was formed in 1717 when contractor Kryukov constructed a new artificial Kryukov Canal that transverses Admiralty Canal and Moika River and connected to Neva River. New Holland was named so by Emperor Peter the Great himself. He spent several months working various trades incognito in Amsterdam in Holland. Saint Petersburg in general was designed as a large version of the city. And this artificial island in particular reminded him about Holland. He transferred this island to the newly formed Russian Admiralty and on 21 September 1721 New Holland became the first military port of Saint Petersburg and Russia. Initially it was used as a minor shipyard for construction of smaller rowing boats. In 1732 Admiralty ordered architect Ivan Korobkov to design a network of channels and a complex of warehouses to fit needs of the Navy.
New Holland - two man-made islands in the Neva delta. They arose as
a result of the fact that in 1719 two canals were dug between the
Neva and the Moika River for the needs of shipbuilders: Kryukov and
Admiralteisky. The legend ascribes the authorship of the modern name
to Peter I himself. It was the most suitable, since originally
“Holland” in St. Petersburg was called the place near the Admiralty,
where ship timber warehouses were arranged. After two canals were
dug, the warehouses were moved to the resulting island, and the
island itself was named "New Holland".
In 1732, the Admiralty
commissioned the architect Ivan Korobov to build a network of pools
and a number of warehouses along the perimeter of the island for the
needs of the shipbuilders of the Galley Shipyard. Most of the
territory of the island was built up with sheds, in which ship
scaffolding, tools and various devices for building and repairing
ships were stored. Over time, there was not enough space and it was
decided to carry out a comprehensive reconstruction of the island
with the replacement of all buildings with stone ones. The new
warehouse complex was based on the project of S. I. Chevakinsky. He
proposed the idea of drying wood not in stacks, but in a vertical
position, as has long been done in Holland. Thus, it was possible to
increase the storage capacity and avoid wood decay.
The
buildings were built of red brick and lacked the usual stucco finish
for that time. When construction on the previous project was stopped
in 1788, the French architect Jean-Baptiste Vallin-Delamote was
involved in the work. The facades were finished in accordance with
his project. He also came up with the idea of the famous arch thrown
over the canal connecting the inner basin ("Bucket") with the Moika
River. The New Holland Arch was built between 1779 and 1787. Its
height is 23 meters, and the width of the span is more than 8
meters. The architectural composition combines the image of an
ancient Roman triumphal arch, framed by powerful twin columns of the
Tuscan order and a likeness of a “palladium window” with segments of
entablature “inserted” into the opening of the arch. The power and
elegance of this structure at the same time makes a somewhat harsh,
but truly monumental impression.
In 1829, according to the
project of A.E. Staubert, on the western spit of the island, a
building of a sea prison, ring-shaped in plan, was built, which the
author called the prison tower, and was popularly called the
“bottle” (hence the expression “climb into the bottle”). Next to it,
in 1852, according to the project of a military engineer, lieutenant
colonel M. A. Pasypkin, a brick forge was built.
In 1894, an
experimental basin was built in New Holland, where at the beginning
of the 20th century the Russian shipbuilder A. N. Krylov, who worked
on the theory of ship unsinkability, conducted his experiments.
During the First World War, New Holland was equipped with the
most powerful radio station of the naval headquarters at that time
in Russia, which became famous, among other things, for the fact
that with its help in November 1917 the Bolsheviks waged an
information war with General P. I. Krasnov. In Soviet times, New
Holland was a closed zone; warehouses of the Leningrad Naval Base
were located on its territory.
At the beginning of the 21st
century, the complex consisted of several dozen objects, 11 of them
are monuments of federal significance.
In 2004, the rights to the island were transferred to
the administration of St. Petersburg, after which it announced a tender
for its reconstruction.
Until December 2004, the complex was
occupied by the services of the Baltic Fleet. On December 12, all
occupied military sites were handed over to the city, and the city
authorities announced that the New Holland Ensemble would be put up for
competition for the best architectural design and the best design for
the use of the premises of the complex.
On December 24, a fire
broke out in New Holland, which destroyed part of the buildings (about 3
thousand m² of warehouses burned out). The fire caused serious damage to
the historic island: most of the buildings of New Holland fell into a
deplorable state. It was stated that the investor would be allowed to
demolish the late 19th century buildings as they were of little value.
Even before the announcement of the competition, the authorities
expressed a number of mandatory conditions for applicants:
Creation of a public and business multifunctional complex on the
territory of the island, including the Palace of Festivals with an area
of at least 10 thousand m².
Participation in the team of an architect
who is included in the World Architecture 300 Survey and has experience
in working with architectural monuments.
The opportunity to take part in the reconstruction of
New Holland attracted many famous architects: Eric Van Egeraat, Norman
Foster, Michael Zimmerman. The announced competition was won by the
project of the British architect Foster, which provides for the creation
of commercial and business areas on the island, as well as the
construction of a public and business complex, which includes the Palace
of Festivals. In March 2007, this project won first prize in the
Commercial and Leisure Property category at the MIPIM real estate
exhibition in Cannes. For the first time in this competition in 17 years
of its existence, a project intended for Russia won. However, due to
financial difficulties, Foster's project was not implemented.
Foster's project was supposed to be implemented by ST New Holland LLC,
owned by Shalva Chigirinsky, but it ran into difficulties. In September
2008, it became known that the cost and timing of the project had
doubled, in July 2009 the project was frozen due to the arrest of
Chigirinsky's accounts, and in February 2010 Foster's project was
recognized as unrealistic and sent for revision to the Mosproekt- 2" im.
M. V. Posokhin.
In October 2010, a new competition was announced for
the reconstruction of the island, which was won by New Holland
Development LLC, part of the Millhouse LLC group of companies and owned
by Roman Abramovich. According to the terms of the tender won, the
company had to invest 12 billion rubles in the reconstruction of the
island over 7 years. In the spring of 2011, New Holland Development LLC,
together with the Iris Foundation and The Architecture Foundation,
announced the launch of a competition for architectural projects for the
island. The competition included several conditions for architects:
create a multifunctional cultural and commercial complex;
develop an
idea for the future role of the island in the urban environment of St.
Petersburg;
fill the project with all kinds of dynamic programs, a
serious cultural component, include the hotel, cultural and
entertainment sectors, as well as retail trade in the project;
take
into account when developing the connection of the program with the
existing cultural infrastructure of St. Petersburg;
develop a project
for various target audiences, including St. Petersburg residents,
travelers, entrepreneurs, etc.;
use the water environment of the
island in the project;
think over transport and pedestrian logistics,
communication between the city and the island;
create a creative
concept for the conservation of the rich architectural heritage of the
island within the framework of the project being developed;
include
space for exhibitions of contemporary art in the project.
The
shortlist included four architectural firms: Studio 44 by Nikita Yavein,
David Chipperfield Architects (England), MVRDV (Netherlands) and WorkAC
(USA). The WORKac bureau won the competition. The master plan envisaged
the creation of a "city within a city" with the maximum preservation of
the historical development of the island, the creation of a public park
in its center, and the use of the remaining buildings as museums,
offices, galleries, residences and commercial areas.
In 2014,
based on the WorkAC master plan, the Dutch landscape design company West
8 developed a project for the restoration and reorganization of the
island
The main points of the first stage of the restoration
and reorganization of the New Holland Island, which was developed by the
Dutch company West 8, were:
organization, improvement and landscaping
of the park in the inner space of the island;
restoration and
adaptation for modern use of the buildings "Forge", "Bottle" and "House
of the Commandant";
restoration and improvement of the embankments of
the Admiralteisky Canal and the inner waters of the Kovsha Island;
work on laying engineering and technical support networks for the
island;
works on architectural illumination of the park and restored
buildings;
arrangement of a playground;
creation of a herbal
garden near the building of the Forge;
placement of temporary
pavilions and solutions for holding events of the cultural program and
the necessary functions of the park.
According to the terms of
the investment agreement, the restoration and reconstruction should be
completed in 2025. Simultaneously with the work, part of the island is
open to visitors as a public space.
On July 16, 2011, for the first time in nearly 300
years, New Holland opened to the public. All historical buildings at
that time were under reconstruction. A 5,000 m2 natural lawn was laid
for visitors, and several sea containers housed shops, cafes, a gallery
with a project by designer Gosha Rubchinsky, and a sports equipment
rental point. In addition, table tennis tables, volleyball and petanque
courts, folding deck chairs, and a concrete "pit" for making a fire were
in the public domain. The first summer season closed on October 2, and
147,000 people visited the island in two and a half months.
In
the same format, the island was opened to visitors in the summer of 2012
and 2013. During these years, an open stage, a skate pool, a bike trial
and parkour area, a weekend market, a food court, a coworking space, a
bookstore appeared on the territory, concerts, sports tournaments,
exhibitions, children's camps and other events were held. In 2012,
237,000 people visited New Holland.
From 2013 to 2016 the island
was closed to visitors. At this time, large-scale work was carried out
to reorganize the island. During this time, engineering and technical
networks were laid, a linden alley was planted, the embankments of the
Admiralty Canal and the Bucket were restored, lawns and a grass garden
were planted, a playground in the shape of a ship was built, temporary
park structures were installed (a stage, a pavilion for exhibitions and
lectures, an information center, kiosks for the sale of food and
drinks), underground toilets are equipped, paths are laid, restoration
of historical buildings has begun. After the completion of the
landscaping work, the island's park became available to visitors from
August 27, 2016.
In December 2016, after restoration, the
building of the former forge was opened, which housed a restaurant, in
April 2017 - the former house of the prison commandant (the center for
additional education for children "Mayak" began to work in it), and in
July 2017 - the building of the former naval prison (“Bottle”), on three
floors of which there are cafes, shops, sports studios and beauty
salons. In 2020, it is planned to open the 12th building of timber
warehouses, facing the Truda Square and the Kryukov Canal.
In
addition to the park, the island functions as a concert, educational and
film venue. Concerts, film festivals, lectures, sports activities,
children's events, theater performances, exhibitions, master classes and
other events are held annually on the territory of New Holland. Every
year, several art objects of Russian and foreign artists are placed on
the island.
In the process of preparing the territory in
August-September 2006, numerous buildings that were not architectural
monuments were demolished so that investors could build in the vacated
“lacuna”. The demolition of buildings caused controversy, since some of
them were of historical interest: the Krylovsky experimental pool, the
laboratory in which D. I. Mendeleev worked, and the radio station
equipped during the First World War, which played an important role in
the information war that was waged in October 1917 the Bolsheviks with
General P. N. Krasnov.
The position of the Committee for State
Control, Use and Protection of Historical and Cultural Monuments of St.
Petersburg (KGIOP) was voiced by Boris Matveev: “We freed the
Chevakinsky ensemble from later buildings that did not correspond to it
in any way, cleared the territory of unnecessary buildings, leaving the
main thing, this is our St. Petersburg approach ".
According to
Mikhail Milchik, under whose leadership specialists from the
Spetsproektrestavratsiya Institute conducted an examination for KGIOP in
2005, the examination proposed not to demolish the Mendeleev laboratory,
the experimental pool workshop, the radio station building, and also to
make the Commandant's House and the round prison in terms of protected
objects: a prison , in particular, "being a later construction, fit into
the ensemble."
The demolition of historic buildings has been
celebrated by international organizations. So, Lord Norwich from the
English office of the World Monuments Fund (English) Russian. in his
statement he noted: “It is very regrettable that the radio station from
where the Bolsheviks announced their victory in 1917 and the laboratory
of Dmitry Mendeleev were recently destroyed. We support initiatives to
create new buildings in St. Petersburg, but emphasize that this city
must preserve its uniqueness if it wants to remain the city we know it
to be.”
The project of stone warehouses intended for the
storage of shipbuilding materials and tools was developed by J. B.
Vallin-Delamot. Rumor has it that the chief manager of the construction
of warehouses, John Gerard, lost the architect's project at the
beginning of work. Not wanting to admit to the loss, Gerard allegedly
began to build from memory, and succeeded: after examining the finished
buildings, Wallen-Delamot had no complaints. In another version of the
anecdote, a copy of Chevakinsky's drawings was found in the college, and
Gerard had to finish these drawings. Gerard's drawings were approved in
the spring of 1767.
At the beginning of the 19th century, thanks to
the resettlement of shipbuilders from St. Petersburg, a place called
Holland appeared in Sevastopol.
In 2014, as part of the New Holland
Development project, a concept was proposed to protect visitors from the
bad weather in St. Petersburg. The authors proposed to close the
courtyard with a glass roof.