Andrey Nikiforovich Voronikhin was born on October 17, 1759, in the Urals, in the village of Novoe Usolye, Solikamsky Uyezd, Perm Governorate, into the family of serf peasants belonging to the president of the Academy of Arts, Count A. S. Stroganov. The count’s estate housed several workshops, one of which—the icon-painting workshop of Gavrila Yushkov—was where Andrey Voronikhin studied. In 1777, among talented students, A. N. Voronikhin was sent to Moscow for further education. At first, he studied perspective and miniature painting, and later architecture under the guidance of architects V. I. Bazhenov and M. F. Kazakov. From 1779, A. N. Voronikhin lived in Saint Petersburg and was attached to the young Pavel Stroganov, the count’s son, with whom he later became friends. A. N. Voronikhin lived in the Stroganov Palace, where he not only worked on drawings and sketches but also witnessed the cultural life of the capital firsthand. In 1786, A. N. Voronikhin was granted freedom and set off on a long journey: he accompanied P. A. Stroganov first on a trip across Russia, and then abroad—to Germany, Switzerland, and France. Upon returning to Saint Petersburg, A. N. Voronikhin carried out a number of projects for Count Stroganov. Initially, he was entrusted with the reconstruction and remodeling of the Stroganov Palace, which had been damaged by fire. The budding architect brilliantly handled the task, delicately combining Rastrelli’s Baroque style with strict Classicism. In 1795–1796, A. N. Voronikhin worked on the reconstruction of the count’s dacha and the construction of a pier, the building of a small dacha for P. A. Stroganov, and the landscaping of the park between the Bolshaya Nevka and the Chyornaya River in Novaya Derevnya. In 1797, A. N. Voronikhin presented to the Academy of Arts the works “View of the Picture Gallery in the Stroganov Palace” and “View of the Stroganov Dacha,” for which he was awarded the title of academician of perspective and miniature painting. In 1800, for projects in the Peterhof Park, A. N. Voronikhin was confirmed by the Academy of Arts with the rank of architect, and in the same year began teaching (professor from 1802, senior professor of architecture and head of the architectural class from 1811). In 1799, by decree of Paul I, a competition was announced for the design of the Kazan Church on Nevsky Prospect in Saint Petersburg. The emperor wanted the church to resemble St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome—the shrine of the Catholic world. In 1800, Paul I approved A. N. Voronikhin’s project, although many renowned architects participated in the competition: P. Gonzago, Ch. Cameron, T. de Thomon, D. Quarenghi, N. A. Lvov. The laying of the cathedral took place on March 27, 1801. Construction lasted 10 years and was completed in 1811. The Cathedral of Our Lady of Kazan in Saint Petersburg became A. N. Voronikhin’s most famous project and one of the most original buildings in Russia. The desired resemblance to the cathedral in Rome was achieved by the architect through the semicircular colonnade that opens onto Nevsky Prospect. On the occasion of the church’s consecration, the architect was awarded the Order of St. Anna, 2nd class, and a lifelong pension. Simultaneously with the construction of the Kazan Cathedral, A. N. Voronikhin worked on an equally complex project—the building of the Mining Cadet Corps (now the Saint Petersburg Mining University). Since the building was to be located on the bank of the Neva, at the very entrance to the city from the sea, Emperor Alexander I set a grand task—the construction was to reflect the greatness of the Russian state. In his project, A. N. Voronikhin turned to his favorite Greek style. The architectural dominant of the building, whose construction lasted from 1806 to 1811, was a monumental 12-column Doric order portico. Andrey Nikiforovich Voronikhin worked extensively in the suburbs of Petersburg—Peterhof, Strelna, Gatchina, and Pavlovsk—where he created palace interiors and individual park structures, and was even the author of one of the fountains on Pulkovo Hill. He also worked on projects for St. Isaac’s Cathedral. In 1813, A. N. Voronikhin submitted his design for the Cathedral of Christ the Savior to the competition, which was planned to be built on the Vorobyovy Hills in Moscow in memory of those who died in the Patriotic War of 1812. His sketches of two unusual memorial structures are also interesting—triumphal gates and a column, which were supposed to be made from the barrels of cannons captured from the French. Andrey Nikiforovich Voronikhin suddenly passed away on February 21, 1814, in Petersburg and was buried in the Lazarevskoe Cemetery of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra. Later, a monument was erected on his grave, depicting the Kazan Cathedral crowned with the figure of the architect. A. N. Voronikhin trained talented students who continued the master’s work. His main masterpieces have survived in their original form and still adorn Petersburg. Some of his interiors and numerous projects have also been preserved. A. N. Voronikhin’s paintings are kept in the collections of the Academy of Arts, the Hermitage, and the Russian Museum.

Jermaine