Sadovaya St., 21a, Saint Petersburg, Russia, 191023
The Art Nouveau building on the corner of Sadovaya Street and Bankovsky Lane draws attention with its unusual architectural appearance, reminiscent of the grand European trading houses of the early 20th century. In fact, this was the office of Eduard Novitsky’s rubber and metal stamping factory.
The first building on this site has been known since the late 18th century — judging by the style, it was a trading arcade, of which there were many in this part of the city. In the 19th century, the building was rebuilt several times, and finally, in 1903–1904, it acquired its current appearance. The house, built according to the project of architect Vasily Vasilyevich Shauba, housed the office of Novitsky’s factory. This building on Sadovaya had existed since the late 18th century, but its present look was shaped in 1903–1904, when architect Wilhelm Johann Christian, known in Russian as Vasily Vasilyevich Shauba, undertook its reconstruction. He endowed the house with all the characteristic elements of Art Nouveau, putting a piece of his soul into it. Thus, the facade of the building became immersed in elegant ornaments and sculptural compositions; the main features that attract the eye of literally every passerby appeared — display balconies. The building was crowned with a pointed turret, which found its place in the history of the 1917 revolution (it served as a firing position for cadets and monarchist officers).
One might think that such a lavish reconstruction was commissioned by some wealthy snob for a gallery or store, but in reality, it housed the head office of Novitsky’s artistic metal casting and mechanical plant. The building’s appearance today was distinguished by a large sign crowning the facade, and on the firewall there was a large-scale advertising mural telling about Novitsky’s production. At the end of the century, the building changed owners — the mechanical plant’s office was replaced by the knitwear association “Nika.”
During the Perestroika period, the structure began to deteriorate, and no funds were allocated for its restoration. It was deemed useful to board up the windows and not delve into details. By 1997, the building at the intersection of Sadovaya and Bankovsky looked quite dismal (the stucco had fallen off, bricks were missing in places), but a tenant was found. It was the company “Irina-Lyuks.” The new owners were given a serious condition — they were offered to carry out restoration work. In fact, this fact did not scare the company at all. Thus began the restoration of the house at 21A Sadovaya Street. It lasted four years: during this time, the restorers managed to perform a miracle and revive the building; if you compare photographs from 100 years ago and today’s appearance, the differences are practically imperceptible.
Alas, today there is no longer a bridal salon here; the building was bought by a bookmaker company.
https://vince-crane.livejournal.com/1118513.html
https://www.citywalls.ru/house1409.html
https://www.fiesta.ru/spb/places/kontora-zavoda-novitskogo-ili-volshebnyy-zamok-platiev/
