An outdoor cinema: Gorky Park Moscow by Wowhaus Architecture Bureau.

Photos: Ilya Ivanov.

Set in Moscow's famous Gorky Park, the complex was conceived as a typical cinema stripped of all superfluous detail. So when Wowhaus Architecture Bureau designed this summer screening complex, their aim was to capture, as simply as possible, the spirit of a balmy summer's day, recalling perhaps a classical Greek Amphitheatre.

Like the classical amphitheatre, the space can be used round the clock for diverse functions from yoga to public lectures. The screen itself is arranged like a rack of shelves which is covered on one side for projections that are staged during the hours of darkness. From behind, it becomes a landscape device with potted shrubbery. The entrance is resolved as a set of vertical fins that people can walk between. From an oblique angle, it is opaque, but transparent when seen straight on. The “walls” are the surrounding trees.

The bleacher seating is staggered to a small degree to prevent unnecessary uniformity in appearance, whilst the space under the seating structure is shady and suitable for other ancillary uses.

Christopher C. Hill.

Gratitude to Arch Daily.