ARCHITECTS from Russia

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Russian Architects of all time. This list of famous Russian Architects is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Russian Architects.

1. Bruno Taut (1880 - 1938)

With an HPI of 64.44, Bruno Taut is the most famous Russian Architect.  His biography has been translated into 38 different languages on wikipedia.

Bruno Julius Florian Taut (4 May 1880 – 24 December 1938) was a renowned German architect, urban planner and author of Prussian Lithuanian heritage ("taut" means "nation" in Lithuanian). He was active during the Weimar period and is known for his theoretical works as well as his building designs.

2. Lev Rudnev (1885 - 1956)

With an HPI of 56.28, Lev Rudnev is the 2nd most famous Russian Architect.  His biography has been translated into 25 different languages.

Lev Vladimirovich Rudnev (Russian: Лев Владимирович Ру́днев; 13 March [O.S. 1 March] 1885 – 19 November 1956) was a Soviet architect, and a leading practitioner of Stalinist architecture.

3. Alexander Tamanian (1878 - 1936)

With an HPI of 55.78, Alexander Tamanian is the 3rd most famous Russian Architect.  His biography has been translated into 29 different languages.

Alexander Tamanian (Armenian: Ալեքսանդր Թամանյան; March 4, 1878 – February 20, 1936) was a Russian-born Armenian neoclassical architect, well known for his work in the city of Yerevan.

4. Konstantin Melnikov (1890 - 1974)

With an HPI of 55.27, Konstantin Melnikov is the 4th most famous Russian Architect.  His biography has been translated into 25 different languages.

Konstantin Stepanovich Melnikov (Russian: Константин Степанович Мельников; August 3 [O.S. July 22] 1890 – November 28, 1974) was a Russian architect and painter. His architectural work, compressed into a single decade (1923–33), placed Melnikov on the front end of 1920s avant-garde architecture. Although associated with the Constructivists, Melnikov was an independent artist, not bound by the rules of a particular style or artistic group. In the 1930s, Melnikov refused to conform with the rising Stalinist architecture, withdrew from practice and worked as a portraitist and teacher until the end of his life.

5. Konstantin Thon (1794 - 1881)

With an HPI of 52.59, Konstantin Thon is the 5th most famous Russian Architect.  His biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Konstantin Andreyevich Thon, also spelled Ton (Russian: Константи́н Андре́евич Тон; October 26, 1794 – January 25, 1881) was an official architect of Imperial Russia during the reign of Nicholas I. His major works include the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, the Grand Kremlin Palace and the Kremlin Armoury in Moscow.

6. Joseph Bové (1784 - 1834)

With an HPI of 50.09, Joseph Bové is the 6th most famous Russian Architect.  His biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Joseph Bové, also Joseph Jean-Baptiste Charles de Beauvais or Osip Ivanovich Bove (Russian: Осип Иванович Бове; 4 November [O.S. 24 October] 1784 — 28 June [O.S. 16 June] 1834), was an Italian-Russian neoclassical architect who supervised the reconstruction of Moscow after the Fire of 1812.

7. Alexander Kokorinov (1726 - 1772)

With an HPI of 49.71, Alexander Kokorinov is the 7th most famous Russian Architect.  His biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Alexander Filippovich Kokorinov (Russian: Александр Филиппович Кокоринов; 10 July 1726 – 21 March 1772) was a Russian architect and educator of Siberian origin, generally remembered for his role in establishing the Imperial Academy of Arts in Saint Peterburg, of which he was the official builder and then administrator from 1758 until his death. Kokorinov has been house architect of the Razumovsky family and Ivan Shuvalov, the founding president of the Academy. Kokorinov's surviving architectural legacy, once believed to be substantial, has been reduced by recent research to only two buildings, the Imperial Academy of Arts and Kirill Razumovsky palace in Saint Petersburg. The Academy was designed by Jean-Baptiste Vallin de la Mothe based on an earlier proposal by Jacques-François Blondel, while Kokorinov managed the construction in its early phases (1764–1772).

8. Vasily Stasov (1769 - 1848)

With an HPI of 49.04, Vasily Stasov is the 8th most famous Russian Architect.  His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Duke Vasily Petrovich Stasov (Russian: Васи́лий Петро́вич Ста́сов; 4 August 1769 – 5 September 1848) was a famous Russian architect, born into a wealthy noble family: his father, Pyotr Fyodorovich Stasov, came from one of the oldest aristocratic families founded in 1387 by the 1st Duke Stasov Dmitri Vasilevich and his mother, Anna Antipyevna, came from the prominent Priklonsky family

9. Andrey Voronikhin (1759 - 1814)

With an HPI of 48.73, Andrey Voronikhin is the 9th most famous Russian Architect.  His biography has been translated into 21 different languages.

Andrey (Andrei) Nikiforovich Voronikhin (Russian: Андрей Никифорович Воронихин; 28 October 1759, Novoe Usolye, Perm Oblast – 21 February 1814, Saint Petersburg) was a Russian architect and painter. As a representative of classicism he was also one of the founders of the monumental Russian Empire style. Born a serf of the Stroganov family, he is best known for his work on Kazan Cathedral in Saint Petersburg. Andrey Voronikhin was born in the village of Novoa Usolye (now Perm Krai) to a family who were the serfs of count Alexander Sergeyevich Stroganov, a longtime President of the Imperial Academy of Arts. It is generally believed that he was fathered by Alexander Stroganov. Voronikhin trained in painting in the workshop of Ural icon painter Gabriel Yushkov. The talents of his youth attracted Stroganov's attention, and in 1777 the count sent Voronikhin to study in Moscow. Among his teachers were Vasili Ivanovich Bazhenov and Matvey Fyodorovich Kazakov. After 1779 Voronikhin worked in Saint Petersburg. In 1785, Voronikhin was liberated. From 1786 through 1790 he studied architecture, mechanics and mathematics in France and Switzerland. In 1797, the artist obtained the academic title of «перспективной живописи» from the Academy of Fine Arts for the pictures «Вид картинной галереи в Строгановском дворце» (1793, Hermitage) and «Вид Строгановской дачи» (1797, Russian museum, Saint Petersburg). From the beginning of the 19th century he taught at the Academy of Fine Arts. The earliest architecture of Voronikhin includes finishing the interiors of Stroganov Palace (1793). The magnificent baroque forms, proposed by Rastrelli, were replaced by Voronikhin with a strict classical order, characterized by simplicity and refinement. Furthermore, he reconstructed the interiors of the Stroganov Dacha on the Black River (1795 - 1796), and also built estates in Gorodnya (1798). The main creation of Voronikhin was Kazan Cathedral in Saint Petersburg. The construction began on 27 March 1801, and work was finished in 1811. On the occasion of renovating the temple, Voronikhin was granted a pension and the order of St. Anna of the second degree. A number of other works of Voronikhin were the house of the Department of the Treasury, the building of the Saint Petersburg Mining Institute, the colonnade of the Peterhof, and palaces in Strelna, Gatchina and Pavlovsk. The architect died on 5 March 1814 in Saint Petersburg. Voronikhin's nephew, Nikolay Ilyich Voronikhin, was an architect based in Ryazan. He inherited Andrey Voronikhin's archive; Ascension Cathedral in Kasimov (photo) by Nikolay Voronikhin is remotely based on Andrey Voronikhin's unrealized draft for Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow.

10. Vasily Bazhenov (1737 - 1799)

With an HPI of 48.62, Vasily Bazhenov is the 10th most famous Russian Architect.  His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Vasily Ivanovich Bazhenov (Russian: Васи́лий Ива́нович Баже́нов; 1 March (N.S. 12) 1737 or 1738 – 2 August (N.S. 13) 1799) was a Russian neoclassical architect, graphic artist, architectural theorist and educator. Bazhenov and his associates Matvey Kazakov and Ivan Starov were the leading local architects of the Russian Enlightenment, a period dominated by foreign architects (Charles Cameron, Giacomo Quarenghi, Antonio Rinaldi and others). According to Dmitry Shvidkovsky, in the 1770s Bazhenov became the first Russian architect to create a national architectural language since the 17th century tradition interrupted by Peter I of Russia. Bazhenov's early success was followed by a tragic professional and private life. His two main construction projects were abandoned for political or financial reasons. His magnum opus, the neoclassical Grand Kremlin Palace, was cancelled shortly after groundbreaking. The imperial palace in Tsaritsyno Park fell victim to the Battle of the Palaces; Bazhenov's palace core was demolished on the orders of Catherine II. Another project, for the Moscow State University building, ended in a bitter conflict with Bazhenov's former benefactor Prokofi Demidov and led Bazhenov into bankruptcy. Before his death, Bazhenov implored his children to stay aside from the treacherous construction business. Bazhenov's legacy remains debated. The attributions of Pashkov House and lesser projects to Bazhenov, backed by a sketchy paper trail, deductions and conjectures, are uncertain to the point where his life and work became subject of conspiracy theories. Even his place of birth and the location of Bazhenov's grave are unknown. His life story, as reconstructed by Igor Grabar and popularized by the historians of the Soviet period, is regarded by modern critics as the "Bazhenov myth", and even most recent academic research fails to replace this myth with a reliable biography.