Renzo Piano turned the building of a Moscow power station into an art center

One of the best-known high-tech architects, Renzo Piano, converted a former power station into a contemporary art center called GES-2 House of Culture for the V-A-C Foundation.

The power station, designed by Vasili Bashkirov in 1907, originally powered the city’s tram system. The conversion of the building is the first project in Russia of the Renzo Piano Building Workshop. During the design, the studio sought to clean the building of the architectural elements recently added, however, they themselves replaced the original brick chimney with blue steel chimneys. The accentuated choice of colors highlights the building from its surroundings, while recalling Piano’s former high-tech buildings, such as the Centre Pompidou in Paris. The interior of the hall is spectacular with the white steel structure.

The GES-2 opened in early December 2021, and its exhibitions will cover the evolution of Russian culture over the past three decades.

Photos: Michel Denancé
Source: Dezeen

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