Round table
Students of the Department of Landscape Architecture of the St Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Ulyana Motorina and Alina Leonti, took part in a round table on the improvement of public spaces on the Solovetsky Islands.
The meeting took place on 19 August in the village of Solovetsky as part of the annual Solovetsky Orthodox Forum in Memory of St. Philip. The roundtable was organized by the Directorate of the Solovetsky Archipelago. Representatives of the Solovetsky Monastery's Restoration and Capital Repairs Department, the Foundation for the Development and Preservation of the Solovetsky Archipelago, the local administration, and village residents participated in the discussion.
Ulyana Motorina and Alina Leonti won the open architectural competition for the design of a retail space on Solovki Island, organized by the Directorate of the Solovetsky Archipelago last spring. Thanks to their victory, the students were able to visit Solovki Island and explore the area in person, having previously studied it remotely.
During the roundtable, participants discussed the students' competition entry and the future development of public spaces. Those present paid particular attention to the distinctive features of Solovki's landscape. Specifically, experts recommended eliminating certain hardscape elements to minimize undesirable associations with the history of the Solovetsky Special Purpose Camp.
According to the students, working on the project required deep immersion in the unique features of the area, as they worked remotely during the competition phase. The trip to Solovki allowed them to gain new impressions and draw additional conclusions for further work on the design project.
When finalizing the project, it is planned to take into account the terrain features, existing landscaping and tree preservation at the planned sites, as well as recommendations made by roundtable participants.
Ulyana Motorina and Alina Leonti will continue working on the retail space improvement project. They are expected to participate in its implementation.
The meeting on Solovki became the first platform for open discussion of the future of the village's public spaces, with the participation of restoration and architecture specialists, local administration representatives, residents, and young architects.
