Not a Tower, Not a Pipe: How Mельников's House Is Preparing to Surprise Guests After Restoration

In the very center of Moscow lies an architectural pearl that has kept passersby stopping and looking puzzled at this strange structure for over a century. Two intertwining cylinders with window-sheets look like movie decorations — and this is in the midst of historic Arbat. Konstantin Mельников's house, the dream of one genius architect, is undergoing a grand restoration that should finish by the end of 2025. But are we ready for what we'll see inside?

Main points from the article:

• The restoration of Mельников's house will last until the end of 2025 — this is the first scientific restoration in its entire history;
• The bedroom was entirely golden: walls, ceiling and even bedding created the effect of 'floating in a golden air';
• The building has no right angles at all, and 60 hexagonal windows provide shadowless lighting;
• Mельников created a 'sleep laboratory' — an experimental bedroom for ideal rest;
• The building was constructed as a model of future communal houses but became unique in its kind.

An architectural revolution that began with a dream

The story of the house started in 1916, when young student Konstantin Mельников dreamed of his own studio. The first sketches showed a traditional mansion with classical forms — nothing could have predicted an architectural revolution. But by the 1920s, mysterious circular plans appeared in his drafts. The architect knew: a regular house wouldn't do.

It consists of two vertically aligned cylinders of the same diameter, inserted into each other by a third of their radius — this unusual shape became the final project. Mельников acted as both client, architect and builder, bringing his boldest ideas to life.

Interestingly, the idea of a cylindrical form came from failure. Mельников proposed such a structure for the Zuev Club, but the project was rejected. The architect decided not to discard his brilliant idea and used it for his own house.

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"Equality of tension, light, air and heat"

Mельников believed that the main feature of the house was achieved through "the equality and uniformity of tension, light, air and heat." On a plot just 18 by 32 meters, the architect created a house without any right angles — neither inside nor outside.

The genius of the structure still amazes. The walls are built from red brick with a special patterned masonry, shifted along the wall every other course and across the wall every two rows. As a result, about 200 hexagonal openings were formed on the outer walls — around 60 of these remained as windows and niches, while others were built-in during construction.

But the most amazing part is the floor slabs. Forget traditional beams and rafters. The interfloor structure was made from wooden tongue-and-groove laid on edge. The floor boards form a grid intersecting at right angles, allowing the floor to be constructed without beams or columns.

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The Golden Bedroom and Other Experiments with Life

The most mysterious room of the house was the bedroom. The bedroom in Mельников's house was shared by all family members. There were no wardrobes or any other furniture, except for built-in three beds — a double bed for parents and single beds for son and daughter.

But that's not all. According to recollections, it was originally entirely golden — walls, floor and ceiling were painted gold, as well as the bedding. The family described a wonderful feeling of 'floating in dense golden air' in the mornings.

Mельников created a true 'sleep laboratory'. The bed pedestals, growing out of the floor and forming part of the seamless interior with rounded corners, were made from plastered boards and finished with a golden material on top. The architect believed that properly organized space affects the quality of rest.

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The Studio Where Shadows Don't Fall

In Mельников's studio, 36 window-sheets prevented the formation of shadows. This was a real breakthrough for an artistic studio — uniform lighting throughout the day without abrupt transitions between light and shadow.

The guest hall is equipped with a window-screen, the studio — 38 hexagonal openings forming an ornamental pattern. Each window was carefully planned: size, placement and angle of light fall.

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The House That Cost a Career

The paradox of Mельников's fate is that his most famous creation became the cause of professional downfall. In the 1930s, avant-garde architecture fell out of favor. From 1930 to 1950, Mельников was ostracized and all his buildings, especially his house, were sharply criticized.

Critics called the house a 'bourgeois excess', a 'formalist experiment'. But time put everything in its place. Today, Mельников's house is recognized as a masterpiece of world significance and a pilgrimage site for architects from all over the world.

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Restoration as a Detective Story

The restoration of Mельников's House, which began in December 2023, is planned to be completed by the end of 2025. But this isn't just a repair — it's truly an archaeological expedition. During research, they tried to understand what was preserved in its original state and untouched versus what appeared during renovations and restorations of the 1970s and 1990s.

Experts found that the genetic defects of Mельников's House were linked to its experimental nature. Mельников was a pioneer — he created something no one had done before. Some technical solutions were controversial, but that's what makes the house unique.

The House That Anticipated the Future

This house was meant to be a model for future communal houses. Mельников dreamed of modular construction: in his archives there is a project of the same house but with three cylinders — this was a module on which he planned to build entire settlements.

Imagine: whole districts of intertwining cylinders with window-sheets. Moscow could have looked completely different. But history had it otherwise — Mельников's house remained the only unique experiment.

What Awaits Visitors After Restoration

Museum representatives promise that after the restoration is completed, the historical interior will be restored, panels with copies of the architect's works will be added, and information boards explaining the building’s history will be installed in the courtyard. An audio guide for visitors of the garden will also be created.

Extensive works affected both the exterior and interior of the building, including restoration of original masonry, window frames and even chimneys. Restorers recreate not only the architecture but also the atmosphere — the historical color palette of interiors, landscape design of the garden.

Mельников's House is not just an architecture museum. It's a time machine that will transport you to the era when people believed that correctly designed space could change life for the better. Mельников created his dream house — and gave the world a lesson in courage. Sometimes to build the future, you must abandon all rules of the past.

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