Colossal Retail Complex Transforms Moscow’s Economic, Social and Sustainable Climate
Retail experts, The Jerde Partnership, who were responsible for the Mall of America and other global and iconic retail projects, recently, completed the highly anticipated $500 million dollar multi-functional complex. The US team completed the Kuntsevo Plaza just a few miles outside the bustling capital of Moscow. Spanning more than a city block, the complex includes retail, residential, public and office spaces, all intertwined to form a city within a city. Large and staggering in design, the project aims to change the economic, social and sustainable climate of Kuntsevo.
In an interview with Inhabitat magazine, David Rogers FAIA, Jerde Design Director, stated, “We designed Kuntsevo Plaza with the intention of bringing a renewed energy to Moscow- a city rich in culture and history- and a goal to breathe new life into it. There hasn’t been a development of this scale, program mix, or contemporary design style before in Russia.”
Locally sourced materials and the use of green roofs helped with the sustainability components of the project’s design, reducing construction and cooling costs. A three-dimensional translucent ceiling design allows a heavy flow of natural light to penetrate the interior, reducing heating costs in the winter and electricity costs year round. The project’s green roofs, sky bars and large Mediamesh display attract passersby and create significant and ongoing buzz around the plaza.
A 66 by 82-foot dome-shaped sculpture rises, like the formation of a tornado, from the ground floor, with spirals of entangled bronze and metal mesh. Within the 36-bronzed ribs, there are nearly 23,000 square feet of golden Mandarin GKD mesh, becoming the world’s largest woven metal sculpture. According to our European counterparts, the curved form of the ribs required 140 free-form cuts of the bronze metal fabric, whose contours were projected onto the mesh panels in 1:1 scale using a laser. Thanks to its flexibility, the texture flows and organically traces the lines of the three dimensional rib forms. Curved frames with clamping profiles were used to attach the materials.
information courtesy of Inhabitat
photography courtesy of The Jerde Partnership
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