Arkady Mordvinov

Arkady Grigoryevich Mordvinov (Russian: Аркадий Григорьевич Мордвинов; born Mordvishev (Мордвишев), January 27, 1896 – July 23, 1964) was a Soviet architect and construction manager, notable for Stalinist architecture of Tverskaya Street, Leninsky Avenue, Hotel Ukraina skyscraper in Moscow and his administrative role in Soviet construction industry and architecture.

Mordvinov was born in the village of Zhuravlikha in Nizhny Novgorod Governorate of the Russian Empire. Mordvinov's early work, prior to his graduation from Moscow State Technical University (MVTU) in 1930, is definitely Constructivist, best seen in his Kharkiv Post Office of the late 1920s.

In 1929-1932, Mordvinov, Karo Alabyan and Alexander Vlasov were the founding members of VOPRA, a group of young 'Proletarian Architects' who attacked proponents of the Constructivist movement, notably Ivan Leonidov, and all other "alien art" like eclectics, formalism and even baroque: "There is no class-free art, neither class-free architecture" ("Бесклассового искусства у нас нет и бесклассовой архитектуры тоже нет" - Khan-Magomedov cites Mordvinov's March, 1928 speech). Mordvinov was also a vocal opponent of Le Corbusier's Tsentrosoyuz building. VOPRA was used by the state against free-minded modernist architects and to consolidate the profession under tight state control. VOPRA founders had no clear creative concept beyond these rhetorics, and could not be criticised for their art, since it never existed. They definitely understood the likely consequences of their political assaults and had no remorse for their victims (the age of show trials already began with Shakhty Trial and Industrial Party Trial).

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