Fokin Palace

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Fokin Palace

Фокинский дворец
Restoration of the Palace
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Established
Official opening
Official closure
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Coordinates	53.212758°N 34.417527°E / 53.212758; 34.417527 Fatal error: The format of the coordinate could not be determined. Parsing failed.
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Heritage designation
Named after
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Has part
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Website	dkzd32.ru
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Fokin Palace (also known as the Palace of Culture of Railway Workers) - is a prominent cultural center and architectural landmark located in the Fokinsky district of Bryansk. It serves as one of the city's main venues for cultural events. It is centrally located and serves as the main architectural feature of the surrounding Fokin Plaza ensemble.

History

Origins and Construction

The Palace's history dates back to 1894, when the local cultural leisure center was a church and parish school, known among residents as the "Tserkovka" (School of Little Church).

The modern Palace building was constructed between 1947 and 1955, designed by Yakov Abramovich Kornfeld, a corresponding member of the Academy of Architecture Russia. He developed the façade design sketch in 1949. The Palace plan also included provisions for a dedicated Palace Park.

Railway Management Era

After the completion of the Palace and the Park, they were transferred to the Moscow Railway System. Consequently, the Palace was named the District Palace of Culture of Railway Workers at the Bryansk-2 station, and the park became the Railway Workers’ Park of Culture and Leisure.

The first stage of reconstruction for the park and the Palace took place in the 1970s. In the 1990s, a children’s town and a play area were installed.

Transfer to the City

On April 1, 1999, the Palace was transferred to the balance sheet of the State Russian Institution "Palace of Culture of Railway Workers of the Moscow Railway in Bryansk".

In the early 2000s, the park ownership was transferred from Russian Railways (RZD) to the city of Bryansk.

In December 2020, by the decision of the Board of Directors of JSC "RZD," the Fokin Palace building was also transferred to the ownership of Bryansk free of charge.

In 2021, the State Institution was renamed the Municipal Budgetary Cultural Institution "City Palace of Culture of Railway Workers" of Bryansk.

Recent Restoration

A major restoration of the building took place between 2022 and 2024. The Palace gained new architectural elements made from Ural marble, with slabs of various shapes and sizes used to clad the steps, entrance groups, and the building's socle (base/plinth).

Naming

The Palace building was named identically after the memorial status of the district where it is located in Bryansk. The district, along with the adjacent boulevard, square, and public garden, was named in honor of Ignaty Ivanovich Fokin.

Fokin was a prominent revolutionary figure, known for his activities in the Bryansk region, where he served as a key official, including being in 1918 was stend like the first Chairman of the Bryansk Uyezd(county town) Executive Committee (a high-ranking administrative post in the early Soviet government).

Architecture

The Fokin Palace is a four-story building with a volume of 37,000 cubic meters(4199884.8 pk), constructed in the Neoclassical architectural style.

The original design for the main facade included a two-story colonnade with open staircases, balconies, and either acroteria or niches flanking the main entrance group. However, these latter elements had to be abandoned during construction.

The construction cost was reported to be over 6 million rubles.

The Palace features several halls:

• Main Auditorium: Seating 480 people;
• Small Auditorium: Seating 280 people;
• Gymnasium (Sports Hall): Capacity for 100 people;
• Reception Hall: Capacity for 150 people, intended for official receptions and ceremonies.

The Palace’s North façade is accented by an arch that frames the stage of an open-air summer stage (estrade) with seating for 700 spectators.

Over the years, the Palace has hosted a wide range of events, including official assemblies, concerts, theatrical performances, themed evenings, festivals, reviews, competitions, sports championships, and more.

Performing Groups (Troupes)

The Palace is home to numerous cultural and artistic groups, divided into established and newer ensembles:

Main/Established Ensembles

• Cossack Song Ensemble "Volnitsa" (or "Volnitsa" Cossack Song Ensemble)
• Veterans' Choir
• "Image" Dance Theater

New and Developing Ensembles

• Cossack Choir
• Sports Dance School
• Exemplary Folklore Studio "Zaryanka" (The name "Zaryanka" can be translated or kept as a proper noun)
• Children's Folklore Ensemble "Zadorinki" (The name "Zadorinki" can be translated or kept as a proper noun)
• "Kapelki" Ballroom Dance Sports Club (Kapelki means "Droplets")
• Circus Studio
• "New Wave" Youth Studio of Contemporary Art
• "Alliance" Show Group
• "Erudit" Early Development School (Erudit means "Erudite" or "Learned Person")
• Workshop of Decorative and Applied Arts (or Arts and Crafts Workshop)

Festivals

On April 18, 2023, the Palace hosted the 31st International Festival of Contemporary Art named after Nikolai Roslavets and Naum Gabo.

References

• Shavyrin, B. "Bryansky Rabochy." Bryansky Rabochy (Newspaper), October 5, 1948, no. 198.
• Druzhinina-Georgievskaya, E. V., and Kornfeld, Ya. A. Zodchiy A. V. Shchusev [Architect A. V. Shchusev]. Moscow: Izdatel’stvo AN SSSR, 1955.
• Bykov, V. E., Domshlak, I. P., and Kornfeld, Ya. A. Arkhitektura rabochikh klubov i dvortsov kul’tury [Architecture of Workers' Clubs and Palaces of Culture]. Moscow: Gosstroyizdat, 1953. 311 p.
• Berkovich, Gary. Reclaiming a History. Jewish Architects in Imperial Russia and the USSR. Vol. 2. Soviet Avant-garde: 1917–1933. Weimar und Rostock: Grunberg Verlag, 2021. P. 38. ISBN 978-3-933713-63-6.
• Shmidt, S. O. (ed.) Moskovskaya entsiklopediya [Moscow Encyclopedia]. Vol. 1, Book 2. Moscow: “Moskovskiye entsiklopedii,” 2008. 639 p. P. 258. ISBN 978-5-903633-02-9.
• Khan-Magomedov, S. O. Arkhitektura sovetskogo avangarda: Kn. 1. Problemy formoobrazovaniya. Mastera i techeniya [Architecture of the Soviet Avant-garde: Book 1. Problems of Form Generation. Masters and Trends]. Moscow: Stroyizdat, 1996. 709 p. ISBN 5-274-02045-3.
• Shcherbakov, V. V., Bykov, V. E., Belilin, G. K., and Khazanov, D. B. Arkhitektura kinoteatrov [Architecture of Cinemas]. Edited by V. E. Bykov. Moscow: Gosstroyizdat, 1955. 166 p.
• Sokolov, Ya. D. "Ulitsa, ulitsa ty moya…" [Street, My Street…]. In: Bryansk—gorod drevniy: [istoriko—krayevedcheskiye ocherki] [Bryansk—An Ancient City: [Historical and Local Lore Essays]]. Bryansk: Chitay-gorod, 2006. pp. 251–256.
• Solovyev, Yu., and Rebrova, Yu. "Tsentr Bryanska" [The Center of Bryansk]. In: Staryy gorod i novyy Bryansk: [ocherki o tysyacheletney istorii Bryanska] [Old City and New Bryansk: [Essays on the Thousand-Year History of Bryansk]]. Bryansk: Gorod 32, 2013. pp. 254–278.
• Isaychikov, F. S. Po staromu Bryansku s pochtovoy otkrytkoy [Through Old Bryansk with a Postcard]. Bryansk: TOO “Zlata,” 1996. 97 p.
• Evsuk, O. (author-compiler). Puteshestviye v glubinu vekov: al’bom—putevoditel’ [Journey into the Depth of Ages: Album—Guidebook]. Bryansk: Izd-vo BIPKRO, 2013. 251 p.
• Evsuk, O. (author-compiler). Bryanskiy kray na staroy otkrytke [Izomaterial]: al’bom [Bryansk Region on an Old Postcard [Visual Material]: Album]. Bryansk: Izd-vo BIPKRO, 2014. 173 p.
• Evsuk, O. (compiler). Katalog otkrytok Bryanska, Bezhitsy i Beloberezskoy pustyni kontsa XIX nachala XX v. (izvestnykh na fevral’ 2013 goda) [Catalogue of Postcards of Bryansk, Bezhitsa, and Beloberezskaya Hermitage from the Late 19th to Early 20th Century (Known as of February 2013)]. 2nd edition. Bryansk: Izd-vo BIPKRO, 2013. 140 p.

Links

Palace of Culture of Railway Workers

History of the Railway Workers' Park of Culture and Leisure

History of the Fokinsky District of Bryansk

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