Published on: 2026-07-16
Source: Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering –
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Alexander Lyubimtsev with interns by the bathhouse model they assembled
Third-year students in the 07.03.02 “Restoration and Reconstruction of Architectural Heritage” program at the Faculty of Architecture of SPbGASU completed their technological internship on Kizhi Island. For several years now, the Kizhi Museum-Reserve and the educational center have been hosting university students, providing them with the opportunity to get acquainted with unique wooden architecture monuments and the specifics of their preservation.
During the practice, future restoration architects studied the structural features and construction traditions of northern wooden churches, chapels, residential houses, and agricultural buildings. Under the guidance of technologists and carpenters, the students mastered the specifics of working with wood and became acquainted with traditional wooden construction techniques.
The educational program included a series of lectures by the leading specialists of the museum-reserve. The head of the All-Russian Center for Wooden Architecture named after V. S. Rakhmanov of the Kizhi museum-reserve, a candidate of architecture Tatyana Nezvitskaya gave lectures on “Masterpieces of Kizhi Island,” “Development of scientific and project documentation for the preservation of cultural heritage sites,” and “Architectural and archaeological dating using the example of the Chapel of Archangel Michael.”
First-category restorer, leading specialist in ensuring the preservation of cultural heritage sites and the integrity of the historical and architectural complex of the Kizhi Museum Alexander Lyubimtsev told the students about the spatial planning and structural features of religious buildings using the example of the Church of the Intercession of the Holy Virgin and the Church of the Resurrection of Lazarus from the Murom Monastery.
Chief Keeper of the Kizhi Museum-Reserve Anastasia Dibrova introduced the practice participants to the technology of recreating the “sky” of the Transfiguration of the Lord Church, and also conducted a tour of the museum’s storage fund, which presents household items, crafts, and other monuments of the material culture of the Russian North.
The practical part of the program allowed students to apply the acquired knowledge while performing professional tasks. They developed a strategy for the development of the village of Yamki and concepts for the preservation and development of peasant houses, which are cultural heritage sites, compiled a technical condition report for one of the historic houses, conducted an architectural and archaeological analysis to date the Church of the Resurrection of Lazarus, and also disassembled and assembled a model of a log bathhouse using traditional construction solutions. Additionally, students studied in detail the volumetric and planning structure of wooden architectural monuments both externally and internally.
The internship on Kizhi Island became an important stage of professional training for future specialists, allowing them not only to deepen their knowledge in the field of preservation of wooden architectural heritage sites, but also to gain valuable practical experience working with unique monuments of Russian wooden architecture.
Students express their gratitude to the staff of the Kizhi State Open-Air Museum-Reserve for the warm welcome, the high level of practice organization, and the opportunity to learn from leading specialists in the field of restoration and preservation of wooden architecture.
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