Published on: 2026-08-18
Source: Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering –
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Grigory Shapiro and Nadezhda Akulova
The St. Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering has completed the St. Petersburg stage of the International Summer Scientific and Educational Restoration School “Heritage of Vyborg and Rostov-on-Don.” From August 6 to 14, participants studied the architectural and urban heritage of St. Petersburg and Vyborg and worked on project proposals for the historical territory.
Students from SPbGASU and the Southern Federal University (SFedU, Rostov-on-Don), as well as international participants, took part in the school. Head of the Department of Architectural and Urban Heritage at SPbGASU Nadezhda Akulova noted: the interest of foreign participants in the program was high, and the interaction was productive. “Both the entire process of the school and the outcome exceeded expectations: there was huge enthusiasm among the students and one hundred percent engagement of all participants in the process,” she said.
Exchange of experience between schools
One of the main tasks of the program became professional and methodological exchange between the Leningrad (Saint Petersburg) and Rostov (Southern) restoration schools.
Participants became acquainted with the approaches used in Saint Petersburg when working with architectural and urban planning heritage, and at the same time had the opportunity to exchange experiences with representatives of the southern school.
According to Nadezhda Akulova, this plan was successfully implemented. In particular, the representative of the restoration division of the Academy of Architecture and Arts of the Southern Federal University noted that during the school he gained new professional and methodological knowledge which he plans to apply in his educational work.
“The program was also aimed at exchanging methodological skills and approaches between two restoration schools: the southern one and ours, the Leningrad, or now, of course, the Petersburg school. And it worked,” noted Nadezhda Alexandrovna.
An important outcome was the formation of mixed teams. Students from different courses, cities, and countries worked together, supported each other, and united around common project tasks.
Principles of the Leningrad School
A significant part of the program was dedicated to familiarizing with the principles of the Leningrad school. Participants studied cultural heritage sites of regional and federal significance, including those undergoing restoration, as well as decorative and applied arts objects that may be part of protected historical sites.
Special attention was paid to the environmental approach and the preservation of the integrity of historically significant territories. Within the program, participants considered the relationship between the historic center and the suburban area, as well as the specifics of working with both individual objects and the historic urban environment as a whole.
“The main focus is immersion in the specifics of the Leningrad school of restoration work. These are cultural heritage sites of regional and federal significance, certain approaches and emphases, the connection between the city, the historic center, and the suburban area – Vyborg, Rozhdestveno,” explained Nadezhda Akulova.
The participants immediately applied the acquired knowledge in project work. Within a limited time, they had to immerse themselves in the material, study the territory, and prepare proposals based on the collected data.
Four concepts for Vyborg
The result of the St. Petersburg stage of the school was the work of mixed teams on the conceptual reinterpretation of the historical territory of Vyborg.
Participants of the school in Vyborg
Four groups presented four different approaches to the development of the space. The first team proposed the most modern and radical solution with active implementation of new elements. The second developed a more open public space. The third emphasized public space and family values. The fourth presented the most restrained and delicate option with minimal intervention in the historical environment.
Thus, the participants proposed different scenarios for working with a single territory – ranging from a bolder contemporary reinterpretation to the most careful approach.
Representatives of the Vyborg city administration took part in the work: they helped select the site for the design. The chief architect of the Vyborg municipal district Grigory Svetnik noted that the participants managed to deeply immerse themselves in the material in a short period and prepare substantive project proposals.
As a result of the project work, an album with presented concepts is planned to be prepared. According to Nadezhda Akulova, such material will allow the discussion of further development of the territory not only at the level of general ideas but also based on specific design solutions. “Such conceptual solutions are what one can and should talk about. Not just in words, but more concretely, linked to the environment and already with specific proposals,” she emphasized.
To be continued in Rostov-on-Don
The St. Petersburg stage was the first part of the school. At the end of September – beginning of October, the participants will gather again in Rostov-on-Don.
The work will continue with the same mixed teams. This time, the project tasks will be prepared by the teachers of the southern school of restoration from the Southern Federal University under the guidance of Natalia Chemerisova and Grigory Shapiro.
Participants will immerse themselves in the architectural and urban environment of Rostov-on-Don and its suburban areas. One of the design tasks will involve working on a site in Novocherkassk, near Sobornaya Square.
Summing up the Saint Petersburg stage, Nadezhda Akulova noted that the participants managed not only to acquire new professional knowledge but also to build real team interaction: “Mutual exchange and ‘cross-pollination’ are the future of a high-quality professional industry. The guys were parting not as separate groups but as teams. They supported and helped each other. Feedback was received from the participants: they are grateful for this exchange and experience.”
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