“World Monuments Fund invites you to vote for your favorite photo in our Everyday Preservationist Photo Contest. The photos in this gallery were submitted by photographers of all levels to advocate for everyday preservation. World Monuments Fund sends preservation experts to endangered sites all over the world, but there are things we can do closer to home to help save the world’s most treasured places.”
I contributed two photos of the Melnikov House in the “appreciation” category, but you can only vote once per category. In hindsight perhaps not the best strategy on my part but initially I figured the more photos of the house in the contest, the more chances that a photo of the house will be chosen as a winner, and more international attention! Here’s the solution: pick your favorite photo of the house to vote for and tell a friend that they can vote too!
(There has been some trouble with the VOTE buttons, but you can find both photos on THIS page.)
On the left you will find the Melnikov House, on the right a construction site. This photograph fits the “Appreciation” category because such a photo begs the question, exactly what is appreciated here? On the one side, an iconic building, unique, enchanting, beautiful, an architectural masterpiece, an experiment in urban housing, a family home, an admired curiosity in the hustle and bustle of a busy, changing Moscow, a “protected by the state” site. On the other side, the foundations for a new commercial development, a pit for underground parking for a city with a notorious traffic problem, a project that keeps on going on its destructive path despite the fact that it is breaking laws in doing so. So while the Melnikov House is appreciated by architects, historians, students, artists, passersby, tourists, etc … with the way things are going, it seems that someone, somehow appreciates the construction site more.
VOTE for this photo HERE.
The Melnikov House is located on a small side-street off the busy pedestrian street Old Arbat in central Moscow. While many walk by unknowingly, others stray off the beaten bath to gaze upon the cylindrical house-studio of the architect Konstantin Melnikov. For the unsuspecting passerby, the building is a curiosity. For the pilgrim that has sought out this house to witness it first hand, the sight is nothing short of breathtaking. A real gem gleaming with uniqueness and distinction. However appreciated this architectural gem may be, the ground that it sits on is also worth a great deal to some, maybe more. This photo is dedicated to all those who can see this gem for what it’s worth.
VOTE for this photo HERE.
Voting is open through August 15, tell a friend! (THANK YOU!)
