The first stained glass windows appeared on the administrative tower of the Tretyakov Gallery branch in Kaliningrad

Glazing of the administrative tower of the Tretyakov Gallery branch in Kaliningrad

The administrative tower of the Tretyakov Gallery branch is its architectural dominant. It is 50 meters high, which is comparable to a twenty-storey building. According to the architect’s design, the exterior of the tower will be entirely of glass.

In January, work began on the stained-glass glazing of the administrative tower of the Tretyakov Gallery branch. Multifunctional double-glazed windows are attached to the installed supporting frame, which is a post-transom system. The total area of glazing is 2.4 thousand square metres.

Multifunctional double-glazed windows have unique solar protection and energy saving characteristics with an optimal level of light transmission. The special glass coating prevents heat waves generated by the heating system in the building from escaping into the street in winter, and does not let heat into the premises in summer. This significantly reduces the cost of heating and air conditioning.

When selecting the configuration of a double-glazed window, such factors as pressure changes depending on height, wind load, maximum temperature difference inside and outside the building, insolation conditions (glass heating in winter and summer) were also taken into account. The correct choice of parameters allows avoiding the effect of lensing (glass bending due to temperature differences) and freezing with formation of frost spots on the surface of the inner glass.

Dmitry Rzhannikov, General Director of OOO STG-Zapad states: “We plan to finish the stained glass windows by the end of February, if the weather permits and there are no stormy winds, when it is not safe to work at height in overhead lifts. This type of work is not the most complex, but it is quite responsible, because it will have a significant impact on the microclimate of the building as a whole and the amount of utilities consumed.”

Construction of the Tretyakov Gallery branch began in 2019. The building is now completely erected. Works on the aluminium facade of the main part of the building are close to completion. Interior rough works are completed in full scope. Works on interior decoration of the premises are in progress.

For reference:

One of the four Cultural and Educational Complexes is being built on Oktyabrsky Island in Kaliningrad. The need to create four new cultural centres (in Vladivostok, Kemerovo, Kaliningrad and South Russia) was expressed by the Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin in his Address to the Federal Assembly in 2018, and elaborated in the Decree on National Goals and Strategic Objectives of Development of the Russian Federation for the period up to 2024. The created clusters will allow for development of a contemporary cultural space throughout the country.

Construction of the Cultural and Educational Complex in Kaliningrad is being carried out by the Stroytransgaz Group as commissioned by the National Cultural Heritage Foundation for Social and Cultural Projects. The designer is the GORKA Group.