Sibrevkom Building

Brief information

The Sibrevkom Building is easy to read through its changing functions: it was built for the Soviet executive committee, later housed the regional and city committees of the CPSU, and now contains the Novosibirsk State Art Museum. The same shell, designed for authority and a representative entrance, has become a museum building.

The building was constructed in 1925-1926 according to a design by A. D. Kryachkov. In 1948, an extension was added along Sverdlov Street. Today, the interior houses not only the art museum, but also the Wax Museum, the Novosibirsk Toy Museum, and the Art Puppet Theater. Opposite stands the Hundred-Apartment Building by the same architect, so the two buildings with different purposes can be mentally compared as works by one author.

What to notice first

The main facade shows the official side of the building: a rectangular plan, symmetry, a central risalit, a massive stepped attic, and a dome above it. An important detail changes the perception of the dome: there are no rooms beneath it; it completes the composition from the outside rather than marking a large interior hall.

You can compare the main facade with the end elevations. In the original description, the main facade is closer to neoclassicism, while the ends more clearly show Art Nouveau devices: stepped parapets and semicircular windows in the center. On the roof stand two related sculptures, a worker and a peasant; they directly recall the building's original administrative role. At the entrance, it is worth noticing the granite columns with a small balcony, the obelisks on either side of the staircase, and the rounded ramps built into the wall. In front of the facade, a semicircular unloading area with a metal grille, granite posts, and cast cartouches continues the same principle: the entrance is designed as an independent ceremonial ensemble.