New «Ice cream» pavilion at VDNH
Type: cafe, museum, restoration
Location: VDNH, Moscow, Russia
Area: 422 m2
The history of this pavilion began in 1939, when a fairytale building called Glavmorozhenoe («Main Ice Cream») appeared at the All-Union Agricultural Exhibition (VSKhV), designed by architect Anatoly Belsky. Its concept was both poetic and straightforward: the volume resembled an icy mountain, inside which a sales area offered shelter from the heat, and the composition was crowned by a polar bear sculpted by Vasily Vatagin.
In the 1950s, a second version of the pavilion appeared in Uzbek Square, and Belsky reinterpreted his pre-war project. The new version preserved its key features: the circular plan and the expressive reinforced concrete iceberg dome, beneath which a cozy café was located. This structure was lost at the end of the twentieth century, and today an empty lot stands in its place.
Time passes, and today the typology of a standalone ice cream café has almost disappeared. How can we bring a historic building back to life without turning it into a replica?
Our studio proposes a reinterpretation: the Ice Cream pavilion is transformed into the «Arctic» Pavilion. This is not simply a change of name, but a return to the original mission of VDNKh, education. A logical connection emerges alongside pavilions «Cosmos» and «Atom», forming a narrative about the coldest and most strategically important region on the planet.
We carefully recreate the appearance of the 1950s version while completely rethinking the internal structure.
The exhibition tradition of VDNKh is to present the country’s achievements and distinctive features. VDNKh already includes the «Cosmos» and «Atom» pavilions, and we believe that the «Arctic» deserves its place among them.
The new life of the building is based on a dialogue between two levels.
Visitors enter through a glass arch on the ground floor. They arrive in a bright rotunda vestibule with a soft seating area and find themselves at the center of the composition. An elegant staircase leads upward, with the new functions arranged around it.
The first floor is dedicated to knowledge. A museum occupies this level. The exhibition tells a comprehensive story, from the geography and climate of the Arctic to the history of the Northern Fleet and icebreakers. Ship models, dioramas, maps, and media screens immerse visitors in the harsh world of polar exploration.
The second floor is dedicated to experience. Ascending the staircase beneath the dome, visitors enter the café space, the heart of the project. The inner shell of the dome is composed of faceted metal panels in various shades of blue. Integrated lighting makes them shimmer, evoking frost patterns on glass or the glow of the aurora borealis. It is a place designed for lingering.
We deliberately abandoned the idea of an underground level in order to preserve the intimate scale and economic feasibility of the project. The central theme is the dialogue between old and new: Belsky’s historic iceberg acquires the spirit of a contemporary museum and the warmth of a modern café.
Historical context:
VDNH site plan scheme:
Axonometric view:
Exterior:
Lobby interior:
Cafe interior:
Exhibition interior:
