VDNKH or All Russian Exhibition Centre
VDNKH or All Russian Exhibition Centre (VVC) is one of my favorite Moscow attractions. It is absolutely grandiose place and it offers a lot of things to do while you are in Moscow. If there were such thing like Soviet Disneyland, I would address to VDNKH – great Moscow landmark.
Exhibition Center panoramic view.
Picture was taken from VDNKH official website
The unique ensemble of the exhibition area had been forming for several decades. The first All-Union Agricultural Exhibition was opened in on the 1st of August, 1939. “The country was preparing for the opening of the All-Union Exhibition of Agriculture as for a big people’s holiday. The solemn ceremony participated by over 10 thousand people was attended by the Communist party and Soviet state leadership.”*
You will enter through an arch built on architect L. Polyakov project in traditions of Ancient Rome triumphal arches with bronze sculpture on top – a female collective farmer and male tractor driver.
They appear to call out the famous Bolshevik party slogan: “Bread for the hungry! Land for the peasants! Peace for the people!”
Photo taken from All Russian Exhibition Center official website
You will be amazed by People’s Friendship fountain. It was design in Greco-Roman style and was built on the Farmstead Square.
My cousins and I. VDNKH main entrance.
It encircled by 16 gilded Soviet maidens in traditional dresses. Each one represents a Soviet republic. The sculptures were made of bronze with the thinnest golden layer. The best time to see this fountain in action is from late spring till end of summer. Every second the fountain thrust over 1 ton of water through 800 jets. The central jets shoot up to 24 meters per second!
The opposite side of the Farmstead Square, father down, accommodated the Stone Flower fountain. A fairytale by Ural writer Pavel Bazhov was an inspiration for this beautiful fountain.
VDNKH Highlights:
This is really difficult to see every tourist attraction in VDNKH in one day. So I came up with the list of places you should definitely see, if you have limited time in Moscow:
- Monumental gateway to VDNKH exhibition center (you won’t miss it anyway)
- Central VDNKH pavilion
- Monument to the Conquerors of Space
- Aerospace pavilion
- People’s Friendship and Stone Flower fountains
- Moscow Ferris Wheel
- Hotel Cosmos (you can finish there)
People’s Friendship fountain and us.
There is another interesting tourist attraction near the VDNKH – The Collective Farmer and Worker sculpture
The famous socialist symbol of the Collective Farmer and Worker has been fully restored and reinstalled near the World Exhibition Center (VDNKh). The 24-meter-high sculpture is made of steel and was designed by Vera Mukhina in 1937 for the Soviet pavilion at the Paris Exhibition. It was later moved to Moscow and became a symbol of Mosfilm, the largest Soviet film studio.
The statue was dismantled in 2003 for restoration and some skeptics doubted it would ever be put on view again, due to financial issues and unclear responsibilities of the various contractors. It cost Moscow about R1 billion to restore the monument.
The sculpture now stands atop a different base than previously. Its new home is a pavilion housing a cinema, a museum, and underground parking, Interfax reported. Mukhina originally wanted her statue placed atop Sparrow Hills (near Moscow University) or at the tip of the Moscow River island where Zurab Tseretely’s controversial statue of Peter the Great now standing.
Your Moscow Russia Travel Guide
*Some information was taken from All Russian Exhibition Centre official website
VDNKH or All Russian Exhibition Centre (VVC) is located on VDNKH metro station, the namesake of this part of Moscow is VDNKH as well. If you decided to book a hotel in this area, you can stay in Cosmos hotel.
Related Posts
Moscow Kremlin | Moscow Red Square | St. Basil Cathedral | Lenin’s Mausoleum | Moscow GUM | Cathedral of Christ the Savior | Bolshoi Theatre | Theaters in Moscow | Moscow Museums | Moscow River Cruises | Moscow Zoo | Moscow Cat Circus | Moscow Metro | Gorky Park
Home Page | About Me | Moscow Blog | Russian Visas | Travel Tips | Getting to Moscow | Getting Around Moscow | Hotels Guide | Luxury Hotels | Airport Hotels | Cheap Hotels | Hostels | Moscow Housing | Moscow Facts | Tourist Attractions | Moscow Skyscrapers | Entertainment | Shopping | Russia Facts | Government | Flag of Russia | Places to Visit | Russian Food | Culture of Russia | Russian Movies | Russia Wildlife | Russia Pictures | Russia Sports | Sochi Olympics
