Russian-French conference Versailles- Saint-Petersburg: from new cities to the cities of Classicism

The reports of the participants of the conference touched upon a wide range of scientific and artistic problems: Western concepts of city-building and projects of Russian architects, philosophic ideas of the Enlightment and development of European cities. A significant place among the topics of Russian scientists occupied the comparison of history and architecture of two cities - Versailles and Saint-Petersburg as well as the problem of influence of the French architectural thought on the development of Russian architecture seen through the examples of the Summer Gardens in Saint-Petersburg and of Strelna and Peterhof in the suburbs of the city. Some reports dealt with archive and archeological sources which helped widen the knowledge of the architecture of France and Russia.

Ivan Chesky.
View of the Spit of Vasilievsky Island

Plan of Versailles