No matter how good or bad, harmonious or chaotic it is, architecture surrounds people and affects the aesthetic perception of the world and creates harmony around us.
According to the renowned Russian architect Mikhail Skisov, Florida contrasts with the cities of old Europe with their deep historical roots. Florida greatly reflects the concept of modern visual and comprehensive representation. The region in terms of architecture is developing systematically, forming large and regulated cultural and economic units subordinated to a single infrastructure.
As Mr. Skisov notes, the architectural appearance of a modern city is a synthesis of:
- social needs;
- natural and climatic features;
- investing attractiveness;
- development of the cultural aspect;
- comfort of services;
- educational sphere, etc.
Cities’ architectural and spatial identity largely involves these components while developing and improving.
Mr. Skisov extensively uses symbolism and cultural heritage in his designs. One of the author’s iconic facilities is the business center in Nikitinskaya str., Voronezh-city, Russia. This center is a multifunctional space in the historical center of the city of Voronezh (Russia) that vividly reflects the cultural and comprehensive expressiveness peculiar to all his works.
As for Florida, where Mr. Skisov is currently implementing his designs, the formation of the architectural appearance of the region is much influenced by its relative historical youth, mixture of cultures, unique system of values, and tendency for symbolism that lies in the local society.
Local architecture is not a consequence but the root cause of the cultural, leisure, social, and business potential. It reflects the population’s needs, natural features, cultural style and other categories of development for an individual and society.
Miami’s urban environment combines resort culture and a modern, comfortable living environment with unlimited opportunities for implementing one’s intellectual and cultural potential. Every creative person can demonstrate their uniqueness there. And it is more about the comfort of promoting freedom rather than about the freedom of creativity.
As for the randomness and diversity in local development, the Miami urban environment demarcates architectural styles from one development cluster to another. All of them are functionally combined with each other. This is a unified and harmonious cultural center that uses modern methods for communication of people.
The main symbol of constancy and continuity, which fuses the diversity of architectural styles there, is the recognizable coat of arms with a palm tree. The palm tree used to be both a food source and the basic building material in ancient times. Of course, along with the palm tree, recognizable images are the sun, the sea, and ships.
The center of manifestation of the symbolism and creativity of Miami architects is the Miami-Dade area. This is the most modernized object on the city map, and Mr. Skisov, as a talented and ambitious architect, intends to contribute to the further development of architecture of this facility, both conceptually and notionally.
In Mikhail Skisov’s authoritative opinion, for the functioning of the city or its individual parts, the following elements are important:
- competently organized transport and pedestrian networks;
- advertising modules;
- street improvement;
- architectural volumes;
- infrastructure responsible for technological effectiveness of processes, vital activity, and conservation of natural potential.
If we are concerned about the events that shape the urban environment of Miami, one should primarily mention leisure, business, and education in their various combinations.
If we are concerned about the so-called brand of the city, it needs to provide for interpenetration of architecture, citizens, and nature. The combination of these factors leads to the emergence of identity of the environment and its originality. It allows us to speak about harmony, which is the ultimate goal of the architect, the result of his work.
Speaking about cause-effect connections, we can safely assume that architecture is not merely the result of human’s creative manifestations; it ultimately affects person’s cultural level, sets the behavior pattern, and determines the psycho-physical background.
Mikhail Skisov sees local architecture in lightness, simplicity, and modularity. According to the architect, the combination of advanced technology, aesthetics, and natural comfort dramatically simplifies the work of architects and builders, but not at the expense of quality.
Returning to the issue of symbolism in the architecture of Miami, it should be noted that its simplicity and superficiality reflect the qualities that society needs. Social communication and its functioning is based on a relatively narrow range of services that originate in the main areas of activity: business and leisure. All spheres of life are connected with them.
A few words about Mikhail Skisov
Mikhail Skisov has got formal academic training and, after graduating from the university, he accumulated experience and developed his professional skills in an architectural workshop for a long time. After that, the ambitious architect founded his own company, which gave birth to many projects in Russia. Today Mr. Skisov lives and works in Miami and is already applying his creative potential there, bringing new designs to life.The portfolio of an ambitious and talented young architect includes a lot of extraordinary designs, many of which have received prestigious professional awards. Among the designs created while working in Russia, it is worth mentioning:
- Osetrovsky bridgehead Memorial Complex – the winner of the international competition;
- reconstruction of the Tikhaya Sosna river embankment in the Voronezh region, revealing the identity of the city of Ostrogozhsk (Russia) and reflecting its history;
- design of a Secondary School in the Olimpysky residential complex in Voronezh-city – winner of the first prize in the competition Building a New Olympus-2019;
- Conceptual Design of a House for the Elderly – a finalist of an architectural competition.Mikhail Skisov continues his professional activity in the USA. Among the projects of this period, the most significant are:
- a memorial at the site of a collapsed residential building in Surfside, Florida, awarded a silver award at the International Design Awards;
- Washington Tower Apartments at 6015 Washington St Hollywood, FL 33023, Washington;
- elite residential complex Coral Tower;
virtual model of the Virtual Smart City is a unique project developed by Mr. Skisov. Its main feature is the harmonious coexistence of a man and nature and leveling of social problems.
Mikhail Skisov is exceptionally active in communicating and collaborating with American development companies and authorities to improve living conditions and improve the infrastructure of the Florida urban environment.
Author: Jack Wilson