New Holland is an island in the Admiralteisky district of St. Petersburg, bounded by the Moyka River, the Kryukov Canal and the Admiralteysky Canal.
In addition, New Holland is a monument of industrial architecture of early classicism. The area of the island is 7.8 hectares.
The architectural complex of the island “New Holland” was erected in 1765-1780 according to the project and in the forms of early classicism.
The new warehouse complex was based on the project of S. I. Chevakinsky.
In 1894, an experimental pool was built in New Holland, where at the beginning of the 20th century the Russian shipbuilder A. N. Krylov, who worked on the theory of ship unsinkability, conducted his experiments.
During the First World War, New Holland was equipped with the most powerful radio station of the naval headquarters at that time in Russia, which became famous, among other things, for the fact that with its help in November 1917 the Bolsheviks waged an information war with General P. I. Krasnov. In Soviet times, New Holland was a closed zone; warehouses of the Leningrad Naval Base were located on its territory.
At the beginning of the 21st century, the complex consisted of several dozen objects, 11 of them are monuments of federal significance.
Since 2010, the island is owned by the Iris Foundation (Daria Zhukova’s art foundation). A new project was established with space for galleries and a museum, possibly to house Abramovich’s art collection.
The $12-billion-dollar redevelopment project was awarded to NY-based architecture firm WORKac.
The island opened to the public in 2011.
The planned £256m complex is intended to combine commercial and residential properties with the restoration of monuments that are protected by UNESCO.
While very similar to the plans made by Fosters + Partners in 2006, the firm WORKac designed the new island as a microcosm of St-Petersburg, a concept of “city within the city”.
A branch of the Centre of Contemporary Art (based in Moscow) is also planned.
In 2016, the restoration of the former blacksmith building (the foundry), the administrative building (the commandant’s house) and the old naval prison was launched. A playground and a communal herb garden were also planned. An ice skating rink was planned to be installed during winters on the central lawn. Those new additions are to be completed by 2025.
Working hours: Mon-Thu 09:00–22:00; Fri-Sun 09:00–23:00.
Address: emb. Admiralteisky channel, 2, St. Petersburg.
Metro: Admiralteyskaya, Vasileostrovskaya, Sadovaya
