Synopsis:

The Fabrika Kukhnya, or Kitchen Factory, in Samara may soon be torn down. The building, in the shape of a hammer and sickle, was constructed at the height of Soviet industrialization in the 1930s. Seen as a historic example of Soviet Constructivist architecture, many preservationists want the building to be saved and reused. Developers however see greater value in tearing it down and building anew.

The building have created meals for the workers across the street at Maslennikov military equipment factory. The canteen was in the sickle, administrative offices were in the handle of the hammer, and the kitchen was in the head of the hammer. The canteen factory concept had been conceived as a way to revolutionize work and family life. By moving meal time out of the home and into a communal space, women were freed from this house chore and the workers gained a community setting in which to share a meal.

The 1990s saw the factory reused as a shopping center for a short time. Samara, like much of Russia, is experiencing much new development, coupled with the destruction of many existing buildings. “Preservationists say the (new construction) plan will destroy a historically valuable and architecturally sound building for no reason other than economic greed.” The building may find a new use though – the developer Clover is now claiming it never intended to tear it down.