Outdoor Photo Exhibition “Always Moscow. On the 115th Anniversary of Naum Granovsky”
August 1, 2025 — October 14, 2025
Donstroy × Lumiere Gallery
The development company Donstroy, in collaboration with the Lumiere Gallery, presents the exhibition “Always Moscow”, dedicated to the 115th anniversary of the birth of Naum Granovsky — the chief architectural photographer of the 20th-century capital. The exhibition period symbolically coincides with the celebration of Moscow’s 878th anniversary, traditionally marked by residents on the second weekend of September.
Naum Granovsky (1910–1984) devoted more than half a century to photographing Moscow, documenting its transformations from the 1920s to the 1980s. His works are not only architectural views but also visual testimonies of the city’s evolution: the disappearance of tram routes, the arrival of more maneuverable trolleybuses and buses, the relocation of entire buildings without resettling residents, the construction of new neighborhoods, and the shaping of the modern appearance of the capital. He often returned to the same streets decades later, creating an accurate yet emotionally rich chronicle of city life.
The exhibition features 40 photographs reflecting the key stages of the photographer’s career. A special section is dedicated to his color photographs of Moscow from the 1960s–1980s — a period when the spread of color film opened up new expressive means and artistic possibilities for photographers.
Granovsky’s works stand out for their precise composition and keen attention to the changing urban environment, which he perceived as a living, ever-evolving structure. Beginning his professional journey as a darkroom assistant at TASS’s “Press-Cliché,” he went on to become an Honored Worker of Culture of the RSFSR (1968), a member of the Union of Journalists (1958), and the Union of Architects of the USSR. His photographs were published in the press, exhibited at major shows, and trusted by architects and artists in cities across the Soviet Union — from Baku to Riga. Today, the Lumiere Gallery is the sole copyright holder of the master’s archive and is preparing a new monograph to be released in December in honor of the photographer’s anniversary.
The “Always Moscow” exhibition will be the third outdoor photo project in the “Symbol” residential complex in 2025. The display will be open daily from August 1 to October 14, 2025, in the Green River city park, part of the Symbol residential quarter in the Lefortovo district.