More than 1000 people attended the "Looking into the Future" architecture programme at the National Centre RUSSIA

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The expert programme on architecture and urbanism, "Looking into the Future," took place at the National Centre RUSSIA on April 8. The large-scale event brought together over 1000 architects, builders, urbanists, developers, entrepreneurs, investors, representatives of state and municipal authorities, public figures, and media. Throughout the day, the professional community discussed issues related to the architecture of the future.

The programme included two major tracks: architectural and urbanistic.

The key part of the architectural track was the presentation of the results of a study dedicated to the future of architecture. The expert survey, conducted in March 2025 by the National Centre RUSSIA and the CITY Centre of the Faculty of Urban and Regional Development at the Higher School of Economics (HSE), focused on key topics such as the balance between national characteristics and global trends in architecture and urban planning, as well as the concept of tomorrow's architecture. The survey engaged members of the professional community, who were invited to share their views and discuss which trends architects should follow in the future. 

The results of the study formed the basis of the discussion in the track "Architecture of Tomorrow: The Role of National and Global Components." The discussion involved representatives from various fields working on the development of future cities. One of the key conclusions was the emphasis on international dialogue and the unification of countries and regions within a single state when creating the architecture of the future.

The speakers of the discussion included Associate Professor of the Faculty of Urban and Regional Development at the HSE Kirill Puzanov, co-founder of the Strategic Development Agency "CENTRE" Sergei Georgievskiy, chief curator of the exposition "The Birth of Scale" Andrei Chernikhov, as well as architect-designer, head of the design group "Pole-Design," and lecturer at MArchI, MARCH, HSE, and RANEPA Vladimir Kuzmin.

The program continued with a panel discussion on "Architecture of the Future." Russian and international experts addressed topics such as national and global architectural needs, artificial intelligence, smart materials in architecture, and the cities of the future — floating megacities and underground structures. 

The speakers included architect and founder of the architectural workshop ATRIUM Anton Nadtochiy, director and project manager of the Architectural Bureau "Ostozhenka" Pavel Zhuravlev, architect, co-founder, and partner of the architectural bureau Megabudka Artem Ukropov, architect, founder, and CEO of CYBERTECTURE (Hong Kong) (via video call) James Low, director of design and partner-founder of OUALALOU + CHOI (Morocco-France) (via video call) Tarik Oualalou, associate professor at Azad Islamic University, co-founder and vice-president of the consulting company NESHA, founder of the Iranian Academy of Architects-Researchers (Iran) Shadi Azizi, urban architect, founder, and director of the Empate bureau Marina Yegorova.

The architectural track included the panel discussion "Revival of Historical Territories." Participants discussed the integrated development of Russia's territories and the country's approach to solving key issues: housing construction, restoration of communications, and regional infrastructure. 

The speakers of the discussion included the Governor of Sevastopol, Mikhail Razvozhaev, the Head of the Donetsk People's Republic, Denis Pushilin, the chief architect of the DOM.RF Foundation, Ilya Churkin, as well as the Vice President of the Union of Architects of Russia, First Vice President of the Union of Moscow Architects, and head of the "Komov and Partners" bureau, Alexei Komov.

The urbanistic track of the expert program "Looking into the Future" included the panel discussion "Visual Code of Russia." During the discussion, key theses were highlighted regarding the diversity of approaches to understanding the visual identity of the country. Participants emphasized the importance of visual sovereignty, based on the cultural code of the nation and traditional values, when creating modern architectural and design solutions. The National Centre RUSSIA was noted as a platform for developing unified principles of visual communication, with its branches serving as points for the transformation of urban environments in the regions. Special attention was given to balancing the all-Russian identity with the uniqueness of each region. Business and government representatives expressed their readiness to collaborate in creating a high-quality visual environment that would help strengthen national unity and pride in the country. 

The speakers of the discussion included the Director General of the National Centre RUSSIA, Natalia Virtuozova, the Head of the Donetsk People's Republic, Denis Pushilin, the Executive Director of the "Club of Investors" Foundation, Vladislav Preobrazhenskiy, the architect and founder of the architectural workshop ATRIUM, Anton Nadtochiy, and the chief architect of the DOM.RF Foundation, Ilya Churkin.

Another panel discussion of the track was "Visual Style of Regions: Opportunities and Perspectives." The speakers discussed territorial branding of regions as a tool for developing the country's subjects, the economic effects of high-quality urban environments, and projects in the field of urbanism.

The experts included the co-founder of the SKAM design bureau, Vyacheslav Kuteyev, the Director of Urban Environment Development at DOM.RF, Anton Finogenov, the Deputy Governor of the Nizhny Novgorod Region, Oleg Berkovich, and the Chairman of the Board of Directors of JSC "Marka," Dmitry Panyshev. 

The next event of the urbanistic track was the expert discussion "City for All: From Theory to Practice." The participants explored strategies and practical tools for creating modern and technological urban spaces, where universal design becomes the basic standard for territorial development. The second element of the discussion addressed state visual communication and the integration of state design into urban environments.

Sharing their knowledge were the Mayor of the city of Innopolis, Dmitry Vandyukov, the head of the "Design Code of Yekaterinburg" community, Pavel Omelekhin, the design director and partner of the branding agency "Plenum," Yegor Myznik, and a member of the "Club of Investors" Foundation, managing partner of the company "Prime Life," Denis Konovalenko.

A separate open discussion was dedicated to cultural initiatives and fashion brands that are changing the city's appearance. The speakers of the program "How Fashion Brands and Cultural Initiatives Transform Life of Regions" included the gallerist, owner of ASKERI GALLERY, and popularizer of contemporary art, Polina Askeri, the artist, artistic director of the art park "Nikola-Lenivets" and the "Archstoyanie" festival, Nikolai Polissky, the founder of the Keep Looking Group, Ksenia Shipilova, and the designer of the conceptual brand Gapanovich from the Far North, Alexandra Gapanovich.

The "Looking into the Future" initiative highlights the role of the National Centre RUSSIA as the initiator of systematic work in the field of state visual communications.