The Moscow dwelling of the famous artist in Bryusov Lane is included in the ratings of the best houses in the world. It has three floors, 17 rooms, antique furniture … “Antenna” has visited an extraordinary apartment.
October 19 2017
– I always dreamed of moving to the very center, – says Nikas. – At first he lived on Malaya Gruzinskaya, then he moved to Pushkinskaya Square, later he rented an apartment on Tverskaya, in the house where the Moskva bookstore is located. And now I settled here, a few minutes walk from Red Square … When I first saw the panorama of the Kremlin from the roof of this house, I realized that I wanted to live only in it.
The stained glass window separating the fireplace room and the winter garden was made in a French factory, which is already 500 years old.
– The house was built by the famous architect Shchusev in 1928, it was the first cooperative for the actors of the Moscow Art Theater. Many famous and even great people lived within these walls: Stanislavsky, Nemirovich-Danchenko, Kachalov, Leonidov, ballet dancers Ekaterina Geltser and Maris Liepa. So the atmosphere in the house is quite special … In the 90s, despite the fact that it is an architectural monument, they wanted to demolish the house as an emergency, but the residents of the district managed to defend it and achieve overhaul and reconstruction. It was then that three floors were built up and an elevator was installed. Then I was often reproached with the fact that it was I who built these floors for myself. In fact, I just bought the area from the contractor after the restoration of the building and did it in stages. In total, together with the renovation, it took about 12 years to settle here. Now I have three floors – about 1000 square meters. I live on the lower one, my office is located nearby, the floor above has been turned into a Gothic palace, and the last one is an example of high-tech style, there is a lot of glass and light, an excellent view of Moscow from an open terrace. I probably have 17 full rooms, but if you include toilets, bathrooms and small kitchens, you get 45 rooms.
Nikolai Drozdov, Sophia Loren, Nastassya Kinski spent the night in Safronov’s house. Children come to Nikas, as a rule, for his birthday. Son Landin lives in Australia, Stefan – in London, Dima – in Vilnius, Luka – in Moscow. In their father’s house, they each have their own room.
The artist’s name is entered in the Guinness Book of Records as the owner of the world’s most expensive finger. The fact is that Nikas seriously injured his finger while opening a can of sprats. The tendon and pocket of the phalanx suffered, and even had to be operated on. For this injury, Nikas received 9 million rubles under German insurance.
“I’m not particularly proud of this record,” admits Nikas. – It would be another matter if I were listed as the author of the largest number of works stored in more than 100 museums around the world, including the Tretyakov Gallery and the Hermitage … I love to work and I do it with pleasure. I am preparing exhibitions in Kazan, Baku, Paris, Venice. I look forward to the imminent opening of my museums in Ulyanovsk and Vladimir.
On the top floor there is a terrace with a wonderful view of the Kremlin. The owner of the house loves to watch the sunsets. Safronov glazed the open terrace, having received permission from neighbors, and turned it into a winter garden. The temperature here is constantly maintained at about 22 degrees. In addition to numerous plants, there is a fountain, medieval sculptures, benches … The walls are painted by the artist personally.
“I didn’t choose the Gothic style for the whole floor by chance,” the artist shares. – The parents were in no hurry to open the history of the family to us, children. Mom from Lithuania was exiled with her relatives to Siberia, and on the paternal side, 12 generations of priests were sent to the family. Jules Verne never left France, but he successfully traveled in his fantasies and wrote about it beautifully. I decided to go further: let my Gothic castle be in the center of Moscow, and I also won’t have to go anywhere. I made this house for myself, to have fun, to invite friends, to give them coziness and comfort.
– This is the fireplace of the nephew of King Francis – XVI century. It was he who bought the painting, which became known as La Gioconda, and invited Leonardo da Vinci to France. Perhaps Leonardo was warming himself by this very fireplace. And I bought it at an auction, drove it with difficulty, because it is heavy, made of solid marble, then I restored it to remove the flaws that had accumulated over a long time. And this bearskin was presented to me for my birthday by Aman Tuleyev (the governor of the Kemerovo region. – Approx. “Antenna”).
The library is one of the largest rooms. It contains antiques and antiquities. On the chest of drawers lies a fossilized shell, about 500 million years old.
– There is a French table, at which, judging by the documents attached to it, Napoleon himself worked, – explains Nikas. – Chess was presented to me by Willie Tokarev, they are also unique, because there are no other ones – they were made by prisoners in prison.
– This is the angel of the arts. I bought it in Ecuador. I wanted to give it to my friend Viktor Merezhko for his birthday, but he did not like the figurine. I took it to myself, got behind the wheel after the party and escaped in a terrible accident. Maybe this angel saved me.
Once in the kitchen, you do not immediately understand where the stove is, where is the oven, refrigerator and other appliances: all this is skillfully built into medieval furniture. Here are Dutch chairs from the beginning of the XNUMXth century, a table from the end of the XNUMXth century. The tiles on the floor are also from the XNUMXth century; they used to be in some kind of Italian castle. There is an old sharpener, on which the owner sharpens knives with his own hand.
– I remember from early childhood that some old portrait was gathering dust in the attic for a long time. When I asked my father who was painted on it, he answered shortly: “One of our distant ancestors.” Then I did not attach any importance to this … Later, having learned the history of the family, I remembered about the picture – our family heirloom. Found this portrait and restored it. The monk depicted on it looks like my older brother Sasha, who, unfortunately, has already passed away …
In this bedroom, the entire suite is from the room of the French queen Marie Antoinette, wife of King Louis XVI, who was executed at the end of the XNUMXth century. The bed is covered with a blanket, on top of which are wolf skins.
“The queen slept on this bed in her youth,” the artist specifies. – I personally have never rested here, I dare not disturb the spirit of the royal person.
