Civil engineer, social activist, talented architect Alexander Rzepiszewski added a unique and inimitable character to Kharkiv with his buildings. He was one of the first designers in Kharkov and led the construction of "company houses" with their own flats. He designed around 40 buildings in St Petersburg, Moscow, Katerinoslav, Odessa.
He built the most in Kharkov: 27 buildings (25 have survived), 17 of which have been recognised as architectural monuments.

Brilliant, unusual and innovative in his field, Alexander Rzepishevsky is one of the most recognised architects of the early 20th century in Kharkov. "Rzepishevsky windows", "Rzepishevsky roofs", "Rzepishevsky spires", "Rzepishevsky skyscrapers" have added elegance and originality to the historic city centre

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Alexander was born on 24 January 1879 in the town of Izmail in the Bessarabian Governorate into the family of Ivan and Alexandra Rzepishevsky. In 1882 the family moved to Akerman (now Belgorod on the Dniester), where his father was employed at the local police station. Alexander Rzepiszewski's ancestors were probably participants or supporters of the November 1830-1831 uprising in Poland, and were forced to leave their homeland after it was suppressed by the Russian authorities.

Aleksander Rzepiszewski studied at the 6th grade Akerman Gymnasium and received his secondary school certificate at the 4th Gymnasium in Odessa. It was during this time that he began to have a passion for drawing, which later became the meaning of life and creativity for him. In 1898, like his older brother Mikhail, he enrolled in the department of mathematical sciences of the Faculty of Physical and Mathematical Sciences at the University of Novorossiysk in Odessa, but after a year he left for the northern capital of the Russian Empire.

From 1899 to 1903 he studied at the Institute of Civil Engineers, considered one of the
centres for the training of Polish architects. At this point it is worth noting that in December 1902, i.e. while he was still a student, he married Nadezhda Zwierewoj, the daughter of a church minister. In 1903, as one of the most talented students, he was awarded a diploma and a gold medal, which allowed him, at the expense of
the state to continue furthering his education at the National School of Fine Arts (École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts). Aleksander Rzepiszewski studied there from 1904 to 1906, and for the next two years the young architect travelled around Europe, sketching the sights of Nuremberg, Venice, Paris, Brussels and other cities.

With his wife they had two daughters, Natalia and Halina. They became talented artists, ballerina-novelists, and Halina Szachowska (Rzepiszewska) still gained recognition in the Soviet Union as a well-known director of dances for many films by leading Soviet directors.

After the family's return to St Petersburg, the young architect, in order to support the family, carried out various commissions, took part in many architectural competitions, and at the same time made efforts with his wife to get his brother, who had been charged with revolutionary activities, released from prison. Gradually, the hard work began to bear fruit: in eight competitions out of twelve, Aleksandr Rzepiszewski's designs were awarded prizes. He completed seven of them together with his colleague from the Institute of Civil Engineers Nikolai Vasilyev, the last of which he completed in 1901. The year 1909 was fruitful for them, when as many as four of their projects won, one of which was for Kharkov. It was the Kharkiv project that became the reason for Aleksandr Rzepiszewski's relocation to that city.

The victories in competitions for Aleksandr Rzepiszewski were probably made possible by the fact that he had an astonishing capacity for work and extraordinary creative potential. Rzepiszewski was very successful in transferring the aesthetics of the façade, as drawn by Nikolai Vasilyev, to the field of engineering. He was interested in the latest construction technologies and the practical application of reinforced concrete structures, which was actively discussed in the pages of professional publications.

A new stage in Alexander Rzepiszewski's life began in 1910, after he moved to Kharkov. He came here at the invitation of the Kharkiv merchant community, which in 1909, with the support of the Imperial Society of Architects in St Petersburg, announced an All-Russian competition to design a new merchant bank building. It should be noted that at that time Kharkiv merchants were experiencing a financial boom. And in order to consolidate their status, they decided to erect a majestic building on the site of the small merchant bank building on Pavlovskaya Square, corresponding to their commercial scale and the requirements of business life at the time.

Alekasnder Rzepishevsky and Nikolai Vasilyev were awarded the second prize of 1,100 roubles for their 'Bank' project, and soon the right to supervise the construction. Kharkiv clients chose Rzepishevsky-Vasilyev's design with a superbly decorated façade that reflected the grandeur of their idea. The edifice, innovative in terms of construction technology, was planned as a complex functional complex, which was to house shops and a post office on the ground floor, a bank and a museum on the first and second floors, and the 'Astoria' hotel on the upper floors, so the concrete structure tests were carried out in the laboratories of the St Petersburg Polytechnic. At this point it is worth noting that Alexander Rzepishevsky deviated from the original design version during the realisation of the project, which, perhaps, was the reason for the break-up of the cooperation of the Rzepishevsky-Vasiliev creative tandem.

The last joint project by Rzepishevsky and Vasilyev, executed in the period 1913-1914, was a building called 'Kulakovsky's manufactory' (19 Rizdviana Street), located in the central part of Kharkiv - 'Kharkiv city' as it was called by its contemporaries. Its façade, like that of the 'Astoria' hotel, was made in the manner of Gothic stylised soaring with the use of reinforced concrete structures.

Aleksander Rzepiszewski showed outstanding organisational skills, as he became the manager of the construction of a new type of building - the so-called 'proprietary buildings' - 'company' tenements, which were built at the expense of future flat owners. He was a pioneer of this project in Kharkov and, in fact, one of the first in the entire Russian Empire.

In 1912, the architect built the first building of this type in Kharkiv at 6 Rymarska Street. His clients were doctors, artists, members of the liberal professions and merchants, who wanted to live in flats built according to the latest developments in building science, comfortable, equipped with foreign lifts and ventilation systems. In order to seek out potential customers and encourage them to buy flats built in this way, Alexander Rzepiszewski presented its advantages with the language of financial benefit in the pages of "Already a Country". In order to implement his idea, in early 1913 he founded the "First Kharkov Society for Building Permanent Dwellings in Kharkov".

In 1914, he opened his own office, the "Pushkin Society for Building Buildings with Permanent Dwellings", and already in the year of opening completed 6 residential building projects. In 1915, he moved the office to a newly constructed building (Puszkin Entrance 6). In total, between 1911 and 1915 Alexander Rzepiszewski built 27 buildings in Kharkov, 25 of which have survived to the present day, while 17 are protected as architectural monuments. The year 1914, despite the outbreak of the First World War, became a prosperous time for Alexander Rzepiszewski. He built 9 buildings, the most among architects working in Kharkov.

The "Property Building" (19 Rymarska Street), built in 1914 in the style of "rational modernism", is considered to be the architect's showpiece from this period. The architect himself and his family lived in this building, occupying two flats: in flat No. 7 he set up an architectural office, in flat No. 51 he lived with his family, and in the attic he set up a studio and an art studio.

His high professional qualifications led to Alexander Rzepiszewski's name appearing for the first time in 1914 under the heading "Persons of the liberal professions" on the pages of the annual advertising directory "All Kharkov". At that time, there were 25 architects working in Kharkov. In 1915, his home address was indicated next to his name: 19 Rymarska Street, telephone 23-60, visiting hours from 5 to 7 in the evening. In 1916, the yearbook also lists his address at 19 Rymarska Street, flats 7 and 51 (in the first and fourth entrances). The 1917 yearbook also lists him among the 29 architects of the city.

He also held the position of supernumerary technician of the Kharkiv Governorate Board, worked as an architect and engineer, and was a member of several city special commissions.

Alexander Rzepiszewski led an active public life. He was involved in the work of the Kharkiv Literary and Artistic Association, which was headed by the well-known painter Sergei Vasylkivsky. In 1916 he took part in the exhibitions of the Society of Kharkiv Painters, presenting his drawings, sketches of various buildings made during his travels in Europe: views of Nuremberg, Venice, Paris, Brussels, Saint Petersburg and Kharkiv. In 1916, as a member of the Kharkiv Artists' Association, he was among the organisers of a competition of children's drawings, which were exhibited within the walls of the newly built School of Fine Arts. At this point it should be added that his wife Nadiya Rzepishevskaya was also involved in charity work to help needy children.

With the beginning of the First World War, the Rzepiszewski couple became involved in activities to help war victims. Alexander Rzepiszewski was a member of the Kharkiv Red Cross Society, for which he built a special Red Cross Hospital (5 Voznesenska Street) in 1914. He also participated in the meetings of the war commission of the Gubernial Territory. He was involved, as a representative of the Slavonian Mineral Waters Spa Board, in organising the treatment of wounded soldiers. In 1914 he was a participant in the "Spa Convention" in Petrograd, which dealt with the treatment of wounded soldiers. In November 1916, for his work for the Red Cross Society, he was awarded the Order of Saint Stanislav ІІІ degree. At the end of December 1914, he became one of the founders of the Kharkiv branch of the All-Russian Society for the Development and Improvement of Russian Medical Areas. His wife participated in the organisation of various fund-raisers for war victims.

From the beginning of the February Revolution of 1917, which in the Ukrainian territories contributed to the establishment of the Ukrainian Central Council as the new authority of the reborn Ukrainian state, Kharkiv in 1917-1918 belonged to the Ukrainian People's Republic and the Ukrainian State of Hetman Pavel Skoropadsky. Alexander Rzepiszewski continued his work in Kharkov. According to some data, he was delegated to the All-Ukrainian Artists' Convention, which took place on 9 June 1918 in Kiev. Nothing foreshadowed a dramatic turnaround in his life, despite the fact that north of the Kharkov border, in Bolshevik Russia, an army of violators and marauders was preparing for the occupation of Ukraine.

Aleksandr Rzepiszewski became quite a wealthy man thanks to his incessant work in Kharkov, had authority as a well-known architect, was a respected social activist, gloated every moment with his loving family and lived life to the full, with his wife and daughters as the meaning of his life. For his family he would arrange trips abroad, to the Black Sea or to the dacha. Daughter Halina wrote of her father as follows: "Father was a man full of life. Art was the meaning of his life. He would usually wake up at 5 a.m. and by 6 a.m. he was already working - designing, painting, drawing. Then he would tour building sites, carefully supervising the work. He also found time for sport - tennis, skating, fencing. After lunch he liked to engage in music."

The Kharkiv idyll of architect Aleksandr Rzepishevsky lasted almost a decade, for in 1919, after the Bolshevik army occupied Ukraine and Kharkiv was declared the capital of the Soviet republic in January 1919, a wave of Red terror swept the city. According to one account, the architect decided to emigrate abroad with his family via the Crimean peninsula - the only possible escape route in these political conditions. To this end, he travelled to the Crimea to arrange the paperwork for his departure and to prepare for his emigration. There, according to legend, he met a Moscow woman, fell in love with her and made an unexpected decision - he went with her to Moscow.

The real reasons why the architect went to Moscow are unfortunately not fully known. The versions, known from internet popular articles, have no source confirmation and are not very helpful for explaining some moments in the architect's life.

In the Soviet capital, Alexander Rzepiszewski was employed by the State Construction Bureau "Mosstroy" and lived in the former Mrs Chrilova's Hotel, the penultimate building located on the Raushskie waterfront in the central district of Moscow at the time. Similar information about his residence is repeated in the next two publications from 1927-1928 as well. It is interesting that in the 1927 publication his place of work is marked as the Gypsum Concrete Foundry and the "Mosstroj" office, and in the following year again as the "Mosstroj" office. Publications from 1929-1930 gave a different place of his residence - 39 Gercena Street, flat 17. Alexander Rzepiszewski's name was mentioned in the Moscow Architectural Guide.

During the Moscow period, he designed sanatoriums and boarding houses around Moscow, including the tuberculosis sanatorium at Kratovo station and in Yalta, the Dolossa sanatorium. Between 1926 and 1928, during the so-called 'late NEP', he built several buildings in the centre of Moscow - in the prestigious 'Sadovoye Kolco' district. Among the buildings it is necessary to mention those on Podsosnensky street No. 13, Makarenko street No. 8, Furmansky street No. 15. In 1928 Alexander Rzepishevsky erected a building on Samotechnaya-Sadovaya street No. 11 for the commanders of the USSR Armed Forces

In 1928, the architect built his last building and did his last industrial design, as he noted in a letter to his brother dated 9 November 1928. The letter is filled with sadness and quiet hope for a better life. In 1930, Aleksander Rzepiszewski, due to his 'bourgeois' and Polish background, was accused as an 'enemy of the nation' and spent six months in an NKVD prison cell. Shortly after his release, he died of a stroke. To date, the architect's burial place in Moscow remains unknown. His brothers Leonid and Mikhail were also imprisoned as enemies of the nation, but fortunately survived the Stalinist era.

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In the rich oeuvre of Alexander Rzepiszewski, an interesting evolution can be discerned, reflecting the phenomena in architecture of the first half of the 20th century. Undoubtedly, his best works were created during the Kharkiv period. The architect's artistic style and creative palette in designing residential buildings was shaped by the artistic achievements of the French Revival, French "AP HYBÓ" and German Modernism ("Jugend style"), as well as elements of Neo-Gothic, Neo-Renaissance, Constructive Modernism.

One of the most recognisable symbols of the legacy of architect Alexander Rzepiszewski, as well as of modern Kharkiv, is the majestic building of the Merchant City Bank and the "Astoria" hotel. We should also add that it was one of the city's first "skyscrapers". The project was structurally innovative: for the first time in the city, a reinforced concrete load-bearing structure was used here. The six-storey edifice was located on what is now Soborny Square, in the central part of the city. For the first time on Kharkiv soil, a load-bearing structure in the form of a reinforced concrete post-and-beam skeleton was used in construction, which allowed for a flexible solution to the plan. The edifice was conceived as a complex functional complex, with shops and a post office on the ground floor, bank and museum offices on the first and second floors, and 'Astoria' hotel rooms above. The building, entitled 'Merchant City Bank and Hotel Astoria', as a monument of architecture and urban planning, is included on the list of monuments of the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine. Tragic for the edifice was the morning of 3 March 2022, when it was damaged by an explosive wave from a Russian missile that attacked a building nearby.

A building known as the 'Kulakovskiy manufactory' (19 Rizdviana Street) was built in a similar stylistic solution to the façade. Due to its less representative function, the design was more modest, but here too a similar repertoire of forms was used - facades partly faced with stone rustication, a mansard roof and sculptural detail stylised in the archaic and secession spirit.

In the buildings constructed in 1914, Aleksander Rzepiszewski changed his style, the forms of the buildings he designed becoming progressively simplified and the neo-romantic motifs reduced. He supplemented the usually asymmetrical blocks with picturesque façade compositions with discreet details, combining classicising and Art Nouveau features. The "Company Building" (19 Rymarska Street), built in the style of "rational modernism", is considered to be the architect's showpiece from this period. A very original one is the apartment house built in 1914 for the director Mykola Synelnykov at 29 Darwin Street (19 Sadovo-Kulikowska Street).

In his buildings, Aleksander Rzepiszewski paid a lot of attention to the finishing touches, decorating both facades and interiors with decorative elements of floral themes and motifs from ancient Greek and Roman mythology. His buildings are difficult to confuse with those of the city's architects of the time. A unique solution was used for the windows, to which carved wooden elements were added as a finishing touch. Balcony grilles in the style of Modernism stood out for their beauty and distinctive style, as well as original roofs with sharp pinnacles that made the buildings resemble medieval ones.

The architect also worked a great deal on the interior finishes: the front staircase and the interior furnishings of the buildings, which consisted of durable oak parquet flooring, good-quality ceramic tile from the works of Baron Eduard Bergenheim, and a lift from the German company "Unruh&Liebih".

The life and work of Alexander Rzepishevsky is an example of extraordinary human capabilities, reaching heights in his profession, which became the meaning of life for the man. During the Kharkiv period, he created his most outstanding buildings, which so far constitute a set of the most brilliant and original masterpieces of the modernism era, creating a distinctly western and eastern colour of the historical part of the city.

Rzepiszewski introduced innovations in Kharkiv's architecture that added to its originality and elegance. The architect introduced a number of outstanding buildings into the city space, skilfully applying early modernist ideas about creating maximum comfortable living and working conditions. He was the first to apply a new method of internal arrangement of flats through the use of sliding walls. The distinctive profile of the roofs covering the townhouses he designed gave the historic centre of Kharkiv an original silhouette, complementing the dominant features of the church towers. It is thanks in part to these developments that the city has acquired a unique and inimitable character.