Oleksiy Beketov


Oleksiy Mykolaovych Beketov was a Ukrainian architect,, who made significant contributions to the architectural landscape of Kharkiv and beyond, primarily working in the Neoclassical, Neo-Renaissance, and Art Nouveau styles. He was an honorary Professor at the St. Petersburg Imperial Academy of Arts from 1894.

Biography

Oleksiy Mykolaovych Beketov was born on February 19, 1862, in the city of Kharkiv. The is probably of Turkic or Circassian origin. Oleksiy Beketov was the son of famous Russian-Ukrainian chemist Nikolay Beketov, a noted Professor of chemistry at the Imperial University of Kharkiv. His father came from a Russian noble family with roots from the Penza Governorate, Nikolay Beketov was born in Alferovka, than moved to Kharkiv. When he was elected to the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, he moved to St. Petersburg, where he died in 1911. His mother Olena Karlivna Milhoff was daughter of the Katerynoslav pharmacist.
He studied at the local realschule and a private art school, operated by Maria Raevskaia-Ivanova in Kharkiv. In 1882, he enrolled in the Imperial Academy of Arts, where he studied with David Grimm and ; graduating in 1888 with a degree in architecture. He graduated with a gold medal and defended his thesis on the topic "The Station at the Sea Baths on the Black Sea". During that same period, he worked with Maximilian Messmacher on several projects, including the palace of Grand Duke Michael Mikhailovich.
After his studies, he was offered a job in Russia, in particular at the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts, but he wrote that he wanted to "live and give all his strength to his hometown... I stood, looked at the palaces and remembered our Kharkiv - I felt with all my heart that I wanted to return and give all my strength to my native city". Therefore, he soon returned to Kharkiv and from 1890 taught architectural design and drawing at the Kharkiv Practical Technological Institute. From 1892 he taught a course in building art and architecture, and in 1898 he joined in compiling the programs and teaching a course in the history of architecture, as well as supervising the diploma and course design. In 1909, he published the book "Architecture. A Course of Lectures Given at the Kharkiv Institute of Technology Named After Emperor Alexander the Third". In 1894, he was awarded the title of "Academician" for his work on Kharkiv Public Library, what is now known as the Kharkiv Korolenko State Scientific Library. His first project to be implemented was the building of the. In addition to simply designing the building, he also managed and supervised the construction, performing the work of a foreman. He continued to work in the same way.
The Beketov family, in particular Oleksiy and his father Nikolay, were acquainted with the famous Alchevsky family of Ukrainian educators and activists. The Alchevsky family, together with Nikolay Beketov, were among the founders of the Kharkiv Society "Hromada", a national and cultural center of the Ukrainian intelligentsia. In 1899 Oleksiy Beketov was married to Hanna Alchevska, daughter of the Ukrainian industrialist, banker, public figure, and philanthropist, Oleksiy Alchevsky and his wife, Khrystyna, a Ukrainian educator and public education organizer. Therefore, the projects of the most important buildings that served the cause of public education for Kharkiv were carried out by O. M. Beketov free of charge. These include the project of the Public Library and the project of the building of the . Also, the buildings of Oleksiy Alchevsky's banks: Zemelny and Torgovy were built according to his designs. To master the specifics of bank construction, the architect visited France, Italy, and Germany, inspecting the layout of operating rooms, work areas, safes, and other premises of European banks. Beketov also built a private mansion for the Alchevskys in the style of Italian villas. In the courtyard of this mansion, was erected in 1900. The author of the monument is Ukrainian-Russian sculptor Volodymyr Beklemishev, who, like Beketov, graduated from the Kharkiv drawing school of Maria Raevskaya-Ivanova.
Oleksiy and Hanna had four children: Khrystyna, Mykola, Maria, and Olena. His grandson became a Doctor of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, and his great-granddaughter is a well-known public figure, defender of the city's architectural heritage, volunteer during the Russian-Ukrainian war and activist. Currently, the architect's descendants live in one of the apartments in the that the architect built in 1912 on after the economic crisis. Beketov's friend, the prominent Ukrainian artist Mykola Samokysh, also lived in this building.
After the Soviet occupation of Ukraine began, Beketov remained in Kharkiv. Most of his property was nationalized by the Soviet authorities. After 1920, in addition to KhTI, he worked as the main architect of the Kharkiv Art School. In 1929, he became a professor of architecture at the Kharkiv Mechanical Engineering Institute. After 1935, he worked at the Kharkiv Institute of Municipal Engineering Engineers, where he became a full-time professor at the Department of Architectural Design. He worked in this position until September 22, 1941.
In 1939, he was named an.
Until the last days of his life, the architect led an active lifestyle and played tennis. In August 1941, while the city was still under the control of the Soviet army, he submitted a request to the institute to return to teaching. Soon after this, he had a stroke, and was bed ridden in his last days. Oleksiy Mykolayovych Beketov died on November 23, 1941, in Kharkiv, occupied by the Nazi army, aged seventy-nine. He was initially buried in the honorary. In the 1970s, the city authorities decided to demolish the cemetery, where many prominent citizens were buried, along with the graves. Oleksiy Beketov's grave, along with some others, was moved to the, where it is located to this day. The gravestone, which was made in 1946, was also moved. The grave of the outstanding Ukrainian architect is a monument of history of all-Ukrainian significance.

Commemoration

Streets
  • * Founded in the 1930s in the Industrialnyi District of Kharkiv, the street has been named after Oleksiy Beketov since the 1950s.
  • * Beketova Street also exists in Salavat.Сommemorative plaque
  • * A plaque from the early 20th century has survived on the building of the former commercial school in Kharkiv, which was built according to his design.
  • * A commemorative plaque has been installed in 1987 on the house on Darvina Street in Kharkiv, where he lived. The old board was lost, and a new one was installed in 2001.
  • * A commemorative plaque is installed on the library building in Kharkiv, which was built according to his design.
  • * A plaque in his honor is installed on the building of the Mechnikov Institute in Kharkiv, was built according to his design.
  • * A commemorative plaque in honor of the architect is installed on the courthouse building in Kharkiv, which was built according to his design.
  • * The museum of the Kharkiv National Academy of Urban Economy has a memorial plaque in honor of the auditorium named after Beketov.
  • * It was also planned to install several plaques on other prominent buildings in Kharkiv.
  • Institutions named after Beketov
  • *Kharkiv National Academy of Urban Economy was named in honor of Oleksiy Beketov in 2013.
  • *In 1995, a new subway station on the Kharkiv Metro was named the Arkhitektora Beketova.
  • *Auditorium No. 501 Kharkiv National Academy of Urban Economy was named after the architect in 1987.Monuments
  • * On September 22, 2007, a was unveiled in front of the building of the former. The author of the monument is.
  • * On August 30, 2016, a monument to Oleksiy Beketov was unveiled in front of the building of the Kharkiv National Academy of Urban Economy. The authors of the monument are Oleksandr Ridny and Hanna Ivanova.
  • * In 2001, a monument to the architect with his bust was erected in the Kharkiv House of Scientists, which was built as.
  • * In 2002, a bust of Beketov was installed in the museum of the Kharkiv National Academy of Urban Economy.
  • * There is a stained glass window with his image at the "Arkhitektora Beketova" station of the Kharkiv Metro.Museums
  • * A section of the museum at the Kharkiv National Academy of Urban Economy is dedicated to the architect.
  • * His dacha in Alushta is now a museum.
  • * Some of Beketov's belongings are kept in the Kharkiv Historical and Art Museums.Other
  • * In 2010, a postage stamp "Beketov Oleksiy Mykolaovych" was issued in Ukraine.
  • * Several books have been written about Oleksiy Beketov. He also wrote his own autobiography and descriptions of his projects.

Works

In Kharkiv, he built over 40 public and residential buildings. He primarily worked in the Neoclassical, Neo-Renaissance, and Art Nouveau styles. He also utilized Neo-Moorish, Neo-Grec, and other styles. In the 1920s and 1930s, several buildings were erected according to his designs in the Constructivist style. He participated in the competition for the construction of the Derzhprom building, but his project was not among the winners. In 1905–1907, in collaboration with sculptor I. Andreoletti, he created, which is now located near the entrance to V. N. Karazin Kharkiv University. Today, most of his buildings are. A significant portion of his buildings were damaged during the Russian shelling of Kharkiv after the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022–2025.
In addition to his architectural designs, he was an amateur artist, painting Crimean landscapes. Many of his landscape paintings are in private collections. Alexey Dushkin,, and Vasyl Krychevsky are some of his best-known students.
The name Beketov, "Beketov's buildings," or "Beketov's style" in the city of Kharkiv is often used as a generic term for all beautiful buildings.

Public buildings

Private buildings

  • Alchevsky Mansion ;
  • ;
  • Dmytro Alchevsky Mansion ;
  • N. L. Zalesky Mansion.
  • Sokolov Merchant's Mansion ;
  • Mykola Somov Mansion ;
  • P. V. Markov Merchant's Mansion ;
  • P. V. Markov Merchant's Mansion ;
  • Own house on Darwin Street ;
  • Fotiy Pisnyachevsky Mansion ;
  • The mansion of Olexander Iosefovich and the editorial office of the newspaper "Yuzhnyy kray"
  • Mansion of engineer O.I. Fenin
  • Ivan Yegorovich Ignatishchev Mansion ;
  • .

Reconstructions made according to his projects:

Not implemented or lost in Kharkiv

Beketov is the author of an unrealized project for the Kharkiv Opera House for 2,200 people. The construction was canceled due to the outbreak of World War I. He also participated in competitions for the Derzhprom building and the new building of Kharkiv University. In 1938–1939, the architect created a project to expand the library building, which was never implemented.
In 1908, the "Fruit Rows" and "Golgotha Panorama" were built on in Kharkiv, designed by architect Beketov. The building was demolished to widen the road in the 1930s. In 1898, O. Beketov designed the reconstruction of the house of G. I. Rubinstein. The house was probably destroyed in the middle of the 20th century.

In other cities

  • Metallurgical Plant of the Donetsk-Yur'evsk Metallurgical Society ;
  • Own dacha ;
  • Katerynoslav Higher Mining College ;
  • Katerynoslav Higher Mining College ;
  • Management of the Katerynoslav Railway ;
  • Diocesan Women's School ;
  • Chamber of Judicial Institutions ;
  • Branch of Volga Kama Commercial Bank ;
  • Theater with a revenue building ;
  • "Villa "Marina"" ;
  • Lubny District Court ;
  • Ascension Church ;
  • Diocesan Women's School ;
  • Peasant sanatorium named after VUTSVK ;
  • 5-story residential building for employees of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine (Bolsheviks).