Annenkirche – a Perfect Place for Atmospheric Scenes

The green light of the main cross breaks through its burnt and silent entrance hall. No psalms are heard, no prayers are found. An abandoned church welcomes you with a black cat sitting on the central stairway. Out of ideas for your next scene? Perhaps you are looking for a challenge? Annenkirche or St. Ann’s Church, a historical church in Saint Petersburg, might become a perfect story for your project and an ultimate challenge for material artists. 

Peter the Great allowed religious freedom in an official manifesto in 1702 and that allowed the German Lutheran community build a neoclassical style shelter with the help of Yuri Felten. The master helped construct the place with Ionic columns in 1775-1779 and the the result was so astonishing that it became one of his greatest works. Its main facade was built as a rotunda with Ionic columns easily standing in a semi-circle.

St. Ann’s Church was then closed in 1935 and turned into a cinema, called Spartak. At the beginning of the 21st century new owners opened doors of a nightclub, which later led to a crushing fire. The thing is that the bad guys from the club actually did a good thing.

The church was restored in 2012-2013, but it still holds the marks of the club fire that make this place something else. Its present halls feel like they were meant to be this way. You just love its damaged spirit that leaves an unforgettable impression. 

Annekirche now serves as a shelter for modern artists, jazz bands and symphonic music. Even prayer services are said to be restored there. New owners are trying to rebuild the place, but I hope they won’t change its walls, because they are just perfect the way the are now.  

The thing is that the church would be a perfect reference for a 3D scene as it could be a real challenge. It would take hours to recreate the same burnt patterns in Substance Designer, right? So we’re challenging you to model a 3D copy of St. Ann’s Church. The question is whether you accept. 

Author: Artyom Sergeev