Architecture and program
The temple is a part of museum and temple center located between the residential area “Tushino 2018”, Volokolamsk highway and the embankment of the Moscow River. The building is a part of the “Program 200”, launched back in 2010: within its framework, 200 new churches are being built in Moscow.
The entire temple complex, which appeared on the site of the once famous Tushino airfield, stands on an elongated site along the east-west axis: along it is the main gate, the bell tower (west), the temple (center) and the museum (east). There is also a square on the territory of the temple complex. The architecture of the ensemble, located along the river, goes back to the traditions of Vladimir-Suzdal architecture. The construction of an entire residential area began with the construction of the temple complex.

The total area of the entire complex is about 6,200 m², and the area of the temple, designed for 785 people, is more than 2,000 m². The tent-shaped building consists of a granite stylobate and a multi-stage single-domed temple, its height is 58 meters to the cross. There is a Sunday school and technical rooms on the first floor, and a narthex, prayer hall and altar on the second floor.

Lighting concept
The main goal of the lighting concept is to create a special image of the building when it’s dark: to emphasize the purity and lightness of the architecture with the help of light and to form sacred experiences. This is how a solution appeared in which snow-white facades, faced with glass fiber concrete, marble and granite, seem to float above the dark earth, bathe in golden rays and strive upward.
Lighting designers often have to work with commercial or residential architecture – facades, interiors, landscapes – and temples are very rare. At the same time, religious buildings carry a special semantic load that must be expressed through lighting. This is an interesting task of finding a suitable harmonious and emotional lighting solution.
Working with modern temple architecture may differ from approaches to designing historical churches: the architects’ view of modern sacred architecture may be radically different from classical canons or follow them. And this is always a challenge for lighting designers, an interesting creative and technical task.

Lighting solutions
The shape of the temple is stable and symmetrical: no matter which of the four sides a person approaches from, the building will look the same, with the exception of some decorative elements. This idea of equivalence and accessibility for all people, no matter where they come to the temple and to God, carries a symbolic meaning. Other important features of the temple in Tushino are its verticality and noticeably elongated proportions.
The main relief of the building is formed by the pyaslas with zakomaras and kokoshniks. To illuminate these vertical planes were selected floodlights with different power from 3 W to 150 W: it depends on the size of each tier, which decreases upward. The larger the surface size, the greater the power and width of the light beam – the number of devices also increases. The higher the tier, the smaller its area – and the power of the luminaries also decreases. Different angles of the luminaires help to combat individual light spots on the facade and maintain a uniform level of illumination – from 10° to 100°: uniform light of large surfaces requires wide angles, while more compact elements are highlighted with narrow beams.

The combination of illuminated planes and shadows forms the building’s relief, the complex shape of which is discernible in the dark. This solution differs from the basic option, when the facade is evenly flooded with luminaries on poles around the building – in this case, it usually turns out flat: this is why the QPRO team did not use this technique working with the temple complex.
To illuminate the snow-white facade, were used lighting fixtures with a neutral-white color temperature 4000 K: they emphasize the white shade of the finish and reflective elements of the mosaic, the decorative design of the portals and the gold of the dome. The drum with slit windows and the place where it connects to the dome are highlighted with light using miniature spotlights: at the point of transition from one form to another, is formed an illuminated ring, and soft highlights appear on the golden dome.

The first thing a person encounters on the way to the temple is the stairs and the porch. So, the entrance group is provided with functional dim lighting, allowing one to safely reach the level of the promenade. The mosaic panels at the level of the promenade are recessed into the arcade belt: each of them is illuminated by linear luminaries built into the floor. In the evening and at night, it seems as if the mosaic comes to life, shimmering with different shades and gold. The portals are also illuminated by linear luminaries installed at the base of the promenade. Reflected light is used for comfortable and safe movement along the promenade: it creates a sufficient level of illumination. To illuminate the mosaic panel and the edges of the arcade frieze, are also used devices with a color temperature of 4000 K, but with asymmetrical elliptical optics – they highlight the mosaic panel and architectural details of the frieze, emphasize the verticals with gliding light, but at the same time help to avoid light pollution.

The stylobate, where the Sunday school is located, is deliberately not highlighted by light: in the twilight, the surfaces finished with gray granite seem even darker in contrast to the upper illuminated tiers – this is how the feeling arises that the building is raised above the ground. This technique “elevates” the building above everything mundane, but at the same time preserves the connection between the earth and the sky (that is, the earthly and the sacred) through the lighting of the entrance group. The devices illuminating the facade have a CRI> 80. After the lighting calculations, several mockups were carried out on the site to adjust the light and mold the architecture.

There is a circular square with a walking area around the temple. The standardized level of illumination for comfortable movement here is provided by minimalist devices on poles that emit a warm white light of 3000 K. The walking paths between the temple and the cultural and exhibition center are also illuminated – that is, the entire east-west walking axis. In the center of this park there are benches – there are no lighting devices here so that people can remain in a chamber atmosphere, and the city remains dark