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Armenian architecture firm SNKH has won a competition to design the next Garage Screen summer cinema in front of the Garage Museum of Contemporary Art in Moscow.

Speaking to Panorama.am, SNKH co-founder Ashot Snkhchyan said the museum announced the competition for temporary cinema projects for the second year already. The temporary movie theater operates for a few months – from May to October. Afterwards, it is dismantled and a new competition is announced next year, he said.

This year the competition received 136 applications from architects across Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. The expert jury selected six finalists and wining studio in the end.

“In the first round, we submitted an application, presenting our activity and the projects we have implemented. Afterwards, 6 applications were shortlisted. In the second round we presented a sketch project. The jury chose our project,” Ashot said.

He said their idea lacks what is characteristic of solid architecture – walls or hard barriers.

“It's short-lived architecture which also has its charm. What we could have done to solve this problem we would not have done for a permanent structure. That’s what we focused on,” the architect said. “The jury appreciated this, noting that our project is radically different from the projects presented by others – a light and temporary structure with a memorable exterior at the same time.”

The SNKH co-founder said that they are already working on the project, as they have only presented the idea and are in contact with the museum. When the dismantling of the movie theater starts, the SNKH team must follow the process on the ground, he said.