Now With Twice The Windows
Submitted By: Zoe K
Favorite Comment: Fixer Rob T Firefly says, “Yo dawg, I heard you like windows…”
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If at first you don’t succeed, try try again.
The sign can be translated as “Department of building industry”, or “Department of capital construction”. Ironic!
More like Windows Vista.
@JennyLou
Then quit. There’s no use being a damn fool about it.
– W.C. Fields
Plate delivers!
It says (roughly translated) “Russian State Committee of Construction Activities”
The funniest thing about this is that the plaque says, approximately, “Russian national construction bureau.”
I wonder if the misplaced door from the other day is inside this building…
I wish it were possible to click the picture and see a larger version of the awesomeness.
Not sure about this but it looks a bit like done in photoshop…
This honestly looks photoshopped. Sorry, but you can’t blur the wood and brick together and think nobody’d notice.
But, it IS cute
I don’t guess that the fact that the building is painted Pepto-Bismol is a coincidence. I know it upsets my bowels to look at it.
It seems fitting that the plaque on the right says “Government Building Committee of Russia”
I love how the windows new windows are “installed” at a different agle to the old ones.
wow. I just had an epic spelling/grammar fail on my last comment.
@Rampart
Don’t worry about it. Apart from an obnoxious vocal minority, no one really cares. It’s a blog comment, not an article in Popular Science.
But what makes it even funnier is that the sign (“Gosstroi Rossii”) means, approximately, “Russian State Committee for Construction”.
@Czernobog
You rule, sir.
Hmmmm… I’m thinking photoshop. Until I see more pics from different angles, I say it’s fake.
They missed!
BTW, this photo is from Russia, and it is written on a sign there, that this buildin belongs to “Russian State Corporation Of Governmental Building”, some kind of a development-control organ. (i`m not quite sure how to spell this naming it in english)
@CableKludge – You are the awesome. W.C. Fields is always appropriate.
In other words, when you opened the shutters you threw up the sash.
@ZipionLive and a really bad job of Photoshop, too.
( & Paddy) – Thanks, I just annoyed myself that’s all
comment mistakes don’t bother me except when they are my own- or when it is by some troll acting all enlightened, yet spells and writes worse that a grade school child. Fortunately there aren’t many trolls on here yet!
@Rampart
I made a grammar mistake almost exactly like that recently, about a “maroon 1989 maroon Volvo”!
Dono, Dono, Dono. I just don’t know what to say, (and I’m not often at a loss for words). That really, truly makes me laugh. Epic congratulations. Winner takes all.
photoshop
To those who insist it’s photoshopped: you might be correct, but at least make an argument.
I disagree that it’s obvious; on the contrary, there are elements that, if faked, are very well done. For example: correct parallax on the truncated pediment/gable ends.
Can you identify particular evidence that it’s faked? General discoloration I don’t buy; look at the poor building everywhere else.
What’s completely ironic is that the sign on the building translates roughly to “Russian National Construction Committee”.
^ Thank you. Nobody cares if you think it’s fake unless you want to discuss why you think so.
Yo dawg, I heard you like windows…
Am I the only one who noticed that the original two window frames don’t match? Look inside the top angled areas.
In Russia, huh? Why am I not surprised
(Not just speaking from a general stereotypical view, I’m in St.Petersburg now, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see this. Heck, I once saw a torn-up power box on the outside of a building with the wires at odd angles, which had been painted over. Including the wires.)
FWIW, I don’t think it’s necessarily photoshopped.
The sagging/stress is very typical of an old, unreinforced brick building (look at the parapet line). Somebody has tried (rather unsuccessfully) to patch the worst places with a skim coat of concrete, which looks like ‘blurring’ but is just concrete and too many coats of paint. The two new windows are on different levels because the retrofitter had to work them in under a course of brick that was solid enough to support a new header. You can see where the header is shimmed on the right hand side of the right hand window. The retrofitter thought better of that and moved up another course for the left hand window (then he REALLY had to shim it).
If it’s photoshopped, the ‘artiste’ anticipated exactly what a frustrated installer would do.
If I were the Russian Government Building Authority, I would take down the sign, or paint over it (but the sign is so beautiful, compared to the rest of the building!)
@The Cat & Cap’n Crotz
Amen! I have yet to see any intelligent defense to the “It’s Photoshopped! What’s wrong with you morons?” comments. First- the grammer/spelling of these comments usually indicate a limited grasp of the English (or any other) language. Second- As you both mentioned, there’s never a valid argument outside of a “Look at the pixelation! It’s so obvious!” or a “His feet aren’t even level!”. More often than not, the supposed Photoshopping efforts they point out result in a work that would be genius if it really WE’RE Photoshopped. No “hack” could come up with some of these subtle touches (like the uneven splitting of window “A” compared to window “B” in this pix), yet according to these accusers, the alleged Photoshoppers are stupid enough and sloppy enough to be caught by the eagle-eyed vigilence of these armchair experts.
There! I said it! Now, let me go step backwards and merge a few visible layers…
The windows look real but the sign seems too clean to me and quite coincidental that this would be a a building department office. Or maybe they just moved into this fixer upper..
Pepto paint FTW
@Paddy
I second that emotion!
“First- the *grammer*/spelling of these comments usually indicate a limited grasp of the English”
Hehehehehe.
Well I googled the plaque and found this one plus a few others.
http://sneezl.com/only-in-russia/?russian
Sorry for my English.
This is not Photoshop =) We are in Russia and not as it happens.
Many buildings 18-19 centuries rebuilt inside and out, so turn out such “masterpieces”. This is not always so funny as it might seem)
It seems that in Moscow there is only one “Department of building industry”, which is located at No. 12. If able, try to come there today to check.
i think it looks real. that is all.
‘Its photoshopped’ seems to be a response similar to ‘get a Mac’ on Windows forums. If it were in the West, I might be more inclined to agree, but its in Russia, in which the impossible seems ever more likely.
Wow, I wonder what that sign in Russian says. I bet it’s something like “Russian Government Construction Department”, that would be really ironic.
In Soviet Russia, windows—
Ah, I got nothing.
(@cap’nCrotz, The Cat, & Dono1) How refreshing to see others as heartily annoyed by all those shallow, unsupported comments. The images on here are only a few hundred pixels wide for crying out loud, there isn’t much there to prove one way or the other!
Yeah, I had one of my photos posted a few weeks ago. Someone commented, “Totally photoshopped”.
Some people just need to get out of the house more and see all the weird stuff “handymen/women” try to do…
This is a really great website. I feel like I’ve found my tribe, or something. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to get back to patching this wall. Let’s see, I think a 50 lb bag of pixel mortar should do it…
In Russia, windows open you!
What? That’s the way my dear old Grammar taught me to spell it. And, I might add, she was married to an English major (or maybe he was a Lieutenant Colonel- I forget).
Anyway, that’s what happens when you mix a Dvorak keyboard with too much Merlot on a site with no comment correction capability. Is my face read! Er…red!
What’s really weird is that after 50 comments nobody has mentioned how the sign reads “Russian Edifice of Building Construction”
@Daniel
I was literally just about to point out the same thing; glad I checked first! I guess not that many of us read Cyrillic ; )
@Cap’n Crotz
If you had spent any time in Russia, you would know that this is almost certainly real.
Nobody except comments 2, 5, 6, 12, 16, 20, 29, 34, 41, & 44. But, hey, who’s counting, right?
@Heidi:
I haven’t been to Russia, but I agree, it’s very likely real. My earlier comment was merely trying to challenge the reflexive doubters, politely, to “put up or shut up”– i.e. to think clearly about the evidence in front of them.
And in pursuit of such clarity, I’ll add this:
the fact that Russia has many such examples raises the prior probability that these windows are real, but it doesn’t change the validity of the photo per se as evidence. The photo can be evaluated on its own merits.
A heuristic like “it must be real because Russia’s full of crazy stuff” can be just as mistaken as “it must be fake because it’s weird”.
@Cap’n Crotz
You had me at “heuristic”.
I love it that this place is an umpteen-Watt (1utW) homing beacon for Nerds. I am but a humble moth in its glow.
Measure twice, cut once… or measure four times, cut twice.
@Cap’n Crotz
You had me at “1utW”
@dono1
Hey hey hey. Look. I gave a reason for my suspicions. And here are some more:
1. Differing reflections in the glass. One is a bright building side, the other is a dark something else.
2. The impeccable transition between brick and wood, with no evident depth change. That would take some incredibly good and accurate construction.
3. It looks like the windows themselves are subtly different, especially in the framing of the upper-left corner piece. One has some form of caulking, the other does not.
4. The edges do not align with the lower windows; presumably, if you are going to go through the trouble of a retrofit like this then you would try to fix it. And, it’s implausible that both this fault AND the #2 fault could have both been done in reality by the same contractors.
5. There are undeniably more urgent things that should be attended to; such as the unreinforced and indeed cracking brick. Earthquake danger anyone? Even a high wind or serious rainfall would likely cause serious damage. And fixing it would cost less then doing something like this.
Now, there are my reasons. @dono1, I never called anyone a moron. I made no reference to pixelation. I have given reasons that seem valid to me, I was not at all rude, and I acknowledged that it was cute, even if photoshopped. Believe me, I have seen photoshopping jobs that the artists took days to make, cleverly manipulating each tool and pixel.
Also, there have been myriad cases of extraordinarily good blog posts that were in fact photoshopped. The famous picture that allegedly had Palin in a flag bikini and a rifle was a fake, and a good one too. But when people like me called it out, we were shot down as trolls, just like you are doing now. Someone who just writes “shopd” is a moron. Someone who writes multiple paragraphs with 5 separate reasons for suspecting manipulation might be, but I find substantial evidence to the contrary. Now, please, this is meant to be enjoyed. I am analyzing it because I enjoy that. So, peace?
@Sir Scarfalot
Hey hey hey. look. here are my reasons for my suspicions that your a cynical jerk:
1. Only one window has bright reflections because it has the the blinds or curtains drawn, the other does not.
2. No evident depth change? more like no evident depth perception by you, I dont see that at all.
3. Its obviously photshopped if one window is different to the other, thats the only plausible explanation. It doesn’t look like they place much importance on appearances at the Russian Edifice of Building Construction. And you can see the original windows are also different, maybe they were carrying on the tradition.
4. As for the unlevel?ness of the new windows, perhaps the work was done from the inside and it wasn’t easy to tell accurately.
5. Fixing the unreinforced and cracking bricks may be important(though expensive) for structural integrity, but wouldn’t let the light quite like a window is able to, and i think that is what they were going for.
Those are my reasons. although tempted to I never called anyone a moron either. I also made no reference to pixelation. I have disagreed with reasons that seem valid to you, I’m not being especially rude, and I may be wrong, it may be photoshopped, but I really don’t give a dick.
Now, please, this is meant to be enjoyed. I am shooting down your arguments because I have nothing better to do, and it passes the time. So, piece?
“I love it that this place is an umpteen-Watt (1utW) homing beacon for Nerds. I am but a humble moth in its glow.”
Should my feelings be hurt?
@Harring
“although tempted I never called anyone a moron either.” but you did call me a “cynical jerk”. And “I’m not being especially rude”. But you also say “I really don’t give a dick” and “hey hey hey.”. The first is simply rude, and the second is nothing more than a poor attempt at mockery. Which is rude.
But yes, now that you mention it, I can see that the curtains are drawn. Sorry…
Look, folks, perhaps the windows had just been delivered? Relax, we upgrade buildings, too, and it does not happen instantaneously.
“One size fits all. No exceptions.”
@Sir Scarfalot
i like how you just managed to make me not want to argue with you. i apologise for my rudeness
i’m guessing the original “windows” were ornamental. then later somebody decided to put in real ones and just stuck them where it was most convenient from the inside. i think when you’re on a, shall we say, shoestring budget, your interest in aesthetics is far outweighed by necessity and cost efficiency.
i wonder what the building is used for. is it really a construction office or is it like, converted to apartments or a school? maybe it’s an old sign.
In Soviet Яussia, house builds you!
Sorry,couldn’t hold myself
@Sir Scarfalot
First off, this building is probably older than all of the buildings that anyone has ever seen in America. Russia has been around for a few millenia while most buildings in America are less than 300 years old. They really don’t make “replacement windows” for buildings that old, so they cut the larger holes for the new windows where they could fit through the wall. Most people in Russia wouldn’t have the monetary resources to make replacement windows look like the original “style”, they make do with what they have. Of course nerd-know-it-alls that haven’t had the opportunity to view the world beyond what they see on the internet, really don’t have a clue as to what non-virtual reality, that is: what life in other parts of the Real World is like.
@Garp
He actually says “the English language” which is not a mistake.
@Pedobear
In this case fail quote fails you.
Soviets did it right, its the collapse of communists that brought on the free for all.
maybe it is the most revolutionary architectural, critic… concept…. maybe…
Oh, it seems that I cannot post images here. Anyway, here’s the prooflink: http://oldmos.ru/forum/view_topic/203
What a waste of a once beautiful building
I see crap like this in Michigan every day. Most of them are done to Victorian-era homes that have been gut-”rehabbed” and split up into apartments (a “slumlord” technique which ought to be criminal). The “best” of them will have their windows “filled” a little (which occasionally preserves the ornate “gingerbread” trim). The worst take off the trim and side over the home with vinyl. Wretched.
The “upgrade” above is an epic fail aesthetically and likely compromised the structure. Mother Russia is the Capital of Kludge. That the structure stands hundreds of years after construction is a testament to the skills of the men who built it. A lack of reverence for and preservation of that kind of skilled labor really ought to be a Crime Against Architecture.
I doubt we’d see anything like this here; the majority of our brick and stone buildings of any appreciable age end up owned by people who’re wealthy enough to repair them properly. I’ll be on the lookout, though, and will send those that I can find.
..cannot read Russian but thought it was a “Polish-ed” improvement.
I want my window installer to redo our remodel to look like this. As I figger it, thieves will be so confused as to which window to break into, they’ll give up and just break into the next house….
Australia, becoming Armstrong’s biggest hit there. ,
How do you remove the bricks so they don’ fall on people below? Why did they not center them? Is this legal there?