Mikhail Grigorievich Zemtsov
(1686-1743)
Architect
He was born in Moscow, studied at the Armory in Moscow. Moved to St. Petersburg in 1709. Zemtsov studied Italian at a provincial chancellery. In 1710 by order of Emperor Petr I named assistant and student to Domenico Trezini. In 1719 he oversaw construction in Moscow. In 1720 was promoted from rank of student to apprentice. Between 1720 and 1722 worked in Revel as assistant to N. Miketti on the construction of Yekaterinenthal. In 1723 was sent on business to Stockholm. From 1723 worked in Saint Petersburg on court commissions. In 1724 received the title of architect. In 1740 attached to the "Commission on Saint Petersburg Building" to edit and complete the tract "Mission of the Architectural Expedition" in which he authored the chapters "On Architecture and Architects", "What to Do in Building," "On the Responsibilities of Various Artisans During Building," "On the Architecture Academy." Starting in 1741, served as court architect for Empress Elizabeth I.
He was the first Russian architect in Petersburg to bring to fruition the ideas of Emperor Petr I along with Domenico Trezini. Worked in Saint Petersburg, Tzarskoje Selo and Moscow. In 1742 received the rank of bureaucrat. Had his own "architecture team."
Among the surviving works of Mikhail Zemtsov is the Church of Sts. Simeon and Anna (later partially remodeled).
Mikhail Zemtsov created a plan for the reconstruction of the Tzarskoje Selo palace ensemble at Tzarskoje Selo during late 1742 and early 1743. During this period Mikhail Zemtsov oversaw all the construction work at Tzarskoje Selo which after his death was headed by Andrei Vasilievich Kvasov. Mikhail Zemtsov designed the plan for the Hermitage pavilion in the Catherine Park. Construction of this pavilion was continued by Bartolomeo Francesco Rastrelli.
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