The Chocolate House, Kiev

The Chocolate House is an 18th century Venetian Renaissance style building, commissioned by Semen Semenovich Mogilevtsev. It was erected in the 1890s to a design by famous architect Vladimir Nikolayev. The exotic name derives from the exterior of dark brown colour which resembles chocolate.

Similarly to the House of Chimeras, the Chocolate House, initially (for over fifteen years), had served as a private residence (for the Mogilevtsevs), and thus allowed no access for the general public. During the Soviet period, the building hosted the Central Civil Registration Office and, in 1986 - the Children’s Picture Gallery.

The house’s history took a positive turn in 2009 when it was put under the jurisdiction of the Kiev Museum of Russian Art and subjected to restoration. Three of its rooms - The White, the Art Nouveau, and the New Russian Room - have already been finished and opened to the public; completion of the rest of the building is still in progress. The original wall paintings and wood inlays have been widely applied, wherever possible, to recreate the original interior. After the restoration is over, the building is set to host the Museum of Paintings, Private Collection Museum, and a picture gallery.