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Free Cover Page templates

Create impressive cover pages for your assignments and projects online in just a click. choose from hundreds of free templates and customize them with edit.org..

Create impressive cover pages in a few minutes with Edit.org, and give your projects and assignments a professional and unique touch. A well-designed title page or project front page can positively impact your professor's opinion of your homework, which can improve your final grade!

Create a personalized report cover page

After writing the whole report, dissertation, or paper, which is the hardest part, you should now create a cover page that suits the rest of the project. Part of the grade for your work depends on the first impression of the teacher who corrects it.

We know not everyone is a professional designer, and that's why Edit.org wants to help you. Having a professional title page can give the impression you've put a great deal of time and effort into your assignment, as well as the impression you take the subject very seriously. Thanks to Edit.org, everyone can become a professional designer. This way, you'll only have to worry about doing a great job on your assignment.

On the editor, you will also find free resume templates  and other educational and professional designs.

Customize an essay cover page with Edit.org

• Go to formats on the home page and choose Cover pages.
• Choose the template that best suits the project.
• You can add your images or change the template background color.
• Add your report information and change the font type and colors if needed.
• Save and download it. The cover page is ready to make your work shine!

Free editable templates for title pages

As you can see, it's simple to create cover pages for schoolwork and it won’t take much time. We recommend using the same colors on the cover as the ones you used for your essay titles to create a cohesive design. It’s also crucial to add the name and logo of the institution for which you are doing the essay. A visually attractive project is likely to be graded very well, so taking care of the small details will make your work look professional.

On Edit.org, you can also reuse all your designs and adapt them to different projects. Thanks to the users' internal memory, you can access and edit old templates anytime and anywhere.

Take a look at other options we propose on the site. Edit.org helps design flyers, business cards, and other designs useful in the workplace. The platform was created so you don't need to have previous design knowledge to achieve a spectacular cover page! Start your cover page design now.

Create online Cover Pages for printing

You can enter our free graphic editor from your phone, tablet or computer. The process is 100% online, fun and intuitive. Just click on what you want to modify. Customize your cover page quickly and easily. You don't need any design skills. No Photoshop skills. Just choose a template from this article or from the final waterfall and customize it to your liking. Writing first and last names, numbers, additional information or texts will be as easy as writing in a Word document.

Free templates for assignment cover page design

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Free Front Page Design

Free Front Page Designs For Assignments And Projects [Download MS Word Templates]

A good front  page design  is important in a project because it makes a strong first impression. A well-designed cover page or front page can create a positive initial impression on the reader and set the tone for the rest of the project. It Conveys professionalism. A professional looking cover page demonstrates to the reader that the project has been completed with care and attention to detail.

The cover page should clearly communicate the title, author(s), and date of the project, as well as any other important information that the reader needs to know.

A well-designed cover page should reflect the content and tone of the project, helping to build a connection between the reader and the project’s contents.

In short, the cover page is a crucial component of a project and can have a significant impact on how the project is perceived and received by the reader.

Front Page Design Template Samples

Benefits of using a good front page design on your project

• Establish a visual identity: A consistent and recognizable design on the cover page can help to establish a visual identity for the project and make it easier for the reader to identify it in the future.
• Differentiate the project: A unique and eye-catching cover page design can help to distinguish the project from others and make it stand out.
• Create a sense of unity: A well-designed cover page can provide a sense of unity to the entire project and reinforce the idea that all of the elements of the project are part of a cohesive whole.
• Provide context: The cover page design can provide context and information about the purpose, audience, and goals of the project, helping the reader to better understand and engage with the content.
• Improving organization: A well-designed cover page can help to organize the contents of the project and make it easier for the reader to navigate.
• Facilitating access: A clear and well-designed cover page can make it easier for the reader to access the contents of the project, and quickly find the information they are looking for.
• Enhancing accessibility: For projects that are shared electronically, a well-designed cover page can enhance accessibility for users with disabilities, such as those using screen readers.

Overall, a good cover page design is not just a cosmetic detail, but an important aspect of the project that can influence the reader’s perception and understanding of the content.

A well-designed front page can set the tone for the entire project and make it stand out from the rest. In this blog, we’ll take a look at some sample front page designs, best practices and tips to help you create a stunning front page design for your next project.

Front Page Designs Of Assignment

Front page designs for assignments [free ms word template download].

Creative Front Page Design For Assignment [Free MS Word Template Download]

MORE ASSIGNMENT TEMPLATES

Tips for Stunning Front Page Design Of Assignment

While it’s important to keep the front page design simple, that doesn’t mean it can’t be creative. You can still add a touch of personality to your design while making sure it’s organized and professional.

Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Use a unique font or color scheme
• Incorporate illustrations or graphics related to your project topic
• Experiment with different layout options

Science Project Front Page Design [Free MS Word Template Download]

When it comes to designing the front page for a science project, the design should reflect the topic and make the project stand out. You can include images or graphics related to the topic, and use a font that is easy to read.

Front Page Design For Physics Project

Front Page Design For Chemistry Project

Front Page Design Tips For Chemistry Project

To design a cover page for a Chemistry project, you could try the following design concept:

• Use a light blue or green gradient to represent the chemical elements in a test tube.
• Use a bold sans-serif font, such as Arial or Verdana, to write the title of the project in white or yellow. Make the title the focal point of the page.
• Use a smaller sans-serif font, also in white or yellow, to write a brief description of the project, such as “An investigation into the properties of chemical reactions.”
• Use a smaller sans-serif font in black to write your name, class, and date of submission, positioned in the bottom right or left corner of the page.
• Add the logo of your school or university in the top right or left corner of the page.
• Include a relevant image or illustration of a chemical reaction, periodic table, or other scientific concept to reinforce the subject of Chemistry.
• Consider adding a simple white border around the entire page to give it structure and definition.
• This design concept incorporates elements of the subject of Chemistry, while also keeping it simple, clean, and professional.

Front Page Design For Biology Project

Front Page Design Tips For Biology Project

For a biology project cover page, you can consider incorporating the following elements:

• Title: A descriptive and concise title that accurately reflects the content of the project.
• Author(s): The name(s) of the person(s) who completed the project, usually in a prominent position on the page.
• Date: The date the project was completed, which is typically included in the header or footer of the page.
• School or organization: The name of the school, institution, or organization that the project was completed for, if applicable.
• Relevant images or graphics: Images or graphics related to the biology topic being studied, such as diagrams, charts, or photos of specimens.
• Project description: A brief summary or description of the project, including the purpose, methodology, and key findings.
• Aesthetics: A clean and professional design with a color palette that reflects the biology topic being studied. For example, green and blue might be appropriate for an aquatic biology project, while warm oranges and yellows might be appropriate for a botany project.

It’s important to note that the specific requirements for a biology project cover page can vary based on the guidelines provided by the teacher or institution. However, these elements can serve as a starting point for creating a visually appealing and effective design for a biology project cover page.

Border Front Page Design For Project [Free MS Word Template Download]

Adding a border to your front page design can help make it look more polished and professional. You can choose a border that reflects the topic of your project, or use a simple border in a neutral color.

Front Page Design For English Project [Free MS Word Template Download]

Front Page Design Tips For English Project

To design a cover page for an English project, you can consider the following steps:

• Choose a theme that aligns with the project topic and make it visually appealing.
• Add a title that clearly represents the project, it should be big and legible.
• Add your name, class, and date in a clear and concise manner.
• If required, include the name of your instructor and school/university.
• Add any relevant graphics, images, or logos that reinforce the theme of your project.
• Make sure to use a font that is easy to read and aesthetically pleasing.
• Consider adding a border or design element that ties everything together.

Note: The design should be professional and align with any guidelines provided by the instructor.

School Project Front Page Design

Floral Front Page Design For School Project

Whether or not it’s a good idea to use a floral front page design for a school project depends on the context of the project and the guidelines provided by the teacher or instructor. If the project is related to a subject such as art, design, or gardening, then a floral design may be appropriate. However, if the project is focused on a more technical or scientific subject, a more straightforward design may be more suitable. It’s important to consider the purpose and audience of the project and to ensure that the design effectively communicates the information you want to convey.

Cute Front Page Design For Project

Simple Front Page Designs For Project

Front Page Designs For Math Project

Front Page Designs For Music Project

Handmade Front Page Design For Project

Tips to make your handmade front page designs more appealing  .

A handmade cover page design can add a personal touch to your assignment and make it stand out. Here are some elements you could consider incorporating into your design:

• Hand-drawn illustrations or graphics: Use hand-drawn illustrations or graphics that are relevant to the subject matter of the assignment.
• Handwritten typography: Incorporate hand-written typography into your design to add a personal touch. Consider using a calligraphy pen or brush to create unique, hand-lettered text.
• Collage: Create a collage using different materials, such as paper, fabric, or photographs, to create a unique and visually interesting cover page design.
• Watercolor: Use watercolor to create a painted cover page design. Consider using colors that are consistent with the subject matter of the assignment.

By incorporating these elements, you can create a handmade cover page design that is both personal and professional. Keep in mind that a handmade design may take longer to create than a digital design, so be sure to allow enough time to complete it.

What are the best tools to create a beautiful Front Page Design for a project ?

There are many tools you can use to create a beautiful front page design for a project, including:

Here’s How You Can Create a Beautiful Front Page Design in MS Word:

• Choose a page size and orientation that suits your design. Go to Page Layout > Page Setup.
• Select a theme or color scheme. Go to Design > Colors.
• Add a header or footer for branding. Go to Insert > Header & Footer.
• Insert a title text box and customize its font, size, and color. Go to Insert > Text Box.
• Add an image to the background. Go to Insert > Picture.
• Add other design elements such as shapes, lines, or text boxes to create visual interest. Go to Insert > Shapes.
• Align and arrange elements as desired. Go to Home > Align.
• Apply styles to text, such as bold or italic, to make the page look more polished. Go to Home > Styles.
• Preview the page to check its appearance. Go to View > Print Layout.
• Save the document as a template to use as a starting point for future projects. Go to File > Save As > Word Template.

A good looking front page design for a school or assignment project or a science project is important because it reflects the attention and effort put into the project, and can impact the grade or evaluation received. A well-designed front page can also effectively convey the topic and purpose of the project, making it easier for the teacher or evaluator to understand and appreciate the content. A visually appealing and organized design can also make the project stand out, showing initiative and creativity, and can help the student effectively communicate their ideas and findings. In science projects, a clear and effective front page design can also help emphasize the significance and potential impact of the research. Ultimately, a good looking front page design can enhance the overall presentation and impact of the project.

What is the downloaded file format?

.doc (MS Word file extension)

How to edit the downloaded template?

Open it in MS Word and make changes according to your need.

What is the size of the template?

It is A4 size template.

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28+ Best Free Assignment Cover Page Formats for MS Word

What is an assignment cover page, key elements for a comprehensive front page.

• Institution Details: Begin by prominently featuring the name of your school, college, or institute. This establishes credibility and provides context for your assignment.
• Personal Information: Include your own name to indicate authorship and ownership of the assignment. This adds a personal touch and facilitates easy identification.
• Assignment Title: Clearly state the title of your assignment, conveying its purpose and focus. A concise and informative title sets the tone for your work.
• Course Information: Specify the relevant course title or code to indicate the academic context in which your assignment was completed. This assists in proper categorization and organization.
• Instructor’s Name: Acknowledge the teacher or professor who will be evaluating your assignment by including their name. This demonstrates respect and professionalism.
• Due Date: Clearly indicate the deadline or due date for the assignment submission. This ensures timely assessment and helps you stay organized.

What are the basic tips?

• Font style : It is always in the best interest to use bold, simple, and clear text instead of using fancy text fonts and styles. This helps the reader understand things in a better way.  Moreover, the usage of pictures behind texts must be avoided as it creates poor visibility for the reader when reading the text printed on it.
• Presentation: Presentation plays an important role in expressing what you need to convey to someone and how you need to communicate it. Presenting the title page in the most effective manner is essential as this leaves an impression on the teacher reading the assignment. It also acts as a decisive tool for the teacher whether or not he/ she interestingly goes through the whole document.
• Spell Check: Before handing over the assignment, one should take a brief review of all the spelling and also look for any grammatical errors.
• Avoid plagiarism: A student must always be honest in what he writes. He should avoid copying material or texts from anywhere.
• Personal detail: One should never forget to mention his/her name. The font size used for writing the name must be bigger so that it makes the name visible to the teacher.

Advantages of an Impressive Assignment Cover Page

• Showcasing Professionalism: By meticulously designing your cover page, you demonstrate a strong commitment to professionalism. This attention to detail reflects positively on your work ethic and sets you apart as a dedicated student.
• Creating a Positive Impression: A well-crafted front page sets the tone for your assignment, capturing the attention of your teacher or professor. It establishes a positive first impression, arousing their interest and encouraging them to delve further into your work.
• Enhancing Visual Appeal: A visually appealing cover page enhances the overall presentation of your assignment. With carefully chosen fonts, colors, and layouts, you create an engaging and aesthetically pleasing introduction that captivates the reader’s attention.
• Communicating Pertinent Information: It provides a concise summary of essential details, such as the assignment title, your name, and the due date. This ensures clarity and facilitates seamless identification and organization of your work.
• Reflecting a Professional Attitude: By dedicating time and effort to creating an impressive cover page, you exemplify a professional attitude towards your academic pursuits. This level of dedication and care leaves a lasting impression on your teacher or professor.

Download Free Cover Page Templates

#1 – best format.

#2 – Assignment Cover Page for Case Study

#3 – Best Design for Critical Review

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Video Tutorial

#5 – essay assignment.

#6 – Syllabus Assignment

#7 – Cover Page For University Assignments

#14 – Cover Page for Business Assignment

#16 – Academic

#17 – Generic Cover Page for any Assignment

#18 – Biology Assignment

#19 – For Chemistry Projects

#20 – Cover Page for Computer Projects

#21 – For Engineering-Related Assignments

#22 – For English Assignment

#23 – For Geography Projects

#24 – Mathematics

#25 – Physics

#26 – Cover Page for School Assignments

#27 – Best for Science Projects

#28 – For Social Study Assignment

Versatile Designs and Layouts for Every Purpose

• Assignment Types: Our templates are designed specifically for different types of assignments, such as case studies, critical reviews, essays, syllabi, and business projects. Each template is tailored to suit the requirements and objectives of its respective assignment type.
• Academic Disciplines: Our collection includes templates suitable for various academic disciplines like biology, chemistry, computer science, engineering, English, geography, mathematics, physics, and social studies. Each template aligns with the themes and aesthetics of its corresponding discipline.
• Purposes: Whether you are a student, educator, or professional, our templates serve multiple purposes. They can be used for university assignments, school projects, research papers, or any academic or professional endeavor that requires a polished cover page.
• Designs, Layouts, and Styles: Our templates offer a diverse range of designs, from minimalistic and clean to visually captivating and sophisticated. You can choose from different layouts that creatively arrange text, images, and graphics. Our templates cater to a variety of styles, ensuring there is something for everyone’s preferences.

User-Friendly Customization: Make It Your Own

• Easy Modifications: We believe in keeping things simple. With just a few clicks, you can effortlessly modify our templates to suit your specific requirements. Change colors, fonts, and layouts with ease, and watch your cover page transform before your eyes.
• Colors and Themes: Infuse it with the perfect color scheme and themes that truly represent your assignment. Our templates offer a wide range of options, so you can find the ideal palette and theme that resonate with your content.
• Font Selection: The right font can make all the difference. Choose from our diverse selection of fonts to enhance the visual appeal and readability. From elegant and professional to modern and bold, we have fonts to suit every style.
• Layout Flexibility: It should reflect your unique presentation style. With our templates, you have the freedom to experiment with different layouts, arranging titles, subtitles, images, and text blocks in a way that best suits your assignment.

Benefits of Using Professionally Designed Templates: Make an Impact with Ease

• Time and Effort Saving: Our professionally designed templates eliminate the need to start from scratch. With pre-designed layouts, styles, and graphics, you can save valuable time and effort in creating visually appealing front pages. Simply customize the template to suit your assignment’s requirements, and you’re ready to impress.
• Consistency and Professionalism: Using our templates ensures consistency in your assignment submissions. The standardized design elements and formatting guidelines help maintain a professional appearance throughout your work. Presenting your assignments with a polished title page enhances the overall quality and credibility of your content.
• Visual Appeal: A visually appealing title page grabs attention and sets the tone for your assignment. Our templates are thoughtfully crafted by design professionals, incorporating aesthetically pleasing elements, color schemes, and typography. By leveraging these designs, you can effortlessly create eye-catching cover pages that captivate your professors or readers.
• Positive Impression: First impressions matter, and a well-designed cover page leaves a positive impact on professors and readers alike. Showcasing your assignment in a professional and visually appealing manner demonstrates your dedication and attention to detail. It sets the stage for an engaging reading experience, encouraging your audience to delve deeper into your work.
• User-Friendly Customization: Our templates are designed to be easily customizable, allowing you to add your personal touch without technical expertise. You can modify text, colors, images, and other elements to align with your assignment’s theme and requirements. This flexibility ensures that your cover page reflects your unique style while maintaining a professional look.

Tips for Maximizing the Impact: Make Your Cover Page Stand Out

• Choose Colors Wisely: Select colors that complement your assignment’s theme and evoke the desired emotions. Vibrant colors can grab attention, while muted tones create a sense of elegance. Maintain consistency with your assignment’s overall design and avoid using too many colors that may distract from the main message.
• Opt for Legible Fonts: Use clear and readable fonts to enhance the accessibility and professionalism of your cover page. Avoid overly decorative or complex fonts that may hinder readability. Opt for fonts that align with your assignment’s tone and maintain consistency throughout the document.
• Incorporate Relevant Graphics: Graphics can enhance the visual appeal of your cover page and reinforce the assignment’s subject matter. Choose images or icons that are directly related to the topic or convey the assignment’s main concept. Ensure that the graphics are high-quality and appropriately sized to maintain clarity.
• Organize Information Effectively: Arrange the information in a logical and visually appealing manner. Use headings, subheadings, and bullet points to break down content and make it easier to read. Highlight key details such as the assignment title, your name, course information, and submission date.
• Maintain Simplicity: While it’s important to make it visually appealing, avoid cluttering it with excessive elements. Keep the design clean and uncluttered, allowing the key information to stand out. Remember, simplicity often has a greater impact than complexity.
• Preview and Proofread: Before finalizing, preview it to ensure that all elements are properly aligned and visually balanced. Proofread the content to eliminate any spelling or grammatical errors. A polished and error-free cover demonstrates your attention to detail and professionalism.

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Download, personalize & print, project front page designs.

Posted By: admin 24/04/2019

A front page of any project is given special attention and is considered as one of the most important parts of the project. It is the first thing that anyone sees before checking the actual project. 

Many people understand the importance of the front page of the project and therefore, spend a lot of time on its designing. There are also many such people who are forced to do it because it is the requirement of the person who they need to hand in their project. 

What is a front page?

The front page of any project or assignment is the representative document that clearly reflects the content of the project inside. The front page of the project should be designed in a professional way. It generally includes all those details which a reader wants to see on the first page to get the necessary introduction about the project.

Tips to follow while making the front page of a project:

• Keep the design of this page decent and simple. Don’t make this page look so casual by adding unnecessary images and vibrant colors in order to enhance the beauty of the project. 
• Keep the details to be mentioned on this page completely relevant to what your project is about.
• Keep the details concise and to the point. 
• Make sure that you add the right details on the first page. In other words, the first page of the project should not be misleading because it could ruin your image.
• It should be ensured that there is no grammatical or spelling mistake on the first page. Also, make sure that the design of the project is congruent with the content added to the project.

Importance of project first-page design

We can see many people working on different projects. These projects are either assigned by an employer to his employee or by a teacher to a student. Working on a project is a work that requires a lot of hard work and efforts since there is a need to research and compile a lot of data from different sources.

While working on the project, people often forget about the other important details. The most overlooked part of the project is the first page. People often submit their project with the very unattractive or dull first page that ruins the complete impression of the project. For students, it is important to make an attractive first page as it helps them get more marks.

Project front page design template:

Those people who don’t want to work on the first page separately because they are running out of time or they are tired of making the project can use the readymade template. This template provides a pre-designed template created in MS Word. This template has a lot of useful features. The most prominent feature is the customization feature that allows the people to edit the template if they don’t find the one meeting their needs. They can bring changes to it according to what they want.

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• You are here:
• Agile Business Consortium
• DSDM Project Framework

Chapter 10: MoSCoW Prioritisation

Previous  chapter: 9  Workshops

10.1 Introduction

In a DSDM project where time has been fixed, it is vital to understand the relative importance of the work to be done in order to make progress and keep to deadlines. Prioritisation can be applied to requirements/User Stories, tasks, products, use cases, acceptance criteria and tests, although it is most commonly applied to requirements/ User Stories. (User Stories are a very effective way of defining requirements in an Agile style; see later chapter on Requirements and User Stories for more information.) MoSCoW is a prioritisation technique for helping to understand and manage priorities. The letters stand for:

• S hould Have
• C ould Have
• W on’t Have this time

The use of MoSCoW works particularly well on projects. It also overcomes the problems associated with simpler prioritisation approaches which are based on relative priorities:

• The use of a simple high, medium or low classification is weaker because definitions of these priorities are missing or need to be defined. Nor does this categorization provide the business with a clear promise of what to expect. A categorisation with a single middle option, such as medium, also allows for indecision
• The use of a simple sequential 1,2,3,4… priority is weaker because it deals less effectively with items of similar importance. There may be prolonged and heated discussions over whether an item should be one place higher or lower

The specific use of Must Have, Should Have, Could Have or Won’t Have this time provides a clear indication of that item and the expectations for its completion.  

10.2 The MoSCoW Rules

10.2.1 Must Have

These provide the Minimum Usable SubseT (MUST) of requirements which the project guarantees to deliver. These may be defined using some of the following:

• No point in delivering on target date without this; if it were not delivered, there would be no point deploying the solution on the intended date
• Not legal without it
• Unsafe without it
• Cannot deliver a viable solution without it

Ask the question ‘what happens if this requirement is not met?’ If the answer is ‘cancel the project – there is no point in implementing a solution that does not meet this requirement’, then it is a Must Have requirement. If there is some way around it, even if it is a manual and painful workaround, then it is a Should Have or a Could Have requirement. Categorising a requirement as a Should Have or Could Have does not mean it won’t be delivered; simply that delivery is not guaranteed.  

10.2.2 Should Have

Should Have requirements are defined as:

• Important but not vital
• May be painful to leave out, but the solution is still viable
• May need some kind of workaround, e.g. management of expectations, some inefficiency, an existing solution, paperwork etc. The workaround may be just a temporary one

One way of differentiating a Should Have requirement from a Could Have is by reviewing the degree of pain caused by the requirement not being met, measured in terms of business value or numbers of people affected.  

10.2.3 Could Have

Could Have requirements are defined as:

• Wanted or desirable but less important
• Less impact if left out (compared with a Should Have)

These are the requirements that provide the main pool of contingency, since they would only be delivered in their entirety in a best case scenario. When a problem occurs and the deadline is at risk, one or more of the Could haves provide the first choice of what is to be dropped from this timeframe.  

10.2.4 Won’t Have this time

These are requirements which the project team has agreed will not be delivered (as part of this timeframe). They are recorded in the Prioritised Requirements List where they help clarify the scope of the project. This avoids them being informally reintroduced at a later date. This also helps to manage expectations that some requirements will simply not make it into the Deployed Solution, at least not this time around. Won’t Haves can be very powerful in keeping the focus at this point in time on the more important Could Haves, Should Haves and particularly the Must Haves.

10.3 MoSCoW Relating to a Specific Timeframe

In a traditional project, all requirements are treated as Must Have, since the expectation is set from the start that everything will be delivered and that typically time (the end date) will slip if problems are encountered. DSDM projects have a very different approach; fixing time, cost and quality and negotiating features. By the end of Foundations, the end dates for the project and for the first Project Increment are confirmed. In order to meet this commitment to the deadline, DSDM projects need to create contingency within the prioritised requirements. Therefore the primary focus initially is to create MoSCoW priorities for the project. However, when deciding what to deliver as part of the Project Increment, the next focus will be to agree MoSCoW priorities for that Increment. So at this point, a requirement may have two priorities; MoSCoW for the project and MoSCoW for the Increment. Finally, when planning a specific Timebox (at the start of each Timebox) the Solution Development Team will allocate a specific priority for the requirements for this Timebox. At this point, the majority of requirements are Won’t Have (for this Timebox). Only requirements that the Solution Development Team plan to work on in the development timebox are allocated a Must Have, Should Have or Could Have priority. Therefore requirements may have three levels of priority:

• MoSCoW for the project
• MoSCoW for the Project Increment
• MoSCoW for this Timebox

It is important that the bigger picture objectives (completion of the Project Increment and delivery of the project) are not forgotten when working at the Timebox level. One simple way to deal with this is to create a separate Timebox PRL, a subset of the project PRL that is specifically associated with an individual Timebox and leave the priorities unchanged on the main PRL for the project.  

10.4 Ensuring effective prioritisation

10.4.1 Balancing the priorities

When deciding the effort allocated for Must Have requirements, remember that anything other than a Must Have is, to some degree, contingency, since the Must Haves define the Minimum Usable SubseT which is guaranteed to be delivered.

DSDM recommends:

• Getting the percentage of project/Project Increment Must Haves (in terms of effort to deliver) to a level where the team’s confidence to deliver them is high – typically no more than 60% Must Have effort
• Agreeing a pool of Could Haves for the project/Project Increment that reflects a sensible level of contingency - typically around 20% Could Have effort. Creating a sensible pool of Could Haves sets the correct expectations for the business from the start – that these requirements/User Stories may be delivered in their entirety in a best case scenario, but the primary project/Project Increment focus will always be on protecting the Must Haves and Should Haves

This spread of priorities provides enough contingency to ensure confidence in a successful project outcome. NB When calculating effort for a timeframe, Won’t Haves (for this timeframe) are excluded. DSDM’s recommendations reflect a typical project scenario. The important thing to make MoSCoW work is to have some visible flexibility in the level of requirements which must be delivered. The safe percentage of Must Have requirements, in order to be confident of project success, is not to exceed 60% Must Have effort.

Figure 10a: MoSCoW – balancing priorities

Levels of Must Have effort above 60% introduce a risk of failure, unless the team are working in a project where all of these criteria are true:

• Estimates are known to be accurate
• The approach is very well understood
• The team are “performing” (based on the Tuckman model)
• The environment is understood and low-risk in terms of the potential for external factors to introduce delays

In some circumstances the percentage of Must Have effort may be significantly less than 60%. However this can be used to the benefit of the business, by providing the greatest possible flexibility to optimise value delivered across a larger proportion of Should Haves. The exact split of effort between Musts, Shoulds, and Coulds is down to each project team to agree, although DSDM also recommends creating a sensible pool of Could Haves, typically around 20% of the total effort. Effective MoSCoW prioritisation is all about balancing risk and predictability for each project.  

10.4.2 Agreeing up front how priorities will work

DSDM defines what the different priorities mean – the MoSCoW Rules. But whereas the definition of a Must Have is not negotiable, the difference between a Should Have and a Could Have can be quite subjective. It is very helpful if the team agree, at the start of their project, how these lower level priorities will be applied. Understanding in advance some objective criteria that separate a Should Have from a Could Have and ensuring that all roles on the project buy into what has been agreed can avoid much heated discussion later. Look for defined boundaries that decide whether a requirement is a Should Have or a Could Have?

Ideally this agreement is reached before the requirements are captured.   

10.4.3 When to prioritise

very item of work has a priority. Priorities are set before work commences and the majority of this prioritisation activity happens during Foundations. However, priorities should be kept under continual review as work is completed. As new work arises, either through introduction of a new requirement or through the exposure of unexpected work associated with existing requirements, the decision must be made as to how critical it is to the success of the current work using the MoSCoW rules. When introducing new requirements, care needs to be taken not to increase the percentage of Must Have requirement effort beyond the agreed project level. The priorities of uncompleted requirements should be reviewed throughout the project to ensure that they are still valid. As a minimum, they should be reviewed at the end of each Timebox and each Project Increment.  

10.4.4 Discussing and reviewing priorities

Any requirement defined as a Must Have will, by definition, have a critical impact on the success of the project. The Project Manager, Business Analyst and any other member of the Solution Development Team should openly discuss requirements prioritised as Must Have where they are not obvious Must Haves (“Without this would we cancel the project/increment?”); it is up to the Business Visionary or their empowered Business Ambassador to explain why a requirement is a Must Have. The escalation of decision-making processes should be agreed early on, e.g. Business Ambassador and Business Analyst to Business Visionary to Business Sponsor, and the level of empowerment agreed around decision-making at each level. At the end of a Project Increment, all requirements that have not been met are re-prioritised in the light of the needs of the next Increment. This means that, for instance, a Could Have that is not met in one Increment may be reclassified subsequently as a Won’t Have for the next Increment, because it does not contribute enough towards the business needs to justify its inclusion. However, it could just as easily become a Must Have for the next Increment, if its low priority in the first Increment was based on the fact it was simply not needed in the first Solution Increment.  

10.5 Using MoSCoW to Manage Business Expectations

The MoSCoW rules have been defined in a way that allows the delivery of the Minimum Usable SubseT of requirements to be guaranteed. Both the Solution Development Team and those to whom they are delivering share this confidence because the high percentage effort of Shoulds and Coulds provides optimum contingency to ensure delivery of the Must Haves. The business roles can certainly expect more than delivery of only the Must Haves. The Must Haves are guaranteed but it is perfectly reasonable for the business to expect delivery of more than the Minimum Usable SubseT in the timeframe, except under the most challenging of circumstances. DSDM’s recommendation to create a sensible pool of Could Have contingency – typically around 20% of the total project/increment effort - identifies requirements that are less important or which have less impact if not delivered, in order to protect the more important requirements. This approach implies that the business can reasonably expect the Should Have requirements to be met, in addition to all of the Must Haves. It also implies that in a best case scenario, the Could Have requirements would also be delivered. The Solution Development Team cannot have the confidence to guarantee delivery of all the Must Have, Should Have and Could Have requirements, even though these have all been estimated and are included in the plan. This is because the plan is based on early estimates and on requirements which have not yet been analysed in low-level detail. Applying pressure to a team to guarantee delivery of Musts, Shoulds and Coulds is counter-productive. It usually results in padded estimates which give a false perception of success. “We always achieve 100% (because we added significant contingency to our figures”). So, combining sensible prioritisation with timeboxing leads to predictability of delivery and therefore greater confidence. This also protects the quality of the solution being delivered. Keeping project metrics to show the percentage of Should Haves and Could Haves delivered on each Project Increment or Timebox will either re-enforce this confidence, if things are going well, or provide an early warning of problems, highlighting that some important (but not critical) requirements may not be met at the project level.  

10.6 How does MoSCoW Relate to the Business Vision

10.6.1 The Business Sponsor’s perspective

The starting point for all projects is the business vision. Associated with the business vision are a set of prioritised requirements that contribute to delivery of the vision. Also associated with the business vision is a Business Case that describes the project in terms of what value it will deliver back to the business. Depending on the organization, this Business Case may be an informal understanding or it may be defined formally, showing what Return On Investment (ROI) is expected in order to justify the cost of the project. The MoSCoW priorities are necessary to understand the Minimum Usable SubseT and the importance of individual requirements. The Business Visionary must ensure that the requirements are prioritised, evaluated in business terms, and delivered to provide the ROI required by the Business Case, in line with the business vision.  

10.7 Making MoSCoW Work

Requirements are identified at various levels of detail, from a high-level strategic viewpoint (typically during Feasibility) through to a more detailed, implementable level (typically during Evolutionary Development). Highlevel requirements can usually be decomposed to yield a mix of sub-requirements, which can then be prioritised individually. This ensures the flexibility is maintained, so that if necessary, some of the detailed less important functionality can be dropped from the delivered solution to protect the project deadline. It is this decomposition that can help resolve one of the problems that often confront teams: that all requirements appear to be Must Haves. If all requirements were genuinely Must Haves, then the flexibility derived from the MoSCoW prioritisation would no longer work. There would be no lower priority requirements to be dropped from the deliverables to keep a project on time and budget. This goes against the DSDM ethos of fixing time and cost and flexing features (the triangles diagram in the Philosophy and Fundamentals chapter). Believing everything is a Must Have is often symptomatic of insufficient decomposition of requirements. Remember that team members may cause scope creep by working on ”interesting” things rather than the important things. MoSCoW can help avoid this.  

10.8 Tips for Assigning Priorities

1. Ensure that the business roles, in particular the Business Visionary and the Business Analyst, are fully up to speed as to why and how DSDM prioritises requirements.

2. Consider starting with all requirements as Won’t Haves, and then justify why they need to be given a higher priority.

3. For each requirement that is proposed as a Must Have, ask: ‘what happens if this requirement is not met?’ If the answer is ‘cancel the project; there is no point in implementing a solution that does not meet this requirement’, then it really is a Must Have. If not, then decide whether it is Should Have or a Could Have (or even a Won’t Have this time)

4. Ask: ‘if I come to you the night before Deployment and tell you there is a problem with a Must Have requirement and that we can’t deliver it – will you stop the Deployment?’ If the answer is ‘yes’ then this is a Must Have requirement. If not, decide whether it is Should Have or a Could Have.

5. Is there a workaround, even if it is a manual one? If a workaround exists, then it is not a Must Have requirement. When determining whether this is a Should Have or a Could Have requirement, compare the cost of the workaround with the cost of delivering the requirement, including the cost of any associated delays and any additional cost to implement it later, rather than now.

6. Ask why the requirement is needed – for this project and this Project Increment.

7. Is this requirement dependent on any others being fulfilled? A Must Have cannot depend on the delivery of anything other than a Must Have because of the risk of a Should Have or Could Have not being delivered.

8. Allow different priorities for acceptance criteria of a requirement.

9. Can this requirement be decomposed? Is it necessary to deliver each of these elements to fulfil the requirement? Are the decomposed elements of the same priority as each other? 10. Tie the requirement to a project objective. If the objective is not a Must Have, then probably neither is the requirement relating to it. 11. Does the priority change with time? For example, for an initial release a requirement is a Should Have, but it will become a Must Have for a later release. 12. Prioritise testing, using MoSCoW. 13. Use MoSCoW to prioritise your To Do list. It can be used for activities as well as requirements.   

10.9 Summary

MoSCoW (Must Have, Should Have, Could Have, Won’t Have this time) is primarily used to prioritise requirements, although the practice is also useful in many other areas. On a typical project, DSDM recommends no more than 60% effort for Must Have requirements on a project, and a sensible pool of Could Haves, usually around 20% effort. Anything higher than 60% Must Have effort poses a risk to the success and predictability of the project, unless the environment and any technology is well understood, the team is well established and the external risks minimal.

Next chapter: 11 Iterative Development

• Architecture

Russian Constructivism: from Brand to Reality

• Text & photos: Natalia Melikova

[This essay was written for  La città d’acciaio. Mosca costruttivista 1917-1937 . This is the first time the essay is being published in its original English.]

This City Day publicity and branding campaign is confirmation that on an official level, the avant-garde is recognized as a significant movement. This is not a singular instance as Russia has shown off its avant-garde legacy on the global stage during recent Olympic Games. Several minutes during the 2014 winter games opening ceremony in Sochi were dedicated to the avant-garde. In 2016, the Russian team at the summer games in Rio sported avant-garde inspired uniforms (fashioned after Alexander Rodchenko’s posters and Varvara Stepanova’s designs). The new uniforms were presented at the State Tretyakov Gallery in front of a hall featuring a recreation of the 1921 OBMOKhU exhibition, the early experiments of the Constructivists on full display at this important PR event for the Olympic team. "The Russian avant-garde is one of the most famous and vivid pages in the history of Russian art," noted Alexander Zhukov, president of the Russian Olympic Committee. "But the main thing is that this is the avant-garde, and therefore, in such a uniform it’s impossible to be behind, you can only be ahead, be leaders.” 4 In the Olympic context, the avant-garde conveyed the notion of being at the forefront — after all, coming in first place is important for sports competitions. One of the Olympic athletes praised the aesthetics of the design, as well as its emphasis that it is the national style: "It is very different from others, it's very recognizable. And most importantly, it's clear that it’s Russian, it’s ours." 5 From such enthusiasm for the avant-garde — its aesthetics, its significance and continuing relevance — one could draw the conclusion that in Russian society, the avant-garde is well-received. Unfortunately, as reality shows, while the avant-garde art brand is readily exploited, avant-garde architecture does not enjoy the same popularity.

During the City Day celebrations, one of the posters seen all around Moscow featured the Shukhov Tower, with the proud words “An engineering project known all over the world.” 6 Just three years ago, the tower was threatened with demolition sparking a massive local and international campaign demanding its protection and preservation. For over thirty years, the tower has not — at minimum — been treated for corrosion. This year the tower celebrated its 95th anniversary having not once undergone a comprehensive restoration. Though demolition of “the Eiffel Tower of the East,” as the tower was nicknamed during the campaign to save it, was cancelled, this victory was short-lived. The tower continues to corrode and is now resting on an internal support structure built in 2016 as an emergency measure to stabilize the tower, with some experts concerned that this structure may in fact damage it. A symbol of Russian television and radio, and revered around the world for its engineering ingenuity and beauty, it is by all accounts ignored at home by the authorities. Future plans for the tower are unclear, and a sense of urgency to finally carry out a much overdue restoration is lacking. The Russian Shukhov Tower Foundation headed by the great-grandson of the famed engineer Vladimir Shukhov, along with local and foreign specialists in metal structures are ready and willing to participate, but are shut out of the process deciding the fate of the tower. Yet the tower makes every list as an iconic monument of architecture. During the City Day celebrations, a replica of the Shukhov Tower decorated Tverskaya Street as an “art object,” 7 while the real tower continues to rust away in the Shabolovka district.

Another poster that is part of the “Moscow Builds” theme features a portrait of Konstantin Melnikov, proclaiming “Muscovite Konstantin Melnikov — an outstanding Russian architect of the twentieth century.” 8 Melnikov indeed left a distinct mark on Moscow, his buildings being some of the most well-known avant-garde monuments. But again there is a clear contradiction in professing that Melnikov is an outstanding architect, and taking a look at the fate of his buildings. The Svoboda, Burevestnik, and Frunze clubs have been extensively reconstructed. The concept of authenticity in restoration work not properly understood, such heavy-handed approaches cause irreversible damage. In the Russian context, the word “restoration” is used loosely, as is the case with the Rusakov Workers’ Club. It was reopened in 2015 with much fanfare since not every day an avant-garde monument is given a second chance at life. Even Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin attended the opening, remarking that “This is a unique monument that has not only been restored, but also adapted for the needs of a theater outfitted with the most modern equipment.” 9 Prior to the beginning of renovation work in 2012, the building was in poor condition and had even been twice included on the World Monuments Watch list of the world’s most endangered monuments as far back as 1998 and 2000. Officially a project for the “reconstruction, restoration, and adaptation” of the building to be used as a theater, such wording generally means that works will lean toward major reconstruction, rather than careful restoration. The Kauchuk Club likewise had never been restored prior to 2011, and the restoration has yet to be completed. In the meantime, the Novosukharevskiy Market Office, and Intourist and Gosplan garages, are all in poor condition with no plans for restoration in the foreseeable future. Melnikov’s one-off clubs and garages are either so heavily reconstructed that they are now pseudo-replicas of the architect’s original designs, or are still in need of investment and major repairs. The exception is Mossovet Truck Garage that has fared relatively well in comparison with Melnikov’s other garages; the building might house a museum in the future, though this is still at a concept stage. It is a sigh of relief that Melnikov’s architectural legacy still remains intact in some form in Moscow’s notoriously ever-changing cityscape. At the same time, the City Day posters and billboards, which on the one hand affirm Konstantin Melnikov as an exceptional architect, while a positive public endorsement of his architectural achievements, are on the other hand misleading if you consider the physical state of his buildings.

Melnikov’s architectural heritage is indeed recognized as important — in concept — all of his buildings in Moscow are monuments of regional importance, the second highest monument status. The Melnikov House was even upgraded to the highest federal status as recently as 2015, becoming only the second early Soviet monument to enjoy such a status in Moscow, the other being Lenin’s mausoleum. Even if monument status does not provide guaranteed protection from demolition or damaging reconstruction work, it does symbolically convey the standing of avant-garde architecture among other architectural monuments. And for the city that contributed such an original and influential style, internationally recognized and revered, having so few buildings in Moscow with a federal status confirms the continued denial of the avant-garde. It should be noted that some progress has been made in listing more of Moscow’s avant-garde monuments, though even this process can be quite convoluted. The Ogonyok Printing Plant was rediscovered in 2007 when it was slated for demolition to make room for the construction of a luxury residential complex. At the time, the building was abandoned and rundown; however, it came to light that it was designed by none other than one of avant-garde’s key figures, El Lissitzky, previously only known for his designs on paper. As Lissitzky’s only implemented architectural design, Ogonyok was given monument status in 2008. Just a couple of months later, a suspicious fire broke out on the roof (a common occurrence to render buildings irreparable and speed up demolition); arson was suspected. Despite the attempts to remove Ogonyok’s recently acquired heritage status, the status held and ruled out the planned demolition. Nevertheless, the high-rise luxury residential complex was squeezed into the immediate vicinity, towering over Lissitzky’s “horizontal skyscraper” — the outline of this famous design can be seen in the plan of the printing plant. 10 And though Ogonyok was upgraded to a regional monument in 2012, the building was gutted and completely reconstructed to adapt it for unspecified administrative functions. “This is a real masterpiece,” said Alexander Kibovskiy, head of the Department of Culture, of Ogonyok after it received its well-deserved status. “This building will be adapted into a hotel complex, it will be restored, which will give this building a second life.” 11 Though Kibovskiy indicated Ogonyok would become a hotel, don’t get your hopes up to stay there. Ogonyok was found, recognized as a monument, and in effect lost during the renovation work. As such cases show, giving praise and assigning “protected by the government” plaques do not translate into proper preservation of the existing monuments.

The Melnikov House, one of the most iconic architect’s homes in the world, has witnessed difficulties at every turn — from a botched restoration in the 1990s, to legal issues that continue to this day. The divided ownership of the house, already a long-standing problem, came to the forefront in 2014. The Shchusev State Museum of Architecture, managing only half of the house (the other half split between Melnikov’s granddaughters and the state), grew impatient and took matters into its own hands before the ownership issues could be resolved in court. The controversial methods employed by the Shchusev Museum in carrying out this forced museumification caused a scandal in Moscow’s architectural community, yet nevertheless in December 2014, only 3 short months later, the Melnikov House was hurriedly opened to the public as the Melnikovs’ Museum, a branch of the Shchusev Museum. The Ministry of Culture ignored numerous requests to intervene and mediate the legal, and moral, issues surrounding the legendary house. 12 The Shchusev Museum assumed unilateral control over the fate of the house, despite the unsettled legal issues over the house and Melnikov’s archives, which continue to this day. 

The models of architectural landmarks and iconic buildings dotting Tverskaya Street for the City Day festivities created a miniature portrait of Moscow’s representative architectural heritage, and the Melnikov House was among them. The Melnikov House also made an appearance in the form of coffee stands, its roundness an ideal shape for setting up a street cafe. Muscovites lined up to buy coffee, knowingly or not, from a replica of a building that despite all of its architectural merits recognized internationally, has had to fight for its existence in Moscow. This is the house that the World Monuments Fund included in its 2006 Watch list of most endangered buildings; the decision was based on four man-made threats: development pressures, inappropriate prior conservation, lack of financial resources, and lack of public awareness. 13 Besides the particular uses during the City Day, the likeness of the Melnikov House can be found as a mug, on postcards and notebooks, in jewelry designs, and in an assortment of various souvenirs — its distinctive cylinders and hexagon windows readily commodified. The fact that the Melnikov House is featured on Russian-produced merchandise and was included in celebrating Moscow’s 870th anniversary, is a sign that avant-garde architecture can finally, in some aspects, be regarded as “cool.” It is of course only partial acknowledgement, as concrete measures to preserve the actual building have yet to be carried out and will be funded not by the federal budget or a Russian organization but by a Keeping it Modern grant from the Los Angeles-based Getty Foundation to develop a conservation plan for the house. 14

The third building chosen to represent the avant-garde on Tverskaya Street as an art object was another work by Konstantin Melnikov — the Bakhmetevsky bus garage. Also in the category of heavily reconstructed, the garage nevertheless is an example of successfully repurposing an avant-garde building for modern use, essential for the survival of historic buildings. Post-reconstruction, it first housed the Garage Center for Contemporary Culture and currently, the Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center. The garage is in pristine condition today, it occupies the same physical space as the original building but has lost claim to being an authentic monument. And paradoxically, the Bakhmetevsky garage was chosen instead of the Narkomfin building — “recognized all over the world as the finest, most elegant and important example for the epoch-making architecture of Russian Constructivism” 15 — to join the Shukhov Tower and Melnikov House as the prime symbols of the avant-garde. Perhaps it was the present-day embarrassingly deplorable condition of the legendary Narkomfin building, after years of neglect, that led the decision-makers to favor the like-new copy of the Bakhmetevsky garage to parade on the City Day? Like all other architectural monuments, constructivist buildings do look much better when properly maintained, yet even the most famous of them are willfully neglected.

Moisei Ginzburg’s and Ignatiy Milinis’ Narkomfin residential experiment can be found in every book on modern architecture. Not even once repaired since its construction in 1930, various efforts have been made to restore the complex since the 1980s, all unsuccessful. Included in the World Monuments Watch three times 16 , Narkomfin slid further into disrepair without any action on the part of Moscow authorities. Next to the new Novinsky Passage shopping mall, Narkomfin indeed looked more and more like a ruin. 

One of the main problems with constructivist architecture is the false notion that the majority of the buildings from the 1920s were made of poor quality materials and are either impossible or too expensive to restore. Marat Khusnullin, Moscow Deputy Mayor for Construction and Urban Development, commented in 2016 on constructivist residential buildings, “We are for constructivism, although personally I think these buildings should be left as monuments of what should not be built.” 17 Unfortunately, personal opinion from a high-level government official has negative consequences for avant-garde heritage. In 2014 the Moscow Department of Cultural Heritage was slow to react to the numerous illegal repairs being haphazardly carried out throughout Narkomfin, regardless of its monument status and fame as a masterpiece of constructivist architecture. Original elements were either damaged or covered up in a wave of cosmetic repairs, further complicating future restoration work. Narkomfin’s fate changed when ownership of the building was finally consolidated in 2016 (previously split between the city of Moscow, privately owned apartments, and a succession of developer companies) and provided the opportunity for a large-scale restoration. Alexey Ginzburg, grandson of Moisei Ginzburg, was invited to develop the project for the restoration and adaptation of Narkomfin, which will return the building to its original design and function as a residential complex. Restoration work began in June 2017, and as a show of government support, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin visited Narkomfin remarking, “There was a real danger of completely losing this monument. And so we welcome the fact that the building now has a consolidated owner who has begun restoration work. The volume of work to be done is very large. But we hope that as a result, Narkomfin will gain a second life that will be even better than the first.” 18 The successful revival of Narkomfin, from both a diligent scientific restoration and business point of view, would indeed be a welcome precedent of the capitalization of avant-garde heritage in Moscow.

Even if the building is in good condition, there is a bias against the minimalist aesthetics of constructivist architecture. The Tagansky automated telephone exchange, built in 1929 by architect Vasily Martinovich, was a vivid example of avant-garde era industrial architecture. Both the facade with its distinctive narrow vertical windows (so designed due to the technical equipment housed inside) and the interior structure were in good condition when the decision was made to demolish the building and build in its place a luxury apartment complex. The reasons given for the demolition of the telephone station were many, from the alleged impossibility of adapting it to modern use, to its dissonance with the surrounding classical buildings. 19 The appearance of the building, mainly the lack of ornamentation — a key characteristic of the constructivist style — became a main argument against preserving it, as expressed by the Department of Cultural Heritage: "The facades emphasize the strictly utilitarian function of the building … the windows are slits without any decorative elements. Thus, the building does not have any valuable decorative and architectural or artistic elements." 20 The demolition of this previously little-known constructivist building became the surprise scandal of 2016, causing a heated debate about the perception of constructivist architecture in Moscow. The city’s leading architects and architecture specialists sent an open letter to Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, in which they disagreed with the assessment by the Department of Cultural Heritage that stated the telephone station lacked the historic and architectural merits to receive monument status. 21 An online petition collected over 35,000 signatures against the demolition 22 — quite a feat considering the telephone station only recently came to the attention of the general public. Despite the public outcry, the building was demolished . Echoing the Department of Cultural Heritage’s conclusion that the austere constructivist building visually did not fit in among the surrounding 18th and 19th century manors, the developer commissioned Mezonproekt architectural studio to design a building that would be stylistically harmonious with the historic neighborhood. Ilya Mashkov, head of Mezonproekt, explained how this harmony would be achieved in the new building: “We understand the ‘style of this place’ as the features that are inherent in pre-revolutionary buildings, and this is primarily the art nouveau style, which is distinguished by richly detailed facades with a variety of elements that are perceived as visually pleasing. This style not only supports the spirit of ‘old Moscow’, but also will be of interest to tourists looking at surrounding buildings.” 23 

With such an understanding of what makes up ‘old Moscow’ and what is perceived as ‘beautiful’ architecture being all too common among developers and city officials, in the city where history is made, it’s not hard to understand why erecting historically-styled modern edifices is preferred over preserving the existing authentic historical buildings. Constructivist architecture is particularly vulnerable as it continues to be defamed for its aesthetics. The repression of constructivist architecture began in the 1930s when it was considered to be formal, bourgeois, and even “ideologically imposed foreign architecture.” 24 In 2006 Anke Zalivako stated that “because of its simple facades Constructivism still remains stigmatized as ‘non-Russian’ in the taste of most citizens.” 25 A decade later, it still seems to be the case, and the preference for classical, ornate architecture continues. There are numerous examples of constructivist buildings being demolished to be replaced by luxury apartment complexes executed in a pompous, neoclassical style. 26  

The centenary of the Russian Revolution has put a spotlight on the revolutionary art of the twenties with many international exhibitions, conferences, and publications dedicated to it, whereas avant-garde architecture continues to be an undercapitalized resource in Russia. Visitors to Moscow are often surprised to see a freshly renovated downtown while many avant-garde era buildings are in a ruinous condition or inaccessible to tourists despite their world-fame, the Shukhov Tower being a perfect example — both neglected and hypocritically celebrated at the same time. Still, choosing the avant-garde as the brand for Moscow’s anniversary is a clear indicator that various efforts to popularize and rehabilitate this heritage have reached top city officials. The significance of the Russian avant-garde heritage for the identity of Moscow and for potential tourism was previously presented back in 2011 at the Moscow Urban Forum 27 , and now in 2017 this was effectively realized in the City Day branding. The Russian resource website for the FIFA world cup in 2018 features a special section introducing future football visitors to “ Constructivism. Legacy of the Soviet Era ,” and goes as far as positioning constructivism as “the country’s brand identity along with ballet, hockey and space exploration.” 28 The number of lectures, special events and tours on the avant-garde has steadily increased over the years, a key way to introduce Muscovites to the heritage of the city in which they live. Guidebooks, maps, and websites provide information on avant-garde buildings, while souvenirs show off their recognizable designs. Awareness and popularity of the avant-garde legacy are unequivocally moving in a positive direction while admittedly, appreciation of avant-garde architectural heritage in Russia is still for the most part superficial — promoting the idea of the avant-garde while neglecting the actual buildings: there’s a lengthy list of buildings under threat, and a much shorter list of completed restorations. But now that Russia has warmed up to the idea of the constructivist brand, and Moscow is looking back at its rich history as it moves forward with an ambitious revival program of its urban fabric — the time is ripe to polish its unique cultural arsenal of constructivist gems.

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