The Main Fair Building is an elegant Russian-style building, and the Nizhny Novgorod Fair is the «Pocket of Russia» and a true symbol of merchants. In the early 20th century, the fair was a city within a city: with more than 30 streets, around 7,000 shops and stalls, a theater seating almost 2,000 people, a circus and a hippodrome. Literally everything got traded here: teas, fish, silk. During the First World War, trade dwindled; and in 1930, the Soviet government declared the fair a «hostile social phenomenon». It was not until 1990 that the new directorate of the fair was put in place and various forums and international exhibitions began to be hosted here.

For the 800th anniversary of Nizhny Novgorod, the ugly pavilions around the Main Fair Building were demolished and the space was complemented with small architectural forms that recall the site’s past. The once faceless Pavilion 1 is now all mirrored panels, making it the best spot for a photo shoot.