Viral Image Does Not Show Putin's House
The Claim
Images circulating of a futuristic building on stilts in the middle of a forest show Russian President, Vladimir Putin's house.
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Emerging story
Widespread posts on social media show images of a futuristic home and claim it belongs to the President of Russia. The images are captioned, "the design of the house of Russian President Vladimir Putin in the forest of Sochi in Russia." The images depict a house with a flat roof design set on high, thick white stilts with lush forest trees in the background.
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar's investigation found this claim to be false. The image in the claim is a plan for a building that has never been built. It is designed by Ukrainian architect Roman Vlasov, and can be found on his Instagram account here. Vlasov posted the photos on his account naming his design: "Putin House” adding, “or a story about what his villa might look like” with the location Sochi, Russia.
Most of his designs are mere “concepts, fantasies, or visualizations” sometimes including an imagined storyline. The official residence of Russia’s president is the Kremlin, a 68 acre complex in the high walled Novo-Ogoryevo residence which is patrolled by guards. He also resides in "Putin's Palace" also known as the Residence at Cape Idokopas, a complex located on the Black Sea. Given the findings, Misbar's team confirms that the claim is fake and the house in the shared image does not belong to Putin.
