Oliver Wainwright on the glitzy starchitecture of Astana: “Like a teenager trying to show off” | News | Archinect
▻https://archinect.com/news/article/150033707/oliver-wainwright-on-the-glitzy-starchitecture-of-astana-like-a-teenager-
Guardian architecture critic Oliver Wainwright reports from the Astana World Expo grounds as part of the paper’s fascinating new series, Secret Stans, which offers a glimpse into the cities of the former Soviet Republics of Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
In his piece, Wainwright minces no words and describes the collection of petrodollar-funded starchitecture that Kazakhstan’s lone ruler, Nursultan Nazarbayev, enabled to grow from the Eurasian steppe as a “row of awards in a particularly gaudy trophy cabinet,” and also questions the ’regime-enforcing’ integrity of well known international architects who agreed to build it.