Archinect - News

The New East is where western starchitect dreams come true (or turn into nightmares)

2016-01-07T14:00:00-05:00

The rise of international architecture competitions has given western architects an opportunity to make their mark on eastern Europe and Central Asia [...] Regardless of record-high fees, some of their projects are being cancelled half-way through or take a good decade to build. But the ones that are brought to life often become some of the most recognised works of its authors. For starchitects the miles between eastern Europe and Central Asia is the place where dreams and ambitions come true.

Azerbaijan counts human cost of architecture

2014-07-14T13:10:00-04:00

Baku is gaining international recognition as a centre of cutting-edge architectural design thanks in part to a major award given recently to London-based architect Zaha Hadid for her Heydar Aliyev Centre. The Azerbaijani capital’s new look has plenty of local fans, but also some detractors. [...] The latest wave of protests occurred in February and March, prompted by a government announcement that 40,000 downtown residents would be evicted to make way for a “green zone” [...].

Zaha Hadid wins the Design Museum’s Designs of the Year Award 2014

2014-06-30T18:17:00-04:00

Zaha Hadid is the first woman to win the Design Museum's Designs of the Year Award 2014 with her Heydar Aliyev Center in Baku, Azerbaijan. Another first in this year's competition is that the Heydar Aliyev Center is the first architectural project to win the widely recognized award.

The competition began with 76 nominations in the categories Architecture, Digital, Fashion, Furniture, Graphics, Product, and Transport, followed by the selection of the seven Category winners.

Any thoughts on the jury's selection? Share 'em in the comment section below.

Who’s Winning the Architecture Arms Race?

2013-10-14T13:20:00-04:00

Answer: Baku, Azerbaijan, where the government is spending an estimated $6 billion a year on architecture projects. As we wrote in February, Azerbaijan’s leaders want to make their capital city a destination for the rich and fabulous. The latest example: the Heydar Aliyev Center designed by Zaha Hadid, for whom it offered the rare opportunity of nearly total design freedom. Every roof and ceiling panel is different, Hadid says.

Fire at Zaha Hadid's Heydar Aliyev Center in Baku: no damage

2012-07-21T13:56:00-04:00

As a result of the fire that took place at the Heydar Aliyev Center designed by Zaha Hadid Architects in Baku today no damage was caused to inner part of the building, halls and others, a joint statement of Emergency Situations Ministry and Azerbaijani Prosecutor General's Office says.

Fire on Hadid's Aliyev Culture Center

2012-07-21T13:36:04-04:00

The Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center in Baku, Azerbaijan, is on fire.

Half moon hotel shows Baku's stellar architectural ambitions

2011-11-16T08:34:14-05:00

When completed in 2015, Hotel Crescent will stand on the banks of the Caspian Sea, its 33-stories housed in a vast, down-turned crescent. A sister project was proposed called the Full Moon Hotel that would have brought something resembling the Death Star from "Star Wars" to the Caspian coastline.