IMPLEMENTATION OF PROJECTS BY FOREIN ARCHITECTS IN KAZAKHSTAN: IN SEARCH OF REGIONAL AUTHENTICITY

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G. ABRASILOVA, E. MURZAGALIEVA

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Urban transformation has become an increasingly important tool in cities for achieving a range of goals. Among many other cities, Baku and Tehran have been subject to urban transformation practices. Despite the differences (scale, size of population, geographic particularities etc.), these cities have experienced a similar urban development model: initially being part of the Eastern world, they subsequently integrated, in different ways, the approaches applied to Western cities. Urban transformation is generally focused on facilitating the city network(s), the need for housing for the population and providing circulation.

Changes in the world policy and economy in the late 20th century, namely the collapse of USSR, emergence of new independent states, decline of confrontation between countries with differing socio-political order, technological progress in the field of IT, all contributed to rapid convergence, integration of world science and technology. Simultaneously in the world the processes of searching for political, historical, national, cultural and other identities have become topical. In the conditions of globalization it is the regional identity that is scrutinized as an effective mechanism which is capable of uniting people, encouraging them to collaborative actions.

Regional identity is a socio-cultural construction that appears depending on socio-economical and political circumstances in a specific historical period and expresses the position of the regional community. Regional self-identification is directed towards search of ways for self-preservation of regional unity.

In contemporary Kazakhstan in the course of forming new regional strategy in economical, political and cultural-ideological spheres most actively regional identification tendencies are demonstrated in architecture.

Notwithstanding doubts that foreign architects shall not account for regional characteristics of Kazakhstan, their projects convey relevant ideas while adapting to modern realities of our country and speeding progressive technological and artistical-creative tendencies. It can be stated that in 20 years of building the newrcapital the architecture of Astana has become a unique laboratory of modem regional architecture of Kazakhstan. Major roles in this act have been played by foreign architects, the authors of unique objects designed in Astana - Kisho Kurokawa, Norman Foster, Manfredi Nicoletti and others.

The purpose of the article is to prove the thesis on the value of integrating foreign experience for comprehension of regional identity in the architecture of Kazakhstan.