Baku, Azerbaijan travel review: An architect’s paradise

The country is a smorgasbord of cutting-edge design, which reveals secrets about Azerbaijan’s history, politics and heritage, all waiting to be discovered, writes Domhnall O’Donoghue

Domhnall at the mud volcanoes

Baku's Old City

Baku at sunset

A ferris wheel on the waterfront

thumbnail: Domhnall at the mud volcanoes
thumbnail: Baku's Old City
thumbnail: Baku at sunset
thumbnail: A ferris wheel on the waterfront
Domhnall O'Donoghue
© Belfast Telegraph

Standing on the Hilton Hotel’s rooftop — one of Baku’s best viewing spots, according to locals — I ignore the din of evening traffic and, instead, marvel at the dense fog enveloping the city as if it were a greedy tyrant guarding his treasures. And understandably so, given the architectural riches at stake.

Buildings like the baroque Government House or the Crescent Hotel, so named because of its half-moon shape, are now only partially visible. But their stature is, somehow, enhanced by these dramatic conditions — helped by the sunset, casting a golden hue on the contrasting façades.

“Wow,” I say to a staff member, enjoying a cigarette — a common habit here I’m discovering. “Wow.”

Throughout my stay in this Central Asian country, I’m constantly enthralled by the capital’s fusion of ancient and modern architecture — often shapeshifting in appearance, depending on the weather or time of day.

Thanks to their vast reserve of gas and oil, along with the subsequent investment in the region, Baku is witnessing unstoppable development, with a singular goal: to emancipate itself from the Soviet dominance that ended in 1991.

Dusty communist buildings and apartment blocks have been unceremoniously demolished — much to the chagrin of former tenants — making way for an explosion of postmodern alternatives.

Love them or loathe them, the results of this facelift have made Baku the talk of the international architectural community.

An architect’s playground

The Maiden Tower

The late Heydar Aliyev, the country’s controversial president, is credited with much of this transformation — his name and image are a constant presence across the country. In recent decades, he and his successor — his son, Ilham Aliyev — have welcomed the world’s leading architects and firms here, including the late Queen of Curve, Zaha Hadid, and South Korea’s Heerim Architects and Planners. The invitation? To treat the city like their playground.

Yes, the city’s ancient offering undoubtedly remains at the heart of the Baku experience. But the 15th-century Palace of the Shirvanshahs and the Maiden Tower, which has overlooked the Caspian Sea for nearly a millennium, now face fierce competition from their younger, funkier counterparts — their presence as colourful as the spices sold in the local bazaars.

Glass and steel contrast with the centuries-old rock and stone. Streets, squares and the waterfront boulevard teem with eye-catching contemporary art. Ambitious shapes — warped, asymmetrical, bulbous, oblique, literal — are now standard.

These magnificent, if sometimes disorientating, efforts are even evident at their international airport. Upon landing, visitors are greeted by giant wooden cocoons doubling as cafés, bars and kiosks designed by the Turkish architecture studio, Autoban. This is what these structures appear to say: free from Soviet control, Azerbaijan is unwrapping its potential, cocoon-like. And now is her time to shine. Architecturally, at least.

The land of fire

Flame Towers, seen from the Palace of the Shirvanshahs

And no structure in Baku shines brighter than Flame Towers looming over Baku’s skyline. Conceived by global firm HOK and visible no matter where I turn, this trio of triangular-shaped skyscrapers is 140 metres high and pays tribute to the country’s moniker — the Land of Fire. Flame Towers house apartments, offices, a hotel, and leisure facilities and, at night, provide backdrops for lighting displays — brilliantly creating the illusion that the buildings are alive and moving.

Fire isn’t the only element to inspire architects in Baku. The Azersu Office Tower — created by Heerim Architects & Planners — resembles a water drop to reflect the company’s role as the headquarters of the Azerbaijan Water Resources Corporation.

Nature is also evident in Deniz Mall, which, amusingly, mirrors a lotus, while the Baku Crystal Hall — a popular concert venue — resembles cut crystal. The latter was designed by German firm GMP Architekten — and was miraculously constructed in just eight months to host the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest. Since then, visitors to the city have been giving this showpiece douze points.

Arguably, the building that has received the lion’s share of praise in the international architectural scene is Heydar Aliyev Cultural Centre — Zaha Hadid’s futuristic masterpiece. The building’s design incorporates a series of overlapping and undulating surfaces and triumphantly shuns the rigidity of Soviet architecture. Instead, it celebrates traditional Islamic styles, where rows, grids and columns fluidly fuse to create non-hierarchical spaces.

Most interestingly are the buildings’ duality and contradictions — particularly apparent in Heydar Aliyev Cultural Centre or the ingenious Azerbaijan Carpet Museum, conceived by Austria’s Franz Janz and emulates a rolled carpet.

Their exteriors might defy logic, but inside, they archive the country’s heritage and crafts, including weaving, Yalli dancing and musical instruments like tar — the long-necked, plucked lute.

Outside of Baku

Domhnall at the Fire Temple of Baku

However, these architectural bursts of modernity aren’t necessarily reflected outside the city, where the ancient past dominates. Ateshgah’s Fire Temple of Baku was once used as a Hindu, Sikh and Zoroastrian place of worship, while nearby, natural gas fires blaze from the foot of a hill in Yanar Dag.

But that duo are merely newcomers compared to Azerbaijan’s extensive collection of mud volcanoes — some are 25 million years old. In Gobustan, after I admire prehistoric rock art that features carvings of bulls, boats and dancing men, I cross Mars-like terrain to marvel at these underground volcanoes, spitting mud with careless abandon.

During these day trips, I chat with a server, who tells me that while the oil has resulted in extensive development across Baku, the rest of the country remains underdeveloped, and this growing chasm between rich and poor sadly divides Azerbaijan in two.

Fire — so integral to their culture — is often viewed as a symbol of transformation; maybe, in the near future, the riches in Baku will expand to the rest of the country. When that happens, I look forward to returning to admire the results.

Domhnall travelled to Baku with Turkish Airways and stayed at the Winter Park Hotel. His trip was sponsored by the Georgian Jewish Community of Azerbaijan and coincided with commemorating the 1992 Khojaly massacre.