The National Museum in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

Golden Treasure Chamber

Building Redevelopment, Bishkek, 2018
/Museum /Cultural building
“This project was an adventure,” says Chris Middleton, founding partner of Kinzo Architects Berlin—and he means more than just the 5,000 kilometers between Berlin and Bishkek.

Because right in the center of the Kyrgyz capital stands a building that Berliners will immediately recognize: the Kyrgyz National Museum. A monumental building of socialist modernism, opened in 1986, made of marble, glass, and clear geometry. And astonishingly close to the Palace of the Republic.

For Kinzo, this feels less like coincidence and more like a reunion. The agency has a special relationship with the Palace of the Republic, as the Kinzo team organized the closing party there in 2005 before it was finally demolished.

“It’s amazing how much is identical, right down to the details,” says Chris. “The window frames, the stairs, the handrails.”

Left: The Palace of the Republic, 2005 I Right: National Museum Bishkek, 2017

Plus: East German modernism has shaped the firm’s work since its founding—even its first offices were located in a hybrid building opposite Alexanderplatz.

What fascinates Kinzo about these buildings is their attitude: architecture as a place for community. Mixed use not as a trend, but as a principle. The National Museum in Bishkek has precisely this quality—with open, light-flooded floors and a spectacular staircase with a huge golden coffered ceiling as its spatial centerpiece.
The task: to transform the former Lenin Museum into an open museum of national history. Kinzo carefully renovated the approximately 4,000- sqm building, renewed the façade, added gold-colored sun protection, and developed a barrier-free access system consisting of ramps, bridges, and elevators.
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Inside, the existing structure was exposed, zoned, and acoustically optimized—always with the user journey in mind.

Gold is more than just a material here: for Kinzo, the house is Kyrgyzstan’s golden treasure. A building that showcases history, facilitates encounters, and proves that Berlin’s architectural approach also works internationally.
Photos: ©Chris Bierl ©Jan Blieske
Year 2018
Client Ala-Too Square, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
Architecture Existing building: East German modernism, 1986, monumental brutalist structure
GFA 4.000 sqm
Typology Building renovation, museum, cultural building
Scope Renovation, conversion, interior design (LPH 1-3 + KOL)
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