{"id":3574,"date":"2026-09-29T19:37:09","date_gmt":"2026-09-29T23:37:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.echoartfoundation.com\/inside-studio-kos-quiet-transformation-of-a-1912-depot-into-cca-tashkent\/"},"modified":"2026-09-29T19:37:09","modified_gmt":"2026-09-29T23:37:09","slug":"inside-studio-kos-quiet-transformation-of-a-1912-depot-into-cca-tashkent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.echoartfoundation.com\/es\/inside-studio-kos-quiet-transformation-of-a-1912-depot-into-cca-tashkent\/","title":{"rendered":"Inside Studio KO\u2019s Quiet Transformation of a 1912 Depot into CCA Tashkent"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Olivier Marty, co-founder of the Paris-based architecture firm <strong>Studio KO<\/strong>, has turned a <strong>1912<\/strong> tram depot and diesel station in the heart of Tashkent into the <strong>Centre for Contemporary Arts Tashkent (CCA Tashkent)<\/strong>\u2014the country\u2019s first permanent institution dedicated to contemporary art. Speaking to <em>ArtAsiaPacific<\/em> ahead of the public opening, he outlined an approach honed on cultural commissions including the <strong>Yves Saint Laurent Museum in Marrakech (2017)<\/strong> and the <strong>Mus\u00e9e de la Mode et du Costume in Arles (2025)<\/strong>, projects noted for restraint, material intelligence, and a preference for subtlety over spectacle.<\/p>\n<p>Working with partner <strong>Karl Fournier<\/strong>, Marty kept the building\u2019s character front and center. The main exhibition hall retains original brick walls and vast proportions\u2014\u201c<em>basilica-like<\/em>\u201d\u2014while a dark metal tunnel guides visitors through to the galleries and new courtyards make measured nods to traditional Uzbek forms. \u201c<em>It takes time\u2014the time to give attention and sincerity to each layer<\/em>,\u201d said <strong>Olivier Marty<\/strong>. Describing a careful audit of later accretions and a revival of long-disappeared techniques\u2014\u201c<em>brick and joint treatment, zinc cladding on horizontal elements<\/em>\u201d\u2014he noted that new insertions were rendered in deliberate contrast: \u201c<em>They are dark, with the feel of poured concrete, as opposed to the modular brickwork typical of imperial architecture<\/em>.\u201d The result is a contemplative, flexible environment calibrated for exhibitions, research, and public programs. The main hall has even been described as a smaller version of the <strong>Tate Modern\u2019s Turbine Hall<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align:left\">Material lineages and a pedagogical echo<\/h2>\n<p>Studio KO\u2019s long engagement with Morocco carries over as method rather than style. \u201c<em>We like to say that the Studio\u2019s response is more an approach, an attitude, rather than a style\u2026 listen and observe a lot before making choices<\/em>,\u201d Marty reflected, citing \u201c<em>the minerality of the country, the colors of the soil, the vernacular repetition of courtyards<\/em>.\u201d Research from the <strong>2023 Uzbekistan Pavilion<\/strong> at the <strong>Venice Architecture Biennale<\/strong>, \u201c<em>Unbuild Together: Archaism vs. Modernity<\/em>,\u201d also resonated. Working with students and artisans around the mud-brick <em>qalas<\/em> of <strong>Karakalpakstan<\/strong>, Marty found \u201c<em>chronological porosity between archaism and modernity<\/em>,\u201d noting affinities with CCA Tashkent\u2019s tunnel and massing, and hands-on experiments with terracotta brick \u201c<em>of both layouts and finishes, natural or glazed<\/em>.\u201d Before renovation, the team installed in the diesel station \u201c<em>a crazy one-to-one model of the Venice labyrinth<\/em>,\u201d an echo heightened by the space\u2019s near match to the <strong>Arsenale<\/strong> in dimensions.<\/p>\n<p>The new courtyard is conceived as a contemporary version of a traditional <em>mahalla<\/em>. \u201c<em>The enclosed space, big gate, perception of the surrounding construction and urban fabric\u2014all of this is all the same, although the expression is different<\/em>,\u201d Marty said. On the broader civic brief, he added: \u201c<em>Scale-wise, even politically, there are many similarities, because the project serves a purpose combining altruism, power, and vision\u2026 for the first time it is not dedicated to couture or textile like in Arles, but to artists<\/em>.\u201d Early programming has already animated the halls, with installation views of works by <strong>NADIA KAABI-LINKE<\/strong>, <strong>NARI WARD<\/strong>, <strong>TARIK KISWANSON<\/strong>, and <strong>ALI CHERRI<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>For Marty, accepting the industrial and imperial traces is foundational: \u201c<em>In this region there can be a path to modernity and development based on accepting the traces of the past<\/em>.\u201d The public response has been immediate: \u201c<em>5,650 visitors on the first day<\/em>\u2026 <em>Collective emotion<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align:right\"><em>V\u00eda <a href=\"https:\/\/www.artasiapacific.com\/people\/depot-reborn-interview-with-olivier-marty-of-studio-ko\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">artasiapacific.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Olivier Marty of Studio KO details the transformation of Tashkent\u2019s 1912 tram depot and diesel station into the Centre for Contemporary Arts Tashkent, Uzbekistan\u2019s first permanent contemporary art institution, emphasizing material legibility, revived techniques, and contextual design. Early programming has activated the basilica-like halls, and the opening drew 5,650 visitors on the first day.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":3573,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3574","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-happening-now"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.echoartfoundation.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3574","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.echoartfoundation.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.echoartfoundation.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.echoartfoundation.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.echoartfoundation.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3574"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.echoartfoundation.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3574\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.echoartfoundation.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3573"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.echoartfoundation.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3574"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.echoartfoundation.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3574"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.echoartfoundation.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3574"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}