FORMATION OF STYLE IN THE RESIDENTIAL ARCHITECTURE OF ALMATY IN THE 1930S–1950S: SEARCH FOR A NEW COURSE AND THE PROBLEM OF CHOICE

Abstract

Alongside the urgent need to address large-scale urban population growth and adapt housing to the natural and climatic conditions of the region, the first attempts to incorporate elements of the national architectural heritage emerged from the mid-1930s in Alma-Ata, leaving a distinctive mark on the city’s residential architecture. Through the analysis, generalisation, and synthesis of theoretical and historical sources - primarily the works of architects and eyewitness researchers of the period -this study explores the directions of theoretical searches for a new architectural course in connection with the formation of Kazakhstan’s regional style. Examples of residential buildings in Alma-Ata of the 1930s and early 1950s are presented to illustrate the practical embodiment of the “synthesis of the arts”, reflected in regional elements of residential architecture and in the broader organisation of the city’s living environment. The article examines methods of shaping the residential environment in Alma-Ata and identifies approaches to creating a harmonious, identity-reflective urban environment through regional stylistic features. These include the incorporation of architectural details such as cornices, balconies, and loggias; landscaping and irrigation of residential quarters; the integration of ornamental compositions as a link with national cultural traditions; and, more generally, the creation of coherent urban ensembles and interiors. The findings of the study may be applied to the contemporary formation of the residential environment of modern Almaty.