"Crystal Mosque" is designed as a compositional, spiritual and energetical center of the Residential Park "Timurid Chor-Bagh" in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. The project of the Complex was based on the planning model of the traditional "Chor-Bagh" gardens.

The famous gardens of Amir Timur (Tamerlane) had a rectangular form, approximately the same dimensions, and were surrounded by the walls with the observation towers in the corners. In the center of the garden, on the intersection of two perpendicular alleys with water channels, there was a palace. Thus, the garden was divided into four parts - the main principle of "Chor-Bagh".

Residential complex "Timurid Chor-Bagh" reproduces the model of this traditional garden in the modern conditions - by creating the chain of the public city spaces and gardens with the developed pedestrian zone, the cultural center and the comfortable residential buildings, which surround and protect each garden.

In the very center of complex, following the examle of Timurid gardens, there is a place for important public center of life of the whole district - the cultural and spiritual center "Crystal Mosque" - new contemporary architectural symbol for Uzbekistan.

Its large-scale cupola with the inner gardens on the ramps represents the concept of a huge Garden of Eden, with the living plants inside the building. Photovoltaic glazing of the cupola produces solar energy for maintaining comfortable conditions inside. Translucid facades, with the plants behind them, will produce the energy during the day, and light up by night, creating unforgettable image.

Life of the East, and Uzbekistan indeed, from ancient times was measured by the distance from residential housing to the entrance of the mosque. Today all big Islamic capitals compete in construction of the new mosques. The bright example is the Sheikh Zayed Mosque, which is striking imagination with the colorful and floral decoration: mosaics of the huge flowers in the paving of the courtyards, giant carpets with floral ornaments, column capitals in form of palm trees - all this makes us stop for a while and ask ourselves - "where am I? - I am in the center of the huge Eden Garden".

Contemporary technologies and materials nowadays allow us to punch through the thickness of the brick wall and let in the sunlight - this wonderful present, which animates and inspires the human, and with the sunlight there can be the living trees and flowers in the interior design. In "Crystal Mosque" the space for rest, contemplation and inspiration is situated under the huge living cupola, where the citrus and palm trees look so amazing and invite us to go up the spiral ramp - higher and higher.

There should be the districts of the merchants, artisans, artists around the mosque, like it was in the ancient times, which can be placed into the three-story basement of the Mosque in the shape of eight-pointed star.

Working team: Manuel Nunez Yanonwsky, Julia Suprunovych, Andrey Levchenko, Francesc Guardia, Alexander Voitsekhovsky.

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The Mag: SPECIAL FOR UZBEKISTAN