The number one tourist draw in Baku? The Heydar Aliyev Center.
What is the Heydar Aliyev Center?
An award-winning visual arts and performance center in the heart of Baku, Azerbaijan’s capital.
The Aliyev Center may be an award winner, but those awards are not without controversy.
So who is this Heydar Aliyev chap?
Heydar Aliyev was the longtime First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Azerbaijan Communist Party. Rolls right off the tongue, right? He held the post from 1969 until 1982. Aliyev ran the day-to-day affairs of the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic while it was part of the larger Soviet Union.
Fifteen independent nations were born from the dissolution of the USSR in the fall of 1991. From 1993 until his death in 2003, Heydar Aliyev was the president of the newly independent Azerbaijan.
Upon Heydar’s death, son Ilham took the reins of power. The younger Aliyev set about a modernist construction boom. Baku was transformed from a sleepy Caspian capital to a global player. Among the grandiose building projects? The Heydar Aliyev Center.
I struggled to find a worthwhile link to embed with a full review of the elder Aliyev’s life. Even his Wikipedia page is an eye-rolling sequence of one-sided facts.
A personality cult has been built around the former strongman. If you’re visiting Azerbaijan I advise you to get used to Mr. Aliyev. From Heydar Aliyev International Airport to Heydar Aliyev Boulevard to the Museum of Heydar Aliyev, you shall never want for company in Azerbaijan.
Heydar Aliyev will be your constant companion.
Azerbaijan itself is not a democratic state. Never was. The media is censored and free speech is restricted. Elections are rigged. Civil society organizations are blocked.
Basically, it’s the perfect place for huge vanity projects.
Who designed the Heydar Aliyev Center?
The famous Iraqi/British architect, Zaha Hadid. Check out some of her most famous projects.
Hadid’s firm was awarded a contract in 2007 and the ‘Queen of Curves’ quickly got to work.
Who built the Heydar Aliyev Center?
An Azeri company, DIA Holding.
Stick with me here.
Several companies registered in the British Virgin Islands list current president Ilham Aliyev’s daughters as owners. The BVI are a notorious money shelter and tax dodge. Well, the director of those companies is also the CEO of a Dubai-based mega company with numerous subsidiaries. Those companies have won upwards of $4.5 billion worth of Azeri government contracts.
Got that?
The Heydar Aliyev Center was basically one giant fiscal shell game.
Speculation put the cost north of a cool US$250 million.
Baku’s famous Flame Towers are another of DIA’s state projects.
Who paid for the Heydar Aliyev Center?
The government of Azerbaijan. But let’s be clear. The country’s vast petroleum reserves actually funded the project. Azerbaijan ranks 26th globally in natural gas reserves and 20th in oil.
Not too shabby for a country the size of the state of Maine.
Here is an interesting piece on Azerbaijan’s plans for when the petro money dries up.
The grounds
The joy of visiting the Aliyev Center is in simply wandering about gazing at the changing curves. Obviously, the entire property is a photography hotspot, so bring your camera!
The monochromatic nature of the exterior makes for truly stunning pictures, but try to avoid visiting at midday. Glaring sunlight plus very little shade makes for washed out photos.
I wanted to stop by around sunset, but an evening train to Tbilisi prevented that. I snapped all the photos here between two and six in the afternoon.
Don’t forget to wander down the hill in front of the center.
Several modern art pieces dot the grass while serene fountains gurgle away in the background. A few food trucks line a side street.
And, of course, the wildly popular ‘I ♥ Baku’ sign.
The Aliyev Center is stunning, but should I pay to go inside?
Good question.
The interior houses a modern art exhibition, an ethnographic collection and an overpriced cafe. Of course it wouldn’t be complete without a multi-floor ode to Heydar Aliyev. His assortment of bulletproof vehicles generates positive reviews. The rest? Ehh.
The exterior is so intriguing I did not feel the need to go inside. Plus my patience for all things Heydar Aliyev was wearing thin. After all, I spent the previous days in the Azeri exclave of Nakhchivan, ground zero for all things Aliyev.
Hours/Tickets
The Aliyev Center is open every day except Monday. Opening hours are Tuesday through Friday from 11a to 7p and Saturday/Sunday from 11a to 6p. The ticket office closes one hour prior.
Adult admission costs AZN15 (US$8.80).
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