Astana Peace Wall competition is an architectural competition for a monument dedicated to peace, located in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan. The inspiration for the monument was driven from Kazakhstan’s giving up on its nuclear arsenal, and the main elements which form the monument reflect parts of the Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test Site.

The test site has a specific typology. The topography and architectural remains make a specific atmosphere and present a reminder of how harmful and destructive human actions can be. By mimicking the elements of the nuclear test site, but by placing them in the context of renewal and progress, the wall is a reminder of a potential power of destruction. Also, by displacing those elements, and using them as landscape elements, they gain additional purpose, but based on symbolic values of the effort of the people of Kazakhstan for peace and the materialization of its achievements – the closing of the test site in the first place. This wall is a memorial landscape tour, a polygon for tourists to experience the tensions of the distorted topography. It also gives the visitors an overview of the historical context and an opportunity to get a bigger picture, to climb the stairs and have a different point of view of the topography of destruction, and see its potential for renewal, its constructive energy when used peacefully, for connecting people and allowing them to discover all the different layers of the city in its actual historical context and its significance in the modern world. By juxtaposing and reorganizing recognizable wounds and giving them a constructive potential, the Peace wall becomes a silent peace keeper.