MEGA PLAZA SHOPPING CENTRE

MEGA PLAZA is a major shopping centre in Astana, becoming part of the large-scale development of the EXPO territory. The architectural concept was developed by the British practice Chapman Taylor, designing the building as an extended public volume with large atriums, glazed spaces and an expressive contemporary envelope.

The complex's architecture is built on a combination of grand scale and visual lightness. Extended facades are divided into individual fragments, while large glazed surfaces and entrance groups help open the internal public spaces outward.

Aluminium becomes one of the key materials. Metal panels create clean large planes, emphasise the building's geometry and help unite the extended facade into a cohesive composition. Thanks to precise geometry and smooth surface finish, the metal works particularly well at this scale, maintaining visual clarity across large facade areas.

Combined with glass, aluminium makes the massive volume lighter and more contemporary. Metal surfaces are perceived differently depending on natural lighting: in bright sunlight they actively reflect light, while in overcast weather they take on a more subdued and deeper character.

As a result, MEGA PLAZA's architecture is built on a balance of scale, transparency and metal. Aluminium becomes one of the materials that organises the complex facade, emphasises its rhythm and supports the technological image of a large public complex.