Ola's Kool Kitchen

20/05/2026

20/05/2026

My latest for The Times of Central Asia Central Asia is stepping out of the post-Soviet shadow and using culture to define itself on its own terms

Central Asia is rarely presented on its own terms. It is more often viewed through exterior lenses like Russian imperial memory, Chinese reach, Silk Road

04/05/2026

In memory of Gregg Foreman. In 2013 Gregg was a guest DJ on my show and we talked about music, addiction and living life with soul and feeling as well as picking great tunes. Listen here https://hearthis.at/olaskoolkitchen/olas-kool-kitchen-187-with-guest-dj-gregg-foreman/

27/04/2026

My latest for The Times of Central Asia rare Central Asian masterpieces go on show at Sotheby’s London, revealing centuries of craft, power, and cultural exchange

At Sotheby’s in London, Central Asia comes into view as a world of dazzling craft and taste. The Arts of the Islamic World & India auction on April 29th

27/04/2026

I'm sorry to hear about the passing of Gregg Foreman. He very kindly was on the show a long while back and posted this here in honor of him. Sometimes when you get to close to the sun it can burn

podcast

15/04/2026

My Latest for The Times of Central Asia the World Nomad Games 2026 return to Kyrgyzstan, turning Issyk-Kul into a global stage for nomadic sport and living heritage https://timesca.com/horses-eagles-and-fire-the-steppe-awakens-as-the-2026-world-nomad-games-return-to-kyrgyzstan/

On the shores of Lake Issyk-Kul, where mountains drop sharply into the water, and horses and cars are found in almost equal measure, Kyrgyzstan will host the

06/03/2026

My latest for The Times of Central Asia vodka, gulags, and Silk Road cities Joe Luc Barnes travels the former Soviet world to ask what happened after empire

On a foggy but mild London evening, The Times of Central Asia joined journalist and contributor Joe Luc Barnes to celebrate the launch of his new book, A

20/02/2026

My latest for The Times of Central Asia as Central Asia rethinks Moscow’s influence Russian declines symbolically but still dominates the region’s cultural bureaucracy and art world infrastructure https://timesca.com/the-language-nobody-wants-to-speak-about-russians-uneasy-place-in-central-asias-cultural-conversation/

Rhetoric in segments of the Russian media has sharpened debates over sovereignty and influence across Central Asia, pushing these concerns beyond policy

29/01/2026

My latest for The Times of Central Asia Kazakh curator Akmaral Kulbatyrova on reframing nomadic heritage as a critical contemporary language as Kazakhstan’s art enters global institutions

At a moment when Kazakhstan is building new cultural institutions and asking bigger questions about what contemporary art should do, one curator has been