Aytam Carpet Weavers House and Pedari Hotel (Khansar, Iran), Poorkan Weekend Villa (Poorkan, Iran), Blind Façade II (Tehran, Iran) and Rong Cultural Center (Hormuz Island, Iran) are published in the book “Contemporary Iranian Architects 1”- by Negar Hakim 2018

The 21st century has seen the emergence of a new generation of Iranian architects who are now beginning to attract attention on an international scale. Contemporary Iranian Architects showcases fourteen of Iran's significant architectural studios, along with a selection of their most innovative projects.

Architecture is about limiting and freeing flair spaces and the connections between them

After gaining professional experience in various design studies, Mohammadreza Ghodousi (b.Tehran, 1976), a graduate of Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran, established ZAV Architects in 2005 together with Parsa Ardam, and in 2012 after several practices such as “Barbod fruit house, Blind Façade, Aytam and Pedaris” Ardam continued his profession out of ZAV while Fati Rezayi and Golnaz Bahrami became ZAV partner later on.

ZAV’s reputation and the awards they have received for their work are mainly due to their flair for creatively combining the art of architecture with a touch of the visual arts. Their designs are mostly introverted and constructed in a geometrical, regular framework created using a mixture of open and semi-open spaces with proper lighting. Among the distinctive features of their designs in an indifference to the usual trends of the Iranian construction industry, particularly with regard to detail design. In ZAV details, one finds a re-reading of architectural elements of historical Iranian architecture as well as a nuance of the visual arts: elements such as Kucheh (alley) and Hashti (vestibule) refined to shape the core of a storey are inspired by the example of oriental urban passageway. Se-dari (three-windowed) openings are oriented towards the courtyard with stained glass panes inspired by orosi (traditional sash windows) a combination of references old and new brings a special and unique quality to the design context: e.g., placing, in a niche, an Arabic prayer written by a calligrapher from Gorgan, or a door made out of simple and local honeycomb boxes. Neither of these elements would have been out of place in an art gallery. Moreover, in ZAV designs, special attention is given to the environment and context of the projects, so that the projects sit in their context like a faceted jewel in ring, giving them their meaning. This approach has meant that the priority- in many of works- has been to choose material congruent to the texture and environment of the project and to employ traditional craftsmen, skilled local workers and incorporate regional art.

On the outer surface of the Blind Façade project, the designer’s visual arts approach is reflected in the distinguished structure he has designed for the building. A creative approach has turned the surface into a porous membrane or a permeable curtain between the interior and the exterior. In other words, the façade is a combination of an external architectural frame and a visual internal image: ZAV Architects consider themselves only as the provider of a frame or a stage for the visual artwork. Processing the internal image or directing the game of connecting the urban space to the urban life is left to the users.

BARBOD FRUIT HOUSE (Gorgan, 2006)

Barbod fruit House was built in Gorgan city, in northeast Iran, on a narrow piece of land sandwiched between two neighboring houses and measuring approximately 30 x 6m, with a north-western axis. Adjusting the depth of space and providing proper lighting for all areas were among the main priorities of the design. Reducing the depth was achieved by a Hashti functioning as an interlude and a mediator between the public space (living room and open kitchen) and private ones (bedrooms and bathrooms).

To bring light to the spaces, the architect has not only taken advantage of all possible sources of natural light in the northern and southern wings, but also of lighting provided by the round window on the ceiling of the hashti and the indirect lighting made possible by the main undivided roof.

Additions of visual art elements such as the calligraphy in the niche, the simple, built-in doors made of recycled wooden panels from beehives, the fig branches used for the roof or the river pebbles used for the paving on the exterior all add a special flavor to the design as a whole.

AYTAM CARPET WEAVERS HOUSE (Khansar, 2010)

In order to support needy mothers or those in sole charge of a family, a carpet-weaving workshop and a two-storey residential unit for weavers was commissioned by Valiasr Charity in Khansar to form the House of Orphan Carpet-Weavers.

Handmade Persian carpets are woven by making knots on defined rows (raj), and during the weaving process, a weaver completes her handiwork knot by knot and row by row according to her chequered plan.

The brick façade of the design was inspired by the weaving process of this ancient handicraft. A chequerboard of bricks cut in 22cm cubes create the regular and homogeneous shape of the façade resembling a three-dimensional plain carpet on an architectural background; one on which viewers can design whatever patterns they desire, in their minds.

Charity projects usually involve a challenge: how to create a balance between the client’s requirements and yet keep within the financial limits of the project. Hence, use of local manpower, affordable materials and simplicity of execution by skilled local craftsmen and workers were some of this project’s main priorities.

PEDARIE HOTEL (Khansar, 2011)

ZAV Architects was commissioned to construct a guesthouse for ecotourists on the slopes of Zagros Mountains, in the city of Khansar, on the land of a garden house from the 1950s with a view to the Sangi Sool summit.

The Paternal House is divided into three juxtaposed volumes opening onto the garden. The lateral volumes are adjusted to the height of the neighboring buildings, while the middle building is kept low to preserve the view and allow the roof to function as an urban terrace as well. Such a reduction in height brings added value to the design, bringing the landscape and the urban horizon into the project.

The spatial arrangement and circulation design of the project references the Kucheh in the compact textures of the oriental cities, so that the maze-like alleys spread from the open space of the garden into the introverted storeys and further, deep into the semi-open corridors.

BLIND FACADE OFFICE BUILDING (Tehran, 2013)

This project owes its reputation and prestigious Memar Awards 2014 to the active façade which allows the building to open and close- enabling users to direct the game of connecting the urban space to urban life.

The client’s insistence on keeping to the useful built area and reducing the depth of space was a challenge for the design of the façade, which was originally designed with a greater depth to allow more effective shading. (Foldable iron shades with oven-dried automotive paint were also considered.) Because of the limitations, the design was finally executed with less depth and with composite aluminium plates. The plates were placed from the third floor upwards on a delicate semi-transparent surface and became moveable thanks to the appropriate mechanisms and parts. Visually, this allows a random juxtaposition of triangular shades in different combinations on the façade. The active visual façade is never static - reminiscent of the challenge at the core of contemporary life.

POORKAN WEEKEND VILLA (Poorkan, 2014)

The aim of this project was to redesign a small abandoned villa located in a garden in Poorkan Village on the slopes of the Alborz Mountains. The design concept stemmed from the need to create a sensible relationship between the villa’s closed an open space. Within the simple geometrical volume of the building, the northern roofs of the villa rise at the border of the building and the open space to create the second storey. In this space, which has an uneven floor and little lighting, steps are designed with various functions in mind, such as recreation, study or decoration. The openings, which consist of large vertical windows in the form of se-dari allow the natural environmental of the courtyard to enter the main parts of the closed space. Opening the se-dari in the warmer seasons of the year allows the interior space to function as an Ivan (rectangular hall or space). The use of stained glass on the upper parts of the windows breaks the intensity of the sunlight and provides diffuse delicate lighting inside.

On the outer surface, the architect has used a layer of rough concrete painted with insulating white paint. The rough concrete has also been used to cover the roofs and its particular technical characteristics make it possible to remove the metal drainpipes on the roof and facades, giving the design a more minimalistic appearance.

RONG CENTER HORMUZ REVITALIZATION (Hormuz, 2017)

Hormuz Island is a small island in the southeast of Bandar Abbas and north of the Strait of Hormuz. It has a strategic location, a pristine natural environment and a coral coast which has always been of commercial importance. However, due to a lack of suitable tourist accommodation, it had been deprived of potential revenue from tourism. Therefore, private investors have in recent years tried to invest in this industry several times. ZAV Architects were commissioned with the design of the Rong project following a similar logic.

The project is a kidney-shaped complex measuring 300 sqm located on the coastline: an urban space ideal for rest and relaxation and watching the waves and the ships and the boats go by. The southern wing facing the international waterway is thus designed in a stepped shape.

The two rotating corners of the design accommodate a cafeteria and a tourist information booth. Acceptance by the local population was the main priority of this project, as locals had vandalised previous constructions which they felt were incongruent with the island’s natural environment. Therefore, after opening up a space for collaboration and exchange of ideas with the locals, priority was given to achieving a harmonious coexistence with the environment, self-sufficiency and ease of implementation.