Ozgol Residential Building

This project is an in-field project, or an infill-type project in the Ozgol area of Tehran, which consisted of two independent residential units. Basically, in this type of project where the land is small, the matter of circulation in the staircase and the transitional space between the outside and the courtyard can be an interesting issue. In this project, we tried to think about that. Here, the staircase became a middle element between the street space and the courtyard space, so when someone is inside this staircase, they can simultaneously be connected to these different sections—meaning when they are inside this space, they can see the sky and see the courtyard, and at the same time, through this staircase space, they can connect to the residential part and the main entrance space. Here we achieved a different quality from the staircase, and in fact here the staircase plays the role of an element that provides both ventilation and spatial articulation, and instead of being just an ordinary staircase with two landings, it turned into an alley-like space where people can enter and have access to various parts. In this particular project, considering that the adjacent site is a leftover urban land that will not be built on, we enhanced the quality of this staircase space using a series of glass inserts embedded between bricks, which could elevate the quality of the staircase space with respect to the light that filters through these joints, turning it into a more interesting space. Another issue in these small-scale spaces is the transformation of open and closed spaces into one another. Here we experimented with that in the upper part of the project, by transforming a porch-like space into a courtyard-like space and into an interior space within the project. By opening the roof, in the summertime, it can turn into an open courtyard-like space, and at other times the roof can be closed while its inner wall can open toward the inside and work with the interior of the project. And this kind of transformation of spaces in small areas, in my opinion, is an interesting topic that was explored in this project. Another topic was the integration of green spaces into the interior spaces in the form of small-scale voids, which generally these qualities can be a very valuable feature for residential spaces to strengthen and harmonize their relationship with nature. And another topic was the matter of natural air circulation in the project, which—due to the geometric form of the brick pattern used on the facade— we made certain secondary spaces benefit from natural light without letting the neighbors overlook those spaces, while still having better natural ventilation. Meaning, behind those openings, if the glass is opened, it allows airflow through these spaces—like bathrooms or service areas— to have this kind of natural ventilation without the issue of being overlooked.