the contemporary iranian home
A sunlit brick dwelling dubbed ‘House No. 10’ has been completed in the New Julfa district of Isfahan, Iran by locally-based architecture firm USE Studio. The residential project has been undertaken as a conceptual exploration of the ‘home,’ delving into the concept’s intricate spirit as an integral part of daily life and identity. The architects note that the area has undergone transformative changes, especially since the 1950s. Urban population growth, coupled with oil income and government policies, led to the commodification of the home for capital production. By the 1970s, this trend became more bureaucratic, with housing turning into a major investment field. It was against this backdrop that the team sought to redefine the contemporary meaning of the home.
images © Mohammad Soroosh Jooshesh | @mohammadsorooshjooshesh
use studio learns from the historic neighborhood
The design process for ‘House No. 10’ is driven by USE Studio‘s search for a deeper understanding of the modern home in Iran. The project aims to learn from its surroundings and provide a safe retreat that restores lost tranquility to its residents. Thus, the central question guiding the project is whether reclaiming a contemporary meaning of ‘home’ can yield a better living and resilient space for humans, especially among the region’s challenging geography. The house is located near New Julfa’s stunning Vank Cathedral — an Armenian church originally built in 1664 — and finds itself amidst an historic urban fabric dating back four hundred years. Today, the neighborhood has transformed into a tourist hub of cafes and restaurants, altering the dynamic of permanent residence.
an entrance to the house emerges as a subtle slice in the brick wall
reviving permanent dwellings in jolfa
The team at USE Studio notes that the rise of tourism has altered the fabric of daily life in Isfahan, Iran, and that the permanent house has become rare in the city. While the creation of public areas and touristic spaces have had positive effects, the uncontrolled continuation of this trend could pose negative consequences. Namely, the architects fear that a loss of ‘social texture’ may emerge as a critical consequence, erasing the daily life and presence of permanent residents from the neighborhood. Thus, the ‘home’ is a crucial component to the physical, social, and cultural transformations of the surrounding context. ‘House No. 10’ emerges as an intervention into the urban fabric which reintroduces a permanent residence to the city.
the masonry walls echo the materiality of the surrounding neighborhood 
a light-filled atrium penetrates the center of the home
sunlight floods the interiors, illuminating a central courtyard and its small garden