“Nozhan; Signifying a Rebirth”
This project was designed based on the intellectual exercises in exploring the concepts of material and abstraction. In this building, stone has been used purely in a significant portion of the building, while in other parts of the project, the use of color dematerializes them and they move towards abstraction. By placing material and abstraction together, the project works untimely compared to similar typologies.
The project site is located at the end of a dead-end alley. These types of plots are commonly known as “inner” or “back plots” and they generally have a lower value than their neighboring properties due to their limited frontage and concealed position behind adjacent plots.
Project Approaches:
• An experimental perspective on materials concerning recycling and the economy
• Paying attention to site limitations and creating value for the project
• Considering how the building is connected to the city and the environment
Stone-cutting workshops usually produce a substantial amount of waste and leftover stone which results in an accumulation of discarded materials. These are often regarded as problems and useless. In this project, waste and leftover stones have been reused as the main material. This decision has ultimately led to considerable savings, minimizing material costs and shifting the usual expenses toward labor costs. By prioritizing human labor in utilizing stones, we have intentionally aimed for non-standardization, innovation, and irreplaceability.
The significant decrease in façade material costs economically facilitated the extension of the façade to its adjacent sides, thereby increasing the project’s value.
We considered the side facing the neighbor, which is usually considered as a side façade, as a part of the project to create a corner and transform a 5-meter-wide wall facing the alley into a cohesive 15-meter-long structure. Furthermore, adding a void from the sides activated the corner and converted the project’s two-dimensional nature, into a three-dimensional element.