Contemporary Architecture

Khark Multipurpose Center

Mahsa Majidi·Photos: Deed Studio, Niloufar Kaveh·Memar 142 — 23rd Memar Award

The Khark Multipurpose Center stands on the northern side of Vahdat Hall on Khark Street, District 11 of Tehran. The compound comprises three residential floors in the northern building, a garage in the southern building, and a courtyard between the two — a valuable structure from the second Pahlavi era that was once the home of Alireza Afzalipour, founder of the University of Kerman, and his wife Fakhereh Saba, the celebrated opera singer.

The building’s exceptional position within the Roudaki Cultural Zone prompted the design approach to go beyond mere preservation of the existing structure, connecting the project as an urban node to the broader revitalization plan for the district. In order to establish a visual relationship between the public and the building, and to foster interaction between the structure, the neighborhood, and passersby, the openings of the southern building were transformed into transparent enclosures.

Street facade of the Khark Multipurpose Center at dusk, showing the brick building with concrete extension, illuminated interior, and mature trees lining the sidewalk — Street facade at dusk — the original brick structure and the rooftop extension

Close-up of the facade showing the bold cantilevered concrete frame extension above the original brick building, with illuminated balcony and trees — The concrete extension rising above the historic fabric — guardian and protector of the old building

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Structural Reinforcement

For structural reinforcement, the courtyard floor was excavated to a uniform depth of five meters, and after being leveled with the former basement floor, it was secured with a retaining structure and re-poured. The site of the original pool was reconceived as a void; emphasizing visual connectivity between the project’s different layers and sparking curiosity in the viewer, the pool was executed in glass. The basement space beneath the courtyard connects via a tunnel to the main building’s sub-level and the historic cistern, as well as to the mechanical room and elevator — providing access and circulation control to the main building.

View of the courtyard through a large window frame, showing the brick facade with wooden windows, stone steps, and a glass floor panel reflecting the building above — The courtyard seen through the southern building — the original pool replaced by a glass floor panel connecting the layers

The three-story northern building was preserved, reinforced, and revitalized through the installation of eleven piles driven to a depth of thirteen meters, strip foundations connected to them, rebar ties along the walls to create continuity using the shotcrete method, and a continuous mesh network applied across the floors.

Exploded axonometric diagram showing the structural renovation components: steel frame extension, shotcrete walls, new floor slabs, courtyard steel structure, elevator shaft, and pile foundations — Exploded structural axonometric — from pile foundations to the steel-frame rooftop extension

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Light & Spatial Experience

Direct public access to the rooftop from the basement via the elevator — bypassing the private sections entirely — marks the culmination of the visitor’s spatial experience. The extension, added at a deliberate remove from the old building’s roof, serves both visually and functionally as the structure’s guardian and protector.

Basement corridor with exposed concrete walls and a glass ceiling panel showing the distorted reflection of the brick facade and courtyard above — The basement corridor — a glass ceiling reveals the courtyard world above

Interior space with exposed concrete walls, a large glass skylight overhead, a woman standing beneath it gazing up, and dappled water-like light patterns on the floor — Water-like light patterns through the glass skylight — connecting basement to courtyard

Overhead view through the glass courtyard floor at night, showing a person standing on the illuminated panel below — Looking down through the glass floor — the courtyard pool reimagined

Interior room with a dramatic beam of natural light cutting across the concrete ceiling and wall, with windows visible in the background — A blade of light cutting across exposed concrete — the play of time in the interior

The experience of such a space in a district rich with cultural and historical identity cultivates in the visitor a desire to return and an imagination of what a multitude of similar projects might achieve.