Contemporary Architecture

Polsheer Associates, Architects & Planners

Polsheer Consulting Engineers was founded in Azar 1360 SH (December 1981) in Esfahan, and for several years operated as a relatively active provincial consultancy in the fields of architecture and urban planning. In the late 1360s (1980s), a shift in the firm’s outlook and scope of activity set it on a new course: an emphasis on the cultural dimensions of architecture and urban design; attention to the values of indigenous and traditional architecture; avoidance of imitation — whether of tradition or of novelty; the broadening of its range of work; the preparation of several large university schemes; wins in a number of architectural competitions; a rapid increase in executed commissions; and the enlargement of its specialist staff. The firm’s head office is in Esfahan, but it works in other parts of Iran as well. Over nineteen years it has produced 135 designed projects and 70 built projects.

Looking up into a fully restored Esfahani painted vault: floral and arabesque patterns cover the surface above a stained-glass orosi window at the base. — An old building and an up-to-date setup, Esfahan 1998–2000 — restored painted vault and stained-glass window of the Jolfa house now serving as Polsheer's headquarters.

Small inset photograph showing a recessed iwan and decorative tilework of the Jolfa house used as Polsheer's office. — An old building and an up-to-date setup — view of an iwan and tiled courtyard detail at the Polsheer headquarters in Jolfa, Esfahan.

An old building and an up-to-date setup — Esfahan 1998–2000

The building allocated now as the central office of the Polsheer is a house in the district of Jolfa which has gathered together examples of the three historical eras of Safavi-Zandi-Ghajari architecture.

In order to safeguard this valuable piece of work, Polsheer began the repair works in 1998. The most outstanding work in this renovation and revival, is the reorganization of the interior with due attention to the new function.

Two photographs side by side: at left a restored brick gable end with traditional clerestory window, at right the same building's central courtyard as a ruin before restoration. — An old building and an up-to-date setup — pair of views: south-facing gable end after restoration, and the ruined Qajar courtyard before works began.

Interior of a high-ceilinged Esfahani reception room after restoration, with two large stained-glass orosi windows letting coloured light onto plastered walls and rugs. — An old building and an up-to-date setup — restored interior reception room with paired stained-glass orosi windows opening onto the courtyard.

Detail photograph of a restored stained-glass arched window with rich geometric tracery, set below a stuccoed ceiling. — An old building and an up-to-date setup — restored arched stained-glass orosi window with traditional muqarnas ceiling above.

Three architects gathered around a work table inside a traditional plastered room with timber beams overhead, now used as a meeting space. — An old building and an up-to-date setup — staff meeting room set up in a renovated traditional space within the firm's headquarters.

The Esfahan Library — Esfahan 1996–2000

Design: Mohammad Reza Ghaneei, Ali Sheykh-ol-Islam and Robert Keshishian · Picture: Behzad Torkizadeh

This building which is situated next to the Hasht Behesht garden and Palace, after completion of the brickworks, was handed over to the Polsheer to change the facade and interior spatial organization. The consultant, with minimum changes in the structure of the building, designed the square shaped transparent volume inside the netted brick crust and placed the same on a big platform on its own site.

Wide view of the Esfahan Library: a large red-brick rectangular building with a finely netted brick perforation pattern set against the dark silhouette of overhanging trees. — The Esfahan Library, Esfahan 1996–2000 — the netted brick crust enclosing the transparent square reading volume.

Close view of the Esfahan Library's perforated brick wall and corner stair tower, partly hidden behind dark green branches in the foreground. — The Esfahan Library — the brick mass viewed across the Hasht Behesht garden, the dark leaves framing the netted facade.

Vertical column of four greyscale study models of the Esfahan Library, showing the project's iterative massing studies stacked from top to bottom — The Esfahan Library — vertical stack of four study models showing the library massing evolution

House of Nawab Safavi — Esfahan 1997

Design: Mohammad Reza Ghaneei, Ali Sheykh-ol-Islam · Picture: Behzad Torkizadeh

This house is situated by the side of gardens and jungles of Nazhoon, (the green edge of Zayandehrood). The idea of designing this house is to join two new buildings to the existing one by means of a bridge. The hall opens towards light, garden and the water (swimming pool which penetrates right inside).

Three-storey brick villa with a tall glass hall on the right wing, the glass animated by a curving blue-painted steel grid; ground floor exposed on columns over the pool. — House of Nawab Safavi, Esfahan 1997 — the southern hall: a fully transparent glass volume opening onto the Nazhoon garden with the Zayandehrood pool penetrating inside.

Triptych of interior photographs: a person standing in a long corridor at left, a richly coloured stained-glass detail in the middle, and a brightly lit blue-walled corridor at right. — House of Nawab Safavi — interior strip showing the entrance hall, stained-glass landing, and the bridge corridor linking the two new volumes to the existing house.

Two ink-drawn architectural floor plans printed in a vertical strip showing room layouts of the house and the pool that penetrates the southern hall. — House of Nawab Safavi — paired floor plans showing the two new volumes connected to the existing house by a bridge.

House of Sadri — Esfahan 1998

Design: Mohammad Reza Ghaneei, Ali Sheykh-ol-Islam · Picture: Behzad Torkizadeh

This house is situated in the east of Esfahan on a green bed, near the river. The main idea of the project is organizing two volumes through negative space. One of these two is a common open space and the other is a private open space. The negative space has come out in the shape of an alley between the two volumes.