Charsou bazar

Charsou Multipurpose Complex in Tehran, designed by Mohammad Majidi, won Third Place in the Urban Design category at the 16th Memar Award (2016). Located at the intersection of Hafez and Jomhouri Streets, the design began with two critical questions: how to incorporate cultural functions and especially urban space within a commercial center's physical program driven by specific economic goals; and how to relate to the surrounding context given the building's high density and large footprint relative to its environment.

In response to the first question, the interior spatial organization was shaped so that the large central void and the shifting escalators across floors would motivate visitors to move toward upper levels out of curiosity, discovering cultural and urban functions. The most significant decision was dedicating the sixth floor to a space with virtually no fixed function — a flexible space whose purpose changes according to people's wishes, conditions, and daily events.

In response to the second question, three functional layers were devised: the lowest layer rotates in response to the Jomhouri-Hafez intersection, transforming the entrance into a pause space for pedestrians; the middle layer rotates to connect with the Hafez aerial bridge; and the upper layer becomes transparent in relation to the surrounding urban scale, providing views from inside the project to the city. The plot area is 5,574 square meters with a total built area of 67,150 square meters.