A communal workspace adjacent to the Sharif University of Technology in Tehran, the given objective for this new office building was to design a building in harmony with the existing brick buildings on the university campus. For Hooba Design Group, the challenge was to come up with a formula that could express the essence of 1960’s architecture while reflecting the contemporary and cutting-edge nature of a technology-based campus.
The design was developed over an existing structure which was already built up to the ground floor. Paradoxical concepts of introversion vs. extroversion, solidity vs transparency, rigidity vs. flexibility, public vs. private are explored in a façade concept that is at once homogenous and revealing.
Hollow brick used in the façade is positioned by offsetting the outer edge of the traditional 10 x 20 cm brick used in the 1940’s buildings of Sharif University. The resulting module is a 19.5 x 32 cm brick with a 10 x 20 cm hole covered in torques glazing. The combination of brick block and software design technology resulted in the formation of a smart brick panel. These panels automatically adjust themselves based on sunlight exposure during the day.
Closed and semi-open interior spaces of the building blur the boundaries between inside and outside with different perceptions during day and night. Interior activities are illuminated at night, transforming the building from introverted to extroverted each day. Working spaces in the building comprise open and semi-open office areas with green boundaries used to define yet subtly separate them.
Being located next to a local park, the green boundaries can also be seen as an extension of the greenery that surrounds the site, creating a homogenous entity at the urban scale.
