Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz

Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz 

Alborz Mohammadi / Keramati Architect

Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
© Navid Atrvash

ARCHITECTS
Alborz Mohammadi / Keramati Architect

LEAD ARCHITECTS
Alborz Mohammadi, Payam Keramati

CONSTRUCTION
Mokhtasat/farajollah Mohammadi

PHOTOGRAPHS
Navid Atrvash

AREA
1140 M²

YEAR
2019

LOCATION
Shiraz, Iran

CATEGORY
Apartments

Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
© Navid Atrvash

English description provided by the architects.

Situated in a prime location in Shiraz, directly facing the university's green campus, this residence for Maryam and Faraj responds to a unique set of opportunities and constraints.

The site offers a rare, uninterrupted northern view, yet its narrow 12-meter width and the dense urban fabric imposed strict spatial limitations.

The design process became an act of negotiation — not only with the site and municipal regulations, but also with environmental forces and the personal desires of the clients.

Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
© Navid Atrvash
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
© Navid Atrvash

The project took shape as a direct result of these invisible yet powerful forces acting upon a predefined mass.

Like sculptural pressure points, zoning laws, land boundaries, sunlight orientation, and the clients' daily rituals collectively influenced the architecture.

These elements did not merely inform the design — they carved into it. Negative spaces emerged not as voids, but as purposeful absences, shaped by the tension between constraint and intention.

Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
© Navid Atrvash
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
© Navid Atrvash

To address the dual pull of the northern landscape and the southern light, a duplex unit was positioned on the first floor, allowing the couple to inhabit both orientations.

Two separate living areas and four rooms unfold across two levels: a sunlit master bedroom to the south, two guest rooms facing the lush northern view, and a secluded studio for Maryam.

The spatial arrangement prioritizes fluid movement between public and private, light and shadow, openness and enclosure.

Below, the parking level—traditionally an afterthought—was integrated into the spatial language of the home.

Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
© Navid Atrvash
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
© Navid Atrvash

By opening it toward the main courtyard and introducing a large reflecting pool, this subterranean space becomes a luminous threshold between the ground and the interior.

Tall northern windows frame the greenery beyond, while narrow southern apertures draw in the warmth of Shiraz's sun, enhancing the living experience.

Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
© Navid Atrvash


Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
© Navid Atrvash
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
© Navid Atrvash
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
© Navid Atrvash
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
© Navid Atrvash
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
© Navid Atrvash


Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
Plan - Basement floor
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
Plan - Ground floor
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
Plan - First floor
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
Plan - Second floor
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
Plan - Third floor
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
Plan - Fourth floor


Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
Plan - Roof
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
Plan - Site


Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
Elevation - South
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
Elevation - North
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz
Section - B
Dwelling the Absent: Residential Apartment for Maryam and Faraj Shiraz