A House Looking to A Cedrus Tree

English description provided by the architects.

This renovation project is located in Alborz Province, on a 1,150-square-meter plot beside a river and a decades-old Cedrus tree.

The project now serves as a recreational residence for a family with two daughters and their spouses.

Nature was the project's most influential design driver.

The central concept was to welcome nature inside the house, allowing sunlight, water, wind, and vegetation to flow gently through the space in slow, circular motion.

Strict zoning regulations prohibited any new construction or vertical extension.

To resolve these issues, the design introduced two strategic voids—one beneath the roof ridge and another in the living room—to create spatial verticality, open views toward the sky, and strengthen the relationship between different floors.

The original structure was reinforced and unified with a steel frame. In the second basement, the foundation was lowered by 90 centimeters, increasing usable floor height.

Point loads were redistributed with new support systems, and existing columns were extended, freeing up the plan and enhancing spatial fluidity.

Handmade brick—deeply embedded in Iran's architectural collective memory—was chosen as the primary material, linking inside and outside and offering a tactile sense of familiarity.

Curved interior lines echo the soft contours of the landscape and integrate with the arched spatial geometry of the building.

This progression fosters a deeper emotional connection between the inhabitants and their natural surroundings.

While the house sits in a context with little visible Iranian architectural heritage, the use of arches subtly reclaims that lineage, forming a contemporary dialogue between memory, place, and nature.