{"id":397276,"date":"2026-01-09T13:24:19","date_gmt":"2026-01-09T13:24:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/397276\/"},"modified":"2026-01-09T13:24:19","modified_gmt":"2026-01-09T13:24:19","slug":"sculptural-steel-wall-breathes-new-life-into-iranian-poets-1970s-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/397276\/","title":{"rendered":"sculptural steel wall breathes new life into iranian poet\u2019s 1970s home"},"content":{"rendered":"

NextOffice Reconfigures 1970s Tehran Home as a Cultural Center<\/p>\n

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The Poet\u2019s House by NextOffice is the restoration<\/a> and adaptive reuse of a 1970s residential<\/a> building in downtown Tehran<\/a>, formerly the home of Iranian poet and dissident Ahmad Shamlou. The project converts the house into a cultural center while retaining key architectural features of the original structure, including its brick<\/a> facade<\/a>, rounded corners, and expressive lintels characteristic of the period.<\/p>\n

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The intervention centers on a second-floor interior<\/a> wall inscribed with a handwritten poem by Shamlou addressed to his wife and muse, Aida. Rather than treating the inscription as a preserved artifact, the design extends this wall into a spatial and semi-structural element that organizes circulation throughout the building. Known as the \u2018Aida Wall,\u2019 the new steel<\/a> structure rises from the courtyard<\/a> to the rooftop<\/a>, forming a three-dimensional promenade that connects interior programs and visually opens the house toward the surrounding city.<\/p>\n

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the Poet\u2019s House is the adaptive reuse of a 1970s residential building in Tehran | image by Parham Taghioff<\/p>\n

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Steel Intervention Reinforces the Poet\u2019s Brick House by NextOffice<\/p>\n

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The original building\u2019s brick load-bearing structure required reinforcement to accommodate the new public program, which includes exhibition spaces, a library, bookstore, caf\u00e9, and restaurant. The structural intervention was made explicit rather than concealed, with the steel wall functioning as both reinforcement and architectural framework. This strategy establishes a clear dialogue between the existing masonry structure and the inserted contemporary system.<\/p>\n

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Through this reconfiguration, the formerly private courtyard is repositioned as a public open space, supporting the building\u2019s transformation from a domestic setting into a cultural venue. The steel intervention is deliberately reversible, allowing for its removal without permanent alteration to the original structure. Material selection by design studio<\/a> NextOffice emphasizes contrast and adaptability, with steel chosen for its capacity to weather over time and respond formally through cutting, bending, and articulation.<\/p>\n

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The Poet\u2019s House demonstrates an approach to adaptive reuse that balances preservation with transformation. By integrating structural necessity, spatial organization, and cultural reference into a single architectural element, the project reframes a private residence as a public institution while maintaining the legibility of its original form and history.<\/p>\n

\"sculptural
the former home of poet Ahmad Shamlou transforms into a public cultural center | image by Ehsan Hajirasouliha<\/p>\n

\"sculptural
original architectural features, like the brick facade and rounded corners, are retained | image by Parham Taghioff<\/p>\n

\"sculptural
structural reinforcement is expressed rather than concealed within the design | image by Parham Taghioff<\/p>\n

\"sculptural
the steel element functions as both architectural framework and structural support | image by Mahdi Kamboozia<\/p>\n

\"sculptural
a clear dialogue is established between the original masonry and new steel insertions | image by Parham Taghioff<\/p>\n

\"sculptural
the intervention is designed to be reversible without permanent alteration to the building | image by Parham Taghioff<\/p>\n

\"sculptural
named the Aida Wall, the steel intervention organizes circulation across the building | image by Parham Taghioff<\/p>\n

\"sculptural
the project balances preservation with architectural transformation | image by Ehsan Hajirasouliha<\/p>\n

\"sculptural
the project introduces exhibition spaces, a library, bookstore, caf\u00e9, and restaurant | image by Ehsan Hajirasouliha<\/p>\n

\"sculptural
steel is selected for its adaptability and capacity to age over time | image by Ehsan Hajirasouliha<\/p>\n

\"sculptural
the Poet\u2019s House by NextOffice repositions a private residence as a public cultural space | image by Parham Taghioff<\/p>\n

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project info:<\/p>\n

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name:\u00a0The Poet\u2019s House
architects: NextOffice<\/a><\/p>\n

lead architect: Alireza Taghaboni\u00a0<\/p>\n

design team: Elnaz Kharaghani, Hoodad Zoroufchiyan, Meysam Ebrahimi Moaghaddam, Roza Bemani, Ali Ghods, Farzad Farasat, Hadi Irani, Gelare Geranseresht, Negar Mansouri, Mohammad Motamedi, Elahe Babaei, Homa Asadi, Asal Karami, Shadi Bitaraf, Marziyeh Norouzi, Mohammad Amin Abedin, Soroush Attarzadeh, Ehsan Ahani, Saba Salehi, Mohammad Mardi, Ali Jahani
location:\u00a0Tehran, Iran<\/p>\n

photographers: Ehsan Hajirasouliha, Parham Taghioff, Mahdi Kamboozia<\/p>\n

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designboom has received this project from our\u00a0DIY submissions<\/a>\u00a0feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers\u00a0here.<\/a><\/p>\n

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edited by: christina vergopoulou | designboom<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"NextOffice Reconfigures 1970s Tehran Home as a Cultural Center \u00a0 The Poet\u2019s House by NextOffice is the restoration…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":397277,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[164474,228,226,227,8805,229,88,25491,63666,8342,4728,8569],"class_list":["post-397276","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-architecture-in-iran","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-brick-architecture","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-facades","tag-interiors","tag-renovation-and-restoration-architecture-and-design","tag-residential-architecture-and-interiors","tag-steel-architecture-and-design"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/397276","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=397276"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/397276\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/397277"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=397276"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=397276"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=397276"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}