Shams-e-Tabrizi Cultural Center
Type: Civic – Cultural
Scale: 14000 sqm
Our manifesto is rooted in the “Mystical Layers of Being.” We perceive architecture not as a solid mass, but as a “Sacred Void” (Negative Space). By avoiding monumental height and instead sinking into the ground, we pay homage to the humility of Shams. The project is a transition through three ontological layers: Sharia (the Qibleh axis), Tariqah (the path connecting two shrines), and Haqiqah (the truth revealed through the light show of overlapping patterns). Here, the traditional dome is replaced by a suspended cube of sky, where light and shadow perform a perpetual Sufi dance on the water’s surface.
Winner of the 1st prize and nominated for the Middle East Architect Award, this project serves as an urban bridge between Khoy’s historical core and its northern gardens. The design strategy utilizes a “Sunken Plaza” to create a serene sanctuary amidst the deteriorated urban fabric. The skin of the project is a contemporary reinterpretation of the Muttaleb Khan Mosque’s brickwork, celebrating the local tectonic heritage while forming a “Negative Pattern” that breathes with the city.
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The architectural spine is an axis connecting the Bohloul Shrine to the northern foothills, weaving the project into the city’s spiritual landscape. The ceiling is the project’s most profound element: two juxtaposed parallel layers of geometric patterns create a third, unpredictable shadow—a metaphor for the “Truth” (Haqiqah) that emerges from the union of Sharia and Tariqah. From the library and research centers to the open-air amphitheater, every space is a sequence of discovery, culminating in the tomb area where the “Sky Cube” replaces the dome to symbolize an unending ascent.
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HAJIZADEHs
Architecture: Kourosh Hajizadeh – Mojtaba Nabavi – Arezoo Izadyari – Ali Ghorbani – Amir Hossein Hajizadeh – Zeynab Maghdoori – Farzaneh Peyghaleh – Yasin Keshavarz
Visualization: Amir Hossein Hajizadeh
Model: Arezoo Izadyari – Azita Nadali – Hamid Abbasloo
Model Photos: Amir Hossein Hajizadeh
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Prize: Winner of the competition – First Place
Location: Khoy, Iran
Date: 2012
