Poonehzar (Farm) / Shid Architects

Poonehzar (Farm) / Shid Architects

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Text description provided by the architects. After roving over the mountains of northern Fars, Iran, passing by the nomads rising their temporary settlements and shepherds wandering with their herds in the high pastures of Mount Barmfirouz, one would arrive at Komehr, a small village surrounded by peaceful agricultural fields, a patchwork of diverse eco-textures. This is where our landscape enhancement and rural hotel design project, “Poonehzar” is located, a destination for adventurers in the summertime to escape from the city’s heat and in wintertime to enjoy the snow and the ski slopes of the region.

The requested program was to design a combination of an accommodation place and a recreational landscape. Confronting a political context where any type of social gathering can be problematic, we sought a contemporary solution to implement social events as the core of our program concept. An old farm in Poonehzar was chosen in order to enable this idea and promote social occasions such as events, festivals, etc.

We attempted to find a way to intervene in the rich ecological texture of the site in a subtle and corresponsive way. We aligned the character of the proposal with the farm in terms of temporality and lightness. Therefore, we set the objectives to benefit from the farm’s flexible and organic growth. We tried to highlight our interaction with nature and symbolize it with an architectural and spatial narrative.

Finally, we created a master plan proposing our approach toward the landscape. We started to build on the classic concept of a corn maze for the conception of fresh ideas. Some leisure spaces were defined to host both social and individual activities responding to the mysterious character of the maze and its interaction with the natural context. The playful childish sneak peeks, the innocent erotic air, the mania of being lost, and the suspense of diving in imagination are all translated into architecture.

After entering the reshaped maze, you step into a gathering area that provides a primitive room for an event platform and a warm place to watch a movie or sit around the fire. There is a whole world of unknown experiences in the surrounding area. Away from the crowd, on the opposite edge of the maze where people have slipped away to find their corners, there are exceptionally unique places to bathe, rest, or sleep. We set up the viewpoint tower on the other edge of the farm with a panoramic view on the wooden deck, where you observe the immense tranquility of nature while the breeze gently waves over the farm.

The project is designed with a sustainable approach. The set footprint is minimal, and the materials are upcycled and selected from local supplements. We collaborated with local workers and developed community-based and experimental teamwork to construct the project. Poonehzar-Farm is a project designed and built around experiment and playfulness. It is a place to be used around the same spirit as well. The project applies a new perspective to social events while inhabiting nature respectfully and sustainably and is open to community events in the years to come.