Habibeh Madjdabadi Architecture Studio

Genetic Mutation II (Villa Char Bagh)

In her second “Genetic Mutation” house, the Iranian Architect Habibeh Madjdabadi adopted again the archetypal image of a house as a starting point. the U-shaped villa starts on the ground, then folds, shrinks, transfigures, and finally become suspended on two V-shaped structures. the architect refers to the project as ‘the genetic mutation II” in Continuation of her previous “genetic mutation “project and in reference to the slow transformation of the building from the right-wing to the left-wing.

“Genetic Mutation II “, because of its location in the mild climate of Chahar Bagh nearby city of Karaj, 55 km far from the capital, is also known as ‘villa CHAR BAGH”,.

This weekend villa is designed for two brothers that asked to have their independent living area in a single and integrated project. The U-shaped form of the villa includes two wings on the east and west side of the plot, the west wing includes an independent space for the younger brother.

The east wing of the villa has two floors and includes living spaces, the west wing is dedicated to the younger brother's bedroom which overlooks the garden. The older brother and children’s bedrooms are located between the west and east wings and overlook the trees to the north of the site.

Stairs to the first floor are located in the building mass that connects the two wings. The entrance of the villa is also located below the slope of the volume connecting the west and east wings.

Considering the specific cultural conditions and social constraints of the theocratic Country of Iran, houses are not just a place to rest; they should house various activities publicly prohibited: family use of the pool, parties, music, dancing. In a villa, spaces dedicated to these entertainments are essential.

One of the highlighted points of the program was dedicating a special care to the privacy of the pool area. This requirement led the architect to conceive the U-shape layout and to place the pool in the center of the project.

The U-shaped form starts at the eastern wing and from the ground level and peaks with the movement to the west, were it reaches the height of 3.50 m, while suspended on two V-shaped support structures. In the empty space under this wing, there is a pool area with fireplace and a swing on a wooden deck. both wings are open to the south garden with generous glazing and double-height windows.