BAGH-E NAZAR
Year:2025 | Volume:22 | Issue:149|Papers Count:6

Problem statement: This study examines the interplay between ascribed identity and resistant identity in relation to musical and para-musical elements, in the formation of a distinct cultural identity within Tehran’s café spaces. It also seeks to understand and explain the complexities of preserving an independent identity within a commercialized environment. The ascribed identity, rooted in intellectualism, independence, and alternative values, is evaluated in comparison with the resistant identity, which consists of opposition to popular musical elements and distancing from the dominant body of Iran’s mainstream music industry. Research objective: The central question of this research is to investigate the extent to which the independent music scene remains committed to the identity ascribed to it. Research method: This study employed qualitative, comparative, and content analysis methods. Data collection was conducted both in the field and through library research. The fieldwork took place in Tehran and, virtually, in Austria during the winter of 2022–2023. Conclusion: Drawing on the theories of Stuart Hall, Theodor Adorno, Timothy Rice, Antonio Gramsci, and Michel Foucault, this research highlights the interactions between cultural identity, commodification, and the influence of Western music on Iran’s urban music spaces. The findings reveal a substantive overlap between the independent music movement in recent years and the popular music scene, which must be considered a major contradiction in achieving the ultimate goal of independence within today’s Iranian music industry.

Problem statement: Traditional houses in Bandar Abbas—owing to the use of local materials and climate-responsive mechanisms suited to the region’s hot-humid conditions—have long served as exemplars of resilience and self-reliance. By contrast, contemporary constructions predominantly rely on modern technologies and, in some cases, due to misalignment with climatic and socio-cultural contexts, exhibit lower levels of resilience and self-reliance. The application of resilient architectural principles in the design of residential complexes in Bandar Abbas significantly increases residents’ self-reliance.Research objective: To conduct a comparative evaluation of the levels of resilience and self-reliance in traditional and contemporary houses in Bandar Abbas and to identify the key factors influencing these outcomes.Research method: First, through semi-structured interviews with experts, the principal components of resilience (urban, physical, environmental, social, and economic) and self-reliance (sustainable, social, and managerial) were identified. Based on these components, questionnaires employing fuzzy scales were designed and distributed among a population of residents and specialists. The collected data were then analyzed using the Fuzzy TOPSIS method to determine each house’s closeness to the ideal solution in terms of resilience and self-reliance. Conclusion: Owing to climate-responsive design, the use of local materials, more effective water resource management, and the formation of supportive social spaces, traditional houses generally outperform contemporary houses across most dimensions of resilience and self-reliance. Conversely, some contemporary houses that depend on new technologies face challenges—particularly in social and managerial domains—which is reflected in lower Fuzzy TOPSIS scores. The findings indicate that combining traditional architectural principles with modern innovations not only reduces energy consumption and maintenance costs but also enhances residents’ resilience and self-reliance. Accordingly, it is recommended that future designs incorporate vernacular strategies while placing greater emphasis on participatory and managerial aspects.

Problem statement: Urban spaces have undergone transformations over the years due to various forces during periods of urban change. Historically, these spaces served as venues for diverse events and carried identity values embedded in collective memory. However, contemporary urban planning has largely overlooked the design and preparation of urban spaces to host events. In addition, large-scale urban development projects in developing countries and the resulting destruction of historical textures have led to urban spaces that, besides lacking suitable structures for attracting audiences and ensuring sustainable use, remain primarily transitional. Consequently, cultural–ritual events by the public are often held in spaces lacking the essential components of functional urban environments. The central question addressed in this study is: What indicators and characteristics should desirable urban spaces in Iran possess to host cultural and ritual events effectively, thereby serving as dynamic platforms for enhancing urban quality of life?Research objective: This research aims to identify indicators of urban spaces based on cultural-ritual events to improve the quality of event-based urban spaces. This study seeks to provide a conceptual model to understand and guide the design of urban spaces with the ability to host various cultural-ritual events.Research method: Methodologically, this research employed a qualitative approach using thematic analysis. Data were collected through document review, observation, questionnaires, and in-depth interviews within the cultural–ritual context of Mashhad, Iran, supplemented by software-based analyses.Conclusion: Following data analysis, a conceptual model was proposed to elucidate the indicators of event-oriented urban spaces. Urban spaces designed with a cultural–ritual perspective achieve functional and semantic maturity when their design transcends physical form and addresses citizens’ perception, experience, and participation. This is accomplished through a deep understanding of the community’s cultural–ritual needs, translating them into design indicators, and integrating them into spatial structures. The study thus provides a framework for urban designers, cultural managers, and planners to assess and guide this process effectively.

Problem statement: The interpretation of semantic and spiritual layers in architectural works, especially traditional architecture, through contemporary Western theories is often problematic. Consequently, the need for a new model arises in relation to architectural practices and examples, to effectively revise and expand upon these existing theories.Research objective: The main goal of the article is to examine the potential of Iranian-Islamic intellectual systems in developing new contemporary architectural models. It aims to advance modern theories such as the theory of “Christopher Alexander”, along with the ideas of ‘Abu Nasr Al-Farabi”, so that they can foster innovation and a deeper understanding of architecture.Research method: The research methodology employed in this study is qualitative, relying on comparison, literature review, content analysis, and logical reasoning. Relevant research was reviewed, and data from interviews were summarized, coded, and analyzed using Atlas TI software. The case study focused on the Iranian house, exploring both its physical and non-physical dimensions.Conclusion: Architecture encompasses theoretical, practical, and craft dimensions. However, Al-Farabi classified the craft based aspects of sciences into practical and theoretical parts. As a result, in the field of architecture, the scope of his “al-riʾāsat al-binā” is theoretical-crafts, which corresponds to phases zero and one of architecture, and the scope of his “al-bināʾ” is practical-crafts, corresponding to phases two and three of architecture. At the first levels, physical, objective, and material aspects have less impact. As a result, the semantic aspects of “ṣināʿat al-riʾāsat al-binā” are more. These levels find normative aspects in his utopian-non-utopian range. This level and scope are not seen in contemporary theories, such as Alexander’s theories of living centers or Punter and Kanter’s sense of place. As a result, Farabi’s architectural model provides the ability to redefine “Transspatial” and “ Intraspatial” for the analysis of works. On this basis, the “center” in Christopher Alexander’s thought can be developed with levels of transspatial and Intraspatial.

Problem statement: In the post-secular sphere, dwelling architecture is no longer merely a vessel for material habitation but emerges as a dynamic field for presence, perceptual suspension, and profound sacred experience. Despite the significance of this transformation, there remains a lack of precise models capable of explaining the interwoven layers of body, memory, symbol, and resonance.Research objective: Addressing this gap, the present study examines the mechanisms through which meaning arises in ritual dwelling spaces within a lived-cultural context, using a multilayered phenomenological model. The model -grounded in sensory perception, lived memory, symbolic codes, unconscious archetypes, and resonant qualities- demonstrates how these elements can lead to the ritual transformation of dwelling.Research method: Employing a qualitative-interpretive approach, the study integrates the phenomenology of perception, cultural semiotics, psychoanalysis of unconscious codes, and lived semantics to test the “Field of Appresentation” model in three historical–ritual sites in Ardabil. The analytical process combines sensory description, genealogy of collective memory, reading of spatial symbols, and examination of perceptual atmosphere.Conclusion: Findings indicate that space, at the intersection of perception and memory, functions not as a passive container but as an active field in which the event of meaning unfolds. Within such a field, the subject is transformed through processes of pause, repetition, and encounter. Reflective bodily movement, generational memory, directional spatial symbols, and the resonance of light, sound, and material converge in an inner experience that evokes a deep, unspoken memory of the primordial covenant -subconsciously and archetypically embedded in the spatial form- thereby transforming dwelling into a sacred act. The Field of Appresentation model thus reveals how activated dwelling can attain ritual, revelatory, and transformative qualities, becoming not merely a medium for formal representation but a site for archetypal experiences of presence, pause, and return, and for the awakening of the subject within the heart of being.

Problem statement: The concept of “city” and the relationship between cities and their environment remain contentious issues within the current body of research. The introduction of the concept of “eco-comfort”, which simultaneously addresses both subjective and objective dimensions, has offered a novel avenue for advancing environmental knowledge, particularly in the realm of urban planning. The present study seeks to address the following question: How can we achieve “eco-comfort” criteria by differentiating between the concepts of “eco-comfort” and “livability” in the fields of environmental sciences, urban planning, and urban development? What insights do experts in this area provide?Research objective: This research aims to define and distinguish between the concepts of “livability” and “eco-comfort,” while systematically reviewing and reformulating eco-comfort criteria based on expert opinions. The goal is to establish a conceptual framework that can be integrated with other novel concepts related to urban development.Research method: The research is based on Highperformance Architecture Theory to outline a concept for future cities, the present study used a systematic review, three-round Delphi method, and Shannon technique to formulate, scrutinize, and refine eco-comfort criteria, taking into account the conceptual hierarchy, which includes goal, approach, strategy, structure, component, criterion, and indicator.Conclusion: The results reveal that eco-comfort, encompassing 16 criteria developed, is a multifaceted concept that is not limited to the notion of livability. The weighting of these criteria using Shannon entropy indicates that criteria such as spatial justice, green transportation network, and efficient governance substantially influence the eco-comfort structure of a city. This suggests that achieving eco-comfort in urban spaces necessitates an alignment between physical components and socio-cultural values, supported by effective governance. The findings not only offer an operational model for assessing the eco-comfort of cities but also create opportunities for thoughtfully developing political and physical interventions to enhance it.