The Home of Homes

The Home of Homes What if a new building could be a force to accelerate positive social change? What if it could promote new healthy social interactions? These were the fundamental questions that the Home of Homes has attempted to find answers for. Developed during a period of dramatic social change in Iran and based on ideas about democracy, safety, and openness, the Home of Homes was conceived as a new form of residential building in Tehran to promote a cultural shift necessary to embrace new modes of urban living. At its core, the Home of Homes is an embodiment of a vision to blur the traditional boundaries between the private and the public. These boundaries are a result of a culture that has been formed by a tension prevalent in a millennia-long struggle of the Iranian people to overcome their fear of the authorities and the ‘outside’ people. We wanted to help the residents and the users of this building to break away from that tension and invite them to form healthy social interactions while also maintaining their privacy. Traditionally, people in Iran have two distinct modes of living and expressing themselves: one that is ‘for inside’, like in private gatherings at home, and one that is ‘for outside’, like their daily routine in public with certain codes of behavior being dictated by the authorities. The Home of Homes provides a setting that encourages residents to create a community within a community, the inner circle being the users of the building and the outer circle being the urban community as a whole. Here, and within the inner circle, people could bring their ‘for inside’, outside. They are encouraged to see and be seen by others. The transparent surfaces in some areas allow visual connection between the users - while other areas provide family and individual privacy. Throughout the building, the communal areas are designed as such so that they encourage social interactions, promote dialogue between the users, and help create a sense of belonging. Our response also takes into consideration the shift in the housing economy and provides smaller, more affordable units while it offers high-quality shared facilities. The building houses cafes, co-working spaces, a gallery, and entertainment venues on the lower levels which the public has access to. The building also features communal areas such as a dining area, a communal room, and a spa on residential floors that only the residents have access to. Several other shared facilities have been designed to promote collective living for the intended users while each flat also provides the necessary amenities for a comfortable private life. Users could decide how much they want to spend their time living collectively and how much privately. The Home of Homes is a practical space to exercise human social interactions and go beyond the traditional silos of private versus public. It’s a place for residents to discover new modes of living where transparency, openness, and community building are guiding forces.