for his latest project, designer mohammad hassan forouzanfar has created a series of photomontages that fuse icons of contemporary architecture with ancient sites in iran. similarly to his previous projects, which have included introducing skyscrapers to iranian villages, ‘retrofuturism’ considers how to restore the historic buildings with additions from world renowned architects such as zaha hadid, daniel liebskind and norman foster.
rostam castle, sistan and baluchestan
all images courtesy of mohammad hassan forouzanfar
for ‘retrofuturism’, forouzanfar has selected places in iran including pre-islamic royal palaces and castles in fars, sistan, and baluchistan, khuzestan and kashan provinces. the insertions of contemporary western architecture offer a contradictory mix that links iran’s past to the future and present of the west.
naqsh-e rostam, fars
the series creates an intriguing combination of materials, styles and eras. elements of contemporary buildings, characterized by cool glass and metal, extrude from the desert landscape and historic stone buildings, resulting in a striking set of images. in essence, the project presents a new definition of restoration, one that provides a critical and avant-garde look at iranian architectural artifacts.
takht-e-jamshid, fars
izad-khast castle, fars
izad-khast castle, fars
rostam castle, sistan and baluchestan
shahr-e eukhteh, zahedan
chaqazanbil, khuzestan
tepe sialk, kashan
palace of ardashir, fars
project info:
project name: ‘retrofuturism’
design: mohammad hassan forouzanfar
designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.
edited by: lynne myers | designboom
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Boring, unimaginative and reckless. It feels like just taking a postmodern building and stacking it on top of an old iranian building or historic monument. There is no fusion or natural blend of old and new. Especially the postmodern buildings on top of the historical monuments feels like an insult and assault on the historic significance of these sites. Feels more like a cry for attention than a real architectural aspiration.
I understand this can be a sensitive subject – combining modern and historic architecture, but I have to say, I found these images quite compelling and I’m intrigued. In my opinion, the concept of ‘fusion’ is executed much more successfully than other attempts I’ve seen in the past.
Very creative and original. Blending and fusing the past and future. It takes a bit for your eyes to get used to it but once there it opens up a whole world of imagination. Takes imagination to see his work.
Per those images – apparently his perception is that contemporary architecture is superimposed architecture. A very narrow view
Cannot imagine if the Noter Dame has this postmodern approach on its new rooftop. The commenter who is positive in here may be opposite. Hope and understand the blending and fusing onto Notre Dame is also very creative and original, doesn’t need a spire shape, right?