Nadaraj Guesthouse: Rethinking the Relationship Between Collaborative Architecture and Local Heritage

Nadaraj Guesthouse: A Model for Community Development in a Remote Village

Nadaraj Guesthouse is located in a remote village home to around 200 households belonging to the Sunni Baloch minority in southeastern Iran. This project serves as an example of nonprofit community initiatives aimed at supporting local populations in marginalized areas.

Social and Religious Marginalization of Minorities

Within Iran’s centralized development framework, the approach is characterized by religious homogenization and systematic exclusion of ethnic and religious minorities. In villages such as Kahnanikash, this marginalization becomes more pronounced due to local religious practices. The Zikri belief followed by the residents is regarded by the government as heretical, further deepening feelings of exclusion and discrimination.

The Importance of Community Projects

Such initiatives not only provide a space for social interaction but also help strengthen the resilience of local communities and improve their quality of life. By focusing on the cultural and social needs of the population, local projects can mitigate the effects of marginalization and gradually promote diversity and social inclusion.

Community Initiatives as a Tool for Self-Determination

In response to the challenges faced by the village, community initiatives emerged as a means to enhance the local population’s self-determination. These initiatives represent practical strategies to address marginalization and empower the community to manage its resources and needs independently.

The Role of Ms. Kamran and Shanbeh in Community Development

Ms. Kamran, a social coordinator who previously worked with Mr. Shanbeh, an influential resident of the village, proposed community projects such as building a bridge, a library, and a water filtration system. The idea of establishing a multi-room guesthouse was also suggested, centered around Shanbeh’s role as the project’s focal point.

The Guesthouse as a Center for Community Hospitality

Before the project, Shanbeh hosted travelers in a room within his own home. Now, the guesthouse allows the “blessings of hospitality” to be distributed across the village, strengthening social bonds and creating new spaces for interaction between local residents and visitors.

Site Selection and Collaborative Planning

A village resident, Heptan Baloch, donated the land for the project, and the site was jointly chosen by the design team, village elders, the social coordinator, and Shanbeh. The location is near agricultural lands, the village council, and Shanbeh’s house, reflecting a commitment to integrating the project with the local environment and the village’s social fabric.

Climate-Responsive and Comfortable Design

The guesthouse layout is centered around a semi-open courtyard, creating shared indoor and outdoor spaces. A multi-layered roof was designed to shield parts of the courtyard from sunlight while enabling passive cooling and airflow between and within the rooms, demonstrating a precise architectural understanding of local climate needs and ensuring thermal comfort for both residents and visitors.

Reinterpreting the Regional Architectural Style

The guesthouse design reinterprets the regional architectural style known as “Kapar,” using hand-carved corbels instead of traditional beams to support a wide, umbrella-like roof. This approach reflects a fusion of local craftsmanship with traditional architectural techniques in an innovative way.

Integrated Thermal Efficiency and Aesthetic Appeal

The double-layered roof and thick walls help reduce heat transfer, enhancing thermal comfort within the building.

Collaboration with Local Artisans

During the design process, the team engaged in continuous dialogue with local artisans to adapt and develop traditional techniques to meet modern needs. This integration resulted in distinctive aesthetic features, including:

• The contrast between the vaulted geometry of Iranian basements and the intentionally incomplete hand-crafted details.
• The balance between the mass of thick stone walls and the lightness of the umbrella roof.
• The blending of natural textures with artistic carvings that reflect local heritage.

Collaborative Construction and Community Participation

The construction of the guesthouse was characterized by a fully collaborative approach, with village residents directly involved in implementing the project. Over four months, the villagers built the stone walls, while the Kapar corbels were completed the following year, reflecting community commitment and collective effort as the foundation for success.

Local Funding and External Support

The project was financed through multiple sources, including Nextoffice, a bank loan, a donation from Mr. Shanbeh, and contributions from other villagers. The total construction cost was approximately £8,000, significantly lower than the typical cost for similar projects, demonstrating the efficiency of planning and community collaboration in reducing expenses.

Collaborative Construction Techniques

Due to the cooperative nature of the construction, the site layout was determined using strings and triangles instead of traditional surveying tools, through a game involving local children. This approach reflects the integration of learning and community participation into the design process.

Contribution of Different Generations

At night, the elders wove ropes from palm fibers using Karz leaves gathered by the youth. Women contributed by:

• Weaving mats.
• Applying mud plaster.
• Sewing curtains.
• Preparing daily meals.

Turning Scarcity into Resources

Such intergenerational efforts helped transform scarcity into creativity and resources, demonstrating the local community’s ability to innovate and collaborate to achieve both practical and aesthetic goals simultaneously.

✦ ArchUp Editorial Insight

The Nadaraj Guesthouse project can be viewed as a practical example of collaborative architecture and community participation, offering insights into how local residents can be integrated into the design and construction process while leveraging traditional skills and craftsmanship. On one hand, the project demonstrates the ability of small communities to develop effective solutions to climatic and spatial challenges using available resources, while also strengthening social bonds.

On the other hand, certain aspects may raise questions about scalability and long-term sustainability, particularly regarding limited funding, future building maintenance, and the integration of traditional standards with modern usage requirements. Additionally, applying this experience in other contexts may be limited due to differences in climatic, social, and cultural conditions, making the adaptation of cooperative construction strategies essential when attempting to replicate them in new projects.

In this way, the project provides valuable lessons and insights for architects on the potential to combine traditional design, community-based construction, and sustainability, while emphasizing that benefiting from it requires careful study of local conditions and varying community contexts.

Prepared by the ArchUp Editorial Team

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