Kamran Afshar Naderi
Encyclopedia
Biography
Kamran Afshar Naderi was born in 1959 in Mashhad, IranMashhad
Mashhad , is the second largest city in Iran and one of the holiest cities in the Shia Muslim world. It is also the only major Iranian city with an Arabic name. It is located east of Tehran, at the center of the Razavi Khorasan Province close to the borders of Afghanistan and Turkmenistan. Its...
. He started his studies in architecture in 1977 in Tehran university
University of Tehran
The University of Tehran , also known as Tehran University and UT, is Iran's oldest university. Located in Tehran, the university is among the most prestigious in the country, and is consistently selected as the first choice of many applicants in the annual nationwide entrance exam for top Iranian...
. In 1980 he moved to Italy and resumed his studies at the University of Genoa, where he graduated in the field of architecture. His thesis concerned the methodologies of design in the ancient Iran from the 11th to the 17th century. His first book, entitled “the Public Institutions in the Islamic Cities” was published in Italy in 1987. In the same year, Afshar Naderi together with Ali Naser Eslmai, organized an exhibition and seminar about the urban design
Urban design
Urban design concerns the arrangement, appearance and functionality of towns and cities, and in particular the shaping and uses of urban public space. It has traditionally been regarded as a disciplinary subset of urban planning, landscape architecture, or architecture and in more recent times has...
in the Islamic world
Muslim world
The term Muslim world has several meanings. In a religious sense, it refers to those who adhere to the teachings of Islam, referred to as Muslims. In a cultural sense, it refers to Islamic civilization, inclusive of non-Muslims living in that civilization...
in Genoa in which some of the scholars of the abovementioned specific field of studies participated and delivered lectures concerning the same subjects.
His professional carrier, started in 1985 in Italy. During his stay in Italy he used to collaborate with several architectural firms, such as Renzo Piano Building Workshop.
In 1993, he returned to Iran and started his academic and professional activities in Tehran. Since 1993 he teaches at Azad and Soureh universities in Tehran. His special field of study is the methodology of design. In addition to the academic activity at university, he held several seminars in the related field in Tehran and in the other Iranian cities.
Since 1994, with the first important architectural competition
Architectural design competition
An architectural design competition is a special type of competition in which an organization or government body that plans to build a new building asks for architects to submit a proposed design for a building. The winning design is usually chosen by an independent panel of design professionals...
for the construction of the national cultural center of Iran, Afshar Naderi has participated to the growing movement of architectural criticism and theory by writing essays and critic articles for the magazines and the newspapers. Until 2009 he has published 3 books and over 110 articles mostly concerning the design methodology, architectural criticism and theory. His articles and researches have so far been published in Italy, England, Switzerland, Kuwait, Germany and Iran. His lectures have been often reviewed by Iranian magazines.
In 1998, he became a partner and member of editorial staff of a newly founded magazine: Mémar. Today Mémar is the most important architectural magazine in Iran. Afshar Naderi has been several times elected as a member of the competition and award juries.
His professional carrier started in 1985 in Italy, continued in Iran since 1993. During this period he has undertaken several projects for Iranian and international organization
International organization
An intergovernmental organization, sometimes rendered as an international governmental organization and both abbreviated as IGO, is an organization composed primarily of sovereign states , or of other intergovernmental organizations...
s and companies.