A stack of open-air terraces lined with copper-coloured glazed bricks pull light and air into the Darya Residential Apartment Building in Iran by architecture studio Hooba Design Group.

Located on a built-up infill site in Tehran, regulations required that the block's side elevations remained blank to avoid overlooking.

Sites like these are common in the rapidly-developing city, and Hooba Design Group sought to challenge the enclosed nature of many apartment buildings in the area by inserting a series of voids and terraces.

"The typical design procedure in such projects usually consists of designing only the front façade," Hooba Design Group founder Hooman Balazadeh told Dezeen.

"This project, on the other hand, was formed by developing the open-air corridors in order to improve the living quality of the apartments."

"The aim was to create a prototype with the ability to reproduce in different projects around the city," he added.

On each of the building's floors, an apartment sits alongside vertical voids organised on either side of the main staircase and lift.

The kitchen, living and dining areas of the apartments open onto sheltered balconies at the front of the block, while the main bedrooms at the rear benefit from views and cool air from a small lightwell.

"The spacial organisation of the project was formed based on closed and semi-open spaces," explained Balazadeh.

"The closed spaces include the residential units in the form of a unified volume," he continued. "The semi-open space enables activities in the balconies and staircase along with green spaces in a longitudinal void."

To visually demarcate these enclosed and semi-open spaces, Hooba Design Group gave them contrasting material finishes.

Black stone covers the majority of the building's exterior and the main stairwell, while glazed, copper-coloured bricks line the interiors of the balconies and voids.

"Recycled stones from mines around Tehran was selected to form the closed spaces and copper-colored glazed bricks were used to form the semi-open spaces in order to reflect and enhance the natural light in this space," Balazadeh told Dezeen.

"The experience of semi-open spaces with the reflection of light and buildings in the copper-colored glazed bricks has creates a unique atmosphere in this project," he added.

On the facade, irregular windows sit within double-skinned walls that provide space for planting as well as minimising solar gain.

In the basement, shared facilities for residents include a gym with a sauna and jacuzzi that has been lined with matching copper-coloured glazed bricks.

Based in Tehran, Hooba Design Group was founded by Balazadeh in 2007. It was awarded the RIBA International Emerging Architect Prize in 2021.

Previous projects by the studio include the completion of an unfinished office building in Tehran with a series of concrete volumes and a public plaza.

The photography is by Parham Taghioff.