خواندن معماری؛ چیستی، چرایی و چگونگی در جستجوی مدلی برای آشنایی با تاریخ معماری ایران و نقش آن در سپهر معماری

Understanding the invaluable history of Iranian archi­tecture and utilizing its sustainable bases, principles and patterns can help us improve architecture both in the present and in the future. To understand Ira­nian architecture, it is essential that we can read it thoroughly and correctly; but before that, we need to have a comprehensive definition of it. So, the main question of this research is: How should we read Ira­nian architecture? And that question gives rise to two more questions: What is Iranian architecture? And why should we read it? To answer these questions, we first surveyed experts (in two groups: researchers and designers) for their viewpoints on Iranian archi­tecture. The collected data were analyzed, catego­rized and codified in three groups: the definition, the necessity and the method of reading architecture. The findings are presented below as based on the three research questions:   What is Iranian architecture? The resulting data were coded into five categories: architect, goal, material, form and context. In this step, based on the codes, we adapted Aristotle’s the­ory of the “four causes of being” to develop a concep­tual model of architecture including its four causes (material, formal, efficient and final) and its different types of contexts (natural, social and formal/physical). This model is aimed at finding an answer to the ques­tion “What is Iranian architecture?” and serves as a framework for the other two questions.  Why should we read the history of Iranian architecture?   The collected data about the necessity of reading architecture were coded into three categories: ex­tracting the principles, exploring the patterns and uti­lizing those principles and patterns in contemporary architecture.   How should we read Iranian architecture?   By answering the previous two questions, we have approached the answer to the third question. Identi­fying the goals of reading and the relevant factors will guide us in reading architecture. To reach a practical method for reading architecture, we have drawn on our experiences in teaching university courses in ar­chitectural history as well as student activities. We will propose a five-stage reading process (description, analysis, criticism, instruction and practice) and three stages of reading (before, during and after visiting a building). Finally, we will present a checklist of the necessary activities for reading Iranian architecture and lay out the results of using the proposed reading method in five areas of architecture including educa­tion, research, production, media and policy-making.