climate-responsive architecture

Today, the necessity and importance of paying attention to climatic conditions in architecture as an effective factor on the environmental quality of buildings is not hidden from architects. In the country of Iran, the cold climate zone requires special attention in the climatic design of buildings due to its difficulties and considerable extent. Semi-open spaces have been a crucial element in architecture, significantly influencing the spatial arrangement of vernacular buildings in Iranian architecture. However, in contemporary housing, these spaces lack the necessary efficiency, and one of the factors contributing to this, especially in cold climates, is the failure to consider climatic conditions. Modeling climatic design solutions for these spaces in vernacular architecture and applying them in contemporary housing design will enhance the efficiency of these spaces. Intending to investigate the effect of mesoclimate on the structure of semi-open spaces in Qajar-era houses in cold climates, this article examined and compared the climatic conditions in the two cold cities of Ardabil and Tabriz. It identified the physical characteristics of semi-open spaces in the case studies and analyzed the impact of mesoclimatic conditions on the differences in the features of semi-open spaces between the two cities. This research is applied and has a qualitative nature, utilizing the grounded theory method. Comparing the physical attributes of the semi-open spaces in the vernacular houses of the two cities and matching them with the differences in climatic conditions reveals significant differences based on the influence of the mesoclimate on the physical structure of the semi-open spaces.