Winner: Infrastructure and transport project of the year 2023. KA Architecture Studio has redeveloped the Jahad Metro Plaza in Tehran, Iran.

This project was a successful attempt to redefine subway entrances in Tehran, Iran.

The architects wanted to define these entrances as a free and definable platform by users for urban events and the re-creation of unusable points for citizens in line with the general plan of transforming Tehran into a pedestrian-oriented city.

"We tried to allocate most of the cost of the project, instead of using industrial materials, to local methods in this part of the city. This decision activate[d] these semi-active workshops around the city of Tehran, where the tradition of making bricks by hand has not been lost," said KA Architecture Studio. "The main materials we used in this project were 300,000 handmade bricks that were produced by eight workshops around Tehran."

Judges comments: "This project creates generous public spaces using handmade bricks made from locally sourced materials by local craftspeople. Beautifully crafted, the building makes good use of natural light and ventilation to create a welcoming civic space in what would commonly be a much colder and more utilitarian structure."

Studio: KA Architecture Studio
Project: Jahad Metro Plaza