Tradition and Modernity Meet in Beautiful Timeless Creations by Iranian Designer
Two interlaced wood vaulted arches are holding a transparent glass top. The timelessly elegant table is a creation of Nastaran Khanzade. As a child, she spent hours in her father’s workshop, making handicrafts. Now a well-known designer in Iran, she produces beautiful design furniture mainly out of walnut tree wood.
The youngest of three siblings, Nastaran follows in the footsteps of her father, who shared his professional life between architectural design, and woodwork creations, such as wood drying ovens. Nastaran’s father would take her to the workshop on weekends and encourage her creativity. “At the age of 13, with the help of my father, I made a slingshot out of Tagouk wood, using the steam bending technique,” she recalled. “I have loved art since I was a child because of the environment in which I grew up,” she said, adding, “art had a special place in our family and we were encouraged to explore it.”
Determined to become a designer, Nastaran studied civil engineering at the Sajad University of Technology in Mashhad, she launched into intensive learning of diverse 3D design software, using her studies to strengthen her computing and geometry abilities and help her integrate sustainability into her design and products.
She launched her design company, Dez Home in 2018 and worked for several companies in the field of interior design, and home furniture, such as the design of the President’s room in Quds Hotel in Mashhad, and the design and construction of an exhibition façade made out of walnut wood.
Awe-Inspiring Contemporary Furniture made out of Iranian Walnut
Nastaran is also developing her own brand, Dez (an ancient Iranian word that means castle). “I love and design any kind of imaginable furniture and accessories such as beds, tables, sofas, lampshades, and even dishes.”
Although her favorite medium is wood. “Since childhood, I was in contact with wood because of my father’s job and woods feels more pleasant and calming to me,” she said. When she creates accessories and furniture she does not however limit herself to one material and uses aluminum, leather, stone or fiberglass.
Walnut tree wood is what Nastaran uses the most because of its beautiful texture and its strength, she explained. Another advantage of walnut tree wood is its price. Abundantly present in Iran, walnut tree wood is priced at a fraction of the world prices in the country.
Family-Run Furniture Workshop in Mashhad
The family workshop where Nastaran produced her first creations in Mashhad (second major city in Iran) is still running and the young designer’s designs are manufactured by herself, with the help of her father and her brother in that same workshop.
Nastaran’s pieces of furniture, beds, tables, and sofas are sold by her connections, which she made during the years to some galleries or individual customers in the city.
Export Plans for Iranian-made Modern Wooden Furniture
One of Nastaran’s most prominent traits of character is perseverance, she said. For the moment her creations are sold in Iran, but the demand from potential buyers outside the country is growing. Economic sanctions have however complicated the realization of Nastaran’s export plans.
With her designs registered with the Iran State Organization for Registration of Deeds and Properties, and protected, Nastaran wants to continue developing her brand. She plans to participate in international competitions such as the one organized by the Red Dot Design Museum in Essen, Germany, or A’ Design Award and Competition in Italy to advertise and market her work and attract investors.
