The importance of the discourse of optimization, which is a popular topic in today's scientific communities around the world, has long been considered in Iranian and Islamic culture in the form of concepts such as thrift, moderation, etc. Contentment - which has been widely discussed in both religious and literary writings - is among the ethical themes of Iranian and Islamic culture that emphasize these concepts. Therefore, the authors sought an appropriate answer to the question of what solutions have traditional and contemporary architects of Iran used for the optimal use of materials and construction techniques? Also, what strategies can be explained to achieve this goal in the design and implementation of new buildings? The benefit of Isfahan province from original architectural works, whether traditional or contemporary examples, along with the ease of referring to these buildings for study, was the reason for choosing the architectural works of this geography as a case study for the present study. Research on the optimal use of materials and construction techniques in the creation of architectural works is important because it leads to the protection of nature and reduction of construction costs. This research is necessary because the indiscriminate extraction of materials from nature has become so widespread that it has disrupted the natural appearance of areas including the southern mountains of Shahr-e-No Baharestan, Isfahan, and the southern front of the Soffe Mountains.Although the topic of optimization and optimization is a prominent topic in contemporary scientific societies, and limiting this discourse to one dimension is unfair, according to studies conducted, the majority of new research on this topic in the field of architecture and urban planning has been on solutions to reduce energy consumption in buildings.
The present research was conducted in 3 consecutive phases. In the first phase, focusing on the architectural works of Isfahan province - as a case study - brainstorming sessions were organized in groups of two to six people with the aim of finding examples of the concept of contentment, both in the design phase and in the implementation and exploitation phases. The selection of Isfahan architectural works as a case study for this study was firstly due to the richness of this geographical region in terms of architecture and secondly due to the authors' favorable access to these works with the aim of increasing the quality of field studies. In the second phase, considering the wide range and large number of extracted examples, MaxQDA software was used to categorize these examples into more comprehensive definitions based on existing similarities in order to facilitate the study of the research for the audience. In the third phase, in order to explain the preferred solutions for optimization in the use of materials and construction techniques in architectural design, 30 architecture and urban planning experts with master's degrees or PhDs and active in the construction industry in the Isfahan region were asked to prioritize the introduced solutions using a pairwise comparison of criteria. By prioritizing the solutions using the entropy method based on data obtained from the opinions of the experts participating in this survey, the 5 most preferred solutions under each strategy were identified.
Based on the findings; in realizing a satisfactory architecture, it is possible to avoid wasting materials and natural, financial, and time resources by modularizing architectural elements and components, eliminating purely decorative designs and elements, and selecting materials and construction techniques based on their expected durability in the part being used. Also, paying attention to the multiple capabilities of materials, including functional, decorative, environmental, and conceptual aspects, can simultaneously provide conditions for maximum utilization of the potential of materials and resources. Paying attention to nature and the important responsibility of humans in preserving and protecting it during exploitation, using recyclable materials and avoiding the destruction of nature, providing a share of the structure and body of architectural spaces to nature and its components, and of course, modeling nature's geometry in designs, will be reflected. Paying attention to the unique environment of each building and its potential, for example, using local materials, techniques, and manpower in building construction and using the design and form potentials of materials and construction techniques of each geographical region in shaping the work, in line with contented architecture, will lead to self-sufficiency of architecture and reduce its need for external factors. The importance of recyclability of architectural materials, components, and elements with a contented approach that leads to their reuse and reuse is demonstrated in techniques such as implementing dry joints and using excavated soil from the site instead of turning it into construction waste and increasing the volume of construction material transportation. The strategy of downsizing and mass construction has been the dominant policy in providing housing for low-income groups in recent years. Although mass construction is a solution to control construction costs from a technical and operational perspective, downsizing and reducing human living space have had adverse effects on the security and safety of societies. Architecture that stems from the concept of contentment does not consider reducing living space and downsizing as a reasonable approach to overcoming the housing crisis. Contentment does not mean minimalist thinking, but rather a process that attempts to maximize the capabilities of a phenomenon.