I was introduced to Thomas Wegmann through a mutual acquaintance in the summer of 2019 and quickly agreed to take over the editorial tasks for his book about boutique hotels and guesthouses in Iran. The beauty of such projects lie in their capacity to introduce me to people and places I would have never encountered otherwise. For Persian Nights, I had the opportunity to research and write about sixteen fascinating accommodations in Iran that are striving to preserve the country’s historic architecture, as well as actively showcasing the work of younger Iranian architects, designers and gastronomes. I also researched and wrote the introduction about Persian hospitality and translated/wrote sections regarding cultural details such as Iran’s burgeoning espresso culture and concept stores, as well as historic architectural elements such as wind towers and mud constructions. For the publication itself, I introduced Wegmann to a contact at the Berlin publishing house teNeues, who agreed to take on the project, designed so beautifully by Shizaru, a Los Angeles-Tehran based studio.
I hope that I’ll be able to travel to Iran myself one day to visit these wonderful places I’ve written about.
Feride Yalav-Heckeroth 