Sanaz Tavalaeian

Sanaz Tavalaeian is a PhD student specializing in early modern Islamic art and architecture, with a particular focus on the development of urban infrastructure in the Persianate world. Her research explores the intersection of space, reform, and social change in the premodern Middle East, examining how architectural renovation and evolving public life contributed to the emergence of new forms of urban modernity. Through her work, she investigates how changing spatial practices reshaped ideas of leisure, labor, and public display.

Sanaz holds a B.A. in Architecture and an M.A in Iranian Architectural Studies from Art University of Isfahan, and an M.A. in Architectural History from the University of Virginia. Before coming to Yale, she worked with architectural collections at the University of Virginia’s Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library, where she processed and preserved architectural archival materials. She has also worked as an architectural researcher at an architecture studio in Iran and contributed to cultural journals focused on architecture and urban studies.