Transitional Architecture: Designing the Spaces In-Between

Transitional Design in INJ Architects’ Projects

Within the work of INJ Architects, transitional spaces are developed as part of the main architectural structure rather than treated as secondary circulation. Entrances, corridors, courtyards, shaded edges, and intermediate zones are used to organize movement, establish privacy, moderate climate, and prepare users for the spaces ahead.

Jeddah Chamber Main Entrance

In the Jeddah Chamber Main Entrance, the arrival sequence was reorganized to correct fragmented circulation and strengthen the institutional character of the interior. The entrance corridor, reception areas, lighting, and ceiling geometry work together to guide visitors gradually from the exterior into the principal civic spaces.

The project demonstrates how an entrance can perform several functions simultaneously. It directs movement, establishes orientation, controls the visual sequence, and gives architectural identity to the moment of arrival.

MABK Villa

At MABK Villa, the relationship between interior and exterior is designed as a gradual spatial transition. Courtyards, shaded zones, boundary walls, vertical screens, and protected outdoor areas allow the family to move between enclosed and open spaces while maintaining privacy and reducing direct solar exposure.

Here, the threshold is not limited to a door or a single dividing line. It becomes an environmental gradient through which light, temperature, visibility, and enclosure change progressively. This approach allows circulation, climatic performance, and domestic privacy to operate as one architectural system.

Designing Transitions as Part of the Project

Transitional spaces should be established during the earliest planning stages. Their position influences circulation distances, privacy, accessibility, environmental performance, and the relationship between major rooms. Adding them after the plan has been resolved usually produces corridors and waiting areas that consume space without contributing to the architectural experience.

The structured methodology described in How We Work considers movement, spatial hierarchy, climate, and user behavior as interconnected design decisions. Further residential, governmental, commercial, and institutional applications can be reviewed through the INJ Architects project portfolio.