Map 6: Growth of Calcutta over the years

2.5 Current Issues of Built Heritage

The editors of Calcutta built heritage today, Prosenjit Das Gupta and Ayan Ghosh (2015) try to convey the current situation of Kolkata. The pressure on the built environment increased with the growth of population and the partition of the country in 1947. The character of the buildings changed with the ground floor being converted for commercial use and the facades changed as per convenience degrading heritage character.

"The buildings that were erected with great care and attention are decaying and their condition deteriorating due to lack of maintenance and repair."~ Prosenjit Das Gupta and Ayan Ghosh, Calcutta Built Heritage today.

The writer conveys that issues like, lack of funds, multiplicity of ownership, dispute and disagreement, old tenancy laws, and incompatible structural and visual changes, that are complex and often interlinked often created many problems for the heritage buildings in the city. 8

Map 6: Growth of Calcutta over the years Source: Atlas of Kolkata by NATMO

8 Prosenjit Das Gupta, A. G. (2015). Calcutta- Built Heritage Today . Calcutta: G.M.Kapur Convenor.

2.6 The Concept of Architectural Identity

As architecture plays an important role in the identity of a city, I have tried to read some articles that could help me understand how could identity be understood. One such article is Effective Factors in Shaping the Identity of Architecture by Zoreh Torabi and Sara Brahman (2013).

The harmony between orderly thoughts and organized action help generate architectural identity. Two moments, cultural and technological represent the architecture culture of people, groups, and societies. The moment's help understand the type of architecture people want and how they want to make it. Heavily influenced by culture, value and behavioural patterns of society, the architectural style serves as a reflection of the culture and art, which were active at that period.

They mention that Lynch considered two major functions for identity, the sense of recognition and emotional function of environment identity. This helps us judge and predict the kind of environment at that period. Seven main characteristics had been considered effective in evaluating architectural identity. These include: 1. Spatial organization - It involves the design and layout of spaces in order to achieve a particular goal that determines the frequency and type of communication between elements. Can be understood by studying the relationship between the inside and outside.

2. Time organization - It is associated with cultural and social principles and characteristics used at that time period for construction.

3. Semantic organization - Each architectural space displays the community's special ideas and gives them an appropriate appearance and becomes their symbol which should be understood by the users. Evaluating the use of cultural concepts and principles, themes and memories for the structure. (Semantic- relating to meaning in language or logic)

4. General design principles - It includes ideas and concepts forming architectural design which provide consistency in the design process

5. Building shape and form - Associated with the visible appearance that creates an immediate impression of the built or objective environment. A correct form needs to have proportion, scale and harmony.

6. Building materials - Materials represent faith, beliefs and culture of the historic period.

7. Relationship with context - Emphasis on unity and visual linkage between the building and environment can have a strong role in creating an architectural identity.

The building's relationship can be opposed, be under conflict or integrated with the environment.

(Z, Torabi and S, Brahman 2013)