Resurgent Modernism: The Architecture of

architecture

228 pages, 227 photographs and 40 drawings 8.5 x 11” (216 x 280 mm), hc

ISBN: 978-93-94501-01-0 ₹1500 | $45 | £35 Jan. 2023 | Resurgent Modernism

The Architecture of Namita Singh Gautam Bhatia

It is a strange and unfortunate paradox that the city of Chandigarh, celebrated as the great experiment in modern architecture, should be remembered only for its association with Le Corbusier. There have been significant sustained professional practices in the city since the seventy years following its inception that have taken architecture into a modern Indian direction.

A book on the works of Namita Singh is long overdue. Her Chandigarhbased practice, has delivered a range of buildings—including educational institutes, offices, commercial projects, housing, heritage and restoration works, private homes and interiors—all across India. While much of her work is in tune with a contemporary modernism, she has always drawn on local values and technologies for its generic expressions. Having set up a practice barely a decade after independence, Namita belongs to the generation of architects who participated in the country’s rapid development, providing a range of infrastructure projects for a society in the making, its institutions and cities.

How does one assess the overall work of a five decade-long practice that has succeeded in creating monumental public works but also those of a fine-tuned residential scale, each structure dedicated to a precise ideal, conscious of environment and technology, scope and purpose? Foremost is the inclusion of work that illustrates principles the architect uses to build. Second, projects that clearly demonstrate a conceptual unity to an idea or design as well as those that are part of the stylistic consistency of the firm. The accompanying pictures tell a parallel story and lend value to the breadth of the varied projects presented and of a practice informed by inquiry.

Gautam Bhatia is a Delhi-based architect, writer and artist. Recipient of several awards for his buildings, Bhatia has also published books on architecture and satire, and recently authored Blueprint (Mapin, 2018). His drawings and sculptures have been displayed in galleries in India and abroad.