About the firm Experience of internship

The Garage Aid is a firm that believes in a holistic approach, let it be the design or the services they provide. They do Architecture, landscape, and interior design. They have in the past done majorly small-scale projects that include redevelopment projects, Luxury Villas, commercial buildings, repurposing functionality, interiors, and landscape.

The team

Principal architects: Ar.Ezra D'Souza and Ar. Giselle Ann Lobo

Senior architects: Ar Siddharth Malur, Ar Sonali Bahugini and Ar Shubham Nagarkar

Site engineer: Sunil Angadi

Intent for the internship

My main intention for the internship was to be able to develop a good skillset and to be able to understand how an architectural firm works I also wanted to work in a firm in which I could contribute to projects significantly and I had many such opportunities.

I also wanted to know the entire process of construction, from the conceptual stage to execution Along with that, I want to know how an architectural office functions, how things work on-site, and what is the architect’s role in the entire process.

Initially I was very worried as to how I would cope with the work environment, however when I started interning at the Garage AID, everyone in the team was very warm. There is no rigid hierarchy in the firm which allows everyone from senior architects to interns to contribute to projects

I also had great mentors who corrected me and helped me in my work with utmost patience. Of course, there were some days which were hard and pressurising and yet other days where I felt so motivated about architecture, but I also got a chance to understand my interests in architecture and found out my weaknesses and strengths.

Interning completely changed my perspective about architecture in the real world The amount of effort that went into even a small projects and how accuracy is key for proper execution is something I learnt through this experience.

I also had the opportunity to deal with selection and ordering of materials for interiors and coordinating with the site supervisor to make sure the work was being done as per drawings. Overall the experience gave me a reality check of how an architectural firm runs and what an architect should and should not do to make sure its smooth.