WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
Before we go to this, I can see here, I have to tell you something else [pauses] to make [extraneous hand gestures] to this; because here I’m trying to see, how I could, sort of a crazy idea [thinks] how could I create presence in my work. But before that this was for me a very interesting experience. Some twenty or even more years ago somebody gave me a commission to make a carpet. And this friend said that you could do whatever you want and invited several designers and architects to design a carpet which would go into the production. And at that time I was exactly interested in this kind of a [sounding dreamy] eliminating the author, making a piece of art which does not have author, of course, where the author is not felt in the foreground but the background, something like this. So, of course I discovered the music of John Cage [smiling] John Cage, you know what he did, that’s more taste being hang onto. So you know his compositions, were this completely aleatoric, it’s influenced by accident. There are these contents in the city where the tram, the noise of the tram taking the course was the part of the music and so on. He was also trying to [looks down] is it possible to make a piece of art where the author almost disappears? So under the influence of this I made a concept for a carpet to be done by women in Sardinia [looking uncertain] is this English? I don’t know Sardinia. So what I did, I made this concept for the women there, which had to do with the weather and the season. So I made a complicated kind of strip, so it depended on what woman was working, what time she was working, what kind of weather it was; whether it was dark or not dark. And all these codes together gave a colour at certain moments I don’t remember weather change from this to this, she had to change the thread, go from red to blue and stuff like this. So I had a feeling that this would turn out to be the most wonderful carpet in the world. And there will be no author. There is just this script, nature [with a smile] nature designing, accident designing this carpet. Then they made, they produced the first piece of carpet and it was a metre long or something. It looked absolutely terrible. Only Mario Botta my friend who also had a commission to do a carpet was nice enough to say [mimicking Mario Botta’s baritone] bennisimo bennisimo [laughs]. Well don’t take his face, I can tell you he really liked it.
So what did I learn from there. When I look at this, I learnt I made a mistake, a very simple mistake… if you take 50 different colours and you put them all into one pot what comes out is grey [giggles] so, this, sorry about that but I have to admit that was stupid to do this. It turned out to be grey or even worse, I have to tell you. So you need the author, that’s what I learnt. You cannot, the author, it doesn’t, we have to do something we have to be intelligent in doing our things. So a couple of attempts of how I tried to do this…[continues]
Lecture: Peter Zumthor; 7 personal observations on presence; 3. Constructing Presence in Architecture; first attempt; pure construction.
if not here, then where?
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
When you look around your studio and all the people clinging to their drafting boards like it held their life in it, what do you see? Do you see your submission dates coming close or do you see students working like lunatics for grades?
But do you really know what they are? They are living stories; stories in a book which are inexplicable on so many levels. Stories that we see and experience everyday but we don’t happen to state out. Why? Because they’re just there and even though we feel them in an utterly close way, we are so used to them that we don’t see them for how involved they are, with us.
-samhita de if not here then where
nagasaki peace memorial
Every year on August 9, I come here to my home on earth. I live among the stars, but here, they have created stars on earth. I walk towards the place at day, at night, the pillars of faded light go over my head and I seem to be walking towards the heaven again, though more peacefully. I hold the railing to climb up but i don’t see where they end, only the steel I am holding is lighting up my way.
This fountain I see in front of me, wishing if i could meet that girl who was searching for water that day and bring her to these point stars that light it up for her to see. The two walls of light stand on the water, look like the moon from earth, calling us from the sky to reside back on earth. Looking deep into the surface under me, it tells me i will fall and drown, but i rather find myself gazing back at it, flowing with their reflection over water, which dawdle my thoughts back to the day I stood last.
As I walk through the stairs, lighting up my way, towards the museum, it absorbs me in itself, dividing me into a number of triangles, covering me. It’s strange, I see the diffused light from the clouds here but slightly more earthy in character.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
I continue my walk from the fountain outside towards the museum inside, this light is guiding me to my life story, over the head, under the hand and then comes a door lit up at its edges, is there my heaven past it? It seems to be coming from somewhere, not too strong, but i wonder what is calling me in.
The ceiling caught the light; the floor reflected it and my steps hovered over them. This white light comes to peace with me as the night turns to day; the water now reflects the clouds which seem to have hidden the stars. The place looks similar to one that exists beyond the veil. I was done for, fading away, like the swift wind that rippled the water and those thousands of petite lights, representative of all my fellow victims, start to lose their form and pretend to dissolve, struggling to hold on to themselves, every night.
There are a lot of people in the hall, looks crowded. They are being served by the bulbs which are trying to compete with the sun, lighting up its own person. It is bright and yellow. Just by entering into this room, I see that day again. Every emotion that i feel is hidden in the natural lighting. What they have created here is an imitation to achieve the exact feeling and emotion.
radhika goyal
Architect in making : 1
It had been four hours now and he wouldn’t move a single step away from the remains of this old building that recently went down because of a fire. He came there every day for about six days now. An entire night without any sleep because of work made him want to come here more. Just seeing how the early morning light played with the edges of the building gave him peace. When asked by his fellow batch mates why he spent almost his entire week there, he only said that he felt that the building was crying. That he could feel every brick of that building broken and burned, in unmitigated pain. That it wanted to be what it was again, just not a burned memory. It lost its life and now it cried and he was there to listen. He there, missed the building like one would miss a lost friend. The thought of not being able to see it again made him full of sorrow. It was just gone.
His words were a source of amusement to the rest of the lot. Mockery was something he became accustomed to by now. It was his third year and he had been like this since the very first day. For him, buildings had life, bricks could feel and iron was forged to form the structure of this life form. Studies for him took this turn. He was contended.
-samhita de if not here then where WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
Life is nothing less than an illusion. Whatever we do in the present is a consequence of the past. Our mind never sticks to any single idea. Our daily action puts another brick in the wall of future. In very simple words, we are never sure about the present. Our regular chores have different effects on what is about to come. We think about the time when we took a certain step in the past and realize that we ended up landing somewhere we did not intend to. A final product may be completely different and may not have any relevance to the beginning.
Suppose we are making a painting with certain colours and we accidentally spill a different colour on it. This unwanted colour may spoil the whole painting or may produce a new idea in our mind. Thus, our reality got distorted. If this different colour spoils the whole painting, we term the present to have become gray but if this same colour adds a new life to the painting, we say that we have come out of the gray. Although the term gray puts up a dull image of life, we can conceive it in either ways, going into the gray or coming out of it. In an architect’s life, creating new designs, meeting new people, getting to know more of the hidden world every day creates a grayish illusion every time, of not knowing what every second, every moment has in store for life. So the question here is that; ‘Does this phase of our life actually signify reality? Consciousness? Or is this too an illusion or GRAY, where we, without our knowledge are set on a prefabricated path that restricts our free thought process? If the only known phase of our life that gives us happiness or satisfaction is fake then how do we achieve true satisfaction? How does this phase stops for everyone at some time or other?’ This has only one answer.... Our whole life is an illusion!
Time flows very fast.
A warm sun welcomed the day as I sat in my cab leaving for Leh. A soothing feeling came upon my mind and my eyes began to close. It has been three years since I joined School of Architecture and Landscape Design, SMVDU, and I still remember the first day of my college as if it happened yesterday. My mind was blank. I was not bothered by the feeling that I was moving to an unknown place. All I knew that I was tired and slowly everything faded.
The next vibrant memory was of Leh Old town, the dry brown mountains, it’s clear blue sky and the most remarkable Leh Palace. Evening was drawing near and the weak light in the sky declared the close of the day. My journey ended as I reported to my office. After a few moments of waiting, my boss arrived. I was introduced to my colleagues and wished good luck. I gulped my saliva as a sudden feeling of fear struck me. The first day at office ended with no exceptional element in it. As I came out of the office, I was told of the tasks that had to be done the next day. I had little idea of the office or the way of life there but I had already begun to admire the surroundings, the serene city and peaceful people.
I got up the next day and opened the windows to let the fresh air in. The bright morning light had an extremely different effect on the town. The mountains shining and the sky had never seemed brighter before. I got ready and proceeded to my workplace. The feeling of surveying a house in a place having an entirely different culture filled my mind with excitement. I reached Dukhangpa, a typical Ladakhi house and our team started the work. Before beginning the survey of the house, I planned to have a look at the entire house.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
I worked my way through the narrow lanes of the dilapidated structure, each step ahead formed blurred images of the kind of livelihood the people led before abandoning the house. We started from the ground floor of the house. The low height roofs created images of short Buddhist people who once dwelled in that very space. The walls were thick and made of rammed earth and rocks. Timber was customarily used for the columns and roofs. As I went into the deeper details of the house, clear images formed in my mind. I felt as if vague human forms were roaming inside the house. I could see them keeping their cattle and goods in the ground floor.
As I stepped ahead towards the first floor, I felt as if I am no one but a manifestation of the resident of the house. I liked it like my own house and I moved towards the kitchen, surveying every detail that lay within. Perhaps it was the first kitchen with provisions for sitting and sleeping that I was encountering. It's not random, but it was the requirement that led to construction of such kitchens. At places with such cold and dry climate type, main objective is to trap more and more heat with lesser spent on fuel or energy. The traditional way is to use the heat generated while cooking to heat a room. The store room door was just behind the cooking spot for ease of access. This culture here is centuries old and still is cultivated by the people of Leh with slight modifications.
A glimpse of the past came to my mind when food was being cooked in the stove and the fire warmed the whole room. Despite the weather being cold, my thoughts made me warm. The homely feeling filled me with a sense of sudden happiness. I could see my near and dear ones in the house, smiling and cheerfully enjoying every passing moment in the chilling climate. I looked around, carefully reading the details as I entered the toilets of the house. The toilets used in such houses have dry pits instead of WC's, and are eco-friendly as they reuse human waste to irrigate or fertilize the soil as well as save the water used for flushing the excreta. The concept of dry pit was to cover it with sand after excreating, to maintain hygiene. The excreta was stored in a pit which could be further used for fertilization.
My legs were trembling due to cold. I worked my way to the terrace of the house. The terrace of a typical house of the old town in itself had a lot of planning involved. In a climate like Leh, the terrace is the part of the house receiving heat from sunlight throughout the day. Hence, the activities which needed sunlight were carried out on the terrace. These activities primarily included drying of vegetables to preserve them. On the other hand proper care was taken to prevent cold from entering the house by providing proper insulating layers in the terrace area , including layers of earth and yakzes grass, which(cannot be destroyed by insects, over a wooden frame. The traditional belief of locals is that more gratitude and tribute can be paid to God by placing the worship place or temple at a higher altitude of the house, hence generally temples were placed on the terrace of the house.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
I could hear sermons being sung as I went for the prayers. I closed my eyes and witnessed a sense of divinity from the tranquility that existed. And for a moment, I gazed at the room with astonishment. It felt great. It felt like paradise. I was in the abode of the almighty. And all of a sudden, I heard voices calling my name. Faint voices which grew louder and louder as if someone was approaching me. I was concentrating on the sermons, my eyes still closed. All of a sudden, I felt a force upon my shoulders jerking me. I could hear my name clearly now and all of a sudden, my eyes opened and I faced reality. The divinity was gone and I experienced the dilapidated condition right in front of me.
The survey of the house was completed after a number of visits and it was a great experience for me. I was back to my room but my mind repeatedly told me that there was some sort of incompleteness. I learnt a lot about Ladakhi houses but I felt that I needed to know about the town as well. One of the main feature that had always mesmerized me was the city wall which marked the periphery of the Leh Old Town. Moving about and knowing the city was a beautiful experience, especially after I had learnt a little about the town. Although the wall does not exist at present, my active mind had been used to thinking and forming images and then getting lost somewhere deep in thoughts. The map of Leh shows a red line which indicates the position of the boundary wall, which connected four stupa gates, depicted by a white circle within black box, which were purposely built so that no evil forces could enter the of the kingdom.
Today, the town has expanded beyond the limits of that wall. On one side of the wall exists the present Leh New town whereas the other and smaller side of the wall has the Leh Old town which houses the Leh Old Palace. The wall had been in existence many years ago but after reading so many texts and hearing so much from different people
ViVEk aggarWal
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
at different times, I felt I could see the wall right in front of me. I could see how the town was safe within the borders of the wall. Foreign forces had difficulty setting eyes upon the city because of this wall. However, the non-existence of the wall had put the town in danger.
Now only the stupa gates exist, the city wall exists only in the memory of those who study Leh in detail. There was never any attempt perhaps to protect the wall which had safeguarded the town for years. The importance of the wall had been lost with time.
The worsening conditions of the house, degrading conditions of the people, the once existing city wall had created a dull and blurred image in my mind. I felt that I was surrounded by an envelope of gray. Old and traditional structures that existed succumbed to the modern architecture that had later come up. Although these newly created houses were sustainable and strong, the concrete seemed to have put up a gray in the architecture and left a deep scar in the tradition of Leh.
Every bit of knowledge about Ladakh and the deteriorating condition of its structures developed an immense interest in the heritage walk which was a daily promotional activity of Lala's cafe, a center for the promotion of the culture, heritage and architecture of Leh among the masses and my mind showed me dreams of being an integral part of the walk. In fact, I was obsessed by this heritage walk at a certain point of time. I fantasised myself as a tourist in this heritage walk, but did not know that my fate had something else in
store for me.
Boss called me to his room one evening and began asking me questions about what all I had learnt so far in Leh- its heritage, its traditions and its architecture. Several questions were running through my mind, trying to figure out the reason for his sudden interest in asking such questions to me. Now I think of that time, I cannot remember how I felt. It was an awfully strange feeling. He might have understood what was going through in my mind and so finally, he let out the answer to my questions. He talked to me about certain circumstances that had piled up in the office and said that he wanted me to lead our group in the heritage walk which was about to begin in a short time. I never expected something of this sort would happen. I was nervous, though excited. Despite all, I was more than happy hearing compliments from him and his level of trust in me.
I was impatient about the heritage walk. My mind seemed to play games with me. The walk was about to start in five minutes but every passing moment seemed to pull away the walk from me. But finally the wait was over and we headed towards Lala's cafe. As I moved through the narrow alleys of the town leading the walk, I shared every bit of knowledge I had with my fellow counterparts. Three years of architecture education helped me explain various other facts simply by observation. In my days of work at office, I came in touch with many people who were themselves masters in their respective field. Many were from foreign lands who described me of the architecture of their own lands. My regular discussions with all of them left me a lot more exposed to the field of architecture. I felt I grew, not as a person but as an architect.
My days at Leh had come to an end and as I stood on the terrace, facing the setting sun trying to capture the last rays of warmth, a sudden thought changed back my mind. My life, since I came to Leh had went through an immense change. The life I was living at college was incomplete in contrast with the style of life here at Leh. Far behind lied my college with memories of the quality time spent there, and here, away from all those memories I stood on the terrace of a house in Leh, where modernization has laid its hands but is unable to swipe away the cultures and tradi-
tion that are being practiced since ages. Where the rituals still sleep in the cradle of Mother Nature peacefully, unharmed.
There are both pros and cons of both lives, but I am unable to decide among the two. Is the life here at Leh better than my life in my college? Or is it the other way round? Was coming to Leh, getting introduced to an all new, rich and diverse culture my destiny or was it something pre-planned as it is a part of my duty that I had to fulfill ? Or could I have experienced such social, natural and architectural marvels had not a compulsory internship been a part of college? I was still confused and surrounded by questions when I hear a loud shout from the ground floor, it was my colleague calling me. With a sense of having unanswered questions and incomplete thoughts I moved towards my office.
What is life? It's said that life has a circle of its own but amazingly it has ends too, a beginning and of course an end. I was trying to look for a beginning, beginning of the thought process. Yes, this is life, a man sitting under a tree, bright sunshine falling on him at parts followed by shades of gray. And then, sweeps in the night and covers every bit of light in its arms of darkness. Nothing is stable or stationary in life and any phase can be gray with respect to another, hence, an illusion is created where uncertainty and certainty coexist but it is all unknown to us when it all starts. When did it start for me? Is it the time when I joined my college or the time when I began my journey for my professional practice. Nothing is certain!
ViVEk aggarWal WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
sililoquy
AchyutKantawalaisanarchitectwithover 14 years of architectural experience. Before establishing AKA, Mr. Kantawala was at KPF, New York and Cambridge Seven Associates, Cambridge MA. He was also Principal Co-Designer at SEED International, where he designed and developed the SEED brand through tool-less furniture systems Mr. Kantawala’s design work has won a number of awards and he has been awarded 11 US Patents for furniture designs
What does the colour grey represent? Grey is the middle. Neither black nor white. As it darkens to black it becomes deep with mystery. As it lightens to white it starts encompassing all the colours of light. It stands at the transition of light to dark, day to night, outside to inside.
For me, in architecture, grey stands for forms and spaces that are the most interesting. They are spaces that do not have a specific use and straddle the public and private realms, spaces that transition from interior to exterior, forms that play with our experience of light and dark.
A great example of grey space is the verandah or “otla” in a traditional house. No matter how small the house is, there is usually a verandah or otla. The otla straddles the space between the public street and the private house. There is no specific function for the otla. However, this is where most members of the house will congregate to chat, to see, and welcome passers-by for gossip.
Indian temple architecture is also a distillation of forms that are built to mould light and take us on a journey to the depths of a grey stillness that is the sanctum sanctorum. Here the concept of grey has to do with light. As we walk through the light filled courtyard into the temple we leave behind our daily existence. Our mind is “cleansed” of the light and colour outside to deepening shades of grey until we arrive at the idol where it is the deepest of greys. There are no other sculptures here in the sanctum and the deep grey dissolves the walls, ceiling and floor into one so that the idea of being in a three dimensional space is suspended and one can truly experience the void and the intangible.
House in California (designed with SEED International) In the design of a house in California we have explored similar themes of “grey”, of creating a house that is private but open and blurs the line between exterior and interior. The division of rooms is very limited. Dining, living, kitchen, guest quarters and courtyard flow into one another. Interior space seamlessly connects to the deck outside. A stainless mesh curtain that surrounds the house can be closed to give the appearance of an opaque exterior. But when it is opened the house becomes completely transparent and brings the surrounding woods into the house.
Hex Shelving System (designed with SEED International) Similarly, in furniture design, grey represents furniture that does not serve a singular purpose or a singular form but is multi-use and multi-form. People should be able to use the furniture for a number of different uses and also customise it to suit the space. Hex shelving system is an example of such a design. Made of a single component it is infinitely customisable. It is not just a shelving system but can also be used as a screen; the individual components can be used for seating or as a table.
Grey for most is a melancholy colour. But for me it holds the seed of light. It is stillness and peace. A grey monsoon day invites a pause in our work, to reflect and enjoy a hot cup of tea. It represents life. For life choices are not always black or white but shades of grey.
Hudco’s Contribution to Excellence in Sustainable Architectural Design & Built Environment - ‘PILGRIM CUM CULTURAL CENTRE,SOUTH SIKKIM’
INTRODUCTION
Housing and Urban Development Corporation Ltd (HUDCO) is a unique institution with its motto of “Profitability with Social Justice”. A Public Sector Company, under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (MoHUPA), Government of India, HUDCO has been a key partner with the Government in building assets for the Nation. In its operations, HUDCO lays a considerable emphasis on the housing need of the “deprived” that is Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) and Low-Income Groups (LIG). In times of crisis like Earthquakes, Cyclone, Floods, Tsunami HUDCO has extensively contributed in the rehabilitation of the calamity affected households, through its technical and financial help for housing reconstruction.With its consistent successful performance and service to the Nation, HUDCO has established itself as a premier techno-financing company. Apart from the financing operations, HUDCO offers consultancy services, promotes research and studies and help propagate use of local building materials, cost-effective and innovative construction technologies.
One of the main objectives of HUDCO is “to promote , establish, assist, collaborate and provide consultancy services for designing and planning of projects relating to housing and urban development programme in India and abroad”. HUDCO consultancy services comprises of multi-disciplinary professionals including Architects, Town Planners, Housing Experts, Landscape Designers, Engineers, Transportation Planners, Ecologists, System Analysts, Construction Management Specialists etc. at various levels.
HUDCO CONSULTANCY
HUDCO has demonstrated the leadership initiatives in the promotion of good architectural and construction practices. It has promoted and recognised the best practices in the field of Architecture & Planning since its inception in 1970. HUDCO has received many accolades and awards of National and International recognition which includes “Excellence in Architecture” award from Indian Institute of Architects, “ Aga Khan International Award”, “World Habitat Award” as well as Prime ministers National Award for “Excellence in Urban planning and Design” for Satellite Township Project at Jammu from Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India. Another Trophy was awarded by Indian Building Congress under Award for Excellence in Built Environment 2011 for The Pilgrim Centre, Sidheshwar Dham, Namchi, Sikkim. The Design and Development team has over four decades of experience in project design and formulation for providing consultancy to various Government Agencies. HUDCO has immensely contributed to Architectural & Planning Consultancy in diverse fields such as Housing and Slum Rehabilitation projects, Landscape Projects, Disaster Rehabilitation efforts, Heritage and Tourism Projects, Commercial and Institutional Building Design. Looking at the vast and varied experience of Design and Development, the Government of Sikkim approached HUDCO for a Comprehensive Religious Tourism Design Solution for an internationally renowned Pilgrim Centre. The project was challenging by virtue of its remote location including varied and difficult terrain. It was worth accepting the assignment owing to its picturesque & natural environment and surroundings.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
PILGRIM CUM CULTURAL CENTRE, SIKKIM
Sikkim, a small state in India, has an international presence for its spiritual awareness and Buddhist monasteries as well as Hindu temples. It is the most picturesque state in India. The state, located in the Himalayan mountains, has India’s highest mountain 8586m Kanchenjunga. The four distinct regions - North, East, South and West have varying heights above mean sea level. The district of South Sikkim lies lowest with altitude varying from 400m to 2000m. The district headquarters are at Namchi at an elevation of 1850m which commands wonderful views of snowcapped mountains and vast stretches of valleys. Located atop the Samduptse Hill, ( 6 km from Namchi) in South Sikkim is a tall statue of Guru Rinputche. The pilgrim cum cultural centre is located on top of the hill at Solophuk, which is 5 Kilometer away from Namchi town. The aerial distance between these two hills is about 1.5 km. “This pilgrimage centre has been dedicated and designed to place Sikkim in the very conscience, heart and minds of the citizens of India and beyond. Apart from providing a unique religious and cultural ambience, the Pilgrimage-cum-Cultural Centre established on a grand scale hereafter ought to be a tourist attraction at the National as well as International level. The existing linkages have been explored and the tourist activities targeted are Pilgrimage, cultural activities, seminars, religious discourses, nature study and passive recreation.”(www.sikkimtourism.gov.in)
SUSTAINABLE SITE PLANNING & DESIGN
The site is accessible by motorable road in N-E direction. The peak is gradually sloping towards S-E direction and slightly steeper afterwards and also on other sides. The slope analysis and topography mapping of the entire site was done on LANDCADD. The buildable area was identified on the basis of the slope analysis for the Pilgrim cum Cultural Centre. The hill top site of 15 hectare was an excellent backdrop for the Pilgrim and Cultural Centre seen in Figure 1 wherein the Landscaped area in Pilgrim Centre is 10 hectare and the remaining area is of Cultural Centre. The salient landscape Planning and Design imperatives included:
siting of important structures, linkages within and without, pedestrian circulation, pilgrims’ parikrama and spatial layout of congregational spaces.
The main axis linking the Kirateshwar statue and Lord Shiva Statue was the main organising line about which the twelve Jyotirlingas and Char Dham were symmetrically located. This pedestrian spine was named Ganga Vithi (path) and the Ganga Dhar (water channel) emerging from the locks of Shiva flowed in the middle of this path gradually as it stepped down along the topography.
The landscape treatment to the entire complex is designed in such a manner that it blends the man made features and the natural surroundings. The plantation species have been selected in order to enhance the serenity and harmony of the complex.
The flora and fauna are planted to suit the climatic zone that is Montane and subAlpine.
The Layout Plan at Figure no.2 shows the spatial layout of the entire Pilgrim and Cultural Centre and the various components, facilities and features are labelled accordingly. The hierarchy of spaces and the flow of movement lines along the axis and access can be visualised clearly. All the structures are surrounded by open spaces landscaped with green mounds and berms suited to the topography. The vegetation design uses indigenous species and contributes to the environmental and visual quality of the spaces.
DESIGNCONCEPT
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
Main Components: This Complex covers two broad components – the Pilgrim centre & the Cultural centre. The architecture imbibes the traditional temple architecture in the design of the Jyotirlinga and replicas for the Char Dhams.
ArchitecturAl FeAtures: The local architectural features of the Tibetian monastery style were incorporated in the design for buildings, pavilions, gates, and shelters. The buildings and terraces are sited along the contours as per the Green building requirements to minimise cut and fill. The structures are designed with high safety and earthquake resistant features.
MAteriAls: Exposed random rubble stone masonry (local stone) has been used for retaining walls. The local building
Figure 1: The Pilgrim and Cultural Centre
Figure 3: Carvings on Ceiling of Prayer hall
Figure 4: Wall murals and column carvings
materials were also used extensively in the Building Construction and Interior furnishings. Wood was used effectively so as to give comfort in the interiors. The ancient technique of plastering with hydrated lime was revived for the Lord Shiva statue with local admixtures to give the sheen and longevity. The carvings, ceilings, temple shikharas, wall and column sculptures and decorations are in fibre glass as seen in ceiling of main prayer hall in Figure 3 and Shiv purana wall murals in Figure 4. The external finishing of the structures was metalising to withstand the climatic conditions, minimise maintenance costs in annual painting and appear aesthetic as seen on external walls of prayer hall in Figure5 and the Jyotirlingas in copper metalising in Figure 6.
levels: The grading was worked out with the existing contours, the layout was designed conscientiously to ensure minimum cutting and filling. Thus the natural slopes and topography were maintained and the natural vegetation retained as far as possible. Moreover retaining walls were constructed wherever necessary to ensure that proper drainage and soil conservation ensured slope stability and minimised erosion. The level differences are graduated to ensure unobstructed view of Lord Shiva statue during the transition and from all over the complex. The Parikrama path is also meticulously laid out and oriented to provide access to the twelve Jyotirlingas as it climbs up gradually to the highest level.
Access: The three entry points to the pilgrim complex are planned out aligned with the Nagpath as seen in Figure 7. The first Entry gate is the Kirateshwar Dwar, the second is the Sai Dwar and the third Main Entry gate is the Sidheshwar Dwar as seen in Figure 8. The access to the Main Temple in front of Prayer hall is disabled friendly.
MAin AttrActions: The statue of Lord Shiva is the main attraction. Apart from this Sai temple, Nandi statue, Ganga & Yamuna statues and prayer spaces are also provided. The Sai baba idol may be seen in Figure 9 and the Nandi statue in Figure 10.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
MAin spAces: The spaces are organised along the main linear lines named after various aspects of Lord Shiva’s divinity. The main axis is the Ganga vithi which gradually climbs up from the prayer space around Lord Kirateshwar statue upto Lord Shiva statue. It is intersected by the linear path with the char dhams located on either sides. Thereafter it is intersected by the Sai vithi (path) seen in Figure 11 which leads to Sai Dham and hasfour Jyotirlingas located on Western side. Within the parikrama path eight Jyotirlingas, main temple and Lord Shiva statue are enclosed and remaining four Jyotirlingas are located on the external edge of the parikrama path on the Western side having higher elevation. One of these Jyotirlinga may be seen in Figure 12.
DESIGN EXPRESSION
the pilgriM centre
The Pilgrim Centre is primarily proposed as a Hindu pilgrim destination of Shiva worshippers but also houses the Char Dhams and Sai Dham. The design is steeped in the symbolism of Lord Shiva’s mythological legends and various shlokas of Shivapurana which is the ultimate treatise of Shiva’s legends and rituals are not only related but also denoted in the murals or idol type sculptures on the internal walls of the Prayer hall.
The focus of attraction is 108 ft high statue of Lord Shiva (in sitting posture), that is surrounded by 12 Jyotirlingas & 4 Dhams– the Shiva statue 108 ft high (including the base) is located at the highest level in the west direction and facing east. The main Shiva temple is placed in front of the prayer hall and the presiding deity ‘shivalinga’ as seen in Figure 13 is established here by “praan pratishthan”.
Main structure of statue was in RCC with shell of 150 mm thick around structure upto nearest possible profile of statue and steel dowels provided as per
Figure 5: Prayer hall with silver metalising
Figure 6: Jyotirlinga with copper metalising
Figure 7: Nagpath, motorable access road
Figure 8: Sidheshwar Dwar, main entry gate
Figure 10: Nandi statue in white marble with black granite base
Figure 11: Sai vithi with Jyotirlingas
Figure 9: Sai Dham interiors view of statue
requirement to give final shape to statue. The Ganga path climbs up to Lord Shiva. The lighting for the steps, more than 500 in numbers is done with 1 watt LED for Energy efficiency. Running parallel to this pedestrian spine is the serpentine motorable road finished in washed grit finish.
In the foreground to the prayer hall and main shiva temple is a large water body with musical fountains that display a beautiful light and musical show after dark as seen in Figure 14.
The main access to the integrated complex is from east i.e. coming through the cultural core, local worship core (Kirateshwar) and climbing up to Shiva Prayer Hall. A gateway called Ganesh dwar has been provided at the very beginning of the complex over the main approach road. However, separate entrance with the gateways have been provided for exclusive entrance to Shiva complex at the end of the road with parking facilities.
Separate movement pattern for in & out flow of devotees / visitors has been provided. The outer most peripheral parikrama covers all 4 Dhams, then the 12 Jyotirlingas and finally the main deity temple.
Temple profile of Char Dhams are built of size 8mx8mx9m height approximately except for Rameshwar for which the height is around 12 m. The Dwarka Dham, Rameshwaram Dham, Jagannath Dham and Badrinath Dham may be seen at Figure 15, 16, 17 and 18 respectively.
Under the main statue of Shiva, a prayer hall has been provided.
Through the main pathways, while climbing upwards one is able to slowly experience the visual element of surprise. The difference in treatment of surroundings and the scale of two statues have been handled sensitively and the scale conflicts have been minimised by plantation around, which subdue the dramatic visual scale andset in the entire complex in the natural terrain.
The Jyotirlingas are RCC framed structure – 5mx5m in area and about 7.0 m height. RCC murals, small shikhras, idol like figures adorn the Jyotirlinga which are metallised in Copper Golden Shade.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
The staff quarters having been proposed at the beginning of access road in the down slopes, though nearer but not predominantly visible. Simultaneously, public toilet blocks have been purposely kept on other side of the road so that they are easily located but should not dominate the surroundings.
The location of water tank for the town has been suggested between the Cultural and pilgrim centre, which has vehicular access and availability of space around for supporting facilities.
Sufficient parking has been provided and small parking lots nearer to the main access and secondary entrance points have been provided.
The construction materials, the treatment of different surfaces and architectural forms selected will have the blend of both the local architectural style as well as the ancient temple architecture.
A formal boundary wall has been proposed along the access road, whereas informal fencing with pedestrian walkways has been provided encircling the complex towards the downhill edges.
the culturAl centre
The Cultural Centre houses the Security cum Auditorium Block with information centre, exhibition area, audio/video studios/ performing halls, an auditorium, main cafeteria etc., the VIP Guest House and the Yatri Niwas. The sloping roof forms reflect the traditional architectural style and are adapted to the high rainfall climate of Sikkim.
Security Cum Auditorium Block is designed as a symmetrical composition of two circular buildings joined by the connecting podium on ground floor and bridge on first floor. It provides for various services for the Pilgrims and Tourists apart from being the Entry gateway to the Pilgrim Centre.
The view of the Security and Auditorium block as seen from Pilgrim Centre is placed
Figure 14: Lit up Musical fountains
Figure 15: Dwarka Dham
Fig 16:Rameshwaram Dham
Figure 17:Jagannath Dham
Fig 18:Badrinath Dham
Figure 13: Main temple shivalinga
Figure 12: Jyotirlinga along external parikrama
at Figure 19. Yatri Niwas is a 100 bedded facility for the Pilgrims and tourists with rooms giving views across the mountains and fields. The Yatri Niwas from the road can be seen at Figure 21. V.I.P. Guest House has been designed to hold important government meetings as well as provide comfortable accomodation . The Guest House as seen from the main road is placed at Figure 22.
signAge And street Furniture
The signage was designed to provide directions as well as information to facilitate visitor movement.
These were conceived as elliptical back lit volumes that were aesthetically designed and executed. Shaded Seating was provide along the Nagpath and in Rain shelters provided in the Pilgrim centre. Viewing decks were strategically located at periphery to provide gorgeous views from the Pilgrim centre of the mountain ranges and valleys surrounding the Solophok hill. Anodised steel railing has been provided along the steps and paths for ease of circumambulation and security of visitors.
CONCLUSION
The Himalayas are known to be the abode of Lord Shiva and destination Sikkim is ideally suited to replicate Lord Shiva’s temples. The sensitive handling of the hilly and verdant Solophok hill combined with proposal of immaculately designed structures suiting the sacred theme, beautifully sculpted statues and clearly narrated shlokas has led to the
Figure 20: Yatri Niwas Figure 21: VIP Guest House
Figure 19: Security & Auditorium Blockwith statue ofLord Kirateshwar in foreground creation of an aesthetic and functionally viable Pilgrim and Cultural complex. The project is a culmination of dedication and faith together to achieve value creation in the realm of rich Indian culture and traditions. The Hindu belief of the creation, preservation and destruction of this universe is symbolised here and it forms the central theme of the Pilgrim Centre. This theme is related in various aspects of the architectural and landscape design in the form of the planning, articulation and detailing of the layout and the structures. The project was executed efficiently to minimise site interference and retaining slopes, vegetation and drainage lines. It draws a number of national and international tourists not only for pilgrimage but also for tourism, spiritual and entertainment purposes. All these elements have contributed to making the Pilgrim and Cultural Centre one of the finest contributions of HUDCO Consultancy to an innovative, aesthetic and sustainable built environment.
Figure 19: Security & Auditorium Block with statue of Lord Kirateshwar in foreground
Figure 21: VIP Guest House
Figure 20: Yatri Niwas
Architect in making : 2
Flipping the locks of her hair with her pencil, she stared at the date sheet pasted on the front wall. Just two days left for her exams to begin, yet she had no clue about what she was going to do or how she would pass. Submissions due, tracings discarded, exams coming and her phone flooding with texts from people. As much as she felt doomed, she felt numb. Story of every semester, she would tell herself. What was the use of bookish knowledge if one couldn’t put it to work? This was the question that occupied most of her thoughts near the exam times. She’ll get through this. She loved whatever was taught to her. She felt right at home, this was where she’d rather be than be anywhere else. So she knew this’ll pass too. She thought, consoling her state of discomfort. What tormented her was that sometimes she’d feel absolutely clueless about why she was here and the other times she’d thank the heavens that luck brought her where she thrived today.
-samhita de if not here then where
dusting off my gray
Suddenly. A nightmare. A Dream. Took me to a step. I Freeze.
Curbing yet curing. I don’t know where I live. Every instant changing my range from being pawn to minister.
I Jump. I Yell.
I realise that these are the only creatures. I’m Afraid. A positive in a sense. Destructive the other.
I ask for where do I lie without indulging in any more pressure. I lie for every new lie and think for the reality.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
I cry.
And today the cry of ocean has got me a plank to travel. To explore, new versions. To find an answer, a diplomat one. And in search of a person painted in similar shade to me. Neither deep nor shallow but a perfect fellow.
From dusk to dawn, I keep this process on. Wandering on open grass. A step towards a brittle glass.
Peeping. Cherishing. Shaping. Realizing. Realizing all are same but different in a way, variation of just tints and shades. All blended in gray but separated by each gray.
The process is still on.
But now I play a role of heads for one and tails for another. But still I land on the same plane. Indulging more and more in the quagmire of an answer. For which I decide not to see, not to trust but lets keep the life’s lust.
karUNa lala
sililoquy
'A graduate in architecture from School Of Planning And Architecture, Delhi, Ar. GEETA BALAKRISHNAN, realised the difference a stimulated student fraternity could make to the future of our built environment. it was then, she formulated ETHOS aiming to arm the architectural fraternity with knowledge.'
The creative process of an artist begins with a seed of an idea. But, what is it that brings about this idea? What is it that keeps the gray of the creative mind running? That streak of genius is nothing but an unconscious, abstract cognition. That gray is nothing but a result of the absolute blacks and whites! The design process starts with a set of constraints, certain rules of nature that form the basic structural framework around which the designer wraps the façade of imagination and creativity.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
So, is there really such a thing as a clean slate? Do we really ever start afresh? Aren’t we always fed with a set of absolutes? Can an idea ever be independent? Can there be gray, without the blacks and whites?
As a designer, the gray is a result of accepting a certain set of given, and/ or rejecting one. However, the premise of inception is always the absolutes. In the history of architecture there have been constant shifts in ideas. There have been conflicting ideas about form and function at different points of architectural history. They have all been a result of accepting the past or rejecting it, but never devoid of it! They have all been a conscious careful pick or discard of certain blacks or whites to get the customized shades of gray. But, how does the end user perceive this gray? Is it always obvious? In any other art form like the performing arts or the visual arts, the audience is invested in making an effort to understand and appreciate the gray. But in architecture, the end user, although he lives the space, pauses rarely to understand it. For him, most often the comfort lies in the blacks and the white, the known, the absolutes. So, the question arises, how much of the absolutes to give up? How to paint the gray to provide most comfort? If the gray carries with it the risk of discomfort, do we need it at all? We could just be okay with the black and the white. Wouldn’t that be detrimental to the whole idea of evolution, though? “
To imagine, create and to touch the old world anew is what makes the magical journey of the artist. It is in every one of us to breathe life with the expanse of imagination, embrace it in our thoughts and give with our body. We are all artists.” –TM Krishna- A Southern Music, The Karnatic story.
gray in ARCHITECTURE
MISHA JOSE
The moment has come to exist. I relish my conquest and a sense of relief overwhelms my mind. This is the moment when a thought is no longer just a thought. These thoughts have substantiated themselves into strokes. The strokes that would soon be completed. These strokes have often led me to the piece which has beautifully jotted itself into the reality for all of us. This share of determination is a demonstration that designing isn’t inherently difficult. Any length of graphite being wisely rubbed against paper could lead me to this dreamy end. With every stroke, I advance towards a sincere gesture of reality that is concerned with the gray. The gray, being put together in these variable strokes, is the amalgamation of all the thoughts. The gray of color. Where each colour is a thought. Probably an emphasized erraticism. The rendering of this path, for the dream which I want to turn into authenticity, is
when my side of gray unfolds. This path in the end demonstrates to me that the procedure was right.
As it is known, writing rests on the relative proportions of the white in the word. Similarly, these white spaces in architecture serve to define the strokes that are drawn on a sheet.
The problem with designing isn’t the act itself. Whether you are able to trance and venture out to design is a subjective matter.
There is no thumb rule as to what thought is or how it is created. A million thoughts may be formed in just a blink of the eye. It is the overall gray of these thoughts which could both be a delusion or truth when sufficed to reality.It is when we begin to focus beyond the layers, at the objects less evident, that thinking starts to conceive design and the blurs start to become evident with each layer unfolding. It is during this phase that the gray on our eyes begins to disclose itself. It begins to show what is lesser evident. The feedback loop. The colour of the thought we seek.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
"A glimpse into the art. A black and white art , the graphite pencil lines are smudged in layers in a play of texture and surface.
Much is hidden, or almost hidden, in layers of translucency. Organic form is taken as an inspiration of this amazing work."
MErry - aBSTracT paiNTiNg, liNES dEriVEd froM ThE fEMalE figUrE
dynamism
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
Dream it, warp it, bend, twist, carve, imagine and feel the originality of each structure. With such conviction they stand truly representing their creator. Scintillating and scandalous sculptures. Mesmerizing paintings may be created after some thought or even with a blank mind. Usually the reciprocation may not satisfy the creator but its impression leaves a mark. One may say that a human being does not repeat the same mistakes again. Trickle of ideas at stage one ,a very core one, crude it may be but given a form, may miraculously diverge the whole track. Just like a climax, a flow responded towards end user. Sometimes its easy to justify rather than to convince the end user. Reminding of choices and opinions the circumstances of changing the design, without overlooking the basic rules or principles may result in disagreement entirely. Foremost, conviction of any design depends on the designer whatever may be the subfield of art-architecture, fashion design, cooking, sculpting, etc. Even so following the traditional ways is not the factual solution. Bye-laws, codes, practices, regulations enhances towards an ideal structure (optimistic but not entirely dynamic either). It’s like choosing religion or career or even falling into dilemma.
Dynamism is however truly tempting, following it entirely may not give proper functional aspect to any structure. Just like form follows function or vice versa (differential opinion of critiques) paves the offset of an ideology. Visually appealing elevation do have dynamism also charging and channeling cent per cent of that (crude idea) wave striking the creator. Reconciliation, judgment and craving for the edifice that draws your attention. Deep down we know what really a wave of dynamism is. Leap and fly off the suspenders of post modernism that was conceived the basis of dynamism. Anarchists of post–modernist period do really transcend modern notions of democracy. Any kind of approaches of conjecture may rewind some features, that in past were thought irrelevant (just like the notion of democracy). Visage of perpetual yet amazing illusions of both 2d and 3d abstract artworks mirrors the false reality. Taste of defeat when winning becomes a habit, loss of new vibes or emotions which are carved on that visage. Facets of hurdles, vast insights, resolutions of abyss and scripts may be the loopholes of dynamism where even a stroke is the pivot of enormous cycles.
Reticulate, transform and revitalize the element thriving architecture. Even so, dynamism in traditional architecture can only be seen in carvings. The rare inlay work of Taj Mahal with floral carving leaves the viewers awestruck. Not just western contemporary architecture, but East Asian sloping curved roofs in pagoda, in complicated joinery, shows a rare form of construction amidst the valleys, hills and rivers .More or less the geographical location is irrespective of perception of dynamism. Irrational and chaotic warfare (temporary) structures like tents, basecamps, and huts were influences of dynamic curves in structures; since then; later hyperbolic paraboloids and other pneumatic structures. Huge column less edifice caught the attention and emerged as the trend. Public spaces are now seen with visually appealing quaint splendid forms transforming the skyline; relieving the encountered space of walls and columns and the flow of arcades with necessary openings and habitable environment. The Hussain–Doshi gufa sustains around hard cored flat skyline. Hyphenated breathable cave like form looks outstanding from exterior. This, from current Indian context may reform further; likeness of transformation of barren land leaving the fertile patch for landscaping with dynamic elements. A Dramatic warped plane standing amidst then vast mowed lawn, sufficing the stead of sculpture. Addition of sculpture may leave serenity undisturbed.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
Majority of structures creating flow with interior and exterior spaces expect the transition spaces as barrier free notional spaces. Those could either be a grand entrance or pneumatic structure forged with the twist of fabric, setting the dynamic effect. Refrain to the plain old brick walls and believe it special, as dynamism can be laid by changing the height of wall from one end to the other end. Recurring traditional material does not lose touch of dynamism .We create a set of rules to follow it, if abolishing it does follow dynamism but no other aspect; then the consequence is tumult. One lifetime gives a chance of revival of any style and its rules. Styles like Gothic, Romanesque, renaissance adore the art therein. Da Vinci’s paintings combined art and religion .Reflection of past never really influenced the future but abstracted it. This conclusion will differ from person to person just like ideologies. Millions out there hear, see, feel the tilt of leaning tower and are well aware of its increasing angle .Grand structure created to sustain its own depreciation and advances to much more vulnerability. High up from above no one can sense vulnerable dynamic structures but sure can derive and create one anywhere anytime.
MaiTrEyEE fadNaViS
Architect in making : 3
This was precisely what she had been planning for since the sixth grade. This was what she wanted all this time. But then, what she got was thousand times tougher than what she thought she could take. Late night drafting, design going all wrong, cups and cups of coffee and cigarettes, one after the other. It hurt her entire body to sit up straight through the entire night. But she still managed. Managed to meet deadlines, managed taking every single blow for any flaw in her work and managed the courage needed to come back to all this again.
What else would she do, if not this? Where else was better for her, if not here. She hushed the little voice inside her head that told her to give up, sipped some coffee and switched on her laptop; had her submission due the next day.
-samhita de if not here then where
Indian architecture has fascinated Western travelers for centuries. When they came, Indo-Islamic architecture was prevalent in India while Gothic architecture was introduced by 18th century. Today India stands proudly to display the great Taj Mahal, the churches of Goa and an array of ancient Hindu, Jain and Buddhist rock-cut caves and temples spread all over the country.
According to study, the oldest of these are the Buddhist monuments in the form of caves and Stupas, and the Jain caves and temples dating to 2nd century B.C.E. The development of Hindu temples and cave temples can be seen from 5th century A.D. onward, and can be stratified in three different phases.
The first phase of the standing structures found today lies between the periods from 5th to 7th century. These temples are relatively small in size and have a very simple plan. The second period from 7th to 9th century A.D. shows a growth in the size of the temples as well as the plan which also houses an assemblage of sculptures. In the 3rd phase from 10th century A.D. onward a spurt in technology is observed and huge temples seem to have been constructed not only in India but to all the countries in the far-East where the Indians ruled.
The development in the temple architecture was due to the rapid development
iNdiaN TEMplE
archiTEcTUrE
UdayaN iNdUrkar
in science and technology of that period. The understanding of the universe had matured and the positions, time of revolution of planets and the cosmic events could be scientifically explained. Thus an effort to imitate the Universe in a structural form was initiated by noted scientist Varahamihir 6th century A.D. who hailed from Kaitha in Madhya Pradesh.
The Hindu temples in its developed form were not made as mere prayer halls or religious centers, but were the efforts made to represent the Cosmic Order on Earth. Thus the need was to build a huge temple over 100 ft in height and length to show its magnitude and then decorated with symbols (i.e. sculptures) which represent the various ingredients of the perceived universe. Therefore, it was obvious that apart from the size the structure also must have number of vertical planes to accommodate the huge paraphernalia of various gods, goddesses, demi-gods and secular sculptures.
The architectural development took a positive turn when it was thought that the entire temple could be made to represent a God which stands as a cosmic symbol. Thus the temples of Shiva were made as the representative of the cosmic space and those of Vishnu as space-time relation.
The foremost example of this is the unique structure in the caves of Verul, in Maharashtra. This is called the Kailas temple. It has been carved out of a single rock and can be counted as one of the most successful attempts of such intricate and bold work in India. The work began in the later part of the 8th century A.D. and continued for over 150 years. About 3 million cubic feet of rock was removed with the help of small instruments like chisel, hammer and pick-axe. Almost ten generations worked and it is really astonishing that not a single mistake was made by even one of the sculptors. The concept of space is represented by the image of Lingin-Shiva seen right on the gopura of the temple and the flying gandharvas on the walls which clearly specify the vast universe.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
Similarly, in the temples of Shiva at Khajuraho we can see that in the niches around the main temple (called as devakoshtha) the figures of mother goddesses are placed. Shiva represents the space and the matrikas, the energy in the Universe.
The temples of Vishnu have Grahas in the devakoshtha. In the Lakshaman temple at Khajuraho (10th cent.A.D.) This can be seen clearly. The revolving stellar bodies not only show the space but also the passage of time.
The sculpture of the god sleeping on the serpent bed is called as Sheshashayee Narayan. Here the god represents the space-time relation. The temples built for this sculpture have not survived in large number. Some of them can be seen in south India where even today the prayers are being carried out like the Padmanabha temple or the Ranganatha temple at Shreerangapattanam in Karnatak.
The most unique structure was discovered in Gujarat in 1986. This is 250 ft in length, 85 ft in width and is seven stories deep. It is called as Rani ki vav or the Queen’s step-well. Archaeologists still call it a well but on closer observation it is clear that it must be a temple. There are over 200 such step-wells in Gujarat built from 2nd century A.D. onward but none of them can be compared with this. This was built in 1060 A.D. and has over 1000 sculptures. Moreover the most stunning part is that in place of the garbhagiha there is a circular portion of the well where an image of Sheshashayee Narayan is placed on the curved surface facing the entrance. Here the
usual Brhama issuing out of the god’s navel is missing and the god has his eyes wide open! Time stops where space warps that is in the black hole; at the end of the universe.
The larges Hindu temple however, is not in India but in Cambodia. Here, in the first century A. D. the first Indian named Kaundinya arrived and found that people did not even know the use of clothes. He decided to settle there and married the princess of the tribe. Then he taught them not only to wear clothes but also the cultivation of cotton and other crops. The Indians ruled till the 15th century A.D. Powerful rulers continued to rule for centuries. In the 12th century king Suryavarman II came to poer and he initiated the work of this temple. He was aptly assisted by a very senior architect named Divakarpandit in this mind-boggling enterprise.
In order to represent the space-time relation of Lord Vishnu, all the measurements of this temple are in terms of units of time! The outer wall enclosure of the building can house about 250 foot ball fields and the central tower, the shikhar of the temple is 220 feet, which is taller than the Tower of London. The work was completed in just 35 years. The most amazing fact is that the soil in Cambodia is soft and there is no hard rock beneath the surface, so no foundation can be built. So the method adopted was that a huge trench almost 1.25 km by 1.25 km was dug first (1.5 million truckloads of sandy material) then a huge pit measuring 200m by 200m and 10 m deep was dug and lined with laterite. The excavated sand was put back in it. The other inner raised enclosures were similarly piles of sand lined with laterite stone on which the visible walls of the temple were built with sand stone. The trenches kept the sand in the core pit wet by capillary action and since this could be compressed, it held the upper structure weighing few million tons intact. The central enclosure of the temple is a 15 m raised platform of 200m by 200m on which the main temple and the four surrounding subsidiary shrines stand, the central tower being 67 m high (approx. 220 ft). To hold on to the huge vertical wall an array of slanting stairs have been built on it which act as stairs as well as buttress walls.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
Thus it can be seen that the Hindu temples were in fact super sculptures made to represent scientific principles. They were built by scientists and were meant for only those who had absolute faith in science first and then in God.
UdayaN iNdUrkar
plaNTiNg SEEdS : lucid dreamscape, biomimicry, omnipresent-nature and subconscious,
I guess the character’s profession ‘Paige’ in the blockbuster movie ‘inception’ wasn’t just a mere co- incidence? Was there not a lot of thought put into the profession of the girl as her role in the movie goes, inspired from the real life scenarios of working of a true-designer, artist-’architect’?
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
The article aims to throw some light on one of the subconscious interesting system driving our work into reality by discussing the *oldscape and the *grayscape the world has turned to be and few measures which architects need to think, rethink and adopt.
Has it never happened to you that you wake up in the middle of time, yes the stressful time of your on process design challenge, and start moving the pointer on screen or an 8B which resembles the idea in your dreams or are you more of a day dreamer? Who in the middle of a lecture swiftly slips into another world where you start painting your own imaginary walls leading to a whole new scene which might proceed as you keep hearing?
Our brains as designers are very imaginative, creative and also work wonders if power of the subconscious brain (where most ideas originate, yea the best ones) is exploited further which by the way was definitely done when architecture wasn’t a field, when it was a medium of communication to the masses or GODS or AFTERLIFE, when it was pure and untouched by the grave reality of greed, power and capitalist architecture. Architecture was ‘virgin’ blessed like ‘Mary’ and hence Divine and away from ‘repeatism’ which has turned too common in present swelled up by concrete and enveloped to be ‘gray’. The chance to build cathedrals, shikharas and whole cities the pyramids, something that never existed put to reality from the seed in a dream was also done by architects. We are the designers of the dreamscape the dreamer who has the power to bring a practical subject into an imaginary world and then back again ‘levels down’ complete with all the ‘aesthetics’ and ‘tactile details’. The subject is brought into that dream space and fills it with details from our own subconscious and memories. The architect does not have to design using real world architecture and physics,
allowing them to create paradoxes like an endless staircase. When bringing a mark into the dream, a skilled architect is essential to help the dreamer make the dream feel real. Furthermore, an architect can help design mazes or other secure locations in which the mark hides his or her secrets. The mark subconsciously hides his or her secrets in a secure location, and the deeper or more important the secret, the better or more secure the location must be in order to lure the mark into populating it with their secrets, e.g.- we still are trying to study the magnificent construction techniques hidden of marvel structure. An architect can also teach their designs for others to dream to such as a ‘seed’ sown in the subconscious mind.
This is the reason to why the historic structures are so very an inspiration to a few mindful of ones, as they act as a very strong catalyst. If the trend of mindless architecture takes a new turn they monotony of world which is eating upon us can be reversed. As a matter of fact the concept of ‘LUCID DREAMING’- where you can deliberately get into the subconscious state in and out, can be practiced which seems to be a practice well mastered by our wonderful architect ‘puravaj’. e.g.- the extra ordinary and closer to god feeling we experience in old Indian temples which give out an ambiance of mental peace. Similar structure has been built today in auroville- the maitreyi mandir.
*VirgiN archiTEcTUrE - the old architectural forms which were untouched by capitalism and were divine and need to be studied for better understanding and path correction for today’s commercial and other architect’s also.
*oldScapE - historic, vernacular practices, divine
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
The scale of construction defines the origin of thought to be in subconscious, each structure developed in the early ages is one of a kind, it overpowers us in a positive way unlike the concrete jungles which seem to feast upon the mother nature. Mother nature the ‘omnipresent’ disciple of god should be an inspiration to reverse the turning gray of the very practice of building. Not just it should influence the form but also be able to replicate the care it offers. nature is the most stable form. So another concept, more practical and self proven i.e. concept of BIOMIMICRY which should now engulf for improvement by one of the major group of people who can act as saviors of nature -the architects. e.g.- We generally think of termites as destroying buildings, not helping design them. But the Eastgate Building, an office complex in Harare, Zimbabwe, has an air conditioning system modeled on the self-cooling mounds of Macrotermes michaelseni, termites that maintain the temperature inside their nest to within one degree, day and night (while the temperatures outside swing from 42 °C to 3 °C).
*grayScapE - refers to the on growing reckless present scenario which with current majority architects practicing has become monotonous and repetitive lacking concern to the nature and ignored vernacular practices. also includes increase in substitute materials coming up with common facades like concrete, glass aluminum.
ShUkTika SaBharWal
gray in architecture
We are in the midst of an unsound and continually changing social and natural world. To my mind, GREY in architecture is the hue or shade that is formed by tallying white in black or black in white.
Figuratively, I would say that structures or kind of architecture that has become a pastichekitsch is the Grey which has substantially accumulated one on top of the other to recall this period in future as the gray period. The traditional black era with social, customary firmness and orthodox profoundness have begun to be diluted. Gradually to our senses, architecture has lost its contextually sound establishment and the regional embellishment that mattered in the past. The makers call these recurrently new individualistic styles as the more refined ones. But even, for a moment, let us just contemplate our past for the examples like the Pre-Hispanic city of Teotihuacan in Mexico, a group of people lost in the past, to whom wheels, books, ages like iron or bronze, utilities like donkeys or horses were alienated. They then, thrived for more than a thousand years within their great and memorable city. Religion ran their life in these cities and their structural monumentality in pyramids outclassed the Egyptian themselves. The congregation of pedestrian causeway with change in levels and linking with processional and religious pavilions seem to have defied time with Neolithic monumental congeries of structures which were unexplained in science for ages. These familiar pathways that spoke to us for ages even after the Teotihuacan people lead us to untold and immortal stories of architecture that only mortal actions have produced. A miracle it is.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
Such examples have time and again been gathered and restored in the Indian Sub-continent as well. Constructed in red sandstone, Fatehpur-Sikri of sixteenth century stayed without streets or causeways. The contiguous courts, colonnades, terraces, pavilions endlessly unfolding made one walk into the fine grandeur of the place which has beautifully aged with time. Conserved in nature as if built just a day before yesterday the city was consigned for a religious saint and to my understanding, it was mortal actions in the untold stories which could create this spectacle.
However, architecture, as in the present era, is no more acknowledged as simple approach of mortal actions. Our thinking is subjugated by the words—in prose or poetry. Our philosophies are semantic and our metaphysics, nonreligious. We avoid antiquated words like God and soul in architecture. Glory, monumentality and beauty seemed to have become off-limits. A work is more often judged by applied implications such as cost-effective, businesslike and profitable. The poetics seem to have been replaced by the industrial and scientific approach that take up our energies. Architecture, more often than not has begun to serve the ‘necessary’ ends. Monumentality in structuralism has become out of our reach and beyond our thinking. As a result, building Taj-Mahal, Versailles, or even extravaganzas like the Grand Central Station are but a dream. These are now just mere visions of what could be achieved and to my mind, our present has gradually established itself as a degradation to our past. The romanticism in
architecture is just another -ism, which seems to have been lost. Cities are already crammed with skyscrapers which seem to be the only answer to accommodate 50 percent of the world’s people. In the near future that number will rise to 70 percent. Modernism was based on the idea that rapidly evolving technology would permit for economical mass production of the repetitive entities, which made possible the migration of more and more people into urban areas. This same idea, however, also predestined the world’s cities to lose their flavor, local identity and character as they were reduced to a chain of uniform and indistinguishable grids.
No matter of their explanations, modernism built a wall between itself and nature and relied on technology to create artificial environments with no connection to nature. It generated a new morphology with its own kind of privileged functions and competence, and did cut-off itself from the unique history and culture of its local settings. The generics and subtlety in transition was basically lost. The morphogenesis no longer took in consideration the human phenomenology. Probably this is the grey state. A grey state, full of muddle among colorful turn out of so many events where each edifice represents independence, seclusion, revenue, skill, money, distinction and control of different kind. Misplacing its basic character, ethnic and customary beauty where buildings in the past epitomized philosophy, ritual, joy and their own art-form, presently, the makers in architecture seem to have forgotten their boundaries. But yes, values can be revived. Art, myth, faiths can bloom once again. If we want to. All we need is to believe in the fairytale which once was. Our grey state can come out of it greyness.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
Architect in making : 4
As the teacher called out his name, he walked up to him and took the marked answer sheet. It said a good 19/20 in the structures paper he studied for so much. As he passed by one of his batch mates, he heard him saying how he would’ve excelled in Engineering, for he was that material. Sitting down in his desk, he felt joy and a rush of regrets.
He wondered how different it could’ve been if he were actually studying in some Engineering college and what if he waited a little longer to get into one of those instead of coming here. Would it have been better? He’d wonder every day.
-samhita de if not here then where
External crits and ego
As an important day in the life of an Architecture Student, this day must be ‘Justified’. “EGO", as defined by the Internet as a person’s sense of self–esteem or self–importance. I would like to define it as something that you must learn to have in the right way, or not have it at all. Certain terms and matters, when learned about, seem very new to a normal human brain and it is the natural tendency of the same brain to feel gained by those new figures both in terms of knowledge and confidence. But the gain in terms of confidence might not be right or complete always. This is something that one has to know about or at least realize better late than never. This is one natural case that one goes through.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
But there are other worse, flimsy, horrible, irritating and frivolous cases that have become a regular happening in one’s character purely because of that one’s frame of mind, either selfshaped or shaped up by other futile external factors. This is so in one’s character because of either the innocence or unfair ego he or she has. Unfortunately, the innocent character takes the same resulting impact as that taken by the unfair ego character.
Anyway, the innocent one either ends up quitting due to fear or accepting the impact and pushing harder with a clearer frame of mind, while the egocentric stays the same way and doesn’t give a damn. The concern here is not about that person having an ego, but that this egocentric should stop expressing it in his respective environment by knowing or learning that it is just wrong or senseless, if that ego is not knowledgeable and inexperienced.
These cases of the human mind often end up creating fussy situations that are again are senseless and ultimately irritating to the fellows in the same respective environment. To give a clearer imagery of this generalized explanation, here is an example:
There are four architecture students. One is a very smart guy whose smartness is gained by hard work and shaped up by the right sort of self-exposure to the right knowledge. This one always hungry for more of knowledge and lets call this guy A. Then there is B, a hardworking, not top level smart but intuition believing, and one who always looks for an external drive or inspiration for his own good. This guy too is hungry for knowledge and experience, telling to himself that “the knowledge is out there”. Let’s look at C now. A guy whom A and B would call ‘right talent in
the wrong brain guy. This guy is from a weird, often over-protective and tacky, background. God knows how this fellow has the radical thinking ability, good intuitions, and a fair speed in his mind. In the same way, god only knows how and where from, this lazy guy acquired such an irritating ego. Very egocentric. Just doesn’t agree to disagree. No acceptance at all. Being this way, this guy refuses to speak out always. Now for D. This is a girl who has no brain, thinks she is worth, but doesn’t know how. Has a fussy, weak, irritating and unpleasing character. She is one looking for shortcuts, or may be no way through at all. Just useless. So, it is one of those days again when there is an experienced external character who is asked to critically analyse and examine, and to give remarks about people in the process of experiencing.
In other words, these people are called students. A and B are eagerly waiting to meet and interact with the external character and come out happy by learning something. By trying to justify themselves on what they are being critically analysed for. C was as usual lazy and didn’t just give damn, because as said earlier he is adamant. So, not much content to analyse. D was, well, just useless. Now D goes first to get examined, C next, and then B and A. By the time the external character goes through D and C and lot more like D and C, the external character is annoyed, frustrated and ill–humoured, and concludes that the whole lot is like D and C. Hence irrespective of what process the passionate A and B go through before being critically analysed, A and B are also put into the wrong bag – the douche bag. The natural human tendency is to get agitated when this happens and anger is expressed. But it is fair. It is also controlled by them. Now this anger is fired up more by the fussy ones like D, when she creates a scene after being screwed by the external character. Ultimately, nothing is learned by A and B, they are frustrated for quite a while and their minds disrupt. Then, someone has to settle down their mind by supporting. Meanwhile, D is happy that she sought and caught attention by fussing up. C keeps not giving a damn and is not agreeing to disagree. Poor A and B. Ego is supposed not to be present or be present in a fair, invisible way. It shouldn’t be created and used for attention seeking and self-defense when it is unnecessary. It is better off with experience, because experience is the expert.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
VarUN kUMar
gardens by the bay
The idea behind this city was to dramatize shadows rather than imposing lights directly on the surroundings. The area is deliberately forested to provide an experience of a living forest. There is harmony between the light and the garden. Each tree is lit up dramatically and is visible as patches of light reflecting from the ground. The super tall structures rise as cylinders from the ground, spreading themselves up and the light forms silhouettes of branchlike structure which cover them from top to bottom. They act like trees lit within them and radiating light like moons on earth. While walking down the streets, it is difficult to see the source of light, but the edges show up, disappearing again.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
The gardens stand like living organisms, reflecting and absorbing light throughout the day. These multilevel viewing platforms covered in plants from the tropical mountain region give the view of the Singapore skyline being reflected in water. Viewed from the other side of the Garden By The Bay, the viewing towers seem to be exploding with light in water. They look like trunks of trees where each of its crack is lit up with golden light and as it reaches to the top, the trunk explodes into red light and slowly releases itself to the sky with silhouettes of a mesh of branches opening them up.
A 114 foot high waterfall flows from an artificial hill, in an enclosed structure. The light is controlled and moves along the flow of water in the waterfall. The balance of light and shadow with a quarter million rare plants on display makes the light wander throughout the garden.
The bridge passing through all the sightseeing towers creates a shaded passage underneath. The plants filter all the light into its surroundings. The light filtering through the glass roof falls on the plants of varying heights which seem to glow among all the objects in its close proximity. The moisture and forest like appearance creates a Tyndall effect. Walking in the glass roof complex, the light filters out evenly, creating light and shadow patterns throughout the complex. According to Kaoru Mende (architectural lighting designer) “light should be incorporated into architecture and the city. It should be devised so as to seem natural. Lighting design should be ecological. Natural lighting has created itself to be the basis for all the designed and controlled lighting which we see today. The experiences generated and the emotions caused, deal directly with form of lighting which gently shapes the mind. Lighting design thrives to achieve something.
radhik a goyal
(n.) Horoscope for the
SCOPE
Architecturally (dis)abled
"At the age of six I wanted to be a cook. At seven I wanted to be Napoleon. And my ambition has been growing steadily ever since."
-SALVADOR DALÍ
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
I dream, you dream, we all dream. If you can imagine something, it can be achieved. We all are dreamers and as an architects we really should be. Without heaps of imagination or days of dreaming, we lose the excitement in possibilities. Dreaming, after all, is a form of Planning. And to plan out something we need to have clear visions. But visions without execution are just hallucinations. Dreams are the touchstones of our characters. A sleep without dreams is like an ocean without the excitement of monsters, of nothingness lurking in the dark. But dreams are not only just seen asleep; because those are least fulfilled. Dreams are those which are seen with wide eyes, clear visions; as to fulfill them, to achieve them we need to work, we need to have our goals set. Dreams come from pasts, not from the future but they shouldn’t control us, but the contrary. With great dreams, comes great responsibility. It is not human essence to just dream and let those desires sink into subconscious, some do wake up and work for it.
When I was 5, I wanted to learn to skate. My mom was afraid that I would hurt myself and that I should grow up a little more and then learn. I waited 3 more years with a hope that one day I would learn to skate. Hadn't I not have dreamt about skating, I may not have learnt it. I think working hard at something is easier if you really want to do it. Along the way my mom was very benevolent, helping me to pursue my dream, even paying for my skates. When you have that loving support, it, in a sense, picks you up when you fall along the way.
This memory brings to my mind a thought about limitations. We decide where we stop ourselves from going further. But amused, I think why do we have to stop. We have an entire lifetime ahead of us. If dreams start to progress in our heads while we are young, there is all the more chance of succeeding and we then have a little while to tweak and try different things. Heidi Willis said “All limitations are self imposed.” If we trust in our selves to keep our dream alive, anything is possible. But then, why do we limit ourselves. We pick our own battles to fight, to achieve success; then why do we limit ourselves?
Something impossible, then seems improbable, and by one’s will, soon becomes inevitable. Thus, this reasons us to dream, things beyond eternity, for if god may will, each day may be our last. But then reasons themselves are unnecessary. Failures may come, but an attitude to keep moving on and trying to improve is thoroughly achieved by dreams.
At the same, Being an aspiring architect, I on my part, do feel that our dreams, should not only be about creation and execution but meanings of its existence. Unless we know the reason behind something we can never give it our best. To enhance ourselves, to sharpen our skills, to understand things in a much better way, we need to work, need to think about the merits as well as the de-merits.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
Thinking about all this, occurs a small incident in my mind, which i would like to share with you all. Walking on the roadside we many-a-times see several people spitting every minute. We conclude that they are illiterate. But are they really? Are they really the culprits? Cant they live without spitting. A big question mark. But then there is the Delhi Metro, a well maintained hygienic transport to travel with. The same person spitting on the roadside, travels through metro for 45 minutes and remains without spitting. What is the reason? Is it the rules he is afraid of? Is it the place he is afraid of? Has he become literate now? Think about it.
Every question has an answer. The only problem is, we have to make an effort to find it out, which we usually don't. We have to make our roads of our own and then respect them for, accidents can happen any second. In any manner, Coming to an end I would like to say a few lines of Langston Hughes:
"Hold fast to dreams, For if dreams die, Life is a broken winged bird, That cannot fly."
NaliN goEl
WHEN THE WORLD STARTS TO CELEBRATE LIGHT:
The InTernaTIonal Year of lIghT 2015
Dr. Thomas Schielke studied architecture at the University of Technology in Darmstadt, Germany, and now leads lighting seminars and workshops at the DIAL Academy in Ludenscheid. He worked at the lighting manufacturer ERCO from 2001 till 2014 where he designed an extensive online guide for architectural lighting and led lighting workshops. He is a co-author of the ERCO book Light Perspectives-between culture and technology, has published numerous articles on lighting design and technology and has lectured on lighting design at leading European and American universities, including Harvard GSD, MIT, Columbia GSAPP and ETHZ.
Light is all around us, and it increasingly affects our daily lives. For example, we have started to carry personal light sources around with our blue glow of smartphones, and in our homes many electrical machines now utilize coloured light to display information and simply to appear more attractive. In a larger context, architecture and cities have also developed a new dimension with the advent of electrical lighting for work and entertainment. With the introduction of coloured filters and more recently with the invention of red, green and blue LEDs the world has left behind shades of grey. Inspired by the central role of light for our culture and technology, the United Nations has proclaimed 2015 as the “International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies” (IYL2015). With IYL2015 the UN wants to raise the awareness of the importance of light and optical technologies in our lives, our future and the development of society. Light is a key element in architecture. For centuries the sun was primarily used to simply illuminate stone facades with a harsh contrast of light and shadow, but glass opened a path for interior spaces with increased brightness and a feeling of openness. With the introduction of electrical light and sophisticated optical technology engineers have looked for ways to copy the qualities of natural light, from diffuse illumination to accentuation with the wide range of natural coloured light. They were driven by the vision to create an attractive atmosphere within buildings and to improve life in the working environment. Through the rapid innovation of lamps with increasing light outputs we have already moved towards the point where the goal of avoiding glare is as relevant as the light itself.
With contemporary LED technology we possess a building element where tiny software driven pixels can be flexibly embedded in furniture, interior surfaces or even facades, changing their intensity and colour dynamically. Thereby building surfaces have started to turn into self-luminous media elements for aesthetic or commercial storytelling. At commercial melting pots for flickering light experiments like New York’s Times Square, we can grasp the idea of living within dynamic screens that never rest. People looking for a minimalistic colourless environment have to look around a lot before they could find a spot to purely enjoy shades of grey.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
Due to the abundance of light today we have lost the beauty of the night in many places of the world. Particles in the sky that reflect urban light emissions reduce the opportunity to enjoy the stars at night. Where the widely spread sodium lamps are installed the nocturnal sky appears often orange and not dark grey any more. Not only does this “sky glow” affect people, particularly astronomers, but it also affects other organisms, such as birds that are oriented by stars. Therefore several groups like the Dark Sky Association or the research team “Loss of the Night” have raised public awareness for the ecological effects of outdoor lighting. In addition, medical scientist have pointed out the health risk that night shift worker face when their circadian rhythms are disrupted.
Hence, more research is necessary to understand the dependencies between light and health in order to find adequate answers for challenging living and working situations. The wide perspective of the IYL2015 will ensure that the various dimensions of light, culture, technology and energy will be included. It will be interesting to explore if the IYL2015 will bring us more coloured light in the built environment or if we will encounter a renaissance of black and white lighting design – like in film noir or with the play of shadow on forms by Le Corbusier or Tadao Ando.
Architect in making : 5
Coming out of the office of the HOD, his face looked flushed as if someone took out all the blood from his system. He couldn’t afford to repeat the entire year. He felt hopeless looking at his marks, flunking three subject out of seven. The ones he passed too were on the border line. He tried convincing himself how he needs to divide his time and pay more attention to technical subjects too. Because scoring an A in design alone won’t get him a degree. Repeating a year would only mean wasting a so much time and money.
But what was he supposed to do? He did well at what he loved; screwed up in the things that couldn’t hold up his interest. It was so simple to him, that he’d do what he loved. Do well at what he loved. Neglecting it too long he stood at a point where he was helpless. What was to be done now? And he buried his head in his hands.
-samhita de if not here then where
“Architecture is the masterly, correct and magnificent play of masses brought together in light. Our eyes are made to see forms in light; light and shade reveal these forms; cubes, cones, spheres, cylinders or pyramids are the great primary forms which light reveals to advantage; the image of these is distinct and tangible within us without ambiguity. It is for this reason that these are beautiful forms, the most beautiful forms..”
le Corbusier
Architecture occupies a peculiar place in the life of democratic societies. Most buildings get built because of some private concern, an individual or a corporate entity. It is the art and science of designing buildings and non-building structure. The Roman architect VITRUVIUS in the early 1st century AD said that –A good building should always satisfy three principles: firmitas, utilitas, venustas. Architecture of a certain period shows a number of striking similarities of form that distinguish it from the architecture of other times, we label it a style although we may dislike the terms simply because it brings to our mind the unpleasant memories. We cannot keep on pretending that we solve our problems without an interference in form.
Vernacular architecture originated when mankind was required to make use of the natural resources around him, and provide him shelter which is responsive to the climate, a shield from the elements. Such simple traditions have long been replaced by half–digested, largely inappropriate architectural values. The humanistic desire to be culturally connected to ones surroundings is reflected in harmonious architecture, a topology which can be identified with a specific region. Vernacular architecture adheres to basic green architectural principles of energy efficiency and utilizing materials and resources in close proximity to site. In an age where materials are available well beyond our region, it is essential to take into consideration the embodied energy lost in transportation of these goods.
“Space, lines, light and sound” are the essential components of the experience of architecture and the most profound buildings have captured these moments through thoughtfully orchestrated design. The modern architecture reconciles the principles underlying architectural design with rapid technological advancement and modernization of society. Gaining global popularity especially after Second World War, architectural modernism was adopted by many architects and architectural educators, and continued as a dominant architectural style for institutional and corporate buildings. Modern architecture includes the notion ‘Form Follows Function’, adaptation of machine aesthetics, visual expression of structure and many more.
Vernacular architecture is lost somewhere despite having a long history that dates back to almost two centuries; only over the past decade vernacular architectural studies have become established into mainstream architectural discourse. Why did this happen …? The most important reason is cultural and economic globalization. In the midst of great technological environmental and political change over the past decades the vernacular has become highly relevant, either as a motive of intellectual curiosity, as a technological example or as a political strategic element. The way human settlements are structured in Modernity has been vastly unsystematic, current architecture exists on a singular basis unfocused on the connectivity of a community as a whole.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
The works by LAURIE BAKER are some remarkable examples of vernacular architecture. The hamlet- Laurie baker’s own house sets an example of cost effective housing that also says “Ask of each building component ‘Is it necessary?’ If the answer is ‘No’ don’t do it. If the answer is ‘yes’, think of the most economical way in which you could do it”. He used exposed brick work, rain water harvesting, biogas plants; he used proper light and air ventilation systems. All the above features in all his buildings made his architecture stand out. The Laurie Baker center in Trivandrum, Kerala in collaboration with cost ford are doing great job of promoting brick vernacular architecture in there. We the youth can revive the vernacular architecture’s sole by reducing modernity and making philosophies that will last for coming decades.
NEEkiTa haTValNE
Do you call the first one an eccentric? Maybe, his love for his work can be termed as crazy but isn’t it amazing to see how close one could get to built forms? Or would you tell the second one that how doomed she is? But she is putting up with it. She is growing with it. Also, is it okay for the third one to be full of regrets everyday? Would he learn to love this field with time? And is the fourth unreasonably hopeful to like what she is doing to have her coming back to it? For the fifth to feel that there is no going back ? How can he manage to build a bridge between what he loves to do and what needs to be done?
These are merely some parts of this huge book of stories. Is it that bad to be into Architecture? Well, not really. Everyone has their own story to tell. As you see them clinging onto their drafting boards, their story is just being continued. They’re living through it. What is interesting is that how they become parts of others and others become part of theirs. For every bit of hopelessness, there is a smile when you get your sheet right. For every time you come close to giving up, there is something that’ll pull you back. If you’re in this field once, it’ll grow on you. You’ll learn to love it through time. If you’re full of doubts or you’re full of joy, happy about being here or wanting to leave, throwing away everything on your work table because you are done or packing stuff to get out for class, I would like to put up one question and only one, which you need to answer to yourselves.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
-samhita de
sililoquy
Ar. Shirish Beri's works, which tend to reflect his values and concerns in life have been bearing their distinct mark on modern Indian architecture since 1975. They strive to address his life concerns of man moving further away from nature, from his fellow human beings and from his own self.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
In a world of enmeshed, entwined, enigmatic experiences, in a world where dynamic systems, besides contingent, diverse programs are replacing stable systems and simple, clear programs, I prefer working with a certain doubt and uncertainty. Working with open-ended uncertainty allows for unforeseen, unknown anomalies to find their own space with ease in the overall design matrix, which itself is designed for such inclusive evolution. My architecture would not like to be in the form of invulnerable contained enclosures, but would try to find a kind of vulnerable expression in the meaningful interface between the enclosed space and the open space. It seeks joy, a sense of wonder and a special spatial beauty by befriending the simple, the mundane and the ordinary. I have started realising the full meaning of what Samuel Mockbee says “As architects, our goodness is more important than our greatness and our compassion more eventful than our passion.” My works are not designed to create iconic, grand, exhibitionist forms or graphic compositions that attract the eye, but to create more humane, socially relevant, more natural and sustainable spaces that nurture the human spirit.
"A Paradox?
Loving everybody I miss nobody! The joy within feels the joy without! A full life has nothing to fulfill Being nowhere one belongs everywhere."
dear black,
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
I see how it is, with you and me in reality, facing each other in a seamless obscurity named ‘balance’ which somehow is the reason of our abstract parting. This reality, yours… mine… ours, which doesn’t let us be more than balance, which doesn’t let us express the beauty of our imbalanced togetherness, imperfect exquisiteness, I despise it for it is untrue to me. It doesn’t appreciate the myriad possibilities between us, our subtle alchemy. It regards our tryst as something morose, sad, grave, miserable, gloomy and sometimes even blue but I wonder, will they ever try to understand the beauty of our rendezvous? In reality I guess not but probably in some other space where a pinch of me and a part of you won’t be measured on what they call ‘the dullness of a greyscale.’
Our existence in this world is very subjective, the way the world views us: opposite, conflicting, contradictory, incongruous, odd and incompatible. I wonder how our realities are shaped by some conventional norms of seeing, of ‘looked-at-ness.’ I wonder how you can be convinced in these skewed notions of what our reality might have been had we been together. You have always been beautifully deep to me. I want to drown in your lustrous depth. I love your iconic beauty in the handsomeness of the ravens. I adore your delicate youth in the waving curls of a toddler. I still remember what you once said about us… that you appreciate your existence because you feel I compliment you. Why won’t you believe in that anymore? Why do you feel I will lose my identity in your abyss? Why do you feel that your slightest touch would mar my age old earned purity?
son of our inevitable detachment. I don’t wish to part from you. I don’t wish to meet you in the empty spaces of nothingness. This soundless whining in my head is slowly eating my poise. I don’t wish to be absorbed in the purity of my loneliness where I am only me and not a part of us, a probable part of us… All these years I have embellished my identity,
Our blend is often viewed as a feeling of sinking, a terribly plummeting silence, a silence of loss and despair… of hopelessness, a burning angst. I wonder why sadness is the immediate companion of our attachment which has now become the reason of our inevitable detachment. I don’t wish to part from you. I don’t wish to meet you in the empty spaces of nothingness. This soundless whining in my head is slowly eating my poise. I don’t wish to be absorbed in the purity of my loneliness where I am only me and not a part of us, a probable part of us… All these years I have embellished my identity, now I am tired, tired of walking alone with no hand to hold. I had a dream once, of you and me walking together in the subtle silence of a spring afternoon. And midst the beauty around us you held my hand. At one point I looked down and I couldn’t tell which fingers were yours and which were mine. It was like magic! Why can’t I make the world see our oneness like this, like magic? Why can’t I make you believe in the beauty of our something? Do you really believe in the dreariness of our coming together? There are countless hues on the palette, all wreathing their stories with the world, maybe we could evolve our togetherness into beauty for the world to perceive us differently. Believe me. Believe in us. I hate to spend the night all by myself without a trace of you. I hate to pass those nights hugging my knees, thinking they were you. How ironic it is, our union, the world would keep viewing it as lifeless when in the reality of our imaginations, dreams, it will all be the reason for our merriment. The iciness, the sinking, the sickening of our something will never be able to reveal the tantalizing warmth of our fanciful love.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
Maybe the shade of our unison was destined to be unworthy of affection. Maybe our union was always meant to express the sorrow of a broken heart or the story of unrequited love… maybe the very purpose of our amalgamation was to remain grey…
, white.
GREY IN ARCHITECTURE INDIAN ARCH
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
f
THE dEaN ' S dESk
The emerging global trends towards environmental sustainability in addition to the regulatory requirements for environmental protection has now been seen as an opportunity for us to adopt practices that take into consideration green material usage, emphasis on green transportation, high reliability on renewable energy sources, waste minimization and material recycling etc. Rise of environmentalism has been mainly due to successive discoveries that have changed associated values, interests, and knowledge about environmental problems.
This paradigm shift towards environmental sustainability or we can also view it as the transformation phase has opened a window of opportunity to introduce and implement solutions ranging from design interventions, technological innovations and behavioral change in decision making. Various concepts and development ideas have been adopted across the world such as Eco City Concept, New Urbanism, Transit Oriented Developments, Smart City Concept, Zero carbon cities etc, where architectural thoughts have been influenced by philosophies that propagate “Environmental Sustainability Transition”. But the practices sometimes ignore the knowledge and wisdom embedded in our traditional knowledge system. The Architectural thoughts in the future will be guided by the notion of environmental sustainability which will bring fundamental changes in the development models as practiced today and the techno-centric thought will be replaced by the Eco-centric thought.
I would like to thank NASA who gave an opportunity to my students to work upon a theme that has dominated all the discourses that we see today. I also congratulate the editorial team of School of Planning and Architecture, Bhopal who has worked very hard to bring before you this magazine with a hope that the young minds will appreciate and acknowledge the paradigm shift and also be part of this Transformation Phase through their efforts and contributions.
Prof. Sanjeev Singh, Associate Dean, Campus Administration & Student Welfare School of Planning and Architecture, Bhopal. WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
fROM THE prESidENT ' S dESk
Noam Chomsky rightly said; “Optimism is a strategy for making a better future. Because unless you believe that the future can be better, you are unlikely to step up and take responsibility for making it so.”
Beginning a tenure with pure optimism and expecting sheer hard work, those were my main thinking’s as I entered in to the 57th year of NASA INDIA.
With responsibilities on my shoulder and a sea of lofty ideas to empower the architectural student fraternity with newer opportunities and an arena of exposure, we the members of the 57th council of NASA started by putting down the essentials for this process with the consideration of time in hand.
With” transformation: in the spirit of time" in mind, we laid down meticulous strategies that we would be working on, in the near future. As time plays an important factor In any success story, we started working towards the transformation of the whole body of NASA while building a challenging schedule in bringing our thoughts to action.
We begin our journey with the first council meet which was hosted by SMVDU, SALD and used this esteemed platform to launch the newsletter, website and announcing the plan of action for the year.
We were honoured to be associated with two major societies that is ArchiDesign and Indian institute of photography which was a stage to exhibit new and young talents. The former conducted the BEST Student award and the BEST Thesis Award while that latter was convinced to conduct monthly competitions and the winners of the same would be displayed on the home page of NASA website.
The ArchiDesign Juries were hosted by AMITY School of Architecture and Planning, Noida.
One of the most promising change that was incorporated was introducing a new post in the council to manage the collaborations, foreign organizations with NASA India.
The efforts towards public relations and our international journey begin with discussions with various foreign alliances like American students association,
European architecture students association and various associations of students in Bangladesh, Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Singapore and Malaysia. This could be a great way in imparting and sharing knowledge and providing a wider exposure to benefit the association and the students.
A special D team was introduced to design posters with creative graphics so as to adhere mass communication.
Amongst many collaborations that we were planning to tie up we were successful in collaborating NASA INDIA with 361 degrees conference and the association became the knowledge partner for this prestigious conference which was held in March 2015 .We also initiated the discussions and collaborations with AA visiting school, Mumbai for the workshop that would be taking place in JULY 2015. Another major tie up was the with the New York Based organization Blank space and this forum has introduced international competition.
The responsibility of tracking things at the base in the NASA headquarters was initiated and to begin with we started the audit which has been pending since last six years. As we were short of time it was not conducted .But we have left it at a stage where things can be taken further for the betterment and can be sorted methodically.
Announcement of prize money for zonals and annuals were also declared during the precon meet.
The Annual Convention this year summed up to a delegation of 6000 odd students and more than 500 architects from around the world .The main speakers comprised of Sir Peter Cook, Karan Grover, Yasminn Sharif, Angela Brady, Prem Chanaverkar, Ashish Ganju, Narendra Dengle, Neelkanth Chaya, Lal Balasuriya, Christopher Charles Benninger, Stephen Hodder From RIBA team, Sanjay Mohe, Rafiq Azam, Snehal Shah and Takaharu Tezuka were some of them in addition to Martyn Hook, Auroville team headed by Suhasini Iyer. The event was hosted by MARG Institute, Swarnabhoomi, Chennai.
Various Workshops were conducted to enlighten the students and equip them in sustainability, Bamboo Construction, Mud Construction along with acquaintance to high end software’s such as grasshopper and vector works
Indian Arch, The magazine was hosted By SPA Bhopal Holding the theme “Grey In Architecture“. It presents various articles related to the subject. Its a collective effort and hard work of students reflected through this magazine.
We were honoured to be associated With RIBA and had the privilege to soft launch it at the 57th Annual National Convention.
One of the interesting facts of the ANC was the attempt to make the WORLDS largest Painting as well.
With Success and grandeur Of this Mega event, It was an honour to have Shri K. Rosaiah, the honourable governor of Tamil Nadu to grace the occasion of the valedictory function of the 57 ANC.
Having hosted five zonal conventions successfully and established the NIPC headquarters in Asmita College of Architecture, which hosted the ANDC 2014 also in Mumbai, fruitfully compiled the ANDC 2014-2015 book, they also Launched HUDCO 2014 book along with two newsletters properly composed and finalised.
I share my immense gratitude to everyone associated with NASA INDIA. I take this opportunity to thank the council members and the tireless efforts and dedication of Kapildev Jaiswal, Siddhant Gupta, Palagani Rahul, Murari Kumar Raja and Vivek Venkateshappa without whom none of our accomplishment’s would have been this steady and strong.
It has been a very interesting journey since the last six years.
I thank all those who have guided us and have been our back bone through all the struggles and circumstances.
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
With this I come to the end of my official tenure with NASA INDIA, from being a delegate to the utmost pleasure of being respected as the PRESIDENT. It all ends to a great lesson and experience in life which I shall always cherish.
Cheers and best wishes....!!! And keep up the creative side.
Regards, Ar. Waqar Abid A Z 57th National President | 2014-15 National Association of Students of Architecture, India.
Cover Design: Faiz Ahmed
03 Indian Arch
Design: Manu Dhanked
04 Prologue
Author: Peter Zumthor Design: Tanya Talwar
06 Contents Design: Devashree Choudhari
09 If not here then where?
Author: Samhita De Design :Arunima Kalra College: SMVDU
10 Nagasaki Peace Memorial
Author: Radhika Goyal Design :Arunima Kalra College: SSAA
12 Sketch 1 Artist :Aishwarya
13 Architect in Making: 1
Author: Samhita De Design: Arunima Kalra College: SMVDU
14 Life Is An Illusion
Author:Vivek Aggarwal Design: Anmol Bhargava College: SMDVU
21 Photograph 1
Photographer: Siddharth College: MNM Jain School of Architecture
22 Sililoquy 1
Author: Achyut Kantawala Artist :Shaktidev Laishram
25 Architects I Design :Rana Sarkar
26 HUDCO
32 Sketch 2
Artist :Karan Dhawan College: BIT Mesra
34 Architect In Making: 2
Author: Samhita De Design :Arunima Kalra College: SMVDU
35 Photograph 2
Photographer :Anindita Guhan
36 Sketch 3
Artist :Shubhankar Goswami College: Guru Nanak Dev University
37 Dusting Off My Grey
Author :Karuna Lala College: SDPS College, Indore
38 Sililoquy 2
Author: Geeta Balakrishnan Artist :Shaktidev Laishram
39 Architects II Design :Rana Sarkar
40 Sketch 4 Artist :Karan Dhawan College: BIT Mesra
42 Gray in Architecture
Author: Misha Jose Design :Rana Sarkar College: Ayojan School of Architecture
43 Sketch 5
Artist :Kavibharathi College: MNM Jain School of Architecture
44 Architects III Design :Rana Sarkar
46 Sketch 5
Artist: Unknown College: Ayojan School of Architecture
48 Detached Attachment Author:Shirish Beri Design:Shirish Beri
50 Dynamism
Author: Maitreyee Fadnavis Design: Arunima Kalra College: SMMCA, Nagpur
52 Architect in Making: 1
Author: Samhita De Design: Arunima Kalra College: SMVDU
53 Photograph 3
Photographer: Indranil Bannerjee College: Jadavpur University
54 Sketch 6
Artist: Balyukesh P College: MNM Jain School of Architecture
56 Indian Temple Architecture
Author:Udayan Indurkar Artist: Aishvarya Dubey College: Hitkarni College of Architecture
59 Painting Artist :Arunima Rane College: SDPS Women’s College
60 Photograph 4
Photographer: Karan Dhawan College: BIT Mesra
62 Inception
Author: Shuktika Sabharwal Design: Aayush Jindal College: MANIT, Bhopal
65 Photograph 5
Photographer: Ankit Kumar Senapati College: Jadavpur University
66 Architects IV Design: Rana Sarkar
68 Gray in Architecture
Author: Unknown Design: Arunima Kalra
70 Architects in Making: 4
83 Architects V Design: Rana Sarkar
84 Sililoquy 3
Author: Thomas Shielke Artist: Shaktidev Laishram
86 Sketch 7
Artist: Pradeep College: MNM Jain School of Architecture
87 Architect In Making: 5 Author: Samhita De Artist: Arunima Kalra
88 Photograph 7
Photographer: Arkoprabha Pal College: Jadavpur University
90 Vernacular Et Moderne Author: Neekita Hatvalne Design: Joy Zenhinsang
93 Graphic Design: Joy Zenhinsang
94 Sililoquy 4
Author: Shirish Beri Artist: Shaktidev Laishram
WWW.NASAINDIA.CO
Author: Samhita De Design: Arunima Kalra College: SMVDU
71 Photograph 6
Photographer: Ankit Kumar Senapati College: Jadavpur University
72 External Crits and Ego
Author: Unknown Artist:Arunima Kalra College: Unknown
75Gardens by the Bay
Author: Unknown Design: Siddharth Yadav College: Unknown
76Cotton and Lead
Author: Shirish Beri Artist: Shirish Beri
78Archiscope
Authors: Sana Gupta & Design: Anmol Bhargava Joy Zenhinsang
80 Dream
Author: Nalin Goel Artist: Sidharth Yadav & College: Sundardeep College of Faiz Ahmed Architecture
95 Architects V Design: Rana Sarkar
96 Dear Black, Love White Author: Unknown Design: Joy Zenhinsang College: Unknown
102 Editorial
104 From the Dean's desk Author: Dr. Sanjeev Singh
105 From the President’s desk Author: Waqar Abid A Z
