An Architect of thoughts

Human minds, even the great minds, have a belief that is true to just ONESELF. While the facts and quotations from them undergo wide acceptance (and an equal share of criticism), they face mixed reviews from the audience. This appreciation along with the criticism is highly dependent on the era of living, like-mindedness of people in the fraternity and much more, altogether bringing the famous quotes not as debates but as an understanding of the distinguishing factors around the idea. Decoding the ‘actual intent’ of the phrases- 1. The Timeline The postmodern architecture that was brought forth by industrial revolution, saw the mix if evolving culture, lifestyle, urban issues and more that lead to intrusion of ‘ new architectural solutions ’ to the society. While Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s works were revolutionary , Robert Venturi’s works were counter-revolutionary . The former focused on the efficiency of urban life, the latter focused on the richness of urban life. Being in the

Intangible heritage & Speaking heritage as a way forward (An entry for RTF Essay Competition 2020) www.rethinkingthefuture.com Image source Heritage structures go beyond the architectural or artistic features cloaking the value of their connection with the people in the context. The visual values outweighing the psychological values in a heritage structure, amidst being the first impression of every onlooker, stay in a secondary range of impact. The primary range of impact revolves around the “soul” or “spirit” of the structure that are often more than bricks and stones. Intangible herita ge that draws its definition from the stories that trace back the temple history , songs about the beauty of the practice and every other living reminder of the past-present link, tend to bind with the people and ‘live’ with them as beliefs and practices that influence their “ way of life” . These beliefs are of complete religious inheritance that has been conformed to, across ages, without

UNMASKING THE ARCHITECTURE COURSE In today’s digital era, both conceptions and misconceptions about subject accumulate so heavily that one gets convinced. In the subject of academics and education, it’s hard to look past the marketing to get to the truth. ASK. Trust humans , ask people in the line. While Architecture is all about the clichés around creativity and the NATA scores on the outside, it is so much more from the inside. Image source 1. Architecture isn’t all about the sketches that get you past NATA. The qualifying examination for Architecture, NATA, involves both drawing skills and aptitude. The challenge with the exam is the understanding of perception and logic that reflect with your hand’s skills- How well you can bring your imagination into a visually comprehensive work. This is the first step, an evergreen part of Architectural life, yet not the dominant one as it might seem in the 1 st year of architectural course. Architecture is holistic.   2. The

The users for any space encompass all the living species that ‘use’ the space. It extends across all sizable living species- from giant humans to the small birds & animals that are a part of the living ecosystem. The designed spaces must respond to all the users in an equal manner that would in turn reflect on the livability of the space. Along with built structures, landscaping that serve as the ‘dwelling’ for the other species improves the universal response of the building. Inclusion of landscape, along with improving the micro climate of the space, reincorporates the native flora and fauna over the built environment to maintain the ‘natural state’ of the zone in context.       Architect Alfredo De Vido’s work such as The Moore house at Connecticut, has its base idea emerging from the motto that the built environment must compensate for the trees that were cleared during the construction. The construction was carried out in a sustainable way that gave way for the posts &

Architecture, the visual form of creative space-making that keeps building up inside a person’s mind, is a work of art; an art that seeks ties to the inside of the onlooker. Over the years, architecture has emerged as a visually rich story that froze the historical events across the painted ceilings as in Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo or as inscriptions carved on walls in the Brihadeeswara temple in India. While some of the ’frozen history’ spoke for themselves, the others opened a whole new dimension of understanding when it took a step closer with documentation and research findings. This repository of architectural storytelling makes a building’s architecture ‘speak its heart out’, making the user achieve a connection to the truth of the making of the space. Journalism and written records have created a parallel track to the ongoing architectural evolution, which simultaneously records the architectural metamorphosis involved, and makes it an empirical record for any

“It is neither the strongest of the species that survives nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to the change.” –Charles Darwin, The father of evolution   The theory of evolution applies not only to any living species, but to the space upon which it lives. Dwelling, the place where these lives reside is everything from the nest of a bird to the Palace of a king. These are built from the nature, upon nature and with the nature giving a new picturesque to the surrounding. These shelters are thus born; ready to adapt, for it to survive in the nature. They grow along with the nature, undergoing all the changes that come by the passage of time. The birth and death of these are governed by architectural principles of the coming era. While certain principles help the growth, some work against it, making the survival difficult. As Le Corbusier has the personification of the Chandigarh city plan to a human body, every single built environme

            “Trend” -The ruler with a hidden past. Any drift in lifestyle has an ultimate path cloaked behind it. Right from the ‘micro’ of a fabric to the ‘mega’ of an assemblage, there lies a subconscious idea with its roots spreading to the social ideologies and mental perceptions. Any such perception would let itself drown into the ideologies dumped by social media and communication means.            A time lag would let us think- “How did the land of sarees allow western wear?” With the politics of choice of clothing put aside, how did this thought even emerge and dig its way through the diverse  communities and classes ?            “Globalisation” - They say.            The whole process went through different revolutionary changes – from the secluded communities to opening up to a new era namely industrialisation followed by a giant “21 st century leap” comprising different governing ideas such as Technology and media – all opening up opportunities to interact a