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VOL 28 (1)
SEPTEMBER 2014
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INDIAN ARCHITECT & BUILDER
INTERIORS Living Cube Harmonious Whole Young Designers ‘14 Cache
VOL 28 (1) | SEPTEMBER 2014 | www.iabforum.com RNI Registration No. 46976/87, ISSN 0971-5509 INDIAN ARCHITECT AND BUILDER
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Chairman: Jasu Shah Printer, Publisher & Editor: Maulik Jasubhai Shah Chief Executive Officer: Hemant Shetty Editorial: Joel Roy, Aastha Deshpande Design Team: Mansi Chikani, Prasenjit Bhowmick, Kenneth Menezes Events: Abhijeet Mirashi Subscription: Dilip Parab Production Team: V Raj Misquitta (Head), Prakash Nerkar, Arun Madye Head Office: JMPL, Taj Building, 3rd Floor, 210, Dr D N Road, Fort, Mumbai - 400 001. Tel: + 91-22-4037 3636, Fax: +91-22-4037 3635 SALES Brand Manager: Sudhanshu Nagar Email: sudhanshu_nagar@jasubhai.com MARKETING TEAM & OFFICES Mumbai Parvez Memon Taj Building, 3rd Floor, 210, Dr D N Road, Fort, Mumbai 400 001. Tel: + 91-22-4037 3636, Fax: +91-22-4037 3635 Email: parvez_memon@jasubhai.com Delhi: Preeti Singh / Suman Kumar 803, Chiranjeev Tower, No 43, Nehru Place, New Delhi – 110 019 Tel: +91 11 2623 5332, Fax: 011 2642 7404, Email: preeti_singh@jasubhai.com, suman_kumar@jasubhai.com Bengaluru / Hyderabad / Gujarat: Sudhanshu Nagar Mobile: +91 9833104834, Email: sudhanshu_nagar@jasubhai.com Chennai / Coimbatore: Princebel M Mobile: +91 9444728035, +91 9823410712, Email: princebel_m@jasubhai.com Kolkata: Sudhanshu Nagar Mobile: +91 9833104834, Email: sudhanshu_nagar@jasubhai.com Pune: Parvez Memon Mobile: +91 9769758712, Email: parvez_memon@jasubhai.com
Printed & Published by Maulik Jasubhai Shah on behalf of Jasubhai Media Pvt Ltd (JMPL), 26, Maker Chamber VI, Nariman Point, Mumbai 400 021. Printed at M B Graphics, B-28, Shri Ram Industrial Estate, ZG D Ambekar Marg, Wadala, Mumbai 400031and Published from Mumbai - 3rd Floor, Taj Building, 210, Dr D N Road, Fort, Mumbai 400 001. Editor: Maulik Jasubhai Shah, 26, Maker Chamber VI, Nariman Point, Mumbai 400 021. Indian Architect & Builder: (ISSN 0971-5509), RNI No 46976/87, is a JMPL monthly publication. Reproduction in any manner, in whole or part, in English or any other language is strictly prohibited. We welcome articles, but do not accept responsibility for contributions lost in the mail.
30 CURRENT
The latest news, events and competitions in architecture and design
from India and abroad.
46 PRODUCTS
Crafted or manufactured products of use in contemporary settings.
50
INTERIORS
Harmonious Whole
Using music as a metaphor for space creation and organizational
composition, PLAY architecture weaves a material experiment into a
rhythmic office space for the management of a mall in Vijaywada.
56 ARCHITECTURE
Disparate Twins
Using music as a metaphor for space creation and organizational
composition, PLAY architecture weaves a material experiment into a
rhythmic office space for the management of a mall in Vijaywada.
66
A Spanish Serenade
A budget weekend resort near Kolkata is re-imagined by Ayan
Sen Architects Urban Designers and Planners (ASAUDP), breaking
out of the mould of the usual South-East Asian tropical; the
appearance is an amalgam of Bengali colonialism and
Spanish haciendas.
72
YOUNG DESIGNERS ‘14
Architecture - Small House
Delhi based Architect, Nimit Gandhi’s Small House is a ’’frank”’
home in appearance and design that expounds simplicity and
stands in brazen defiance of frivolous ornamentation, letting the
language of clean geometry speak for itself.
78
Interiors - Goodie’s Cafe
A supplement to the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad,
the “Goodie’s Café” by Neel Ghia, is a fine specimen of
conservative yet elegant interiors.
82
IA&B CACHE
Mind Your Minimalism
The work of young designers sm studio from Mumbai helps
us explore the patterns behind the generic Minimalist aesthetic
that is prevalent in the Indian design industry.
88
SPACE FRAMES
...the lives of others
Photographer Girish Kumar uses the lens to tease out stories of
everyday lives.
Printed & Published by Maulik Jasubhai Shah on behalf of Jasubhai Media Pvt Ltd (JMPL), 26, Maker Chamber VI, Nariman Point, Mumbai 400 021. Printed at M B Graphics, B-28, Shri Ram Industrial Estate, ZG D Ambekar Marg, Wadala, Mumbai 400031and Published from Mumbai - 3rd Floor, Taj Building, 210, Dr D N Road, Fort, Mumbai 400 001. Editor: Maulik Jasubhai Shah, 26, Maker Chamber VI, Nariman Point, Mumbai 400 021. Indian Architect & Builder: (ISSN 0971-5509), RNI No 46976/87, is a JMPL monthly publication. Reproduction in any manner, in whole or part, in English or any other language is strictly prohibited. We welcome articles, but do not accept responsibility for contributions lost in the mail.
PLAY © : e Imag r e Cov
a
tec rchi
ture
50
Harmonious Whole Using music as a metaphor for space creation and organizational composition, PLAY architecture weaves a material experiment into a rhythmic office space for the management of a mall in Vijaywada. Text: Joel Roy Images: courtesy PLAY architecture
Indian Architect & Builder - September 2014
interiors
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51
Study render exploring the possibility of a unified glowing object
“We shall therefore borrow all our Rules for the Finishing (of) our Proportions, from the Musicians, who are the greatest Masters of this Sort of Numbers, and from those Things wherein Nature shows herself most excellent and complete.”
T
he above quote, attributed to the Italian Renaissance architect and poet Leon Battista Alberti (1407-1472) demonstrated the fascination architects have had for music as an inspiration for design. Architecture shares a common vocabulary with the most ethereal of arts. Concepts and terms are freely exchanged between the two. It is not uncommon to hear both architecture and music being described using terms like harmony, rhythm, texture etc. “As a simple design principle at Play Architecture, we perceive and approach interior design like an architectural approach which constitutes exercises for space making, form, structure, material and light.” When confronted with a linear space divided into two halves by a series of massive columns, the prime concern for the architects was to be able to create a seamless, homogeneous space while effectively integrating the structural system into the design. Imagining the columns as nodes and connecting them by a string, a diagram evolved that resembled the harmonic series. As in music, the visual string was made to vibrate and the frequency directly
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Study render of a seamless rhythmic space Indian Architect & Builder - September 2014
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Disparate Twins What do you do when you have 1.5 acres of picturesque land, an accommodating client and an inherent inquisitiveness? If you are PLAY architecture, you do just that. Text: Joel Roy Images: courtesy PLAY architecture
W
hen a plot of land at the foothills of Chamundi Hills in Mysore, owned by three friends needed to have a few permanent structures built on it to prevent encroachment, the trio approached their architect friend who was going through a slow period in his practice. As opposed to designing a couple of sheds, the architects decided to use
Indian Architect & Builder - September 2014
the opportunity offered by a blank canvas, reduced monthly overheads and a downsized office to challenge themselves to demonstrate their versatility in the design of spaces. Two distinct thought processes led to two disparate architectural expressions of similar programs on a site at the same point in time and with similar budgets.
architecture
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57
Formless
Floating Indian Architect & Builder - September 2014
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SMALL HOUSE Design Craft, New Delhi Delhi based Architectural firm Design Craft’s Small House is a ’’frank”’ home in appearance and design that expounds simplicity and stands in brazen defiance of frivolous ornamentation, letting the language of clean geometry speak for itself. Text: Aastha Deshpande | Drawings & Images: courtesy Design Craft
“The way in which you are and I am, the manner in which we humans are on earth, is Buan, dwelling.” Martin Heidegger (Being & Time) Architecture has immense potential to influence the way we live. In the contemporary age of cross disciplines and multi faceted dimensions of existence; there has been an ever more increasing demand on architecture to adapt to the current lifestyle. I personally acquire inspiration from a diversity of fields including dance, philosophy and visual arts that constantly stimulate my architectural aptitude; providing me newer methods to invigorate the art and reinvent the process of design formation. - Nimit Gandhi
Design Craft is a young and enthused architectural firm based in New Delhi with zeal towards creating contemporary designs and spaces. Established in 2012, we strongly believe in providing our clients with unique design solutions; each with a reciprocal approach reflecting their identities, styles and comforts. Exploring a surreal language of form enhanced with material expressionism; we are currently at a nascent stage of experimenting towards creating a new and innovative design vocabulary for the urban residential and commercial ventures. Indian Architect & Builder - September 2014
YD ‘14 | architecture
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A glass film that separates but visually connects the compact indoors from the vibrant pockets of the outdoors. Indian Architect & Builder - September 2014
82
The work of young designers sm studio from Mumbai helps us explore the patterns behind the generic Minimalist aesthetic that is prevalent in the Indian design industry.
Text: Namita Dharia Photographs: courtesy the architects
sm studio is a young, Mumbai-based firm whose adopted aesthetic of neat lines, strong materiality, and simplicity of space, shows a definite dexterity of design. Their refinement, careful attention to detail, and skill at execution and presentation has given rise to a series of spaces that are very attractive to the eye. Closer observation of their work however, evokes a dÊjà vu, seeming to align itself with the stylistic trends that so many architects in India follow. This generic trend and brand aesthetic can perhaps best be termed as a modified, mainstream Minimalism. The prevalence of this aesthetic and design methodology within sm studio’s work bequeaths us an opportunity to ponder upon the omnipresence of the mainstream Minimal in design today, especially in terms of what causes its success in contemporary practices in India. Indian Architect & Builder - September 2014
sm studio has been created by architects Meghana Shetty and Suresh Mistry, whose eye for detail and execution, and marketing and networking skills are granting them an increasing prominence in architectural circles. The young, yet professional team promises good design married with quick execution and delivery as its USP. This in itself has brought them a wide array of work ranging from interior projects and installations to bungalows and buildings. In their case, the minimalist aesthetic adopted acts as a good fit for a professional firm striving to establish itself. This is due to the fact that Minimalism does not require extreme experimentation and thus proffers good finishes and a more controlled product. Equally influential in the success of this young firm is the underlying fact that Minimalism has come to be representative of a modernity and
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1. The Mocha Corporate Office as a Minimalist project in concrete and glass. 2. The Khaitan Residence’s wood paneled benches and partitions reflect a generic Minimalist pattern. 3. The use of materials and bold colours, as seen in the Khaitan Residence, are often used to punctuate a Minimalist space.
‘hippness’ to the average man on the street, becoming a recurring stylistic pattern that clientele in India identify as ‘good, contemporary design’. Mainstream Minimalism has thus helped sm studio build a conscious/unconscious brand value, a brand value that threads through their work and indeed, emerges as representative of their practice. Further, exploring the mainstream Minimal in terms of the design and execution of projects, one realises that the aesthetic by its very nature has an implicit reliance on strong detailing and material strategies. This reinforces sm studio’s application of the aesthetic as their strength lies in good detail design and choice of materials, which is supplemented by Suresh’s background in carpentry. Projects such as the Mocha Corporate Office demonstrate
this, where a clinical spatiality comprising a palate of grey and green emerges from the concrete in the floor and furniture. Additionally, the firm’s flair for massing and volumes, again, stylistically aligns with a Minimalist movement where the manipulation of space and strong systems of massing form the forte of the design. In sm studio’s work, this is best demonstrated in the Jagdale Residence, where a strange duct system, an irregular beam pattern, and tertiary spaces formed by merging of two apartments into one, were converted into an open and expansive home by sm studio. Finally, Minimalist projects have very specific needs in terms of co-ordination and construction, demanding exacting finishes and a time-managed execution. They Indian Architect & Builder - September 2014
September 2014: ...the lives of others Indian Architect & Builder Magazine
Space Frames investigates issues of architecture and environment through the medium of photography. To contribute, write to us at iabedt@jasubhai.com or to the curator Dr Mathew at dr.djmathew@gmail.com.
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IN CONVERSATION Mario Botta, Mario Botta Architetto ARCHITECTURE Delhi Public School, Bengaluru: Khosla Associates Lateral House, Bengaluru: Gaurav Roy Choudhury Architects HERITAGE Adaptive Reuse of Jal Mahal Bijolai, Jodhpur: Grup.ISM Pvt Ltd CAMPAIGN: Architectural Education Women Students, Culture and Pedagogy: Madhavi Desai DELHI DIALOGUES Dwarka is the Chosen One
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