Rajasthan district map

1st PRIZE
The Programme:
Art is not a thing, it is a way. Art is not a handicraft, it is a transmission of feelings the artist had experienced.Art has been an integral part of the countries cultures from time immemorial. With time, it underwent drastic changes and reached its zenith. The confrontation of tradition and modernity never favoured the former, this turmoil left a very bleak existence of art at stake, and the conservation of which has become the call of the day.

Global Development Centre for Indian Crafts

Hanumangarh, Rajasthan
city of hanumangarh

Site

Bamboo Architecture:

Concept

Design:

Man once lived in harmony with nature. He used it but still respected it..The materialism of today created a break with the millennia old developments. Earth has been spoilt and abused, which today, inspite of all its wealth is deteriorating. The lost balance between man and nature has to be revitalized and must be given a voice strong enough to support the cause. The development centre engages with the already existing conditions of the waterfront landscape and creates an artificial connectivity between both the sides of the river, which serves as a structural continuation between different departments. Volume is strategically chiseled and cut to provide specific views and sightlines of the area making the most out of the river view without making it monotonous. It attempts to be adapted to the natural landscape and the cluster of the buildings that blend it with nature. With its arrangement, it tries to communicate to its surroundings, referring not only to the natural landscape but also to memory. It concerns a sub-terranean building with two wings, which are on either sides of the river, forming a mirror image of one another. These wings are interconnected with the help of decks, thus contributing to their unification.

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Site Justification
Located on the banks of Sutlej River, which is longest of the five rivers that flows through the historic crossroad region of Punjab in northern India and Pakistan, it has its source near the holiest of lakes the Mansarevar in Tibet. Sutlej was an important tributary of the Saraswati River, which had changed its course when Saraswati began to perish in the heart of Rajasthan. This river symbolizes the importance of a change in the time of crisis. NEARLY ten thousand years ago, when mighty rivers started flowing down the Himalayan slopes, western Rajasthan was green and fertile. Great civilizations prospered in the cool amiable climate on the river banks of north-western India. The abundant waters of the rivers and copious rains provided ample sustenance for their farming and other activities. Six thousand years later, Saraswati, one of the rivers of great splendour in this region, for reasons long enigmatic, dwindled and dried up Several other rivers shifted their courses, some of their tributaries were pirated by neighbouring rivers or severed from their main courses. The greenery of Rajasthan was lost, replaced by an arid desert where hot winds piled up dunes of sand. The flourishing civilizations vanished one by one. Art, on similar lines, was patronized in India - which in turn, served as a lifeline for several people. Lately, for numerous reasons, it has been neglected and is on the verge of extinction. Without taking drastic measures and without forcing it out of its course, it will soon perish.

Ms. Deeksha Reddy, Sri Venkateshwara College of Architecture, Hyderabad.

Site Plan:

Approach
The site is located in the outskirts of Hanumangarh and can be approached through all kinds of road transport

Space Programming:

admin

Plan:

Ms. Deeksha Reddy receiving the 1st prize from Smt. Rajashree Birla, Director, Aditya Birla Group for her design.

academics

Every creative mind awaits a breakthrough and a perfect platform to make its stand. Birla White Yuva Ratna Awards was one such oppurtunity for me. The brainstorming before the competition or the mentoring during the design process were outstanding features of this competition, thus lending it a panoramic view of the design world. The oppurtunity to meet the best minds of the country was a perfect wrap-up to the award.

JURY COMMENT The jury appreciated the sensible approach of the participants towards the design brief, where an attempt was made to take the brief a little ahead in its spirit and not just confine it to the programmatic requirements of the competition. This design solution reflects a very balanced mix of traditional design in its integration into the modern design along with a contemporary stylisation. An attempt to create spaces with a feel of the traditional rural craft, thereby creating and discovering the whole built-in environment through layers of courtyards and inter-connecting passageways, are some of the key features that the jury appreciated in this presentation. There is consistency right from the conception to its final presentation, which is quite remarkable. The jury commented on the outstanding quality and genre of the presentation.

Bamboo roof

Art History
It has yielded a number of terracotta decorative tiles in the late Kushana style along with a number of coins. Two terracotta capitals at the depth of 15 from the top of the mound with stepped up pyramids along their edges have been discovered

sandstone units

Area Statements
Workshop 130 sq.m Class 150 sq.m store 30 sq.m Toilets 30 sq.m Indi Department 350 sq.m

Climatic Studies

of iew it d v un de hop plo s ex ork w

side elevation

side elevation of a department

Wooden Decks
Locally Available Materials

River changing its course

overall render

These can be used as a landscape element and finds its purpose for workshop spill-outs

Conclusion
Craft in India is an inbuilt system of creativity and innovation enduring for centuries and yet, remaining authentic and never being monotonous in a culture so rich - even when on the verge of extinction and definitely deserves to be preserved

3 | Birla Yuvaratna 2011