Professional Documents
Culture Documents
DELHI-2003
AR. RAJ REWAL
ABOUT THE ARCHITECT-RAJ REWAL
Raj Rewal was born in 1934 in Hoshiarpur, Punjab,
India.
• Also, the exterior walls of the library are clad in the same red and beige sandstone as that used in
the Parliament building. This local stone has been used extensively in northern and northwestern
India through the centuries and therefore expresses regionalism. In these two decisions regarding
height and materials, the guru acknowledges the power of the king. But the guru's wisdom and
integrity are demonstrated in the architecture of the library.
• The plan of the building is inspired by precolonial Indian architecture such as the
magnificent Taj Mahal, with its square base and symmetrical composition- POST
INDEPENDENCE ARCHITECTURE.
Historically, Indian buildings with interior open-air spaces helped in defense. But for Rewal, in
a library that needs neither defense nor ceremony, such forms seem to symbolize an
introversion characteristic of the ancient Indian guru.
The inspiration is the Adinatha Temple (1439 A.D.) at Ranakpur in western India. Adinatha is
square in plan, with cardinal axes meeting at the center, leaving open-to-sky courtyards in the
leftover spaces. In addition to being icons of Indian architecture, courtyard plans admit daylight
and have social and climatic advantages.
THE SITE AND THE BUILDING
• Located on a 10-acre (4-hectare) site, the library is nearly 590,000 square feet (55,000 square
meters) in area and can accommodate three million volumes on the two basement floors. It has hi-
tech networks and facilities for microfilm, multimedia, and satellite links.
• Site conditions and trees prohibited the northwestern corner of the plan from being built, leaving
the square incomplete. Otherwise the plan, with its courtyards and axes, is similar to historic
precedents.
• The full-height central core of the building, formed at the point of
intersection of the two axes, houses the reading room for members of
parliament (MPs), the research area and archival storage, committee room,
and a banquet hall. Beyond this central core are the courtyards, and further
beyond are separate entrance lobbies for MPs, scholars, and the public.
• The corners of the incomplete square and the nodes formed at the ends of
the axes are designated for various functions. The axes and the sides of
the square form corridors and outline the courtyards.
• The central dome, spanning 82 feet (25 meters), is entirely of glass that was specially developed
for this building. The intense heat and glare of New Delhi, with summer temperatures rising to
over 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43 degrees Centigrade), make conventional glass impractical for
skylights.
• This dome reminds you that you are standing at the intersection of the building's two main
axes. The point of intersection projects up in the dome in the form of two bands formed by
the structural frame for the glass panels. The remainder of the dome consists of a lattice of
structural frames held together by a network of steel cables converging at key tension nodes.
• Other domes are made of thin fiber-reinforced concrete shells, sometimes with inset glass
panels. Tensile forces are transferred through tubular steel members.
• Other structural elements of the building are of reinforced concrete. The slabs are coffered to
support long spans. The diaphragm walls and the foundation slab of the underground
structure resist inward and upward pressure from the water table through anchors into the
surrounding soil and the rocky substrate.
FLOOR PLANS AND SECTION
TRADITIONAL CRAFT
One such attempt is Rewal's use of handcrafted stone grills, or jalis. In precolonial Indian
architecture, jalis were used for decoration and to separate the outside from the inside, to diffuse the
harsh sunlight, and to visually and audibly connect two spaces while physically separating them.
MODERNIST IDIOM
• Rewal has introduced craftsmen to modern tools and chemicals hoping that they will revive
the tradition. In the Parliament Library, jalis are integrated artfully, creating a typically
Indian look.
• Rewal's search for a contemporary Indian identity does not stop there. The building typology
and the spirituality associated with the mandala are quintessentially Indian. He has created
contemporary Indian architecture that uses innovative technology to express both modernity
and regionalism with connections to the physical surroundings and to a venerable history.