Merging Built Forms with Nature

Introduction

As architecture was basically born out of the need to shelter ourselves from the vagaries
of nature, the most interesting aspect of designing with nature would be the need to strike
a balance between protection from the natural elements and integration with them as a
part of our design. Nature has a great refueling capacity , both physically and
psychological. After a hectic week, a few days amidst nature are absolutely refreshing and
rejuvenating. The ample amount of natural light , ventilation and greenery creates a
healthy comfortable atmosphere.

Looking particularly at Shirish Beri’s work , he talks about the important traits of building
with nature and the relevance of the quality of our outer physical space to the quality of
our inner psychological space . Contemporary existence can drain us of inner energy – so
it is Shirish Beri's philosophy that spaces should embrace the dimension of the human
spirit, an effort that will make us whole and connect us to the essence of life. Every space
in his building is a tug of war, making people move ahead, but holding them back to their
roots.

Rooted in Indian values, in the s.d.m institute of management development, mysore , every
space is designed to encourage interaction that would further enhance meaningful
learning. The issue was to connect each student to nature. The idea emerged from early
gurukul learning spaces where teachers and students have their classes under the trees.
The building is designed to facilitate flow with the contours and thus creating a hierarchy
of spaces with the intermingling of natural landscaped areas with the built ones. Besides
being vibrant and useful contributors to the overall learning process , these intermittent
landscaped natural spaces create a contemporary Indian ethos with the handcrafted stone
form and a sustainable environment with lots of greenery, recycled resources and use of
solar energy. They bind and unify the diverse activities together with their transparency.
This improves the potential of communication on the campus. There are these three
functional zones , each with its own landscaped focus which are merged together by
transparent transitional spaces, interconnecting passages and green courtyards. There
are informal spaces for discussion in the landscape . There is a landscaped amphitheater
which encourages interaction via small informal groups. The natural nodes are formed
which have transparency which encourages interaction.