notes of £du'mfii Leif end & in
Colombo. He i now f›riiu':iyel p4 aier in
cofhey Bswa is rhc kid of archiu>-t of
which
npccia0y in the Third World: one who h
fully aware and appreciative
of mremarional developments and
af
tour has tuch firm roots in his
cotuitry's rraditioñ s that he has no
urge to build in ways ten to them inch at
have confused the Architectural scene and
tlte judge- ment of those who influence
tae, iii most ofthe developing countries.
Bawa'i Sri Lanka buildings could be
nowhere else and one of his
achicvtwcnu is to
j/w , in coff4Iror4r/nn i*'i/£ Dr. K.
Poole ndrom.
Prr wtrd iitrr is s rrprrvntahve option
o/Bau'4'i rrnmi work, +iifi we esssys: one
by a foti$-ii›neJend ‹md direr efbis 6uifd-
v//trr 6y Ms. S/i4itti/4ydtr4rdrue, e yoi/iig
rberr refur c4 a praz/i'*e in his arm roioi1ry. Landor, irkrr she now te‹x:ties. Tfiieir errs
sonal points oJ uieu' are indeed a re@ertion o/
and r/ie ,gercrp/ionl a/ t/rrir panics/or geu-
rrn/io t. Fan/rrr reading on Bus /z rind i/i
rfie mencgrap/t snidy mctiriong4 js6ore.
Wex¥ 6y/. M. @ichordr
vcmsculor sFt‹u- being maodm6 mco Sn considmblc Figure in his own nghE
and Ankgby the Portuguese in two sixtcenth almost smgTo-handed, through
his ceñ iury. In his domestic woik he free znRomw and example, he has
endowed u u xt the nativr radjizu zh«tch. On contemporary zrchitectuzc in his
country the other hand he builds cot fidenr)y in with Suznbzrds of qusliry and
sophisnca- winforced concrecc (seidom in steel, tion that had not in why
these smcc rhe
wñ h ch coo expensive ro impon) wirh odich b‹iJcIings of finr the Dutch and
no sense of moving into a different then the British coiornal n:gimcs — and
world. His pcnonal sryk dnws on old evm their, except for a few of the C
utch, traditions and new technology alike. w&e a dom of the very
first qua)ity. Although Bawa has travelled widely Apan from a vmall number
of private and hanit much front his travels, apart houws built by
Western-cdumtcd from a handful of buildings m India
AFChitccrs, and apart from the early work,
(which include one of his Est) and fit ale tnoidy domestic, thai be himself
South-Easr Aha, he has workod cxciu- produood while he was in paynicrvhip
xively in hii native So Lanka, dcvcloping with the Danish architfft Ulrik Plesrter
his skiJis in ñ olation. He has not therefore between 1958 and 1957, Bawa‘s is almost
been confused by die stylistic coritrovcr- the only contemporary architecture in
Sri sks and the rebid sclf••cxamiiiations ° R fat combines respect for
the local that the profmorrel here compels its lands-apt and traditions
with the realistic members to suffer. fulfilment of prmentfiay needs.
The Within Sri Lanka however he is a ion-oak urban and commcNal biiild—
 ing of other architects is, with few Sri Lanka architecture. His frequmf
use exceptions, as irrelevant culturally and ill— of .the traditional roos-tile has
already conceived elimatically as in most Third been noted, and ui his
Bentota Beach to.rid counrzies. Horo1, be first and pcrAps rti)l the
Baws's contribution, when' he best of the serim' of large tourist hoteis
to pre independently in the 1960s was through which, since thc 1970s, he has
tifiusu;d]y positive, and ioon grew more made such a strong impact on Sri Lanka
so, becaum he was more mature ihiia (and the fitst of his buildings to attract
mpst architects in Wrly m ther mtt'•m. the attention of die outside world), he
Ind many of his ideas and idmls were manipu)atm aress of tired roofscay with
formod Store he rook up architecture zombie success. Roofs like these, and his
pr onally. As a young man he went sapped roofs at Piliyaridsja and tht p-
to Cambridge but, irt acc0rdanTG WU a •uent roofing myle of the buddings
hmiJy tradition, ro Judy law. He quali- pm over hilh and valid› at hit newet
fled as a barrister and praccieod £o*6 I project, R.ufiunu University nest Mstsrs
yens in Sñ Lents, grzdusllx ‹ in southern Sn Lanka, are at of course

wannxi to spend his hfe. He deoded to yt &wa*s one powerfully monumental

change to architecture of which he had building, his Parliamentary Complex
long been ari amatetir. He th0W " ouoide Colombo, is dominated ago by
returned to England and mrolled at ›t 4M Vat two-pitch copper<ovncd roofs
NrChiMCttnrdl AGSOm6t1OD' $ChOOl fft y]•ti 2y g}y gt @ t UI 1tO£ y
London, where he gained his diploma. he approaches the island site across the
Hn was chen already nearly forth. TO US yp qy.
familiarity with the history and tradiuons Another Bawa charamn rim is the
of own country wat thus added a sinsc wansparericy of his buildings; there
of architectural values. denved from years is always a sent — usually an actual
of vtudy and travel eiMherr. gliinpm — of what lies beyond the im—
The local vernacular, even if only in mediate fa‹nde, and ñ this related to
the form of pcasaoc village blouses, has Bawl's skill in the m•nipuTarion of i.n-
not only given Bawa a live architectural tenor space, a quality dramatically ex-
trñitiori to build on (how well he can do amplified in his own hour in Colombo.
m is illustrated by oñe of the txst of hit Vins close and opcn out sgain, main-
early projects, the farm school at Hnn- twining a cononuiiy of interest as the
welli), but has kept alive a tradition of eye comes to rest in turn cin a stretch of
inherited craftsmanship which he has whiin walfing, a change of texmrc, a
aiways deme his beer to tosrcr. This has in- sculptumd objeci; also on one planted
financed his very personal relationship garden atier another on to which ihe
with the building pre. G ›me xp ert - light and even the tropical ram stream
enced craftsmen who know their ma— downwards, tor hix interiors are seldom
serials, the furnishing to the builder of wholly under cover for long.
detailed drawings at every scale can be Bawa is an ouotnnding architect by
superfluous, and Bawa prcfcrs when any standard. He appears to be guided
possible to take decisions and modify not by theories but by his eye, and by his
details on the site in thc manner of the feehng for platiu and for the landscape —
master builders of mme centuriés ago. including water, which in Sri Lanka is an
From this no doubt denys to some ‹ssentialcomponent of the landmpe. His
eztent the sensitive relationship he buildings n fact arc themadves in the
always manages to establish between tiature of lanAcapes, not only helium
naiure and architecture. His buildings they incorporate pinning and Watef and
sit easily on the ground, and the trees subdy ctrntrived changes of form and
which minglc with thciri have most level, but because incident follows
often been located by him on the spot mcid‹-re after the manner of a well-
rather than indicated or a planting composed lanAcapc which is never
plan. Bawa, in addition, has been tor- without an ekmcnf of stirprise. Indeed
turiate that in the case of nearly all his they reflect the continuaily varying
major buildings he has been able him- texture of the Sri Lanka landmape iaelf
self to select the site and thus exploit
his eye for krndsmpc from rhc bcgmnmg.
].M. Bi'rfi'irdi 'i a 8ra'uJi arrii'eti md fiinor''vi
that are the other charactensdcs u'6o u'ei editer e Architects d Review up
ofBauarwork2Ocndwbd this
einpMs on roofs, which b••cuuse of the iisfrdJ lire rfeiri'c Introduction to Modem
climate has always been tche eMnce of A rchimcnirc. He new lines la Under.
 Bawa: A Contribution to
Cultural Regeneration

mricting
eoffrey Bawa we born m 1919ñ atid probably Sn theit exploration
Muka’s ordy to the
best known
purview of the coriaptvally barren, W
hermeneuticallyMed, category of the

The historiml dgnificance of

Bawa*v work for Ana and Sri Lea liei
in ie re- flection of the economic,
poliéml arid ctiltumJ rlimstc of emerguig
natiorialirrri and ind° dmce fiom
ooionial rub as it occurred in Asia
durmg the fillies and sixries. The formal
zrchitecruzal language expzeued m his
war1 sought inspxzñon in rhe traditional
buiJding Forms sod cechnigucs poculisr
to rhe Sn Lankao znd

The timing of this phenomenon ii

of particular importance on two
modal ofthe Sn Wks IzzstiWzc o£Arcl counts. Firstly, rsking such s decision
tects oi 1982 and the RJBA is ro Cost sr profes- sional level implied a sharp
ao exhibioon of his work in 1986. ›dcoJogics1 bresL with the rhen
Lkspite thiv buddmg overseas domiuznt modes of
curiotiry and the reasons for it (of
which there are ieurral) it wouid be
true to say that the highest fluency best displayed rhapi in the
compliment which may be paid to his arrogant extravagance of Brscilia arid
work ño in an exploradon of its Chsndigzrh
historical contribution to the progren
of Sri Lankan archirecture and rlut of
the Alan region. Any airmate
framework em- ployed for assessing his
work which does

may be accused of tnvialuing hñ con-

tribution by tripping it of in historical
dimension. Euro n and American
wriñ ng on Bawa have m far F•'iN to
seriously sssecs the historical dimension
in his work. Wls orrdss¥pn zzt9y oFcouzsc certain ideologues of the 'lniemationd
be xrrribuced to the popular character Style’ school were rmpor ible for
of such writings or co sn uufsmilucicy stream- lining “Colonial Tropical
with AO subjwr. Whatever rhc case msy Architecture' (CTA) by ammbling for
be, if we are to make any advance on it a vwetiiieih century modem stylistic
‹h< limited scope of such appramli, it is diii Torres-
im— portant ro moinmin a
methodological se1F—consciousness Renowned cxpmients of the
thar wit guazd agaést sriy teinfozcemcnr
o£ ‹hose tendencies wh›ch hxve and Drew among othen
mjrsrificd Bswa*s work by
disseminated the ration don charac—
teristic of monopoly capinl, wlnile die
multinarionaii coirrolling the inter-
nsoonsl building industry disseminated
be means for o org•nisstian ?nd pm
duction; a process rfianifesred in the built
form arowid tht 1930s when the TurkiA
and Brszilmn govemmeeo promoted
modem architecture as part of iiational
policy. CIAM, itself found exclusively
by Europeans in 1928, made the
deliberate imperial mile ofequating
the ’mmrnarional’ with “Europe‘, an
understandsbk misnke, perhaps when it
is rrsliscd that a part of its function was
precisely nothing Port of the
idcologimJ production .of ’Modem
Tropical Archi- tecture' and in globe
cxport to: the colonies and
neo-colonies. ClAM
members snw rationalisation and stan-
dardisation as generating the most effi-
oent methods of induswial production.
This was btheved to set directly on
working methods both m architecture
and the building industry. The linking of
methods m modem architecture with the
interesn of the budding industry and the
expon of this comprchcr6ivc package to
the neo-colorfies was ihr proc which
determined arid regulated the transfor-
mation of CTA to MTA. If the expori
of mdu d building was not the
direct a'nd immediate concern of CIAM,
the export of its radonal ideology surely
The ords basic difFmce between
CTA of rhe nineteenth century snd
MTA pf che tmricrh ccnWry appears
to be that one was created by Europeans
tor Europeans m thc celorues arid
0:u• other was creamd by Europeans
for ”natives” of the nc+>•co4onies. Both
were alien implanu validated by the
superior
instance obvious and in the other insi-
dious. But m ccc both jams nith-
lmsly functioned upon the faia• assump-
tion thai the .indigenous architecture
of the subject or newly independent
peopk was (yn classic ozientaiist pr 'c)
‘deca- dcni’, “moribund’ and happily, of
course, devoid of a living memory.
MTA was i sported to the rico-
colonies through a system .of uiiequai
global connections which were to
charzcteriie the port Second World War
economic, pofiocal and cultural dialogue
Rtween the Third World and the ont.
European cuittiral ideology
dominated local tools ofarchitecture
while trans- nationsJs orgznisod Lhe
budding iriduscry via a wider network of
economic con- rrol. Such were the
obrsmmg power re-
lationships which led co the building
of Bzasitia and Chaodigsrlt snd, on a
less triumphant smle, the work of
Cubirt, iS'iay, Fry arid Drew in Asia,
Africa and South America, not to
mention the MTA that was arid sñ ll is
profusely produced by met Third
World arch
In order to understand the iotshty
of what Bawa's work he tried to reject
and comhit there is one more aspect
of the above process which reqs
diicusgon. The European drive to
xtandardi*• and rationalise the building
industry, and its
deure to cxptuze ovems markets and
spheres of cement promoted pseudo-
scientific research into ’tropkat’ building
materials arid deign techniques
under- taken by the new breed of
technocrao in aichimcture xvorkmg for
state izttttr- tions like the colonial
laison ofice of the Building Research
Smrion csnbf hod m 194s and by
private muli-nationals Pd- kington,
Taylor Woodrow, Wimpcy, Crittall
who (io name but a New) man
produced “tropical budding components'
and sytnms and the new “tropical ex
— perts'. This new scientific posmrc
adopted by the old hard Britta co—
lonialisms was, however, short lived, dun
to their bting rapidly out-manouevred
by the more sophisticated dcveloprrumis
of their A mcnean social science counter
—
American socixl science. jsigon dis—
pl«cad the anachronistic mysnprncr
'rrop cxl srchitectuze' with a new
range o£ terminology. By the lace
exrics had emerged cfc now fouñ lisr
‘regional spociafisu', rhe 'planners', be
*get grsphm', the ‘climstologisu’, rhe
'housing specialists’, etc., typifymg the
atomisaiion and speciahsi divi'ion of
labour markmg chc mciamorphosis of
’ColonM Tropical Archincture‘ into its
almost unrccognisable modem format.
Alt o1e obvious dimpanrics and co-
l•aniaI associations of che early rcrm were
absorbed, refined and reformulated by
the new brand of mciai Mencc scholir-
ship. 'Tropical architecture' born as an
imperial tool, denied by dcfmition the
dyn'arn and vitality of uidigenous
archHecnirc in the Tropin’ (to R read
as in the Colonies). Today it u a tool of
the ‘international expert’ and the
pRudo- dentist who happdy disgorge
the masses of Mem. figures, statistics,
tables, cata- logues and trivia
comprishig the ucrilc knowlcdgc
systems which presumably wit sssist
us in the production of more ‘c0icicnt'
bu›tdmgs for the Tropics', once more
dmying the fundamental im-
portancc of the sticririfir appraic;d of
traditional budding sptems, a prone
which has to begin widi the people who
produce chose systems and cinnot ever
really gcr off the ground under foreign
auspices, however well meaning they
ForvAdou*huonw1rio B*was
k dV moeorrfmuMac
ing and crippling impact of this architec-
mral neo-colonialism. Though, of
course, a complete escape is not possibk
as defined b7 limio of globa) capital-
ism, ar least io his buildings one perceives
a protracted exploration and interprets-
non of indigenous building traditions
in a contemporary context dcrimg,
per-
hspx nor so much from a scientific
appraiml of those traditions, but more
from a personal visual apprehension of
their sesrhctic and tecLn cal content. Sri
Lankan building pracoc<s of ihe l9S0s
openotd non-uniformly in tiers
of which only one deployed thr services
ofthe ’architect’. The protection, ax such,
was Lormz0y cons‹icuted in 1957 w th tkc
inception of the NyIoo Josérutc of Ar-
chirccis,
Peasants who constitumd 85% of the
population conimucd to build as they
had Owsys done in popular
indigenous modes, whJe the bulk of
xtatc building was carried out by
cngiiiocrs and a few architects. Bawa'x
clientele was thus cir- curiis.cnbod ro lv
than 3% of the popm Marion and
comprised rhe urbsn upper middle clan.
His arrhimcture, it may therefore be
deduced, took little or no account of
rhe bMdzng neects of the ro- maiming
95% of the Sri Lankan people. that is
crinrai m his Wo*k is not its
mdigtnous content prr e, which in in
popular form represents the building
mode of the majority.. In ñ grnfimncc lies
in the act of raising both the formal and
the popular indigenous traditions from
the degr setuv signed to them in
thc colonial era, and in the creation
from them of a formal architectural
language which could once morn
receive national patronage. Regarding
the venture, it should be remarked thai
though the odds in Architectural
ideology were weighted against him,
the collective strength of the anti-
imperiahsi struggle made his early pl caéon oF rhe potenñzl Hume trends
breakthrough histfnicaliy poniblc in Sri incipient in his wor1.
by the State
Lanka, even and QingMTA
though m poptiiarity wich the urban m*ddle chsses. It is today ooeccnmchicchc:urñ
was favoured
to the Hloiital policy of favouring Euro- rel roof m 4rriof on he rofsniaf md
ruine&‹re pran buddin g formi and torhniqum on pea•ufénJel 6uifdJ»g situation u off.
the one hand whdc depnviiig hal forms
of official porronage on tho other, and
zs s corollary rhc xc”rivc suppression of
m- d genous building rradictons which ro•
uhed u\ the deskJ!ing oF cra£omen and
s poverty oF knowkdgc.
Though Bawa was not the first Sri
Ikari arciiiteci to adopt revivahst
trends m his wnrk, he was the first ro
siutain such a course in the building world.
His work i$ semina) not cmly cm
account of his according indigenous ar—
chitecture in righiftd place in national
culture, but also on account of his asscss-
ment of sci Lznkac azchirccrura) huroi y.
He cirher consciously or unconsciously
joked Lhc inhibitory weight and
rcooglxdc ooenr list taxonomy Of $'zz
Lankan architecttizat history by choonng
to view the continuities and diaxmtinui-
Pos wz W a-aditian as pazt Of a wades
hñtocical continuum. He drew insp›ra-
aon from budding in ad historical
periods, clsssicsT xnd colonial, end
didnot hesitate to draw upon Aqse liwng
toad - rions of che cecenc past, wkich
the orien- ufists dispxrsgingly describe
os ‘decay- ing*, 'domestic' and
‘popular', poured zgairur some
suj>erior clzssiczl pcnod lodged in che
disczn‹ pxst cherebyjusti£y- mg rhc
colonial moon of-’civilising* xod
‘modcmismg‘ the subject peoples.
D+ pits all thar has been said, Bâwa's
workmayycbe xuwdofbdng ew-
sit' m d? M c c n c , in acwmoon
whch is perhaps no w easiy dumiwJ oo
th< grounds that hñ appreciation of
tradi- tional buildmg was not sufficiently
Sustained or sciennfic and may, there-
fore, prove ro be of limited value for the
fixture. Above all che most 'severe
reserva- tions regarding he work rat
in the
awareness that lie chose the urban
mMdle classes ss his c4›ieF climb at o
historical juncture in which rursT
planning end re- scrtlczrient, urbanisation
and mass shatter ate the most tirgent of
human concerns, as mcd they as of
nacionzl policy.
However one may choose to assess
‹his ncgkcr, it should nor dccet us from
acknow gmg has @ygCaz coiytribucion
to the broader processes of nationzt
cu1t‹irs1.regmcrstion in Sri Lanka; nor
should it hmder. our perception arid cx-
49
 The Garden, Lunuganga

Our. 8egrn iii 1920 ‹ord sn2aing

The str of this idyllic retrmt is a

former rubber plantation, with ari
existing house, purchased in 1949 —
•fore Ceoifrey Dawn had actually
decided to become an awhioct. It may
even fivc been the catal yet that
determined him ro Sum O England and
to take a deg in dciign. Located on a
backwater of the Bentots nver, south
of Colombo, the garden arid the house
have been a con- stant foctis of the
architect's energies: making
incremental zddirions to the abode,
o£ten w›rh mammals r«covcr«d from
demolished old structures; sfxiping and
rediapiiig the garden as the spmt moved
hmm through cutdng of the wJdTy
luxurious vegetation snd selective pierc-
ing. be garden ›r for aE intents and
pur- peace an extensian of rhe rooms of
the dweJfing, containing objeca, ñny pa
— vilions pavements and vantage points
tor observing a succmion of spaces in
con— tinual transformation.
Huhunu University, Matara
A new czznpus for 4000-5000 students paints wich benches) inccrspcrscd among
was conceived by the architect and is now the classrooms, laboratories and offices.
partibly completed on a magnificent site The structural system uidi& in the
overlooking the sea. BuiJdmps for thc univcnity‘s construction e reinforced
Arts and Science Faculties, a library, an concrete, with the traditional materials
open-air theatre, a sncial centre and rem- of wood and clay tiles for the root—and
dccccs occupy three hill that rim 120 feet certain finishes. Careful planning and the
from sea level and the valleys m bcrwccri, succmsful revolution of structural details
affording superb views onto the land- permitted the integration of buildings
rape. Much attention has been devoted with a difhculi natural topography while
to creañ ig agreeable, outdoor, protected prmcrving the qualities of both site
and spaces (e.g. covered galleries, meeting architectural conception.
SS
57
 St. Bridget's Montessori School,
Colombo
This early educational buildmq by
and cream irlti may spacc•s Withtn the
Geoffrey Dawa reflects a running overall volume-, wall murak by Barbara
point m Lin development as an Sansoni originally decoratcd the school.
architect. Although of forced mnc- Mother Good Courier ofihe loml
rue, ii ncvcr- thulw has rcr zffiniries Catholic church, the cl«xir For this bu Jd
Cement with mdinonzl buildings in Sri Lanka ng. wxs an m aTTy uifiuencisl and
‹hon orhcr pre- vious worlcs by Bawl:
encouraging patron of Mr Bswa's at this
it is essent illy open'on both rhc ground
momcnr io his career. The dialogue was
and ficsc floocs, which are protected by
Frui‹£u1, zs this and oth«r mstiruticnsl
a large over- han@ng roof, three-foot-
high cupboards and bbustrades ensure stnJctures fbr the church reveal.
safety trom falling

A i2fir. Drrsif rieir a/a ranw o/a hif#iig.

Fur rigor: fntrrñ r Siuice.
Parliament, Kotte, Colombo
7l›e old y2rlizment building in down- low—n\zkm Ann numerous observers in
town Colombo was grossly inadequate the allcncs around it, forrris the ecu tral
when a ncW government came to power focus of the composition; a strong sym-
in f 977. Pisns were initiated for a new mcc is developed by the lower
pavilions capital complex in the suburbs ofthe cit y, whxh Frank thc ammbly
on cithcr side, at Kottc, an important city m the pre- one of which has
an open-air hall on the colonial era. Marshcs were drained and ground level for
rcvcivmg fc›rcign did-m- an artificial island created to receive the cries.
Tradinonal craft techniques were rtew biiddin gs, for which Ceoffrry dawn
involved in the mtricate tim bcrwork ot obtair«xl thr Age com mission.
Achieve- the roofs and exterior galleries, for cx- ment of the whole
complex tciok the ample, but the basic sttucttirc is reinforced cxrrcmel y short time
of roughl y 3 yea n concrete with a coating of cm.shed stone front conoepnori to
iriaugurstion. A par- mixed with epox y for outer surfaces.
fitment chamber, which can heat 200

A6ovr.' Iiireri'or o/ rue o/ #ie lateral irnrifiei .

>9
 Bawa Residence, Colombo
Thu truly remarkable clweIIing is in con- because of die owner's particular
stant evolution, having onginail y been tastes and pcrwnality. but also due to
not one, but four, adjacent houses. The the tack that several units have been
architect was zblc to acquirc them sorting combined into one, the spaces must be
in 1958 and hzs unified them in to a experienced sequentially, cach posscism
Nrgrii*ipn o/ i'ni'/i4f pinion 1958
aaics of living spaces with numerous a unique character and atinospiiere.
court- yards, lightwclls and views imto
the out of doors. iunins from ancient
buildings now demolished find thCir
plaCC 0 W°^6
other artifacts which the architect has in-
corporated into his residence. f•ardy

Loiginidiiiul ation
 Peter White House, Mauritius

Originally, these two long, barrel-vaulted

xpacm were built and used as warrhouM
Lor sum cane. They were purchazd and
Mr Bawa was commieaoned by the
client to oans -orm thCm into a weekend
house. Yhe programme involved only a
bcd- room, a bathroom and a small
kitchen, while thr rest off spec could •
utilized in a variety otwayx.
Ouibu0dings nearby were con vertod
into gum bedrooms. The fetch drawing
by the architect for this project
contain numerous armota- tions as ID
pcitcntial elements for spaces and
their use, but the two bwc criteria
exprcM by the clxvi were the
desire for quiet solitude and the psi-
bility for uniting large groups of people.

61
62
67