TRIBHUVAN UNIVERSITY

INSTITUTE OF ENGINEERING
PULCHOWK CAMPUS

An Essay on
CRITICAL REGIONALISM IN ARCHITECTURE OF KATHMANDU VALLEY

SUBMITTED BY
Suman Duwal (079March019)

SUBMITTED TO
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Sanjaya Uprety
Assoc. Prof. Inu Pradhan Salikhe
Department of Architecture,
IOE

JULY 2023
 Suman Duwal
079March019

Kathamndu valley is one of the oldest town in Nepal that had traced to the period between 167
BC and 1 AD (Bowman, 2000). Settled by prehistoric Nagas, present Kathmandu valley had
been established, developed and processed by Malla kings (Bowman, 2000). Architecture
flourished in Kathamndu valley is not the result of single day workout but instead had achieved
its peak after series of addition, rejection, improvisation, adaptation and innovation during rule
of different kings and kingdom. So, the architecture existing in Kathmandu valley has its own
history, a pattern and a conceptuality hidden in between the lanes, language, culture, traditions
and literature.

Human beings are driven by their sense and ego of superiority in the society respective to how
they appear and how they live. Furthermore, the advancement of technology speeds up the
acceleration of spreading the disease of copy and paste the ideas and concepts in their way of
thinking and way of living ignoring its essence and identity. Similar case fits with the
architectural field and its context (Shadar, 2010). In name of modernism, ignoring context,
culture, surrounding, many such towers were being built and floating in the atmosphere whose
value and meaning get lost in human emotion and passions. Social media like Tik tok,
Instagram, facebook, youtube etc made people connected with global context of architecture
which encourage people leave behind the efforts to highlight regional and local context. There
seems need of study of architecture related to context, need, climate and surroundings rather
than Global based monumental buildings.

Earlier few foreign architects like Robert Weise, Carl Pruscha, David Dobereiner, Gotz
Haagmueller, John Sanday, Lousi I. Kahn, Benjamin Polk, Achyut Kanvinde, Kristin Jarmund
showed their beautiful approach of design and expressed them as a good reflections of valleys’
architecture. Their architectural expression traces even small piece of context and sense of local
amenities. But with rapid growth of city, these elements and context are being sacrificed and
new modernism is adopted which has no link with our context and environment. This raised a
questions about the architectural identity of Kathmandu and become matter of discussion.

Critical regionalism is an architectural strategy that responds to physical characteristics of a

location including climate, geography, architectural history, socio-cultural context (Bahga &
Raheja, 2019). Architecture growing in Kathmandu need to be thought from critical perspective
to bring the architectural attributes in correct track.

There are many reasons and loopholes that is making the language of architecture of
Kathmandu valley weak and unstable. The architectural practitioners and government are lost
due to rapid city growth (Maharjan, 2022a). They are neither following their own will to
flourish architecture nor making the context and environment reflex in their design.
Government only limits the structural part of a house leaving the architectural envelope in mist.
So, the free will of designer and client exposure to global built environment make emergence
of artificial envelope to buildings which make them appear like alien in this naïve land.

To marginalize the language of architecture of Kathamndu valley in modern context through

proper evaluation of the works of professional practitioners and through perception
measurement, this paper is to address the new chapter of critical regionalism as a new
architectural era. It is very necessary to define the language of architecture of Kathmandu
valley in present context where we are facing identity crisis and existential crisis.

Modernism is no more accepted in most of the case while designing the building envelope
neither Nepal had accepted it to that much seriousness. Post Modernism had shown its magic
in some scale in some site. But, the whimsical what going around in Kathmandu about the post-
modernism is also not appropriate too to accept for the context and environment of Kathmandu
valley.

Unlike many medieval European cities Kathmandu didn't have an industrial past. Its urban
history therefore did not follow Mumford's (1938) three technologically determined eras - the
medieval city (eotechnic age), the industrial city (paleotechnic age), and the future (biotechnic
age), or “post-industrial” city - that he used to define Western cities. Local historians such as
Mahesh Chandra Regmi mark the year 1786 as the beginning of the ‘modern era’ in Nepal
when Prithvi Narayan Shah (the first King of Unified Nepal) established Kathmandu as the
capital. The city was physically and culturally isolated from surrounding countries and their
changes. It remained politically and culturally insulated from both European and Persian
sovereignties by resisting Muslim invasion in the 15th century and Colonial subjugation in the
18th century.
The industrial revolution in the 19th century led to the development of new building materials
that bring changes in construction technology. This bring change in building typology and
perspective of looking building. Typically prefabricated or built-in factories, modernist
architecture has little to no adornment. Glass, metal, and concrete are frequently used in the
structure, and the design places a strong emphasis on function. The decorated, curved and
delicate designs are modified to simple linear and modular factory manufactured materials.
This age of development we termed as modern era.

The early modernist movement didn't fully disregard history, either. The Bauhaus, located in
Germany, is one of the most well-known examples of early modern architecture from the 20th
century. Walter Gropius, an architect, designed it in 1919. Gropius followed the path created
by Charles Rennie Mackintosh and Sigfried Giedion in contemporary architecture,
emphasizing function above adornment and fusing balanced forms. Bauhaus gives the start to
modern architecture and gave birth to other modern movements including Constructivism,
Expressionism, and De Stijl. Although this usually resulted in building that had a clear identity,
contemporary architecture veered more toward functionalism in the middle of the 20th century
and rejected the notion of ornamentation as a pure form of avant-garde and aesthetic purpose
(Erviansyah, 2020).

Some of the styles that emerged in the middle of the 20th century include functionalism,
minimalism, international style, metabolism, and brutalism. Many individuals dislike modern
architecture because it lacks contextuality, personal identity, and the fundamentals of human-
centered design. After all, it dictates how people should live rather than designing around how
they do. Modernism is still very diverse since it isn't only the fruit of one single genius, even
though the majority of modernists reject contextuality. Contrary to what modernist architects
typically do, others have attempted to humanize the design rather than reform the human. Frank
Lloyd Wright and Louis Kahn explore the other side of modernism through the spirit of
contexts, the harmony with nature, the revival of historical context to create a sense of
regionalism, and the idea of communality; as a result, they could be seen as the rogue architects
and the early postmodernism.

In post-modern architecture, ornamentation and contextuality are being re-evaluated as

elements that are necessary to give each structure its own distinct personality and used in
buildings in simplified version rather than neglecting them. Due course of time, Regionalism
evolved as a result of combining modernism with local regional identity and customs
(Erviansyah, 2020).

Modernization is a global phenomenon, although in Western and Non-Western societies, its causes and
timing were different. Modernization had a completely different timeline and narrative in non-Western
nations. In general, modernization originated in the West as an indigenous process, whereas it expanded
to countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America as a result of foreign factors interacting with traditional
communities. And in the majority of cases, modernity in these nations started during their
colonialization by the West. Modernization was seen as the only means of fending off the pressure and
threat posed by Western political, military, and economic powers. With time, the existing social order
was expanded by importing science, technology, and institutions wholesale from the West. Traditional
societies throughout the non-Western globe have undergone extensive change.

After India gained independence from British colonial control in 1947, modernism became the
chosen style for new construction and urban design. Modernism, however, was lost in
translation when India faced the transfer of mass-produced, featureless blocks that did not
adequately respond to local conditions in the succeeding decades. Many known architects from
different corner of the world were called to develop Nation. Meanwhile, architects like Louis
Kahn, Benjamin Polk, Karl Porsche, Kaie Weise bring a dramatic change in the architectural
style of Indian Buildings through their design and design philosophies. The effect also spread
up to Nepal.

Soon after initiation of TIA in 1855, many foreigners were welcomed. Due course of time,
Louis Kahn, Benjamin Polk, Karl Porsche who were working in India effectively get entered
in Nepal and started the global modernization movement in Nepal.

Furthermore, different UN mission also encourage the international modern movement invade
Nepal through their materials and construction technology. After the earthquake of 1934, the
use of modern material and construction technology was widely accepted and used in Nepalese
context. That is the reason that make modern materials and construction technology contextual
to Nepal and Nepalese people and culture. Palaces and temples were reconstructed and
renovated using modern materials and construction technology. People accepted the materials
and construction technology after the disaster. And, it became a part of Nepalese construction
technology.
Many new palaces, temples and other buildings were designed and built using this concept. So,
modern era flourished dramatically after that.

Sometimes vernacularism also become matter of talk while moving with modernism in
architectural styles. The term "vernacular architecture" refers to the styles of buildings that
allowed traditional societies create their own distinctive architectural character and meet
environmental obstacles (Parsaee et al., 2016). This architecture is regarded as the outcome of
centuries of optimization to produce a cozy home in a particular climate utilizing readily
available materials and well-established building techniques (Bodach et al., 2014). Vernacular
structures are made by people and are the outcome of relationships between people and many
ecological, economic, material, and social elements. Buildings that "belong to a location, that
express the local or regional dialect" can be summed up as vernacular architecture (Ghodsi,
2013). The success of these structures being well adapted to their context and climate, in
generating energy-efficient and comfortable surroundings, was a process where local
knowledge and expertise played a key part. Buildings are described as elements that fit into
their technological and environmental surroundings.

Factors for considering vernacular architecture are as follows:

Climate
The climate of the region is one of the most important factors influencing vernacular
architecture style of the building being built or is to build. Buildings in cold areas almost always
have a lot of thermal mass or insulation. Openings like windows are typically small or non-
existent, and they are typically sealed to prevent heat escape. Buildings in hotter climates, on
the other hand, tend to be made of lighter materials and allow for substantial cross-ventilation
through structural apertures. Buildings have varying shapes based on the amount of
precipitation in the area, with sloped roofs being common in locations with a lot of
precipitation. There are significant and sometimes intricate climatic influences on vernacular
building. Specializations in dealing with different climatic conditions weren't deliberately
developed; instead, they were learned by trial and error over the course of generations of
building construction, frequently before the scientific theories that explain how they work.

Culture
Building shapes are greatly influenced by occupant’s lifestyles and their perceptions regarding
surrounding and their value in nature. The design and size of homes will vary depending on a
variety of cultural considerations, including the structure of family units, who utilizes specific
spaces, how food is prepared and consumed, social interactions, and many other issues.
Residents usually decorate homes according to local customs and beliefs, which has a big
impact on how vernacular homes appear.

With the concept of vernacular architecture people talked a lot in today’s context, regionalism
concept evolved and revolved. Regionalism is a shared sense of identity shared by individuals
from a certain geographic area who are connected by common language, culture, and ethnicity.
It is the context and traditions of construction in a particular location as seen through the lens
of architecture. These structures require a thorough understanding of the local climate, geology,
geography, and topography. Critical regionalism and regionalism are not the same thing.
Comparatively speaking, critical regionalism is considerably more vernacular in nature and is
less of a response to the local context that currently exists. An example of a post-modern
response to architecture is regarded to be critical regionalism. A crucial component of
regionalism is the climate. Fountains in the courtyard use evaporative cooling (cool water
cooling the surrounding air). A superb illustration of local architecture is Adobe. This mud and
straw construction material has a high thermal mass, making it a heat-insulating material of
choice (Maharjan, 2022b).

The local culture, environment, and technology of the time are all strongly tied to regionalism's
traits. The following are characteristics of regionalism:
 Employing contemporary technologies and locally sourced building materials;
 Adapting to the particular climatic conditions in the area;
 Addressing culture, history, and the significance of place and space;
 Seeking cultural content and purpose rather than style as the end result.
These qualities help to enhance the space's sense of place overall.

Alexander Tzonis and Liane Lefaivre first established the architectural idea of Critical
Regionalism in their 1981 article, “The Grid and the Pathway,” and Kenneth Frampton later
extended it in his 1983 essay, “Towards a Critical Regionalism: Six Points for an Architecture
of Resistance.” Its initial goal was to provide an alternative to the ‘International Style’ modern
architecture crisis, which begs to be different from the 1980s postmodern architecture that was
then being promoted as the primary answer to the issue. The idea that these modernist structures
provided an anonymous architectural environment developed when the large-scale
reconstruction initiatives that followed the Second World War altered the appearance of entire
European towns by the 1960s.

In order to reconcile global modernization with local communities' cultural identities, critical
regionalism envisioned a "architecture of resistance." It encouraged municipal structures and
practices that upheld their linkages to particular locations in order to combat both the modern
built environment's commercialization and its opposing postmodernist transition into
scenography.

Theorists of critical regionalism characterized their strategy as one of resistance to

globalization; as the term “globalization” became more popular in the early 1990s. This method
produces architecture that challenges conventional notions of both globalization and
regionality. It is suitable for architects who want to avoid literal replicas of both local and
worldwide architectural forms. As a result, Tzonis and Lefaivre's criticality was meant to be
reciprocal; it neither favors the “local” over the “global” or the other way around. Mottos like
“think globally, act locally” and “local” buildings and urbanisms can be used to summarize this
architectural style, which contrasts “the global” with “the local.”

In the seminal book on the subject of Critical Regionalism, Toward a Critical Regionalism: Six
Points for an Architecture of Resistance, Kenneth Frampton describes modern culture and
buildings as moving toward a state of civilization that is both universally conditioned and
exhaustively optimized by technology. According to him, the skyscraper and the motorway,
two iconic emblems of contemporary society, have constrained urban form by establishing
uniform building techniques and methodologies. Critical regionalism, which His answer to this
conundrum is what Frampton calls as "mediating the impact of universal civilization with
qualities gained indirectly from the idiosyncrasies of a particular region." The world is
becoming more homogeneous and universal as a result of globalization, mass consumption,
and the internet, but Frampton thinks that a turn toward a critical regionalism can revive the
feeling of “place” that is rapidly disappearing (Maharjan, 2022b).
Kenneth Frampton's “architecture of resistance” emphasizes local site and environmental
factors including light, topography, context, and climate as a means of overcoming
"placelessness" and the universal.

According to Frampton, critical regionalism seeks a compromise between the desire to go back
to pre-industrial times and modernity's fiction of progress. It is possible to create architecture
which does not fall into one of the two conceivable extremes, as shown by the use of the avant-
garde viewpoint. A middle ground is the ideal course of action, according to the plan, which at
first appears to be a critique both of modernism and traditional architecture. However, a closer
examination reveals that although the assumption is simple, it is not necessarily true or even
relevant. The fundamental problem is that Frampton speaks from the perspective of North
American and European architects, societies who have begun the industrialization process,
gone through it, and are now able to look back on prior periods.

Contemporary architecture, especially in urban areas, has been globalized, homogenized, and
standardized, while the effects of such a significant international adaption of architectural
concepts are not fully understood. Although one can move from one global center to another
without noticing differences in architectural compositions, this appropriation of culture and
history is only increasing exponentially, leading to an overabundance of placeless architecture.
Depending on the area of concentration, many different notions are included in the definitions
of space and location. In contrast to space, which is usually employed in the field of architecture
to depict the objective distance a human may walk, place has been described as a subjective
and situational area that reveals deep relational histories, identities, and exhibits cultural
foundation. The forces of globalism and urban growth continue to blur the boundaries between
spaces and locations as technology enables humankind to upgrade at an unprecedented rate.
However, as these distinctions change, a brand-new spatial idea called placelessness has
evolved. Placelessness refers to a subjective spatial quality in which a location is impersonal
and resides between the hazy border between space and place, as opposed to being categorized
as a space or place.

Since the research is located within a pragmatic paradigm, a mixed method of logical
argumentation and qualitative approach will be suitable to obtain knowledge. “Broad
explanatory theories must be framed in order to use logic as a defense. This approach starts
with a basic premise that is self-evident enough to not require any further fundamental
justifications. An argument is a logical, highly developed statement or statement offering
support for a claim. A well-documented thing is attempted to be positioned within a methodical
framework that explains the thing through logical argumentation. Logical argumentation itself
is a discursive method. Accordingly, in this research, the first thing to do is to explore and
collect data from literature and observation of works from the post-50s by foreign architects in
Kathmandu. From these, 2 sets of data can be derived to formulate propositions on what
attributes of critical regionalism should be there in Kathmandu’s case.

Since the nature of the research topic is more of an exploratory type and deals with socio-
cultural aspects of human behavior, it requires logical argumentation as well as a qualitative
approach. So, the research will be based on two paradigms: Constructivist and Critical Theory.
Hence it is located within a pragmatic paradigm and uses a mixed method for the investigation.

Epistemologically, the research needs to look upon the various aspects such as sociocultural,
material, technological, political, environmental, etc. to prove ontology. This research needs a
rigorous review of the literature, a field study of the past architectural works, and an argument-
based qualitative approach to obtain a valid source of knowledge about critical regionalism in
the Kathmandu valley.

In Nepali context, Modern architecture can be defined according to the principle of

regionalism, characterized by:
 Climate
 Spatial Attribute
 Material

Literature and interview findings show that the climate in Kathmandu is mild and temperate.
This place doesn't get too hot or too cold. Even though the temperature does not drop
significantly during the winter, traditional valley architecture was developed in response to the
chilly climate. Research findings shows that traditional valley architecture makes good use of
solar radiation in conjunction with the thermal mass of the building to maintain a suitable
interior temperature. Field observation of Dhakhwa House reveals that brick makes up the
thermal bulk of this traditional building. Likewise, solar control considerations (such as Best
fit orientation) are lacking in traditional architecture (Adhikari, 1987), it is found that, the
longer face of Dhakhwa House is oriented 60.50 East of South. There is 55.50 of difference
between site condition and best orientation suggested as per weather data. Indeed, the existing
orientation of the building is guided by alignment of plot itself inside traditional core
settlement.

Simulation result of Dhakhwa house shows that, even though if the building is oriented to best
fit orientation, there is no significant changes in the result. The building is a traditional Newari
house with private courtyard, structurally retrofitted with minimal interventions. Thermal mass
of 24" brick wall provides insulation against heat loss and gain. Also, the courtyard act as a
buffer zone between internal and external environment, keeping temperatures more constant.
It has been noted that “courtyard employs as ingenious natural cooling strategies in hot
climates” (Passe, 2013), Aalto made sure they could function as "geniuses warming strategies"
in colder climates as well. Study done by (Bajracharya, 2014) shows that traditional buildings
conserve at least 1-20C of temperature in both hot and cool seasons. But this minimal
temperature difference also saves lot of energy. Each year, it helps residents save between 10%
and 20% on their energy costs for heating and cooling. Hence, the simulation result, field
observation and literature confirm that the traditional Newari architecture is climate responsive.

Similar to Dhakhwa house, simulation result of the selected block in Taragaon also shows that,
even though there is slight deviation in orientation in between site condition and best fit
orientation, there is no significant change in discomfort degree hour. The building is 20.50
deviated from the best orientation suggested as per weather data because proper exact weather
data and also survey map of Kathmandu might not be available during 50s’. Indeed, the result
confirms that Taragaon building which was claimed to have regional attributes, this research
confirms those assumptions from climatic perspective. So, the building so far fits according to
the climatic attribute of architecture regionalism for Kathmandu.

Society can easily become traditionalist or modernist, but the middle ground can become
contentious. Critical regionalism aims to advance modernity while also going back to the
beginning, regenerating local civilization and participating in global civilization. Because of
this, incorporating certain vernacular forms into modern architectural vocabulary falls short.
Instead, architecture should adopt a position within the vernacular forms' consciousness and be
critical of them at all times. However, critical regionalism, in Frampton's opinion, seeks to
strike a balance between modernity's fantasy of progress and the desire to go back in time. The
concept of critical regionalism appears to be same all over, meaning to it might differ as per
context. While Pruscha views it from the underdeveloped region of the world, the region of the
world that has not undergone industrialization and modernism, Frampton views critical
regionalism from the western point of view, the societies that have already taken the path of
industrialization, have passed it, and can now look back at the times before it.

With globalization of the modern architecture, it became threat to local architecture and
questions about architectural identity arose. But, in this rapid technological advancing age and
peoples’ affinity more towards modern needs, totally going back to vernacular is not possible.
Thus, to address such issues, architecture related to society, architecture which considers
community needs, context, climate, surrounding environment and also embracing modern
technology becomes essential.

In the context of Kathmandu, socio-cultural and material aspect seems more valued than
climatic aspect. The fact that the valley been closed to the outside world for all centuries, and
all of the sudden its now opened after democracy during 1950s’, the modern life makes other
demands which in long run affect the socio-cultural aspect. It doesn’t hold true that whatever
is true hundreds of years ago, still valid today. But, still there are many things that needs to be
learned from traditional architecture. So, there has to be compromise in between traditional
method of doing things and advanced method of doing things, consequently not to end up in
the same way as western metropolis with number of modern problems.

With the help of critical regionalism, the architecture now growing in valley as a mushroom
can be given an exact language of architecture that can make this valley view contextual and
maintain existing urban fabric that it had been living with since number of centuries. Maybe
the stories can be repeated where people walking in street in occasion see the beautiful faces
watching from the beautiful windows, people gathering in nook and corners on various topics
or maybe discussing the plan schedule on celebrating the festivals.
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