THEORY OF DESIGN

THEORY OF DESIGN

- MANIK GUPTA & SUSHANT JAIN

which according to you is more important and/or much asked for, form or functionality?


today, how far are people concered about aesthetics, sustainability, simplicity/cost


what "contemporary" mind-set do you come across in your clients/colleagues


How you interpret/apply Contemporary Architecture/design?


List some of your fav contemporary architects/buildings in delhi (and outside)


How often do you come across clients, with vry specific demands... evn when better options are offered 


Your best work so far, and why? (also the worst project, and the reason for it)


Any particular materials/elements, which are to your liking, and much used in your designs (USP sorts)


How far are the demands of the clients just or merely a western influences of perceptions/style


What is your design paradigm? wrt site, functionality, form, adequate placing of rooms [for comfort (thermal comfort, view, privacy) evn if nt functonally well] which gets priority over the others


If given freedom to design the way you think is the best, which of these would be the governing factor in your design?


which design practices do you strongly oppose, but still implement because of client needs. or vice versa


YOUR OPINION ON THE BUILDINGS BUILT IN THE LAST 5 YEARS. also the coming few years


A city which has rich Architectural colors/designs in terms of contemporary or diverdity/similarity in design


Your comments on architectural trends being followed in delhi


when and how you decided to become an architect (inspiration)

Invisible Cities - Review

INVISIBLE CITIES

- Italo Calvino

Our understanding of the characteristic descriptions are an Interpretation; an effort to try, and rescue the “said” from perishing in the midst of process of communicating an idea.

Marco Polo, a Venetian merchant travelled and narrated his explorations of Asia to Kublai Khan, a Chinese ruler. However, what is surprising about this telltale is that, Marco used hand gestures and quick sketches to describe cities after cities to the great king, but in later tales, a growing vocabulary enhanced the descriptions.

Marco Polo describes the cities and buildings not as streets with houses made of brick-stone-wood on either sides, but instead completely forgetting to describe the shape and form. Suggesting cities should never be confused with the words that describe it, but what the words represent or forget to represent that contains the city in essence.

To him, cities are ever changing, ever evolving (FEDORA, Cities and Desire 4) onto paths already decided for it even before its founding stone was laid. How some cities exhibit a million different activities on every street every second, or how the same activity is repeated a million times around each bent of a street. (ZIRMA, CITIES AND SIGNS 2)

Marco, cryptically details the cities out without giving us the real picture, even if the cities are non-existent. Interesting is one such description of ARMILLA, (Thin Cities 3) how he paints the picture of a Jungle of just metal pipes, taps and showers, and porcelain fruits in the form of bathtubs, basins and sinks suspended in the Void. But at a deeper insight, it makes us realize how he is describing a city made of GLASS, Glass floor/roof and Glass walls. Also the word ARMILLA means an Astronomical Observatory. Various city names have meanings which expresses the city in a word.

Marco Polo’s cities are rarely built of bland bricks and mortar. They are full of aluminium springs, silver domes, crystal, bronze, seashells, high bastions, curved arcades, nets, banisters, awnings, dirigibles, globes, pagodas, gratings, garrets, pilings, verandahs, parapets and porphyry steps.

Calvino probably sums it up as follows: the descriptions of cities Marco Polo visited had this virtue, you could wander through them in thought, become lost, stop and enjoy the cool air, or run off.

.

URBAN

WE ARE URBAN

ROADS... FLYOVERS... UNDERPASSES..... 

.

CIVILIZED

IF YOU BELIEVE, THIS IS INHUMAN;

YOU ARE A PART OF MY "CIVILIZED" PICTURE.

.

THE CAT IN THE HAT (Animation)

THE CAT IN THE HAT (Animation)

The Cat in the Hat is a 2003 American comedy film based on the 1957 book of the same name by Dr. Seuss. Theodor Seuss Geisel (March 2, 1904 – September 24, 1991), was an American writer and cartoonist most widely known for his children's books written under the pen names Dr. Seuss, Theo. LeSieg (Geisel in reverse) and in one case, Rosetta Stone.

This is the second film Universal Pictures, DreamWorks Pictures and Imagine Entertainment worked on together. It stars Mike Myers in the title role of the Cat in the Hat.

Joan Walden has two children, Conrad and Sally. Conrad, a 12-year-old boy, is constantly doing the exact opposite of what he is supposed to do and causing trouble. Sally, Conrad's 7-year-old little sister, tries to stop his trouble making and is being rather bossy and perfect.

The story begins where it starts to rain outside and the children get bored. Then there is a thud somewhere in the house, and the Cat in the Hat appears. The Cat ignores the Fish and convinces Conrad and Sally to sign a contract, which will allow them to have all the fun they want, and will stop anything bad from happening.

From here, the Cat and the kids move around the meticulously clean and organized house creating havoc, spilling and stumbling over objects. The Cat then brings in a huge Red crate, and releases Thing 1 and Thing 2. Conrad is eager to open the crate and look inside, but the Cat explains that the crate is a Portal to his own world, and warns him not to open it. Conrad does the opposite and sneakily opens the crate.

Later the Cat and the kids accompanied by the two Things have a field trip around the town. The Town portrays a personality of self-telling its tale. Each shop shown in the movie holds a figure over its front, which represents the goods sold within. Examplating, An Ice Cream Cone represents an Ice Cream Parlor, An open Book represents a Library, and so on. The trio gets back home, and realizes that all terror has broken loose as the crate erupts.

Whereas the old, regular simple world is shown as clean and precise, a place where objects had sharp edges, the later world defies all perceptions of space and boundaries. The new house is shown as the interpretation of the world through Conrad’s perspective. The compactness of the house transforms into small islands, not connected by stairs but what Conrad perceives the stairs to be, an amusing Slide. The walls no longer stand straight and in monotone colors, but curve in and out at places with multi-toned colors. They either, curve within themselves or curve back behind giving the illusion of a boundless space, magnifying the mysticism of the Cat’s World.

The green toned walls, floating in a bright pinkish-red smoke further takes it away from reality and into a forest of smoke and shapeless space. The story takes the three of them through the various rooms in their transformed states, last one being the living room, where the Red Crate lay open. Eventually the crate is closed shut with a Crab lock over its hasp, and in that moment, the house bends, curls, and swirls back into its initial state. With the end of the contract, the Cat disappears with the Two Things and the Crate.

The ending scene captures through the living room window, Joan Walden, Conrad, and Sally jumping on the Sofa seat, and the scene blacks out with a hanging emotion of ‘Happily Ever After’.

THE END 

A PLACE FROM THE LOT REMEMBERED PICTURES

Jahanpanah Cycle Track (6.7 km Track), Chirag Delhi

Just a road cross away from my old house (GK-2), Jahanpanah Forest at Chirag Delhi used to be my daily hangout spot for the 5 years of my childhood, before we shifted to a different home. I remember glimpses of those days as a track ride on my bicycle, a go on the swings, and a few spare minutes in the garden with my parents and pet dog.




The Jahanpanah Cycle Track is joined to the entrance gates via a thoroughly landscaped park for the children and elder people to assemble and go about their recreational activities. Bushy ridges, planted flowerbeds, pebble paving and likes suits up the park. A corner is dedicated to a small nursery and the “gardeners’’” rooms. Opposite it is the swings area for small kids (…like me, as I was 3-4 years old back then) mushing around tagging along their parents or nannies.

The track on the other hand, still wears its natural looks, with a few flowery bushes planted along the stretch at intervals to demarcate a protective wall between the well-footed track and the wilderness on either sides of it. The forest holds a reputation for its wild Berries, Gum “Gond” trees, loose snakes, ostentation of Peacocks deep within its depth, and stray weasels racing squirrels.




Jahanpanah City Forest in the middle of the south Delhi has a 7 km running track with markers every 200 meters. It’s a great running location, considering that the forest is surrounded by really crowded, high traffic areas. Besides running, you can cycle there as well, along with playing in the little parks scattered all over Jahanpanah forest. However, if one slips off the concrete path, there is an interesting interplay of dirt tracks that go through small tunnels, leading to the ruins of a Masjid at its end. One can manage a 10 km run without ever repeating the same track.




Jahanpanah has its own nursery also. In addition, you can even see some peacocks. A lot of the trail is covered in thick foliage- provides a good respite from the heat. The park also has benches throughout the trail. It is an amazing feeling to see so many varieties of trees all around you and such enthusiast morning/evening walkers. The track has some small bridges for the rainwater flows and steep inclines and declines across them too. Moreover, cycling downhill at full speed gives all the thrill needed to end an eventful day. Not to mention the immense peace, the company only of trees and the challenge of an undulating surface. Most of the trail is quite desolate, and it runs by a number of areas in the city, so it is best to have some company when running there.

A PLACE FROM THE LATE READ PAGES

THE HOST

Author: Stephenie Meyer

Genre: Science Fiction/ Romance Novel

The novel revolves around humans and an alien species nicknamed Souls. They are described as a formless mass of luminescent energy and silver shimmering gleam.

Wanderer “Wanda” is an explorer Soul, who has been to nine planets and inhabited even more bodies. However, when she is placed in Melanie’s “Mel” body, she witnesses feelings of Mel, but experiences them like her own. In refusal to relinquish the possession of the mind, they soon begin to appreciate each other’s her-story and learn to co-exist in the same human vessel.

One such adventure of theirs, talks about this place.

Somewhere in the middle of Arizona des

ert, Mel is taken to her Great-Uncle Jeb’s hiding spot. It comprises of a greatly extensive network of Lava Caves and cave-lets branching underground. A tedious effort, which took Jeb 15 years to perfect it out.

At first, the caves appear to be just regular caves, used by the remaining humans to hide. Just as the exploration begins, the features of the place brighten the footing. The cave

s are revealed as giant ancient Lava “Tube” Caves from a long dead volcano. Giant air bubbles left trapped in lava provide smaller chambers connected to the branches, which are used as sleeping quarters.

The entrances of the cave-lets are covered by a variety of makeshift doors. Some curtained off with patterned sheets of fabric; others had big pieces of cardboard duct-taped together.

Getting into intricacies of the hideout, the floor and walls have been rubbed off their sharp “lavacicles” edges. Lava layers along the walls form seating benches. An underground river opens up through a crack in the floor, within a cave-let and used for washing, cleaning and bathing purposes. However, the water has a Sulphurous tinge to its taste.

T

he high roof of the spinal cave is pierced (both naturally and forcefully) at places and lighted with portholes sort of openings, to achieve visibility in the whole system of caves. A wide opening Lava Tube is especially dedicated to agriculture for

sustenance. The ceiling, twice as high as the cave was wide, was a maze of cracks. Like vines of light, the cracks circled around and almost met, which provided all the sun needed for the crops to grow. It gave a strange feeling of vertigo, since it was so much taller than it was wide.