In his journey of over six decades, noted architect B.V. Doshi has perfected the art of using natural light, breeze and sky to create a symphony in the interiors of various projects he has undertaken. For him, the sense of ownership is what connects people to concrete buildings - and an ongoing exhibition here presents this viewpoint through his various projects.
The Ahmedabad-based architect is best known for creating the lush green, concrete and breezy campus of Indian Institute of Management-Bangalore. It was this very thought of bringing nature's elements into the forefront and create a porous structure that constantly changes colours because of light and shade arrangements.
"These changes put everyone in an environment that makes them more sensitive towards nature's involvement in life," Doshi told IANS in an interview.
A retrospective titled "Celebrating Habitat: The Real, the Virtual and the Imaginary" at the National Gallery of Modern Arts has picked up a few elements from his many works to build a non-linear vocabulary. This enables the audience to slowly slip into a world of illusion and gasp at a creative mind whose resume has
representation from different threads of construction: urban , institutional, design schools and art galleries.
The month-long exhibition began Thursday.
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For Doshi, all these different dimensions of architecture are an firmly grounded on his simple philosophy towards work: How to conceive a space that is able to create a dialogue and build relationships.
"One constantly searches for a sense of belonging, which means ownership of one's house. This sense one security and joy," said Doshi.
However, Doshi, who has conceived the design space for Delhi's National Institute of Fashion Technology and Ahmedabad's Gandhi Labour Institute, among many others, feels that in today's time the "increased land price" prevents the basic idea of incorporating "nature" into architectural design.
"Many feel the use of glass to save construction time and manufacturing costs may appear to be economical, but in reality it robs us of shadows, natural breeze or
ventilation," he said.
"It is essential to look at economics but one should ask the question - at what cost?"
This is why he feels new structures are alienating people from natural bliss.
"The intimacy and need for relationships, as well as participation, is a part of our nature. Hence, in all our planning, we must provide spaces and ways of
interactions," he said.
Interestingly, the exhibition has been curated by Doshi's granddaughter, Khushnu Panthaki Hoof, who admitted she studied how her "grandfather's mind works."
"He didn't want anything to be put in a chronological order. So I have created a landscape that has fragments of his significant associations and memories," Hoof
told IANS.