LOCATION
Chandigarh. Chandigarh is a city designed by LeCorbusier located 250km North of Delhi. The city was the first major master planning endeavor in independent India and is a symbol of modernism for the country.
SITE
Located in sector 27 which is a part of the first phase of city. This part of city, often referred to as Corbusian Chandigarh embodies the principles of CIAM of living, working, care of body & spirit and circulation. Site is a corner plot located on the internal sector road (V4 & V5). Zoning regulations required a setback on all 4 sides.
SITE AREA – 836m2
BRIEF
To design a house for a multi generation family of 6 members. The family comprised of a couple in their late forties, their parents well in to seventies and 2 children in their teens. Also, an area for domestic help was required.
CONCEPT & PLANNING
The project is an attempt to metamorphosize eastern spatial planning & western aesthetics. The overall concept was devised as a free plan with overlapping spaces & inter-connecting volumes. These interconnected volumes allow for a complete interaction between the two levels, a conclusion drawn from a close analysis of the family setups of multigenerational Indian families.
Planning utilizes the concept of a cross axes, a vertical axis through the plan which is the central circulation & a horizontal axis through the landscape courtyards creating a vision across the width of plot. However, the movement is choreographed so as to unfold the layers as one moves through the vertical axis, thus the sequential progression from public to private spaces.
Multiple courtyards & terrace garden allow for penetration of fragments of nature into the interior spaces bringing its occupants in close contact to it. This is also an attempt to reinterpret the transcendent spaces like courtyards & verandas into in modern urban context. The differential in the interaction of the public & private spaces to the exterior is an important aspect of the design. The public spaces with large glazing open directly in the exterior but the private spaces open into the courtyard & deep verandas with sun breakers on the outside.
Corbusian philosophies are interpreted both in the planning and the architecture expression. The project was the first project of the practice in the first phase of the city & the degrading urban expression (in form of houses that try to look like everything from Spanish villas to ultra-modern deconstructionist architecture) for this symbol of modernism is one of the prime concerns of the practice.
The dwelling unit houses a total of 5 bedrooms. Ground floor houses the public spaces like the formal living & dining, the lounge a small office & Puja as well as the parent’s master bedroom. The kitchen is almost in the center with a collapsible partition to open into the central space. A separate spice kitchen has also been provided to suit the Indian cooking. First floor houses the other three bedrooms, two for the children & one guest room.
View Original