Design Essentia Mar - Apr 2020 Edition // DE INDIA

//the women’s special edition // March - April 2020 // DE INDIA

architecture & design magazine

#WomenWhoInspire

the

Women’s edition

//background art:

by Valéry Lemay

also featuring+

DE discover // Samira Rathod Design Associates,The Arch Studio, Pantone Collective, DE next // Archemist Architects, AT Design Studio, Crafted Spaces, Reflective Practices, Make Space Architects. #LetsTalkDesign

DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE

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DE//INDIA DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE

MAR - APR 2020 #LetsTalkDesign

Design Essentia Magazine is an Architecture & Interior Design magazine from INDIA.

We are an international design journal featuring the work of top architects and designers, as well as the best in trends to follow.

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Contents

DE//INDIA

DE spotlight

DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE

MAR - APR 2020 #LetsTalkDesign

Architect & Urban Conservationist

//Interview

BRINDA SOMAYA

Indian Institute of Architects – Baburao Mhatre Gold Medal for Lifetime Achievement Award winner, The Chairperson of the Board of Governors, School of Planning and Architecture - Vijayawada, A Member of the Council of Architecture Committee, A Member ofthe Board of Committe the Lafargeholcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction, Zurich, Switzerland.

PRINCIPAL ARCHITECT at

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SNK, Mumbai

“The Greta Effect” //the trending story of teenage climate activist

GRETA THUNBERG

18 //2020 PRITZKER ARCHITECTURE PRIZE LAUREATES

YVONNE FARRELL and SHELLEY McNAMARA

09 //in conversation with London based Designer, creative director & design influencer

CHARLOTTE TAYLOR

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#Women Who Inspire

DE impressions

40 32

SHABNAM GUPTA The Orange Lane

IRAM SULTAN Iram Sultan Design Studio

36

38

SARAH SHAM

34

RICHA BAHL

Essajees Atelier

Richa Bahl Design Studio

KRUPA ZUBIN

ZZ Architects

#Women Who Inspire

DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE

30 44

FARAH AHMED FADD STUDIO

DE Discover

50

53

42

THE ARCH STUDIO, PUNE

32

PANTONE COLLECTIVE DESIGN STUDIO, NEW DELHI

THE SCHOOL OF DANCING ARCHES, BHADRAN, GUJARAT SAMIRA RATHOD DESIGN ASSOCIATES

46 DE Next //Young Architects & Designers of India tell their story

Conceptualized from a child's early scribbles that turned into a series of dancing arches, the school is an experiment with materials and forms.

A scribble is indicative of not being instructed, but having the freedom to express yourself in the form of wavy, crooked lines, the only form a child knows. The dancing arches are a reminder of this freedom. checkout full project on page 46

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#Women Who Inspire

DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR ABOUT THE ISSUE As the first female star architect, Zaha Hadid had an enormous impact on the perceived status of women in design. Zaha Hadid, Kazuyo Sejima, Yvonne Farrell, Shelley McNamara, Carme Pigem, Kelly Wearstler and many more have been the top women inspirations in design, who have proved that they are no less then men in the society and I would say women are rather doing way better than men today.

DE introduces its special Women’s Edition featuring the design stories of some top women in design. This edition’s theme is Women Who Inspire. Strong creative women creating some serious design goals for us to follow are here to inspire us and share their unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should.

DE spotlight includes my conversation with one of the top female design mentor Brinda Somaya - the principal architect at Somaya and Kalappa Consultants, who shares her design journey with us. Also know about the trending Swedish girl who started a revolution for climate activism around the world challenging world leaders. The art on cover is called the “Women’s March” by illustrator Valery Lemay done for the Women Women’s March movement 2017.

From interviewing and showcasing the top female trendsetters in the design guild to introducing the new young female talents of the country, this edition showcases the best in trends and tips to follow.

So, let’s celebrate all the women who inspire.

Happy Reading!!

I dont think architecture is just about building physical structures, it is an art that satisfies the human eye aiming to bring the society together with a good design”

DE//INDIA DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE

MAR - APR 2020 #LetsTalkDesign

“Also being an architect I believe; a good design is the one for a smart future in which mankind approaches symbiotically to nature rather than destroying it.

Lets Talk Design Anirudh Datta Editor

www.designessentiamagazine.com

//background image design by Charlotte Taylor, London

#Art

On Cover

the above art is named “Women’s March”by Valéry Lemay.

For Women’s March movement (2017)

DE//INDIA DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE

MAR - APR 2020 #LetsTalkDesign

Valéry Lemay A Montréal based illustrator and graphic designer. www.valerylemay.ca/

ARCHITECTURE PRITZKER PRIZE

2020

DE directions Design Essentia Magazine//DE INDIA

“First Women Duo to win Pritzker” #WomenWhoInspire

Chicago, IL (March 3, 2020) Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara Principal Architects at Grafton Architects, Dublin, Ireland receive the 2020 Pritzker Architecture Prize.

Chairman of The Hyatt Foundation, which sponsors the award that is known internationally as architecture’s highest honor.

“Architecture could be described as one of the most complex and important cultural activities on the planet” remarks Farrell.

“To be an architect is an enormous privilege. To win this prize is a wonderful endorsement of our belief in architecture. Thank you for this great honor.”

As architects a and educators since the 1970s, Farrell and McNamara create spaces that are at once respectful and new, honoring history while demonstrating a mastery of the urban environment and craft of construction.

Balancing strength and delicacy, and upholding a reverence of site-specific contexts, their academic, civic and cultural contexts institutions, as well as housing developments, result in modern and impactful works that never repeat or imitate, but are decidedly of their own architectural voice.

March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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“For their integrity in their approach to both their buildings, as well as the way they conduct their practice, their belief in collaboration, their generosity towards their colleagues, especially as evidenced in such events as the 2018 Venice Biennale, their unceasing commitment to excellence in architecture, their responsible attitude toward the environment, their ability to be cosmopolitan while embracing the uniqueness of each place in which they work, for all these reasons and more, Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara are awarded the 2020 Pritzker Architecture Prize,” states the 2020 Jury Citation, in part.

“Within the ethos of a practice such as ours, we have so often struggled to find space for the implementation of such values as humanism, craft, generosity, and cultural connection with each place and context within which we work. It is therefore extremely gratifying that this recognition is bestowed upon us and our practice and upon the body of work we have managed to produce over a long number of years,” says McNamara. “It is also a wonderful recognition of the ambition and vision of the clients who commissioned us and enabled us to bring our buildings to fruition.”

“Architecture is a framework for human life. It anchors us and connects us to the world in a way which possibly no other space-making discipline can.”

- Shelley McNamara.

“First Women Duo to win Pritzker” #WomenWhoInspire

“At the core of our practice is a real belief that architecture matters. It is a cultural spatial phenomenon that people invent.”

- Yvonne Farrell.

The pair established Grafton Architects in 1978 in Dublin, where they continue to practice and reside. In just over forty years, they have completed nearly as many projects, located in Ireland, the United Kingdom, France, Italy and Peru.

Farrell and McNamara are the 47th and 48th Laureates of the Pritzker Prize, and the first two recipients from Ireland.

Urban Institute of Ireland, photo courtesy of Ros Kavanagh

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2.

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Urban Institute of Ireland, photo courtesy of Ros Kavanagh.

University Campus UTEC Lima, photo courtesy of Iwan Baan.

Universita Luigi Bocconi, photo courtesy of Federico Brunetti.

Loreto Community School, photo courtesy of Ros Kavanagh.

Universita Luigi Bocconi, photo courtesy of Federico Brunetti.

5 Check out more at www.designessentiamagazine.com March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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WOMEN PRITZKER LAUREATES DE directions

TILL NOW!!

Design Essentia Magazine//DE INDIA ZAHA HADID - the First Woman to Receive the Pritzker Architecture Prize.

(2004)

“Women Pritzker Laureates� #WomenWhoInspire

Zaha Hadid (1950-2016) was born in Baghdad Iraq and commenced her college studies at the American University in Beirut in the field of mathematics. She moved to London in 1972 to study architecture at the Architectural ar Association and upon graduation in 1977, she joined the Office of Metropolitan Architecture (OMA). She also taught at the Architectural Association (AA) with OMA collaborators Rem Koolhaas and Elia Zenghelis.

She began her own practice in London in 1980 Zaha Hadid Architects.

Known as an architect who consistently pushes the boundaries of architecture and urban design, her work experiments with new spatial concepts intensifying existing urban landscapes and encompassing all fields of design, from the urban scale to interiors and furniture.

She is well-known for some of her seminal built works, such at the Vitra Fire Station (1993), Weil am Rhein, Germany, the Mind Zone at the Millennium Dome (1999) Greenwich, UK, a ski jump (2002) in Innsbruck, Austria and the Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art (2003) in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Parallel with her private practice, Hadid has continued to be involved in academics, holding chairs and guest professorships at Harvard University, Yale University, the University of Illinois at Chicago, Columbia University, the University of Visual Arts in Hamburg and the University of Applied Arts in Vienna.

Vitra Fire Station (1993) | Photograph by Christian Richters

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| March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA

KAZUYO SEJIMA (2010 Laureate) Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, partners in the architectural firm, SANAA, Japan were chosen as the 2010 Laureates of the Pritzker Architecture Prize.

In 1995, Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa founded SANAA, the Tokyo architecture studio that has designed innovative buildings in Japan and around the world.

Examples of their, thei groundbreaking work include, among others, the Rolex Learning Center in Lausanne, Switzerland; the Toledo Museum of Art's Glass Pavilion in Toledo, Ohio; the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York, NY: the Serpentine Pavilion in London; the Christian Dior Building in Omotesando in Tokyo; and the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art in Kanazawa.

The latter won the Golden Lion in 2004 for the most significant work in the Ninth International Architecture Exhibition of the Venice Biennale.

Rolex Learning Center (2010) | Photo : Rolex Learning Center

“Women Pritzker Laureates” #WomenWhoInspire CARME PIGEM (2017 Laureate) Carme Pigem, along with partners Rafael Aranda, and Ramon Vilalta (RCR Arquitectes, Spain) were selected as the 2017 Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureates, They are a recipients of the National Award for Culture in Architecture 2005 granted by the Catalonian government; the French Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, 2008 and 2014; Honorary Fellows of the American Institute of Architecture, 2010; International Fellows of the Royal Institute of British Architects, 2012; and awardees of the Gold Medal by the French Académie d’Architecture, 2015.

It was the first time that three architects together were honored with the prize.

Bell Lloc Winery, Palamos, Spain (2007) | Photograph by Hisao Suzuki March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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India’s first journal on Environmental news & Sustainable Design to take action against “climate crises”

#GreenGazette

“JOIN US NOW IN THIS CLIMATE EMERGENCY”

follow us @greengazette

A green initiative by Design Essentia magazine//DE INDIA

#LetsTalkGreen

DE spotlight DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE//DE INDIA

//the teenage climate activist

GRETA THUNBERG

08//January - February 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA

“The Greta Effect” DE spotlight DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE//DEINDIA

“It felt like I was the only one who cared about the climate and the ecological crisis.”

- Greta Thunberg to BBC

Greta Thunberg

is a Swedish environmental activist who has gained international recognition for promoting the view that humanity is facing an existential crisis arising from climate change.

It all started in August 2018, when a 15-year-old Swedish girl named Greta Thunberg single handedly started a school strike outside the Swedish Parliament.

“Skolstrejk for Klimatet” in Swedish said the poster meaning School Strike for Climate.

After one year it sparked a revolution towards this climate emergency all over the world especially among the young children.

The Strike now involves more than 100,000 schoolchildren. The Movement is now called “Fridays for Future”.

Photograph courtesy : MICHAEL CAMPANELLA

March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIAtt |

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Launching "Fridays For Future" Greta Thunberg and other concerned youths throughout Europe have continued to pressure leaders and lawmakers to act on climate change through their regular walkouts. Thunberg has also traveled the world, meeting with global leaders and speaking at assemblies to demand climate solutions and a recommitment to the Paris Agreement.

In September 2019, she travelled to New York to address a UN climate conference.

Addressing the conference with million of supporters in New York, she blasted politicians for relying on young people for answers to climate change.

She said:

"How dare you? I shouldn't be up here. I should be back in school on the other side of the ocean, yet you all come to us young people for hope. How dare you?"

“You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words,” Thunberg lectured the world. And maybe she’s right.

Greta has been named the Time Magazine’s Person of the Year 2019 - the youngest till now and has been nominated consecutively twice-in 2019 and 2020 for Nobel Peace Price.

Millions of students around the world have been inspired by her strikes, and Greta has received support from climate activists, scientists, world leaders and the Pope, who told her to "continue" her work.

Time Magazine cover - 2019

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Photograph courtesy by Lauren DeCicca (top); Michael Kappeler (bottom)

| March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA

The latest speech of Greta Thunberg took place at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Analyzing her initiatives, some experts believe that she is able to change the global investment industry.

Greta Thunberg "Our House is on Fire" 2019 World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos.

“

Our house is on fire, I am here to say our house is on fire. According to the IPCC we are less than 12 years away from not being able to undo our mistakes.

In that time unprecedented unp changes in all aspects of society needs to have taken place including a reduction of our co2 emissions by at least 50% and please note that those numbers do not include the aspect of equity which is absolutely necessary to make the Paris agreement work on a global scale. Nor does it include tipping points or feedback loops like the extreme powerful methane gas being released from the thawing Arctic permafrost.

At places like Davos people like to tell success stories but their financial success has come with an unthinkable price tag. And on climate change we have to acknowledge that we have failed. All political movements in their present form have done so. And the media has failed to create broad public awareness. But Homo sapiens have not yet awa failed. Yes we are failing but there is still time to turn everything around we can still fix this, we still have everything in our own hands. But unless we recognize the overall failures of our current systems we must probably those probably don't stand a chance.

We are facing a disaster of unspoken sufferings for enormous amounts of people and now is not the time for speaking politely, we're focusing on what we can or cannot say. Now it's the time to speak clearly. Solving the client crisis is the greatest and most complex challenge that Homo sapiens has have ever faced.

The main solution however is so simple that even a small child can understand it. We have to stop the emissions of greenhouse gases. And either we do that or we don't.

photograph courtesy: World Economic Forum

You say nothing in life is black or white but that is a lie, a very dangerous lie. Either we prevent a 1.5 degree of warming or we don't. Either we avoid setting off that irreversible chain reaction beyond the human control, or we don't. Either we choose to go on as a civilization or we don't. That is as black or white as it gets.

The are no gray areas when it comes to survival. Now There we all have a choice. We can create transformational action that will safeguard the future living conditions for humankind, or we can continue with our business as usual and fail. That is up to you and me.Some say that we should not engage in activism, instead we should leave everything to our politicians and just vote for change instead. But what do we do when there the is no political will? What do we do when the politics needn't are nowhere in sight?

Here in Davos, just like everywhere else, everyone is talking about money. It seems that money and growth are our only main concerns. And since the climate crisis is a crisis that has never once been treated as a crisis, people are simply not aware of the full consequences of our everyday life.People are not aware that there is such a thing as a carbon budget, and just how incredible small that remaining carbon budget is. And that needs to change today. No other current challenge can match the importance of establishing a wide public awareness and understanding of our rapidly disappearing carbon budgets that should and must become a new global currency in the very heart of future and present economics.

We are now at a time in history where everyone with any insight of the climate crisis that threatens our civilization and the entire biosphere must speak out in clear language, no matter how uncomfortable and unprofitable that may be. We must change almost everything in our current societies. The bigger your carbon footprint is, the bigger your moral duty. The bigger your platform the bigger your responsibility. responsibilit Adults keep saying we owe it to the young people to give them hope. But I don't want your hope, I don't want you to be hopeful. I want you to panic, I want you to feel the fear I feel every day. And then I want you to act, I want you to act as if you would in a crisis. I want you to act as if the house was on fire, because it is.

March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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DE spotlight DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE//DE INDIA

DE Spotlight Interview //in conversation with

BRINDA SOMAYA

#WomenWhoInspire Brinda Somaya

is an Architect and Urban Conservationist. She is the Principal Architect at Somaya and Kalappa Consultants, Mumbai (SNK).

One of the top respected talents in architecture in the country, our Design Essentia Editior Anirudh Datta had a detailed interaction for the DE Spotlight interview series as one of the top Women in Design.

www.snkindia.com

Indian Institute of Architects - Baburao Mhatre Gold Medal for Lifetime Achievement Award winner. Over four decades she has merged architecture, conservation and social equity in projects ranging from institutional campuses and rehabilitation of an earthquake-torn village to the restoration of an 18th century Cathedral, showing that progress p and history need not be at odds.

“the Architect’s role is that of guardian – the conscience of the built and un-built environment.”

DE spotlight

- Brinda Somaya, SNK

By Anirudh Datta

DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE//DEINDIA

Over the years, she has won numerous international and national awards.

In 2004 Brinda Somaya won the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage award for the restoration of the St. Thomas’ Cathedral in Mumbai.

INTEREST DESIGN persons working at the intersection of design and service globally.

She is also a Leading European Architects Forum award winner for the new Nalanda Schools Campus in Baroda in 2006. She was the first woman to have won the Wienerberger Golden Architect Award for lifetime achievement - a peer award, in 2007.

In 2008 a mention was awarded to Brinda Somaya by the UIA (International Union of Architects) Sgoutas Prize for alleviation of poverty for her Bhuj Village Project. Two of her projects were also nominated for the Aga Khan award. In 2013 she was chosen as one of the 100 GLOBAL PUBLIC

One of my sharpest childhood memories is standing in the brick ruins of Nalanda, the ancient university in Bihar at the age of six. The memory was etched in my mind for years. My sister and I were taken to different parts of India and our childhood was spent on getting exposed to the different facets of our culture. Hence, architecture was always there in my mind and there was never any debate or a second choice that I considered for my profession. I completed my Master of Arts degree from Smith College, USA after graduating

What inspired you to pursue a career in Architecture?

March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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//DE spotlight from the Sir J. J. College of Architecture, Mumbai.

In May 2012, I received an Honorary Doctorate from my alma mater, Smith College.

I believe that development and progress must proceed without straining the cultural and historic environment. My philosophy is “The architect's role is that of guardian - hers is the conscience of the built and un-built environment.”

This belief led to the formation of Somaya & Kalappa, the company I founded and have headed for the last four decades.

Having designed a swimming pool and support facilities for the Bombay Presidency Golf Club as my first project, I set out into the world of architecture with my own beliefs. You always hear about people who trained and were mentored by prominent architects. My learning experience was difficult and rather isolated.

What is your favorite part about the design process?

Our ancient scriptures have always told us to tread the land lightly, and I think that is a belief which I have had from the very first building I designed over 30 years ago. This was long before ‘green’ became such an important word in an architect’s practice.

What is the studio’s design philosophy?

Any specific design language by SNK? While a set of few fundamental ideas and elements form the foundation of our work at SNK, the design process enriches the architecture and ensures that no two responses are alike. For instance, the Nalanda School courtyards are very different in their scale, composition, proportion, materiality and surfaces articulation as compared to the courtyards at the Goa Institute compa of Management and at the Zensar Campus. In hindsight, I think these patterns are subtle, and readable in my work, but they are not obvious.

I do really enjoy working with these elements, and I focus on them as they become a part of the design vocabulary that has evolved over the last few decades of my practice. While I don’t subscribe to ideas of style, this foundation has given my work a sense of identity and uniqueness.

If one looks at our projects carefully, one can decipher a strong thread that exists and underlines my belief in these core elements and ideas.

I believe there is a need for professional concern with the environment and an improved quality of human life for all Indians. We have to go beyond buildings and work with programmes that transform society.

What is the story behind the start of SNK? It was in 1978 that my sister Ranjini Kalappa and I started our architectural consultancy firm.

However, in two years she moved out of India and I was on my own. Today women are paradoxically both a majority and a minority in architecture.

Maybe if I had followed the more conventional route I would have convinced myself that it would be impossible for a sari clad young woman working in the world of the 70's to set up her own practice.

The confidence to follow my own path came from my parents who just assumed that gender discrimination did not exist or certainly was not an excuse, my school who taught me that no dream was impossible and finally my husband and children who valued me and my profession in their lives.

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Goa Institute of Management, Sanquelim, Goa | Photo courtesy: SNK

Your most proud - favorite projects?

I enjoy the diversity of the work. Every project becomes a journey and a learning experience in itself.

I believe that development and progress must proceed without straining the cultural and historic environment. Every project that I work on is special for me. Our involvement has ranged from the upgradation of slums to large corporate and public buildings, from low income housing to the restoration of magnificent vernacular and colonial buildings. Exciting and fulfilling tasks that span our buildings careers take us from being hi-tech professionals to barefoot architects.

//DE spotlight Studio’s any recent / upcoming project?

Any special design ingredient by the studio in this project you would like to share with us?

Having built all over India in different geographies and cultures, I always build taking into account the local landscape. For a 100-acre campus in Indore for TCS, we conceptualised the campus based on the Narmada river that flows nearby.

The design of built and unbuilt forms, that would be home to young users from all over the country, had to be a conducive environment encouraging ideation, innovation and social exchange.

It was the process of designing and interweaving this narrative within the buildings that was fascinating. In the southern part of this campus the buildings commence densely as the source of the river does in Amarkantak, and then the architectural form becomes angular as do the jagged marble rocks of Jabalpur. In the northern side the forms are oriented such that they open up to vistas integrating the landscape just like the river exits the delta at the Gulf of Khambat.

I worked with local craftsmen to bring in fabrics, jaalis, sculptures, art work within the interiors.

While doing a hotel in Kumbhalgarh, I used local craftsmen to create the crafts for every room; In a Institutional campus in Mumbai, we customized intricate stone jaalis.

We must support craftsmen and we can always find a place for them in modern architecture.

Other than design what other interests and passions are important in your life?

If one is lucky enough to travel, one must. There are many ways you can travel. Now I look for comfort when I travel but when I was young I didn’t. When you are young you can rough it out, you don’t have to go to a five-star.

Are you a social media enthusiast? Do you think in today’s digital age, social media interaction is a must for architects and designers?

In these times, women are not isolated anymore.

There is a whole fraternity of women in architecture and other professions who support each other through different platforms and social media. There is constant sharing of knowledge and ideas, which has made things much easier for women and also men to practice.

If you weren’t an architect what career would you pursue?

Having a very close relationship and deep love for architecture and historical monuments since childhood fascinated I had aspirations to become an archaeologist, but later at the age of 13, I got clarity that I wanted to become an architect.

TCS Campus, Indore | Photograph courtesy: SNK

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//DE spotlight

Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, Gujarat | Photograph courtesy: SNK

Any advice for the young female designers out there trying to make a mark?

Young architects are doing good work and I have full faith that they will protect our environment and our heritage and yet contemporise design to take it forward into our new tech-savvy world. As an architect, you need to understand people’s needs and anticipate changes.

I have always been very optimistic and there are great young architects in our country today and I am sure they will take India on to the world map of architecture; I have no doubt about it.

If one is lucky enough to travel, one must. There are many ways you can travel. It’s the biggest learning experience one can have feet on the ground. We should also remember that half of our population needs are very severe and being an architect cannot be just for the rich and famous and our responsibility should also be to build in the rural areas and in smaller towns and for people who are less privileged.

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should? Does being a woman in design have its own hardships?

I think it is not easy for anyone, be it a man or a woman. If it comes to challenges of being a woman in a fairly male dominated profession in the present day, I feel that women are not isolated anymore in the way my contemporaries and I were. We were also a handful of women who were running our own practices. There were advantages too of being isolated because then I was only focused on building. We had no computers and media was not omnipresent like it is today.

24 | March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA

I believe that an inclusive practice that spans our diverse population, be it economic or cultural, provides us with great satisfaction. Therefore, the motivation for inclusion and diversity should come not only from the desire to create a just society, but also because it leads to better and more powerful creative processes and solutions.

I hope that when history books look back at the first few decades of the twenty-first century they will find an architecture that responded to the wonderful traditions of India combined with the needs of its people. check out more at www.designessentiamagazine.com

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DE//INDIA

Architecture & Interior Design Magazine

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Impressions //take an alluring journey through design while talking to some inuencial women in architecture & design, setting the latest trends today for us to follow. #WomenWhoInspire

//In background project by ZZ Architects, photographer: Harshan Thomson

DE impressions

By Anirudh Datta

DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE//DEINDIA

#WomenWhoInspire CHARLOTTE TAYLOR A LONDON based DESIGNER, CREATIVE DESIGNER & DESIGN INFLUENCER.

“My work is an exploration of architecture by my own personal understanding and rules, dismantling the practice and reinterpreting it through a fictive lens, manifesting this in digital compositions, homes and landscapes and more mo concrete interiors and scenography projects.”

What inspired you to pursue a career in Design?

I grew up in a design orientated family in quite an architecturally peculiar house adorned with arches. My father is a lighting designer and I often accompanied him to site visits from a young age, I was fascinated by the raw architectural shell and construction process that I then duplicated at home in my vast lego town. My interest in areas of design is continuously shifting and adapting between objects, interiors and architecture, or more so, the intersection of all of these fields. My inception into a career in design was inspired by a desire to merge all of these practices and develop my own conventions and ideals of architecture and interior space.

Palm Springs House Charlotte Taylor and Stefano Giacomello

Who were your early heroes and role models? Any inspiring female?

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During my childhood I was largely inspired by quite meticulous drawings and lithographs, Escher was and still is a hero for me, my whole foundation year consisted of obsessively drawing intersecting cubic forms and stairs! As my interest shifted more into the build environment and sculptural mediums, Jeanne-Claude became extremely influential for me, with her huge scale installations completed with Christo and their beautifully crafted sketches and paintings in planning of the pieces. www.studiocharlottetaylor.com

Tell us something about your studio and it’s design philosophy?

My studio is never settled In one field or discipline, the excitement for projects comes out of constantly pushing work into new avenues, mediums and outlets. Collaboration is also a core value of the studio, bringing other creative minds and perspectives into the design process brings an unexpected yet intriguing outcome.

You’re most proud - favorite projects?

Our recent project, ‘The Tiled House’ in collaboration with Hannes Lippert is one my favourite projects to date. The project began as a simple admiration for the tiles created by d-tile, we wanted to incorporate this into a home and ended up developing the concept into an entire experimental home constructed of the tiles. The process of the project was extremely fluid, pr working room by room and then patching together the house at the last stage, a slightly unconventional approach to architectural and interior design! It is however these unpredicted and evolving projects that excite me the most and display the ethos of the studio at its best.

Being one of top design influencers, do you think in today’s digital age, social media interaction is a must for designers? How did the social media affect your life?

Tiled House | Charlotte Taylor & Hannes Lippert

It depends on what area of design you are working in, I know a few designers and in fact some of my most admired architects with very little social media presence yet a very strong portfolio and press coverage. For my practice, it’s growth has definitely been intrinsic with social media, the majority of my collaborators and clients have made the first contact through Instagram. It has been an overall positive relationship with social media for the studio, however, there are definitely times when a mass circulation and/or audience on social platforms has its downsides and consequences.

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should? Does being a woman in design have its own hardships?

In design, from the outside it seems a relatively even playing ground now as female designs are under the spotlight more often. However, there is still a very male dominant presence in fields such as interior design, especially in large cities.

Although having said this, it is not just a question of gender, more an exclusivity these fields have in certain capitals. ce check more at designessentiamagazine.com

March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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DE impressions

By Anirudh Datta

DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE//DEINDIA

#WomenWhoInspire FARAH AHMED PRINCIPAL DESIGNER AT FADD STUDIO, BANGALORE. FADD Studio was founded in 2012 in Bangalore

by Farah Ahmed and Dhaval Shellugar.

“The world of design is in a constant state of flux; exploring and evolving into and out of new ideas, concept, trends and fads. It is also about revisiting older trends that were set decades ago and reinterpreting them in a fresh and contemporary way. So is the philosophy of FADD Studio.”

What inspired you to pursue a career in Design?

I had an interesting exploratory journey before stumbling upon Design. Like most artsy people, i didn’t always know what i wanted to do in my life in design, but i did know that whatever it was, it kept me intrigued, challenged and busy.

During my undergraduate studies at Northwestern University, I studied Photography and Political Science and then moved to New York where i worked in advertising. My desire to break the shackles of the corporate world to explore my independent creative side, i delved into fine art photography. Still not fully satiated, and in my desire desi to add tangible and practical aspects to my creativity, i began working at renowned architecture and interior firm - Khosla Associates.

After a year and half, i knew i had struck the balance i sought between numbers and colours, and of leveraging my creative skills to help clients achieve their vision.

Being inspired with design I completed my Masters in Interior Design from Milan and later established my own studio - FADD studio..

Residence - Frangipani 14, Hosur, Tamil Nadu Photographer: Gokul Rao Kadam

Who were your early heroes and role models? Any inspiring female?

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One of my role models have been the Indian architect Sandeep Khosla from Bangalore.

You’re most proud projects?

Round of all our project because each one is like a baby we see through from its inception, but one that cones to mind that we have worked for 6 years is a holiday home in a gated community called Frangipani in Hosur, Tamil Nadu. www.faddstudio.com

If you weren’t an architect what career would you pursue?

Azalea Residence, Bangalore, Karnataka.

Photograph courtesy: FADD Studio

An adrenalin pumping career like being a bungee / scuba / skydive instructor or a national geographic photojournalist or a stay home mom.

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should?

I see design as masculine and feminine - and any sex can bring in those. By that I mean, a man can bring in a femininity to design just as much as a woman can bring in masculinity and those roles are not limited to their respective sex.

So I think having a balance of both in design is important and I don’t belief that just because I am a woman I bring in something a man can’t. I think the design experience is unique to a person or a firm and not necessarily to a sex! I think being a woking woman in any field has it’s hardships and challenges.

Any advice for the young female architect & designers out there trying to make a mark?

Nothing is impossible so don’t ever take NO for an answer.

If you weren’t an architect/designer what career would youAzalea pursue?

Residence, Bangalore, Karnataka.

Photograph courtesy: FADD Studio

An adrenalin pumping career like being a bungee/scuba/skydive instructor or a national geographic photojournalist or a stay home mom!

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should?

I see design as masculine and feminine - and any sex can bring in those. By that I mean, a man can bring in a femininity to design just as much as a woman can bring in masculinity and those roles are not limited to their respective sex. So I think having a balance of both in design is important and I don’t belief that just because I am a woman I bring in something a man can’t. I think the design experience is unique to a person or a firm and not necessarily to a sex!

I think being a woking woman in any field has it’s hardships and challenges.

Any advice for the young female architect/designers out there trying to make a mark? nothing is impossible so don’t ever take NO for an answer. check more at designessentiamagazine.com March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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#WomenWhoInspire DE impressions

By Anirudh Datta

DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE//DEINDIA

IRAM SULTAN PRINCIPAL DESIGNER AT IRAM SULTAN DESIGN STUDIO, MUMBAI

“Design makes the world a better place, whether it is the functionality and comfort of a well designed space or the joy that the beauty of that very same space brings us.”

Interior designer Iram Sultan specialises in creating both modern and traditional designs with a unique twist. Her work focuses on designing spaces that are beautiful, comfortable and most importantly functional. Design to her is all about storytelling, curated with love and storytellin told with passion.

Who were your early heroes and role models? Any inspiring female?

I think design is a daily journey of discovery and each day you find new heroes. One of my favourite designers has to be Charlotte Perriand and someone who I admire deeply is the artist Louise Bourgeois.

Tell us something about your studio and it’s design philosophy?

Photograph courtesy: Iram Sultan Design Studio

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We are a boutique design studio and our focus is always on bespoke design, collaborative practise and details, details and then some more details. We invent ourselves anew with each client as they are our primary collaborators.

We like design that is classic and timeless with art and antiques being a part of the design language. www.iramsultan.com

| March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA

You’re most proud projects?

We hope that each project is a learning experience. One of our recent projects that we love is an office that we completed in Ahmedabad.

If you weren’t a designer what career would you pursue?

I would own a bookstore. I am a bibliophile and love reading more than anything else.

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should? Does being a woman in design have its own hardships?

I would hope that gender should not define us. I believe that if you have the thirst to learn and improve your gender should not hold you back. There are many amazing women designers and architects in India who have proven that.

“Be fearless, be eager, a mistake is an advantage as it teaches us.

Never give up and love what you do. The world is your oyster”- Iram Sultan Photograph courtesy: Iram Sultan Design Studio

If you weren’t an architect/designer what career would you pursue?

An adrenalin pumping career like being a bungee/scuba/skydive instructor or a national geographic photojournalist or a stay home mom!

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should?

I see design as masculine and feminine - and any sex can bring in those. By that I mean, a man can bring in a femininity to design just as much as a woman can bring in masculinity and those roles are not limited to their respective sex. So I think having a balance of both in design is important and I don’t belief that just because I am a woman I bring in something a man can’t. I think the design experience is unique to a person or a firm and not necessarily to a sex!

I think being a woking woman in any field has it’s hardships and challenges.

Any advice for the young female architect/designers out there trying to make a mark? nothing is impossible so don’t ever take NO for an answer. check more at designessentiamagazine.com March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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#WomenWhoInspire DE impressions

By Anirudh Datta

DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE//DEINDIA

KRUPA ZUBIN PRINCIPAL ARCHITECT AT ZZ ARCHITECTS, MUMBAI

“Exciting play of materials, the judicious use of technology and a design sensibility that is extremely refined, defines the style of ZZ Architects.”

ZZ Architects established more than 16 years ago in Mumbai by Architects Krupa Zubin and Zubin Zainuddin, ZZ Architects provides extremely high end and bespoke professional architectural and interior design service.

Jubilee Hills Villa, Hyderabad Photographer: HARSHAN THOMSON

What inspired you to pursue a career in Architecture?

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During my earlier days in school I was always a bright student and did well academically. While exploring career options I strongly felt that design and art was fascinating and I also was very inquisitive about the very reasoning of existentialism. Art and Design always felt like mediums I would enjoy and instead of becoming an engineer or doctor I decided to take the path of Architecture. Actually I was not very ready for what the profession was like, but as the I got deeper into the course I really started enjoying what I had signed up for.

I love the disciplined nature of the profession and the deep understanding and relevance of honing your own individual craft and repertoire made this the most influential and fulfilling educational journey that I could wish for. www.zzarchitects.net

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Who were your early heroes and role models? Any inspiring female?

Like every young and aspiring Architect, I spent my initial years looking for my very own voice and calling.

Early on in my career I have always admired Ear Architect Charles Correa and Architect Carlos Scarpa for their spaces and for the silence it evokes within oneself. Over the years I realised that there are way too many to just enlist and I feel indebted to all who are part of this wonderful fraternity to keep inspiring me to become a better version of myself.

The last couple of years I have been fascinated by fashion and how it seems to be impacting us all. I am deeply inspired by the work of Commes Des Garcons, Issey Miyake, Virgil Abloh, Alexander McQueen and Yohji Yamamoto.Even this list can jus go on and on.

Contemporary Architects like Kerry Hill, David Chipperfield, Frank Gehry, John Pawson, Zaha Hadid, Norman Foster, Patricia Urquiola, Nendo and Tadoa Ando are only amongst the many names whose work, and dedication to the craft, leave me speechless. I really aspire to make my firms work stand out on a truly international platform. plat

Any advice for the young female architect & designers out there trying to make a mark?

Dont give up on anything you dream of being in life and definitely not because you are a woman. Being a woman in any field is not supposed to be easy. The profession of architecture and design itself is not an easy one, however it is an extremely rewarding profession. Just constantly evolve and adhere to a strict quality in the regimen of your work.

Make sure that everything you do is at your highest abilities and the work does finally speak for who we actually aspire to be.

Jubilee Hills Villa, Hyderabad Photographer: HARSHAN THOMSON

You’re most proud projects?

We work on a lot of projects simultaneously and that makes the process extremely gratifying. I think we enjoy the process of working on each and every aspect of a project. We are extremely happy about the constant pursuit of change that we are ready to undergo to make our work more relevant.

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should? Does being a woman in design have its own hardships?

Yes being a woman has its own sets of challenges, one must learn to take it by your side. I tend to convert those difficulties into opportunities. I have always driven myself harder in my pursuit each time someone didn’t believe in my capabilities. I definitely know that as a woman one has to work harder and is expected to multi task naturally and effortlessly. It can get tough sometimes but the journey is surely a great ride.

There are clear milestones that one has to set and one needs to be constantly committed to what our true calling is.

As a woman we must handle what we must handle and rise above all else. I believe in solutions, the problems are a starting point.

check more at designessentiamagazine.com March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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DE impressions

By Anirudh Datta

DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE//DEINDIA

#WomenWhoInspire RICHA BAHL PRINCIPAL DESIGNER AT RICHA BAHL DESIGN STUDIO, MUMBAI Richa enjoys creating spaces that are distinctive and reflect the personality of the client while retaining her own aesthetics and sense of design. Her list of renowned clients includes Alia Bhatt, Kriti Sanon, Dia Mirza, Freida Pinto, Parineeti Chopra, Kangana Ranuat, Universal Music Studio, Soda Films, Phantom Films, Studi Coconut Films, and more.

What inspired you to pursue a career in Design?

Growing up as an Indian army officer’s daughter I was exposed to many cities and cultures and our homes were always multicultural as one would own local handicraft items from the state they were posted in, the army life of officer’s mess, it was decorated in a particular way. Grand sofa set and big chandeliers and lots of plants and colonial style building and going to summer holidays to grand parents home which was a beautiful white house in the middle of a farm. These are some early experiences in life which were my exposure to design.

Having experience in other work environments was also a great benefit to becoming a designer. I feel that the older you are the more life experience you have and the better a designer you will be.

Sunset, Residence in Pali Hill, Mumbai Photographer: PULKIT SEHGAL

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“People, spaces and emotions are all connected, and I love putting that into my work. I like spaces which speak to you, make you feel comfortable and bring back a memory.”

Who were your early heroes and role models? Any inspiring female?

Geoff Geoffrey Bawa, Sunil Doshi , Samira Rathod are some of the architects whose projects I love to learn from. I admire the set designers like Barbara Herman and Janice macrame (Patrick Melrose series) and few more who do a phenomenal job to portray the time period or sets which create the tone / vibe of the characters beautifully. I’m always noticing the details in the movies.

I am also influenced by my mother’s work, she made beautiful oil paintings.

Travel has been a great teacher and inspiration.

Tell us something about your studio and it’s design philosophy?

Over the years I learnt that people are attracted to designers who are passionate about their particular niche and will be prepared to take risks with them. I don’t want the space to look too modern or traditional. I want to make it look interesting.

I like to create spaces which bring nostalgia and attachment and not an unfamiliar new place. I love to see the surprise and awe in my clients eyes after it’s all done and my attempt is to always achieve the moment for them.

You’re most proud projects?

I am very proud of my woman centric clientele. It is overwhelming to me that I have such successful women as my clients and not just celebrities but woman running their own successful businesses.

Sunset, Residence in Pali Hill, Mumbai Photographer: PULKIT SEHGAL

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should?

I guess we have a Natural instinct when it comes to planning and house related fixes as a woman’s emotional intelligence is higher and we certainly have an edge.

Does being a woman in design have its own hardships?

I don’t like playing the woman card but if I had to i would say give us more shopping benefits. I think this is one profession best for women in every way and I haven’t experienced any hardships .

Any advice for the young female architect & designers out there trying to make a mark?

It’s very important to understand who you are designing for and secondly need to have your distinctive design style.

Sunset, Residence in Pali Hill, Mumbai Photographer: PULKIT SEHGAL

check more at designessentiamagazine.com March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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#WomenWhoInspire DE impressions

By Anirudh Datta

DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE//DEINDIA

SARAH SHAM PRINCIPAL DESIGNER AT ESSAJEES ATELIER, MUMBAI

The interior design arm of Essajees, a 106-year-old company, Essajees Atelier was established in 2014 by Sarah as an independent design practice founded on the legacy and ethos of the Essajees brand. Up there among Mumbai’s best, Essajees deals with art, antiques, and collectibles apart from custom-made flooring and high-end furniture.

What inspired you to pursue a career in interior design?

Private Residence, Colaba, Mumbai Photograph courtesy: Essajees Atelier

My family has been dealing in art and antiques for four generations, and its always been something that I’ve been around.

I grew up with my grandfather and father teaching me many things about the appreciation of design and the small details that go into it, which is what really gave me my love for this field.

Who were your early heroes and role models? Any inspiring female?

The home was lacking a lot of natural light, and we needed to rejig the entire space and make it feel bright, airy and filled with good energy. We custom made almost every single item here from the furniture to the rugs to the upholstery, to give it a unique feel.

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When I was in college I did an internship at Saffron Art, and there was a lady called Minal Vazirani that headed up the company. She literally grew it out of nothing, she made something incredible and grew this large company and auction house that everyone loved www.essajeesatelier.com

| March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should? Does being a woman in design have its own hardships?

Ocean Breeze - Private Residence, Napeansea Road, Mumbai Photograph courtesy: Essajees Atelier

and appreciated. It did extremely well during the entire art boom that India saw and I was an intern there in 2006.

I really looked up to her and the way the ran her business, and I was always keen to also be a successful businesswoman like her. Another mentor for me was Erika Brunson, a designer I worked with in Los Angeles at the start of my career. I spent 3 months shadowing Erika and learning how she conducted her entire business and it was a huge eye opener for me to see how she made these hugely successful projects work single handily, and she was definitely one of my inspirations.

Initial I did have a hard time dealing with Initially contractors on site, as a young woman I felt like I was not taken seriously or given the respect that I would’ve liked.

However, over time I have found my own ways of dealing with people and on site contractors and they too have understood the process of taking instructions from a woman-led team.

Any advice for the young female architect & designers out there trying to make a mark?

The world is yours for the taking, don’t hesitate and go for it.

Tell us something about your studio and it’s design philosophy?

Our studio focuses on super high quality work in small quantities. We don’t take on too many projects, and only take on things that really appeal to us. We also are particular about not repeating design elements or things we have done on previous projects and try to keep things fresh each and every time. Its been 6 years, and with 40 projects completed I think we still have a long way pr to go.

You’re most proud projects?

I think all my early projects I am most proud of. As a young designer I really didn’t have a lot of confidence and I had no portfolio or past Ocean Breeze - Private Residence, Napeansea Road, Mumbai Photograph courtesy: Essajees Atelier experience to speak of, and yet I somehow managed to pull it off and stay focussed. I don’t have one particular project that’s my favourite, all check more at of them I learnt something from and grew from. designessentiamagazine.com March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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DE impressions

By Anirudh Datta

DESIGN ESSENTIA MAGAZINE//DEINDIA

#WomenWhoInspire SHABNAM GUPTA PRINCIPAL DESIGNER AT THE ORANGE LANE & PEACOCK LIFE, MUMBAI Driven by her passion for design and encouraged by her strong entrepreneurial spirit, Shabnam Gupta set out on a path that redefined her identity.

The Orange Lane was born in the year 2003 and has now grown by leaps and bounds into a force to reckon with

“A good design is cohesive, cathartic and people-led and a powerful design aesthetic can only stem from the right work ethics, one that keeps people before design and function before form.”

What inspired you to pursue a career in Design?

I ended up taking Home Science but left it in the first week of college and enrolled myself in design school, not realising what it was meant to be. So, as they say, I didn't choose the design life, it chose me!" www.shabnamgupta.com

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Art Inspired Home, Mumbai Photographer: FABIEN CHAURAU

Born and brought up in Mumbai and coming from a creative family, my parents gave us a great deal of exposure to nature and the outdoors. I always knew I had an inclination of all things creative,but destiny really paved a path through this route. I was quite a rebel growing up. At some point my dad was gr quite apprehensive that I wouldn't turn out to be the lady that he thought I should be.

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should? Does being a woman in design have its own hardships?

Art Inspired Home, Mumbai Photographer: FABIEN CHAURAU

As a female I feel we are more perceptive and insightful towards the sensitivities required to understand a client’s requirement. I don’t consider it as a hardship but an advantage.

Any advice for the young female architect & designers out there trying to make a mark?

Who were your early heroes and role models? Any inspiring female?

My mother who still continues to inspire me with her quiet resilient strength. As a woman you are handling so many fronts but to do and still be the pillar in the family and take everyone with you in you journey is key.

One very strong advice I would like to give to young aspirants, especially women pursuing architecture and design is to not give up on your dreams. Women wear many hats. Women in our society are brought up to believe that they need to fill a lot of roles in life. The going gets tough at times and there’s no harm in reaching out to people the but through thick and thin don’t give up on your belief system and dreams.

Tell us something about your studio and it’s design philosophy?

Our design philosophy is to be able to create a space that is conducive for extending the clients’ personality. It is about creating spaces that make the mind, the body and the soul behave in a certain way.

For us the design is not about the aesthetic but it’s about the way a client would function within that space. spac Your most proud projects?

Each one of my design projects has its own unique journey and each is special to me.

Hence, choosing any one would be near impossible. However, from my latest works, I am happiest with Kangana’s Manali home since it was a remote location and with nothing available there we still managed to create what we did. cr If you weren’t a designer what career would you pursue?

I love Art. So, definitely an Artist.

Art Inspired Home, Mumbai Photographer: FABIEN CHAURAU

check more at designessentiamagazine.com March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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Dezeen announces Virtual Design Festival, the world's first online design festival.

15 April - 30 June, 2020 www.virtualdesignfestival.com

#quarantined ?

CREATIVITY FLOWING THIS QUARANTINE?

POST YOUR YOUR WORK FROM HOME DESK IMAGES WITH BELOW HASHTAG AND TAG US TO GET FEATURED.

#DEdesignAtHOME www.designessentiamagazine.com @designessentiamagazine LIKE US ON FACEBOOK

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DE Discover //Discover an alluring journey through a few latest design stories of some young inspiring women in design.

//In background project by Pantone Collective, photographer: Anirudh Datta

DE discover THE SCHOOL OF DANCING ARCHES Photographer: Niveditaa Gupta

Architect: Samira Rathod Design Associates Principal Architect: Samira Rathod Project Location: Bhadran, Gujarat, India Project Area: 18000 sq.ft.

Almost all of us have been here in our childhood, and perhaps the closest memories we hold dear are not of significant events, but ironically of the insignificant ones. Of losing oneself to wonderment, to wander under the skies, to re-live in our vivid imaginations of the make-believe and many more phrases that make the song of our lives.

This is the premise on which we began to design the spaces of the school at Bhadran, where a child spends his formative years,

where his first friends are made, where his first memories are etched.

This evolved as a quilt of many small events, of small places and spaces, to hide, to collide, climb, roll, run into and out of, to satiate curiosities of a forming mind, allowing its idyllic imagination and wonder.

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| March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA

Conceptualized from a child's early scribbles that turned into a series of dancing arches, the school is an experiment with materials and forms. A scribble is indicative of not being instructed, but having the freedom to express yourself in the form of wavy, crooked lines, the only form a child knows.

The dancing arches are a reminder of this freedom.

The asymmetry of the arches reiterate that it is not always mandatory to be straight or conventional, but the irregularity at first glance makes the forming mind curious and question. The habit of critical thinking, questioning and breaking away from the convention is what the building echoes. The plan is also irregular ir to allow for a meander.

Set on plot of land, surrounded by tobacco fields in the town of Bhadran, the design of the school grew organically as a series of classrooms that dance their way through the trees; encountering alcoves, cracks and crevices, projections, niches, inhabited bridges, boxes, khadkis & mezzanines – adding to a composition of experiences that would weave into the fabric of the school, much like the maze-like town of Bhadran itself. The entire school is designed as a sequence of modules; each module would have a pair of classrooms and a corridor, with its tilted vaults sinuously strung.

All the modules are designed to create repeated use of shuttering material made in waste steel and can be arranged in various patterns as deemed fit.

March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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Reuse of shuttering reduces the cost while using fewer resources making the building sustainable. Roof forms are a sandwich structure with concrete in between layers of brick on the top and bottom.

The classrooms have skewed beams with irregular jack arches, a unit of which protrudes to come to a skylight. The roof is waterproofed with a thick layer of brickbat coba in the profile of the arches forming a playful broken brick landscape even on the roof.

“We have stayed true to one material: terracotta - bricks and only bricks in walls, floors, and roofs.

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Sourced from a kiln close to the site, it is the love of labor from around the town and the craft they bring with themselves that lends the building its immaculate semantic and precision.”

“Light for us is a tangible building material. We often tend to use it like a needle to embroider moments and experiences in our architecture.”

The sharp dark shadows of the irregular arches in the corridor, the soft glow of tangerine through the lopsided vaults, beams of light through the slits and skylights in the classroom add to this experience, generating intrigue.

A building; a school; where the play of hiding and seek is perpetual.

Checkout more at www.designessentiamagazine.com Photographer: Niveditaa Guptaa March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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FOUNDER THE ARCH STUDIO, PUNE THE LEARNING POD, PUNE THE ARCH STUDIO, PUNE is a young multi-disciplinary design studio led by founder and principal architect Siddhina Sakla, offering architecture and interior design solutions for residential, commercial, hospitality and retail projects.

#WomenWhoInspire

SIDDHINA SAKLA

Secret Garden, Residence by The Arch Studio, Pune Photographer: PHOTOGRAPHIX - IRA GOSALIA

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THE SECRECT GARDEN, RESIDENCE (on right) Creating an opulent space, while keeping it minimal and contemporary was the idea behind the project.

Restrained design aesthetic and attention to detailing have made this a haven to relax and unwind. unwind

Residence - The Secret Garden. | Photographer: PHOTOGRAPHIX - IRA GOSALIA

What inspired you to pursue a career in Architecture & Design?

I always had a creative and logical mind. My father is into real estate and he would take us often to site, to show us the progress.

Buildings always fascinated me. In my fifth grade essay, I remember writing that I wanted to be an architect. Organizing and keeping things perfectly well in our house was another obsession I had, and so my mom always said, you would make a good interior designer.

Tell us something about your studio and it’s design philosophy?

At The Arch Studio, we believe in form follows function, keeping in mind the use of varied materials, approach to colour while keeping the vibrancy and energy as central. At the Heart of the studio is its mission to create extraordinary spaces, not only visually but to all senses.

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should?

My kids store client once told me, that what women understand, men won’t. I was surprised and questioned him why, and he said, you are a mother and you understand the requirements a lot better than men do.

I feel that patriarchy is now changing in india and definitely feel great about it.

Women have a very practical approach to design where we think of smaller things in a house, for example, how would a lady clean these many niches or tiny gaps or so many coves in the ceiling though aesthetically it is pleasing.

Does being a woman in design have its own hardships?

Yes, defiantly it does. The constant juggle is real. We are constantly finding a work-family balance in a profession that frequently demands a 60-hour work week.

Besides Besides, Building things is still very much a man’s world—particularly on the site and in the government bodies. Unlike any other profession the construction site remains over 95% male.

Finding your voice is important and being heard even more.

March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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Residence - The Secret Garden by The Arch Studio, Pune Photographer: PHOTOGRAPHIX - IRA GOSALIA

The living and dining area seamless merge through, creating an illusion of a larger space. The gold and white panelling act as a backdrop to the very chic salmon pink L-shaped sofa, complemented by a marble hexagon centre table. The mirror panelling in the dining area is the absolute highlight along with an adorning chandelier creating depth in the space.

The master bedroom was designed to create a cosy and luxurious ambience with the use of pink marble cladding and pearl white wardrobes blending with the contemporary wooden floor and abundant natural light through the expansive corner windows allowing the beautiful bamboo trees to lush through inside. (bottom)

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| March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA

PRINCIPAL ARCHITECT PANTONE COLLECTIVE DESIGN STUDIO, NEW DELHI PANTONE COLECTIVE is a young multi-disciplinary design studio led by founder and principal architect Tanya Chutani. The studio’s designs take a lot of inspiration from colors and art. The studio takes an initiative to create a colorful balance between art and design.

#WomenWhoInspire

TANYA CHUTANI

//The Blue Baoli - aka Barumbar, New Delhi

by Pantone Collective, New Delhi Photographer: ANIRUDH DATTA

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| March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA

Sacramento Vault by Pantone Collective, New Delhi | Photgrapher: NIVEDITAA GUPTA

Tell us something about your studio and it’s design philosophy?

The word Pantone also is a different term for color. Our designs take a lot of inspiration from colors and art. We take an initiative to create a colorful balance between art and design. Treating the spaces and surroundings as our canvas, towards which we make sure to create an artistic approach in design for a unique ar creative solution. We play with colors extensively with a bold art impression in design so as to create an emotional impact on the user. “Architecture and Design arouses sentiments in man. The architect's task, therefore, is to make ma those sentiments more precise.” Our aim is to arouse these sentiments towards the space with our design approach. My design language basically revolves around one primary color usage with different contrasting elements in along side. I focus to design the space in detail. detail You’re most recent best projects?

What are your favorite elements in the project?

The recently completed and much awaited project “The Sacramento Vault” – a fashion retail store for a top fashion designer Abdul Halder has been our top priority. It is the flagship store in New Delhi with upcoming branches of the brand in New York and Dubai. Our color for the project was the rich Sacramento green with golden arches and ornamental details to create a contrasting color play with a luxury minimalist impression.

Another one is the “The Blue Baoli” aka Barumbar - an Indian cocktail bar with fusion design language with series of stepwells (Baoli wall). The space ressurect step the inner passion for art, while the electic blue adds some drama.

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should? Does being a woman in design have its own hardships?

I am a designer and for me that comes first. Working in an industry, which has always been a male dominant field, has been my last concern. I have built my own path in this field and have been committed to a design practice that creates a niche for my language in this industry. Practicing in a metropolitan city and with some great clients, I have always been heard and have received utmost respect for my craft and talent. The recei world is changing and we are no longer being judged by our sex, origin or age. Our craft and skills are something that takes us forward. And in the end I want to be a good designer and not a ‘good woman designer’ March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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//Blue Clover Leaf, Manhattan, New York

Blue Clover Leaf, Manhattan, New York Picture courtesy: Pantone Collective

Aka ‘Good Earth’s Geographic Expansion Into The United States An Experience Retail Store In Collaboration With Savannah College Of Art & Design For “Good Earth”.

Pantone Color Of The Year, “The Classic Blue” Has Been Used In The Whole Space With A Mix Of Antique Brass Finishes And Earthy Baked Clay Tones, Highlighting The Elements To Create A Sense Of Contrast With Luxury. This Color Palette Transports You To The Heritage Alleys Of Jodhpur & Jaipur Of Rajasthan, India.

The Modern Reflective Spheres Suspended From The Ceiling Becomes The Central Feature Of The Experience Center That Reflects That Entire Space And Acts Like A Guiding Tour. Keeping The Good Earths Craftsmanship, Unique Design Sensibility, And Its Relationship With History & HeritageThe Space Have Been Inspired By The Nature By Using Extensive Wall Murals And Indian Architectural Forms Like Arches, Colonnades & Baolis In Modern Approach.

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calling all young architects & designers of India. “tell your design story� www.designessentiamagazine.com

DE Next //Category for Young Architects & Designers of India to tell their story.

DE Next //DE Next introduces some of the talented young Architects and Designers of India.

Discover the next generation of the design guild, as they tell their design story !!

//In background project by Crafted Spaces, Hyderabad, photographer: Sankeerth Jonnada

INTRODUCING THE YOUNG ARCHITECTS AND DESIGNERS OF INDIA

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ARCHEMIST ARCHITECTS BANGALORE, KARNATAKA, INDIA

DIVYA B.T. //Archemist Architects was started as a collaborative practice in 2014 by an architects Divya B.T. and Yogesh V.N. in Bangalore.

The firm handles a large range of projects across categories of various scales.

Residential, Commercial or Hospitality, the studio dabbles with any thing where there is scope for interesting design and innovation.

A highly charged, open minded and fun loving office environment is their key to keep the creative juices flowing.

ARCHITECT CO - FOUNDER

Tell us something about your studio and its design philosophy?

Archemist Architects was started in 2014.

We believe architecture is an amalgamation of Art, Design, Travel, Music and Love.

A highly charged, open minded and fun loving office environment is key to keep the creativity running.

We always try to keep the excitement up in any project.

Our duty is not just creating aesthecically pleasing spaces, but to aim at well functioning spaces.

Our uniqueness i think lies in our ability to catch the pulse of the client and delivering bespoke design customised to their needs.

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Nikunj - The Habitat, Residence in Bangalore by Archemist Architects Photographer: HARSH SHARMA

Nikunj - The Habitat, Residence in Bangalore by Archemist Architects Photographer: HARSH SHARMA

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WOK THIS WAY

BY STUDIO MESTRY Location: Mumbai, Maharashtra Photographer: ANISH PADALKAR

You’re most recent best project? What are your favourite elements in the project?

Its very hard to choose between projects. But if I had to pick one, it would be a sustainable residence we designed, called the Habitat.

The objective of this project revolved around the concept of symbiotic relationship between Man and Nature. The Client who is an animal conservationist wanted to make some special arrangements to accommodate local species of birds and bats in his home. The landscaping around the house was designed not just a visual delight but carefully planted with specific plants to attract local species of birds and butterflies.

The most interesting feature, which my favourite is that, custom designed clay pots were integrated into the external stone façade of the building to attract hole nesting birds like mynas, owls and parakeets. A true urban wildlife garden it is. ga March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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RESIDENCE 281, Bangalore by Archemist Architects Photographer: HARSH SHARMA

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should? Does being a woman in design have its own hardships?

I personally believe, as women our hardships arise when we start to compare ourselves to men or try to compete with them.

Let’s embrace the different Let opportunities and choices life has to offer and embrace our unique abilities. As a mother of a toddler myself, I am in the thick of the juggling act between work and private life. I feel blessed to have these experiences in my life ha which bring along immense learning and inspire me in ways like no other.

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INTRODUCING THE YOUNG ARCHITECTS AND DESIGNERS OF INDIA

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AT DESIGN STUDIO MUMBAI, MAHARASHTRA, INDIA

ANKITA THADANI //AT Design Studio is a Mumbai based interiors specializing in bespoke residential and hospitality interiors. Our design aesthetic leans towards sophisticated luxury with a minimalist streak.

We believe in creating unique spaces that balance functionality and style and reflect the personality of the user(s).

ARCHITECT FOUNDER

Tell us something about your studio and its design philosophy?

We aim at creating a strong aesthetic appeal. A good well through design is all that I work towards creating each day, every day.

The comfort found in a simple minimalistic well thought homes, is all that we designers can hope and aim to achieve for our clientele.

I am a sucker for thoughtfully created design and the small details. Truly, the small details are the ones that can make the biggest impact.

M Residence, Mumbai by AT Design Studio Photographer: PHOTOGRAPHIX - PHX INDIA

At the end of the day, I am here to create beautiful spaces.

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You’re most recent best project? What are your favourite elements in the project?

One of our recently completed projects is the M residence, which was a 2400 sq ft home for a family.

M Residence, Mumbai by AT Design Studio Photographer: PHOTOGRAPHIX - PHX INDIA

The entire project was kept simple and open with a slight level of opulence. We used our favorite elements of greens and grey palette color scheme. The materials used were limited and lot of elements were fluted with hints of bronze highlights incorporated. The layout was kept simple and the spaces were kept uncluttered. With full height windows, the house had immense amount of sunlight and wind circulation.

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M Residence, Mumbai by AT Design Studio Photographer: PHOTOGRAPHIX - PHX INDIA

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should? Does being a woman in design have its own hardships?

Being a woman in a male dominated industry can be a challenge sometimes.

At site its sometimes difficult to handle people to get the work done on time as women on site sometimes are taken lightly. A male site superviser is required sometimes to handle these situaions on site.

This is one the most common hardship we have encountered in our time in the industry.

Things are slowly changing and evolving for the better, and for the sake of future designers, I hope they never have to face similar situations.

Checkout more at www.designessentiamagazine.com March - April 2020 Edition//Design Essentia//DE INDIA |

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INTRODUCING THE YOUNG ARCHITECTS AND DESIGNERS OF INDIA

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CRAFTED SPACES HYDERABAD, ANDHRA PRADESH, INDIA

MITALI AHARAM //Crafted Spaces was founded in 2014

by Mitali Aharam and Supriya Lolayekar based out in Hyderabad, India.

The firm has managed to design, execute and handover more than 35 projects in the hospitality, commercial and residential segments.

Crafted Spaces has created a niche in the hospitality segment by designing and styling numerous restaurants of high repute. The studio has managed to create a strong foothold in the residential and commercial gamut by designing massive villas as well as offices.

ARCHITECT CO - FOUNDER

Tell us something about your studio and its design philosophy?

Our studio’s design objective is to always keep the client's needs and functionality in focus and then allowing the fluidity of space and design aesthetics to flow, keeping in mind the larger context.

We do not believe in designing for yourself over designing for the Client. We strive to put our Clients’ needs over what might make an amazing magazine cover.

Our Design style is simplicity and functionality blended with character, pops of colour, quirk and eclecticism.

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The Colour Abode, Residence in Hyderabad by Crafted Spaces Photographer: SANKEERTH JONNADA

The Colour Abode, Residence in Hyderabad by Crafted Spaces Photographer: SANKEERTH JONNADA

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You’re most recent best project? What are your favourite elements in the project?

We recently completed a villa, spread across 15,000 sft over 4 floors and 2 lower ground levels for entertainment, and fitness. We have named this residence “The Colour Abode”, as the name suggests, this home is a bold display and use of colour and colour sets the tone in every space.

The Clients weren't afraid of letting us experiment with striking combinations, textures and new materials. This house reflects Indian Elements and beliefs but with a play of modern and contemporary.

My favourite elements of this home is the unconventional use of colour, juxtaposing modern furniture with traditional cement oxide floors, playing with antique doors and carved elements to create the perfect mix of old and new.

Sourcing the eclectic Indian décor Sou elements and the beautifully carved wooden Pieces from Rajasthan was something I enjoyed doing.

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//DE next The Colour Abode, Residence in Hyderabad by Crafted Spaces Photographer: SANKEERTH JONNADA

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should? Does being a woman in design have its own hardships?

Women are generally assumed to have a better eye for colours and materials, but who decides that? I think female designers create and design with a different perspective, conscientious and sensitivity. They react to design in a different way with a more holistic approach.

Sometimes being a woman in design can have its own hardships.Some people still have an old school mind set of women being better at interior design than architecture.

From personal experience sometimes you have to deal with some preconceived notions and push through initial assumptions to prove your worth.

But fortunately in today’s world women-owned firms are more normal than not and we have so many wonderful women designers to look up to who are creating waves in the industry.At the end of the day, it’s your design aesthetic, talent, and hard work that pays off, irrespective of your gender identity, at least that’s how it should be!

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INTRODUCING THE YOUNG ARCHITECTS AND DESIGNERS OF INDIA

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MAKE SPACE ARCHITECTS INDORE, MADHYA PRADESH, INDIA

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NAINA REDDY //Make Space Architects was started in 2019 Founded by principal architects Naina Reddy and Rajat Sanghvi.

At Makespace architects the design approach is end-to-end, and each solution provided is a culmination of research-based design.

Understanding user needs, context, and materiality through a systematic process of conceptualization, schematic design and design development, helps us provide with most efficient, pure and experiential spaces.

ARCHITECT CO - FOUNDER

Tell us something about your studio and its design philosophy?

We at Make Space Architects believe in creating every project with its own language which entails the description of semiology there can be a lot of guidelines to form that language like context and user play a very important role.

To attain a simple intuitive architecture which can communicate with the users and can guide them through its usability.

Our guiding philosophy inspires to learn about all the design cultures, local and globally- local context which can impact the design and hence we don’t have a set of cultural inspiration. Every project with its cultural pr context inspires and motivates us in the same manner.

Make Space Architects Studio, Indore Photographer: KUNAL BHATIA

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You’re most recent best project? What are your favourite elements in the project?

In term of significance I will name our Studio in Indore. The 1150 sq. ft studio of MakeSpace architects, is truly experimental in its materiality, Porosity and Style.

The whole idea was to keep the materiality intact by retaining the natural colours of the material, giving it a rustic look.

Make Space Architects Studio, Indore Photographer: KUNAL BHATIA

The space inherits the subtlety of contemporary interiors using shades of grey and follows a strict principle of lines and grids, that helps to differentiate colour, material and texture.

Reconfigurability also plays an important role for making a space usable for multiple activities. The conference was created to propagate the theme of an Idea box.

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What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should? Does being a woman in design have its own hardships?

Make Space Architects Studio, Indore Photographer: KUNAL BHATIA

First, I would like to say that I am not a woman architect. I am a woman and I am an Architect.

Being a woman in a male Everyone has their own unique architectural style irrespective of male or female creating identity and enduring value. It is influenced by design ideology and process-which emerge from a combination of personal identity and professional training. Maybe the way the whole process is managed and how communication is used for a rich product could com be different for both, but not in terms of architectural style.

Women do face hardships when it comes to the construction execution part of it. The Construction industry still has a stigma of male dominance in the field and thus it becomes quite uncomfortable managing a site. Can imagine why the number of women entering the professional practise industry is lower in number than women in architectural a schools globally.

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INTRODUCING THE YOUNG ARCHITECTS AND DESIGNERS OF INDIA

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REFLECTIVE PRACTICES INDORE, MADHYA PRADESH, INDIA

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VRUSHALI PAVASKAR SETHI //Reflective Practices is an architecture and interior design studio established in 2012 in Indore by principal architects Ashish Sethi and Vrushali Pavaskar Sethi.

The studio has expertise in Architecture and Interior Design services - Residential, commercial, Hospitality and Master Planning projects.

ARCHITECT CO - FOUNDER

We named our studio “Reflective Practices” because we know that the stream of Architecture is not idealistic it’s a kinetic world and an architect is always evolving at every age.

As a firm's ideology and true to the meaning of its name we strongly work along with the end users of the space and try to give new dimension as per our know-how of design and celebrate the outcome. outcom We deliver designs that inspire, connect and perform.

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Ashish and Amilesh Jain Residence, Indore by Reflective Practices.

Photographer: PIXCELCRAFT

Tell us something about your studio and its design philosophy?

Ashish and Amilesh Jain Residence, Indore by Reflective Practices.

Photographer: PIXCELCRAFT

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You’re most recent best project? What are your favourite elements in the project?

We have recently completed a Residence project for which we did the architecture and Interior design. I call this one of the best work we did because it gave us the opportunity to explore different materials different expectations of each member of the family on one plane. It is designed with the principle of co-existence.

The architecture of the house is a mix of materials that talks about their respective characters The living room double height wall became the most prominent part of the house as it was the background of their daily activities. The wall has a blank canvas for a huge artwork with demarcation of wooden battens. The wooden element creates cr a dynamic pattern spreading thorough the height and concealing a common door between the two houses and then it solidifies further with a rustic cladding of basalt stone.

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Ashish and Amilesh Jain Residence, Indore by Reflective Practices.

Photographer: PIXCELCRAFT

What is the unique female design experience that nobody talks about, but should? Does being a woman in design have its own hardships?

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I am always exited to talk about this. As I strongly believe that co-existence is there in every practice, our practice is also driven by co-existence of different people and their mind-sets.

Women certainly face hardships, it being a design field or any other. Being a woman, her time is always ticking to fulfill these along with the family she nurtures. But this scenario may not be the same for all the women; we come across different issues which arise due to gender bias society which is still prevalent in most part of the country.

Complete accepting a woman to design, to Completely execute and to be a promoter is still a dream which many of us would like see happening in reality.

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