KIRTHANA SUDHAKAR
Urban & Regional Planning / Architectural Design
EDUCATION
Columbia University (2018 - 2020)
1. Master of Science in Urban Planning
Concentrations:
◌ Community & Economic Development
◌ Built Environment
Academic achievements:
◌ Urban Magazine, Senior content editor. Role: Curation, layouts, research, editing, writing, coordination of meetings & events, planning publication.
◌ Selected for the Integrated Land Management Workshop with Cornell University.
◌ Awarded research grant towards research paper “Food and Farming in Hawaii”.
2. Master of Science in Historic Preservation
Focus areas:
◌ Preservation Planning
◌ Preservation Design
Academic achievements:
◌ Selected for the “Sustainable Building Renovation in the Tropics” summer workshop in Havana, Cuba.
Rashtreeya Vidyalaya School of Architecture (2008 - 2013)
Bachelors in Architecture (B. Arch.)
Focus: Urban Planning
Academic Achievements:
Scholarships:
◌ Ranked #7 in the National aptitude test in Architecture (NATA), Karnataka , 2008. Awarded partial tuition scholarship at RVSA.
Best Performer Award:
◌ Proactis Award for Best Performance in Architectural Design, 2009-2010.
WORK EXPERIENCE
Kamalam Design Inc., Bengaluru
Founding Planner & Architect ( May 2020 - Present )
◌ Interior design and renovations at the Rao residence
Interior design and renovations at a residence for a couple, Jayanagar, Bangalore
Role: Conceptual design, architectural detailing, project management & execution.
◌ Farmhouse design, Denkanikottai
Role: Site and contextual studies, climatic studies, detailed area program, conceptual design, questionnaires.
◌ Farmhouse renovation and expansion, Bevanatham
Role: Site and contextual studies, climatic studies, design proposal & conceptual design.
◌ Interior design and concept for C-Camp
Re-envisioning an experiential museum and prototype display system.
Role: Site, historical and contextual studies, company research, program development, conceptual design and detailing, costing, execution.
◌ Residential and farm community development with Re-wild farms
Role: Design consultation, literature studies, case studies.
◌ Kamalam Dyes
Sustainable Textile design applies natural dye & ancient resist techniques such as Shibori, Bandhini & Leheriya.
Product Catalogue: https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:AP:16bedd30a96d-46b5-bcac-7e5a44366f10
Role: Concept, production, branding.
⨀ Flea Partner at Echoes of the Earth festival, Goa (Feb 2024)
A sustainable music festival with a flea market for sustainable brands & installations. Kamalam Dyes was selected as a brand partner for the festival.
◌ Mosaic art at the Kulasekaran residence, Ohio & other mosaic commissions.
Role: Conceptual design, material creation & sourcing, execution.
◌ Fleming farmhouse, Ohio.
Role: Conceptual design, master plan, estimation and costing.
◌ Apartments at Jakkur, Bengaluru.
Role: Conceptual design, massing, program creation, estimation & costing.
Brick & Bolt, Bengaluru
Senior Architect ( Sept 2024 - Dec 2024 )
◌ Residential, commercial, mixed-use & hotel design
Work on multiple residential projects at a time; managing a team of four Architects. Role: Architectural design, leadership, management, client relations.
New America, Washington DC.
Research Associate, Future of Institutions ( Mar 2023 - July 2024 )
◌ “Regenerating Land and Lives: The Timbaktu Collective in Anantapur, India” The project studies indigenous communities rooted in traditions with a focus on governance towards preserving the interests of future generations. The work is designed to inform the United Nation’s Declaration on Future Generations. The case investigates regenerative & organic farming techniques used by farmers at Anantapur, India at the Dharani Farming Cooperative & the Timbaktu Collective.
https://www.newamerica.org/political-reform/reports/lessons-from-the-pastto-govern-for-the-future/
Role: Research, writing, qualitative interviews, data collection & synthesis, map-based research, contextual studies, historical research, illustration.
PUBLICATIONS
⨀ “Regenerating Land and Lives: The Timbaktu Collective in Anantapur, India”. (2023, Oct 18th). Political reform program, New America. https://www.newamerica.org/ political-reform/reports/lessonsfrom-the-past-to-govern-for-thefuture/
⨀ Harvard Urban Review
1. “Home: Writing About Place”.(2019, Apr 8th)
https://harvardurbanreview.org/ home-writing-place/
2. “The Beautiful Chaos”. (2020, Apr 20th) https://harvardurbanreview.org/ the-beautiful-chaos/
⨀ Urban Magazine
1. “Matter & why it matters”.(2020, May, 10th) https://issuu.com/gsapp_hp/docs/ emergence2020
2. “The In-Crowd”. (2019, June 4th). https://issuu.com/gsapp_hp/docs/ vita_outlines_issu_ singlepage_164e12306eace1
⨀ “Food and Farming in Hawaii: A study of the obstacles to establishing resilient systems of local food production in Hawaii”. (2020, Aug 13th). Columbia Academic Commons. https://doi.org/10.7916/d8-cny0yp18
SKILLS
◌ Design: Conceptualization, development, detailing, visualization & execution.
◌ Research: Data analysis, visualizations & map-making.
◌ Writing about cities, urban issues.
◌ Historic documentation, measured drawings, illustration and research towards preservation.
◌ Architectural rendering, measured drawings, sketching, illustration & model-making.
◌ Community engagement.
◌ Urban film & photography. Short film sample: https://youtu.be/osHI47yuTyY
TECHNICAL PROFICIENCY
◌ Microsoft Office Suite
◌ Adobe Creative Cloud
◌ ArcGIS, QGIS
◌ AutoCAD, ArchiCAD
◌ SketchUp
◌ Revit, Rhino
◌ I Movie
Office of the Bronx Borough President, Bronx, New York.
Topographic Engineer ( Dec 2020 - June 2022 )
◌ Creation of a tool to organize address application & provision
The tool created has been included on the website, and the intention was to create a high level of departmental organization to aid the address application process. The tool subsequently saved time and streamlined workflow.
Role: Conceptualization, content creation, visual, graphic & website design.
◌ Managing Departmental processes
Managing the department of Topography, the address application process, provision of addresses, street status letters, map based research, database creation, organization of map database, tracking development & planning trends on the Bronx. Role: Management, leadership, mentoring, organization and research.
◌ Annual Development Report, 2020
Consolidation, systematization & tracking of borough-wide trends in development. Presentation of data in a clear, concise manner with analyses, map-based & graphical representations.
Role: Conceptual design, content creation, editing & publication.
◌ Review of ULURP applications
Role: Provision of supporting maps , research & investigation, recommendations to stakeholders and publishing project specific recommendations.
◌ Recommendations towards transportation, environmental and housing issues. Role: Collect, analyze and track new development in The Bronx. Conduct research and Community engagement towards understanding key issues.
◌ Bronx Solid Waste Advisory Board (SWAB)
Role: Performing in an advisory and organizational capacity on the board, recording key issues and concerns, formulating solutions, organizing meetings.
◌ Corresponding with Constituents, officials and other stakeholders
Role: Responding to any requirements of queries relating to the borough as required.
◌ Preserving, maintaining & cataloging the Department’s map collection.
Role: Preservation, research, cataloging & archiving.
UN Habitat, New York City
Planning Department, Intern ( June 2019 - Aug 2019 )
◌ Multi-city mobility & development studies
Studying relationships between mixed-use development and mobility patterns in Rio, Johannesburg & Chennai.
Role: Case studies, research design, site studies, research and writing.
◌ Collaborative research with Richard Sennett & MIT’s Senseable city lab towards mitigating climate change
Towards the United Nation’s New Urban Agenda, on the topic of climate resilience. Role: Research, documentation, facilitating collaborative efforts.
CMR University, School of Architecture, Bengaluru
Associate Professor ( Aug 2016 - Dec 2017 )
◌ Architectural design studios
Teaching faculty for Architectural design studios.
Role: Syllabi creation, scheduling, discussion, meetings, site selection, program creation, organizing site visits, workshops, class trips and annual exhibitions. Weighing in on student presentations, weekly desk critiques, documentation, grading and attending meetings as required.
◌ Architectural Rendering Techniques
Teaching faculty for Architectural rendering techniques.
Role: Syllabi creation, scheduling, discussion, meetings, workshops. Timely feedback on student work, documentation, grading and attending meetings as required.
LANGUAGES
◌ English : Proficient, CEFR level: C2.
◌ Hindi : Proficient, CEFR level: C1.
◌ Kannada : Intermediate, Native, CEFR level B1.
◌ Tamil : Elementary, Mother Tongue, CEFR level A2.
FOCUS AREAS
◌ Residential & Campus Design.
◌ Research on the topics of food systems, sustainable agricultural practices, land-use & policy.
◌ Mobility based, research, planning and design.
◌ Critical regionalism; writing, research, data analysis, map making and visualizations.
◌ Architectural rendering, illustration & model making as design tools.
◌ Teaching in Architecture, Urbanism and Historic Preservation.
◌ Architectural installations and instruction- based workshops
◌ Historic Preservation: Documentation via illustration, measured drawings, photography & writing.
WORKSHOPS
◌ AAVS, Bengaluru: Industrialized Craft Local Coordinator Summer school (2017) AA School, London.
Role: Coordination, instruction, syllabi development, cultural heritage & historical studies, research and documentation of industrial processes, installation design, project management. https://www.facebook.com/AAVS. Bengaluru/
◌ Under the Ocean Mosaic Workshop The Bohemian House, Bengaluru (2018)
Role: Planning, conceptualization, instruction, execution.
EXTRACURRICULAR WORK
◌ Enfold, India | Facilitator Personal Safety (Nov ‘16-Aug ‘17) Bengaluru, Kolkota & Pune. For students from grades 1-12 & University students, the 5-day syllabus, is aimed at educating & empowering children & young adults, to create safe homes, neighborhoods and cities. Role: Community engagement & empowerment, research, value building & education.
Kamalam Design Inc.
Founding Planner & Architect ( May 2013 - Aug 2018 )
◌ Headquarters for Dharani Fam Coop Ltd., with the Timbaktu Collective Role: Site & case studies, conceptual design, Design detailing, architectural drawings, 3D models, estimation & costing.
◌ Eco-tourism Office & Resort with the Timbuktu Collective Role: Site & case studies, conceptual design, master planning, estimation & costing.
◌ Mosaic Art at the Parvathi Residence. Role: Design, detailing, execution.
◌ Bamboo enclosure at the Rao Residence and interior renovations Role: Design, detailing, execution.
◌ Microbrewery with the Maratt Group Role: Site & case studies, conceptual design, master planning, estimation & costing.
CnT Architects, Bengaluru
Architect ( Feb 2015 - July 2016 )
◌ Mindtree Kalinga campus, Bhubaneswar, Orissa.
Architectural design and site planning for 20-acre feeder campus to the software company Mindtree. Based on circular economies, the design featured an extensive rainwater harvesting & is fully solar powered. Bricks, the primary building material were made with soil from the site and fired on-site.
Role: Campus planning and design details.
◌ Spectra Palmwoods apartments, Bengaluru.
Role: Architectural design, lobby & facade details.
◌ The Bhagawan house, Bengaluru.
Role: Design for the courtyard with custom wrought iron modular spiral staircase.
◌ The Chandrashekar House, Bengaluru.
Role: Facade details.
◌ Brigade Symphony apartment complex, Bengaluru.
Role: Interior, lighting, flooring & furniture design.
◌ Mantri Housing, Bengaluru.
Space efficient, modular, customizable row houses.
Role: Conceptual design.
◌ Meenakshi residences, Bengaluru.
Space efficient modular customizable duplex apartments. The living spaces were designed to be expandable or compactable based on client needs.
Role: Conceptual design
◌ Mahadan, villa development, Goa.
Role: Detailed area statements & cost of material calculations.
Monsoon Design, Bengaluru
Architectural intern ( Sept 2011 - Jan 2012 )
◌ Farmhouse Renovation, Ragihalli, Bengaluru.
Role: Concept, design details, interior design, working drawings.
◌ Sohum, Ragihalli, Bengaluru.
A Wellness center with a focus on treating autism spectrum disorders.
Role: Research, site studies, case studies and conceptual design.
◌ Ganjam Renovation, Bengaluru.
Role: Site study, measured drawings & Design development.
WRI (formerly EMBARQ), India
Planning intern ( July 2011 - Sept 2011 )
◌ Mobility study, Indiranagar, Bengaluru.
The project was aimed at creating sustainable transportation & mobility solutions between metro stations in the city. The Indiranagar station was chosen as the first site for research and implementation.
Role: Research, contextual & site study, qualitative interviews & surveys design.