Tanushree Arya: The Big Rethink, CEPT Portfolio (1st Sem) 2022-2024

0. About Studio

The BIG Re-think Tectonic Materiality of Interior Elements

Master Tutor: Prof. Kireet Patel

Studio Tutors: Rishav Jain, Aparajita Basu

Assistants: Jay Odharia, Jhanavi Parikh

Brief Outline:

The Big Rethink is a series of postgraduate interior design studios focused on developing a multitude of notions, approaches, positions and arguments within the interior design field.

This semester, the fourth one in the series, the studio challenges the concept of Tectonic Materiality of interior elements. It offers an opportunity to develop a design position in different contexts by questioning preconceived notions of interior design. It emphasizes the relationship between Interior elements and tectonic materiality through experience, organization and construction. The studio focuses on representing experiential and ephemeral qualities, planning and organizing strategies, detailing and construction techniques, exploring the relationship of interior elements and tectonic materiality.

Learning Outcomes:

After completing this studio unit, the student will be able to:

Ability to develop a systematic argument/position/approach on the interdependence between interior techniques and practice.

Ability to translate/represent the design argument/position/ approach through 3- dimensional and material based outcomes.

Ability to organize and evaluate the programmatic and pragmatic potential of derived design position.

Ability to build a design vocabulary and test it through the selected context (site/program).

Week 01-04 | Design Boot-Camp

Ex. 01 | Specialization of sensibilities

Knowing Architecture and Interior Sensibilities & Interior Specialisation

Project

Information

Site: Fabric Sushi Restaurant, Argentina

Process:

Through Manual drafting I was able to understand the nuances of an interior space and focus more on the interior elements and architectural components fade away.

Also, with this exercise we dissected every interior element to understand the assembly better and consider the smallet thing in consideration when observing, understanding and designing.

Section AA’

Section BB’

Sections

Isometric view

Dining Chair

Granite Slab curved end

Serving window

Week 01-04 | Design Boot-Camp

Ex. 02 |

Design Optimization

Familiarizing - “Know it more through - Optimization”

Process:

In a group of two, we were supposed to understand a project in detail and present it in physical form, such that it relates to the Project under study in totality without actually creating each and every element.

The project in my case was ‘The Pirouette House’ by The Wallmakers. Most of the site attributes and design ideas were compiled together to devise a creative way of making the model.

Suspended stairs were represented by hanging jute and bamboo matt, The wave in walls was represented by well woven brick and wire framework. The intertwined brick, scaffolding and rope structure was merged similarly as the project.

Design Ideation sketches

Physical Model Images

Ex. 01 | Tectonics & Materiality

Part 01 | Exploring concepts of Tectonic Materiality

Project Information

Process:

After studying nine different projects, three each in the three categories; Historical ‘Era’, Current Modern Practices & Independent Role/ Identity of a Designer, I was able to divide design elements and principles based on namely attributes; JUXTAPOSITION, DICHOTOMY, EXAGGERATION, LAYERING, INTEGRATION, EXPRESSION, ELEMENTS, SPATIAL, FORM, HIERARCHY, PLANAR & DETAILS and synthesize statements that may/may-not be applicable to every project but in a way validates the specific project. The statements were further scrutinized to form legible questions, hypothesis of every project under study. A larger concern was identified and the final Hypothesis was then derived, questioning multiple important issues.

Haveli (2017), New Delhi

Kham Yhct traditional Clinic (2022), Vietnam

Gym (2022), New York

Meyer and

Hypothesis Matrix

HISTORICAL ERA CURRENT MODERN PRACTICES INDIVIDUAL ROLE/ IDENTITY OF A DESIGNER

Allez UP Rock Climbing Gym (2013), Canada EUNOIA Office (2021), Ahmedabad Phong Kham Yhct traditional Clinic (2022), Vietnam

Does the introduction of inorganic volumes in a cuboidal volume emphasise the scale of a space?

Can linear elements juxtaposed as planes articulate sense of movement?

Can the use of contrasting forms induce transparency of a mass?

Dharampura Haveli (2017), New Delhi Amazon Blink Studio (2017), Gurugram Hermes Gym (2022), New York

Can reciprocation of vertical elements in a horizontal plane contributes in conveying the identity of a space?

Can the interplay of patterns and planes induce focus?

Alila Fort Bishangarh (2010), Jaipur ‘A’ for Architecture (2011), Nashik

Can the space travel by superimposing cur rent day practices onto pre-existing classical spaces?

Can interaction of planes and openings induce function in a volume?

Can layering of light over high chromatic surfaces induce synergy in a volume?

CnT Experience Centre (2021), Chennai

Can exposed assembly of contrasting shapes in contrasting hues enhances experience quality of a space?

Can the function of Interior texture(s) be enhanced by Parametric Techniques?

Hypothesis Matrix

Can the introduction of chromatic volume of higher degree induces focus in a space?

Can the function of Interior texture(s) be enhanced by Parametric Techniques?

Larger Concern: Depletion of Natural Resources. Ever Increasing Carbon Footprint.

Hypothesis: Can conscious use of materials, techniques and forms encourage sustainable practices?

Larger Concern: To model natural and biological structures

Hypothesis: Can parametric model of design provide an optimized design solution?

Larger Concern: To model natural and biological structures

Hypothesis: Can parametric model of design provide an optimized design solution?

Can Interior Elements utilize Indian Craft Practices alongside Technology to Optimize Design Solutions?

Intervention in the double height hall, presented through photo montage

Parallelepiped volumes

Re-imagining volumes with adaptive use

Project Information

Adaptive reuse of Samode Palace, Jaipur

Module 02 | Role 01 Historical practices through a project representing an ‘era’ Process:

Re-imagining interiors in a context which is highly ornamented and embellished in a rather organized way is tricky as the intervention may or may-not be as vivid as the context. In case of Samode Palace, any interior intervention that is bold enough to shift the focus from the existing tactile surfaces seems to be an overwhelming choice and hence I decided to insert elements and components that are either transparent or translucent.

Bamboo ring filled with cane is the basic unit of Interior elements here, used as display units, hanging lights, display/ information/ visual communication panels and sitting components as well. It also retains the material library of the subject, viz Da Vinci dream Machines and is well suited for an Indian historical site.

01 | Historical practices through a project representing an ‘era’

Design Iterations

Photo Montage through transition spaces

Photo montage of display units with sitting area to experience the exhibition with a pause

Intervention in the double height hall, presented through photo montage

Week 09-11

Module 02 | Role 02 | Organizing ‘Materiality’

Current modern practices through a project representing a ‘Standardization’

Draped in Tessellation

Interior Designing within a structural Framework

Project Information

Site: Institute of Engineering and Technology (AU)

Process:

The only way of designing an interior space within a pre-existing framed space is not by solely following the architectural frame but to also try ways of breaking the geometry of volume and come up with solutions that cater to the context, subject and the program. Here, a linkage between the Da Vinci Dream Machines and present era was found to develop a connection. The way stone sculptures were carved in Renaissance period, the same period when DA VINCI Machines came into existence, it presented certain degree of softness that a hard and brittle material like stone can exhibit. Similarly, the way stone slabs are used in Pius Church, Switzerland, one can only admire the way light diffuses through thin slabs of stone wall. I have worked on similar lines to develop unusual geometry and forms.

WAVE FORM, PLAN

PARABOLIC PEDESTAL ELEVATION

PEBBLE BED COVERED WITH SS MESH

5MM THICK RUBBER GASKET WITH OFFSET FOR MS

STONE CLADDING AND SIDES WITH BORDER 50MM X 15MM X 5MM SS ‘L’ PLATE FOR JOINING TWO 75MM X 75MM X 5MM SS ‘L’

The Stone wave in the interiors work on two levels by showing delicacy through surface and softness through its form.

For the tectonics, tri-unction of Aluminum angles are screwed together to leave margin for expansion as all the elements involved are brittle in nature

Informal Reading space, Isometric View

“The

whole is greater than the sum of parts” -Aristotle

Perspective view of a DA Vinci Dream Machine Display unit

Week 12-16

Module 02 | Role 03 | Materializing the Interior Specialisation

Merging Projectiles

Envisage a space without architecture through perspective views

Information Exhibition space within an interior shell

Project

Collaborative practices through a project representing an ‘identity’ Process:

When the Architectural shell fades away and Interior Spaces take over, Designing a space that plays the role of both the context and the program becomes an interesting challenge. Since the idea of having planar or definite edges in a space was something that has more architectural influence, I decided to have merging roles and planes that retain the ambiguity to a certain extent, without confusing the users. In addition, a texture that can encourage a soft, fluid and range of colours was required and hence the use of Ferro-cement with SS framed structure felt an appropriate choice with Terrazzo finish to keep the raw, natural and rural forms intact.

In the first Iteration, One point perspective with an idea of MOVEMENT was envisaged and sketched out to imagine a space more clearly that can host the DA VINCI OBJECTS without taking away the focus from it entirely. A space that leads the user to unknown spaces and a suspicious energy is welcomed in the interiors.

Same space when was re-imagined through an other viewpoint limited the extension of design and somewhere the idea of mysterious space was found to be dead. Hence the need to rethink of an envelope which caters more to the objects and obeys their presence was felt, rather than simply hosting the space and focusing on user experience solely.

Design Iterations

Charcoal Sketches showing experience

Physical Model of one of the areas in the designed space

Tectonics of the design

Material Exploration and Tectonics of the design

Perspective view of a DA Vinci Dream Machine Display unit along the pathway

Perspective view of a DA Vinci Dream Machine Display unit along the pathway

Foreward:

An exhibition space, by definition, is a display or demonstration of skill (Oxford Dictionary) and no wonder it takes an entire another set of skills to create an exhibition space. With certain limitations in hand an interior designer is bound to remain considerate and generate designs that are in harmony with the presented set of restrictions. But what happens when there is nearly complete freedom of creation to the designer? A composed example of one such impression is presented ahead in this booka very sophisticated version of eclectic forms that are still far from overwhelming.

Freedom in expression which can be clearly seen through the vanishing corners/edges and flowing forms. It’s difficult to identify where and how does a surface modifies it’s function and this ambiguity is well preserved throughout the composition. The necessity of bending the surfaces to cater subject in hand is well understood and executed. There is a very smart pre guided program that leads to the user subconsciously in a certain direction and space. Material use and density also has some role to play in this sphere.

The inspiration drawn through nature is quite evident and complementary to the subject. Keeping it monotonous and not crowding the surfaces with multiple or heavy treatments ensures that the focus remains on the objects at display. The experimentation with levels, surfaces, openings, material, and lighting altogether create a very reasonable interior that can take user by surprise due to its unpredictable course.

- Antoni Gaudi