Category public writing
Yourstory.com Interview
https://yourstory.com/2018/02/siddharth-menon-sustainable-architecture/ Meet Siddharth Menon, who uses architecture to address socio-economic inequality, ecological and cultural degradation Hema Vaishnavi posted on 20th February 2018 Siddharth Menon, a travelling architect and geographer, works with the aim to provide contextual and contemporary design solutions in the rural hinterland. Siddharth Menon, who graduated from IES College of Architecture in Mumbai, veered […]
Design and the Politics of Space
The following article was featured in Issue 46, Journal of Landscape Architecture www.lajournal.in. Can be downloaded here. In the 21st century, ‘developing’ countries like India are a unique study in contrast demographically. At one end, there are the privileged elite and the growing middle class, aspiring to live and consume like their western counterparts. At […]
The Earth House, Himachal Pradesh
This interview was published in October-November 2015 issue of Elle Decor India. Photographs courtesy Sumit Mahar. Details Eco Buzz – Oct-Nov’15. Walk us through the idea behind Earth Guest House. The Earth House is a 1500 sft. Guest House in the Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh for a travel company called Linger (www.linger.in). They […]
Urban Blueprint-Go Local
This essay was published in Myliveablecity, October 2015 edition (www.myliveablecity.com). Can be viewed here. In poor countries of the ‘developing’ world, the issue of affordable housing has been a bone of contention between the different stake-holders involved. Resources are scarce, economic and social conditions dire, and populations burgeoning. All these forces create a potent mix […]
The Role of a 21st Century Architect in Rural India (2)
The article was published in Domus India, September 2015 edition. Can be downloaded here. Yakshi Inter Generational Learning Centre, Telangana, India Yakshi (http://www.yakshi.org.in) is a Non- Government Organization based in Hyderabad, India. They are a team of indigenous educators, theatre activists, artists, researchers, community organizers and leaders, primarily from adivasi communities who work with adivasi communities in India, […]
The Role of a 21st Century Architect in Rural India (1)
The article was published in Domus India, September 2015 edition. Can be downloaded here. Introduction In the first part of this article, we took a journey through different rural regions of the Indian Subcontinent trying to understand the materials, methods and ideologies used by the indigenous people to build their spaces. What we learnt is that although all […]
An Architecture of the People, by the People, for the People
The following article was published in thewire.in on 29 July 2015 on the trials and tribulations of building in rural Uttar Pradesh. The full article can be accessed here. Building in rural Uttar Pradesh is always a massive challenge. With its feudal backdrop where caste and politics share a powerful relationship, people’s issues and concerns become […]
Ecological Interiors-Mud and its many hues
The following article was featured on 27th July 2015 in http://www.sawdust.online on ecological interiors and the use of mud for the same. When designing and building in rural areas, mud should be the de facto material of choice. Excavated right from the foundation for the building or from an adjoining farm, it has a very low […]
Sawdust.online Interview
The following interview was featured on 27th July 2015 in http://www.sawdust.online on the challenges of mud architecture in India. When did you build your first earth building, and could you describe some of its features? I built my first earth building at the Auroville Earth Institute (www.earth-auroville.com) in Auroville, Tamil Nadu in 2011. I was training […]
Regional Dialect-Yakshi Learning Centre, Telangana
The following article was published in the June-July 2015 Edition of Architecture Update India elaborating on the design and construction of the Yakshi Learning Centre in District Medak, Telangana, India. The complete article can be viewed at http://architectureupdate.in/projects/regional-dialect/ Yakshi is a Non- Government Organization based in Hyderabad. Their work focuses primarily on the issues of health, […]
Siddharth Menon 