Tag Archives: Indigenous
Fieldwork: Liminal Landscapes
The following images were clicked by the author from a recent field visit to his research site in Kandwari village, District Kangra, Himachal Pradesh.
Fieldwork: Indigenous Building Practices, District Koraput, Odisha
Latitude: 18N; Longitude: 82E Altitude: 969 m Average Annual Rainfall: 1567.2 mm No. of Precipitation Days: 84 Max. Summer Temperature: 38-40 degree Celsius Min. Winter Temperature: 10-12 degree Celsius Language of the Indigenous Craftsmen: Odiya, Konda, Poraja, Gadaba, Durua, Hindi Local Materials: Adobe (Sun dried mud brick), Cob (Mud balls), Mud mortar, Laterite stone, Mahua […]
Fieldwork: Chasing Fish-The Bicycle Journey of a Travelling Architect
To follow a narrative of the journey, please visit https://www.facebook.com/SiddharthMenonArchitect/ What? I will be cycling from Mumbai along the western coast of mainland India. The idea is to keep as little distance as possible between myself and the sea by taking internal village roads instead of national and state highways. Why? Explore the stunning western coast of India […]
Public: 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 […]
Public: 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 […]
Public: 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 […]
Public: Ar. Siddharth Menon
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 […]
Teaching: Critical Architectural Practice (Other Regions)
April 25th 2015 As part of our series on the studies of indigenous architecture and its contemporary applications around the world, we look at a list architects working in this field. A lot of times, the study of the various facets of indigenous architecture tends to remain just that- a study. It remains confined and […]
Teaching: References on Critical Architectural Practice
27th June 2015 Continuing from where we left off last time, I have compiled list of books and reading material one can refer to get a better understanding of the finer aspects of indigenous architecture. The books on this list are listed in no particular order and are meant to orient and introduce the student […]
Public: 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, […]
Urban & Economic Geographer 