"Doobara Mat poochna... Damn Phool!"

Well, this is the first post coming on this blog! I know, I know, I had promised it will come in a month... but... Anyways, now that I have decided that I will post something by tonight itslef and stop procastinating, I am left with the most important thing; what to write about?!! Like that, I can write about anything, but since this being the first post and all, I kept thinking. And this conversation with my sister-in-law came up to my mind.
I was designing their house at that time and was trying to understand what they were looking for and my sis-in-law said, "Navu, I would like to sit on sunday afternoons and look at rain falling on these huge glass windows, with a small garden of flowers, something like that 'citibank' advert." At that time I thought it was more of an 'image' driven desire. As in, the media had created this 'image' of a lifestyle, which she wanted to follow.
But as I kept thinking it sort of threaded with one other thought of mine, which always springs up whenever i look at these amazing renderings of almost all 'famous' architects. Well, I actually mean almost all of our renders, but lets for now stick to these architects. Its actually like I am nitpicking them, for two reasons. One, they are 'rich and famous'! and Second, more importantly, at some point or the other in our life, we all want to be like them, think like them, live like them...
Anyways, coming back, whenever I see all these renderings, I can never see or feel what my sis-in-law expected me to design for! What she said, was an 'experience' that she expected from being in her home. What all people in and around a building expect, invariably, would be some form of 'experience'! (Coming to think of it, it would be great idea to just go and talk to all those people on the street and listen to their aspirations of buildings coming near by.)
But, in all those renders, which by the way, is the 'most potent tool' of communication of ideas for the Architect, I hardly ever saw or felt those expectant experiences. Infact, all I could ever see was the architects' 'vision', which more often than not is her 'Super-ego'. The dramtic angles, perspectives, confusing lines and detailing all depict the inherent desire to be 'god'. One might argue that, since, we are 'creating' something, why cant we be god? Right, but 'god' has lot of 'sensibility' ;-)

Anyways, coming back again, I dont understand this almost carnal desire to show a 'birds eye view' of a building! I mean, how many of us will fly in a helicopter and look at a building? We might have to foricbly do it in Bangalore, the way the traffic is stuck nowadyas, but still... Also, most of the exteriors images are all 'conceptual' or dramatic, hardly giving out any feeling of space - the experience. And the interiros, are more confusing, with blurred ghosts of people and these photo freezes of planes and angles, as if people have only one sense of eyes and which act as a digital camera, without video option!


So folks, keeping it as an open thread. I have put forth the questions... so think about it and let your thoughts flow down here, without inhibitions of what you feel;

That I am damn fool, one of that clormint's "doobara mat poochna" types? Is it the attitude that we look at architecutral design as a higly elitist creative art? Whether Building renders themsleves are very flimsy to communicate our ideas, and we should look at some other communicating means? If so, why do people say Image speaks more than words?!!!

well keep them coming and coming...

B.L.Naveen

2004 passout, GIT architecture.

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