At Rare Manuscripts Library, New Haven

Also called as the Beinecke Library.

Bandit Queen

unposted thoughts

Bandit queen songs -
Shekhar Kapur's bandit queen in the first place mixed up some cultural signifiers. They used a rajasthani folk song for a film based on a character from uttar pradesh. I wonder if it was just a mistake, force-fitting or i am wrong (which seems unlikely since the language of the folk song definitely uses marwari words and intonations). Seems he tried to give it proper indian feel for a completely foreign audience...in contrast he makes his characters extremely localised Bhojpuri language which much people wouldn't understand. Again indicates his probable reliance on the subtitles - completely for a foreign audience. So it would not be completely incorrect if i started to look at this work of art as a piece that represents some aspects of India to a foreign audience. How is the notion if india brought out? Child marriage, family structure, political structure of the village and the city....all of it.

So what was the central issue? How Phoolan devi became a bandit queen - a question which could be answered in 10 minutes of the the film. Then what is the film about? I guess two things - feminism and revenge as a societal act. A woman disgusted with pain due to a sexual abuse at a very young age by her husband decides not to succumb to it. She grows up with a hatered towards child marriage and abuse of the female body. Interesting aspect of the film is that phoolan at the right time in her life feels sexually active. She is not against it. She has consensual encounters with a man of his age at an age where she feels comfortable, when she feels love for someone in her life.

At Yale Art Center

It is so satisfying to be here at the Yale art Center. Is it because of the space, mood, people, or what? The space is so inviting, people are waiting to help, one can sit at leisure and read, or just stare outside. Even as others talk, one is not disturbed...how is all of it possible? Is it the genius of the architect in choreographing a space as perfect as this? Is it about the weather or is it about my mental frame of mind right now. I donot know. But this space is so mentally comforting.

To talk about the architecture of this building would be little like recounting tenets of modernist practice and remembering Louis Kahn. The building is extremely simple with a clear distinction between served and serviced spaces. The service core in the centre of the building divides it into two huge chunks of space on each floor that are dedicated to various themes . The segregation of subjects is clean. The place is brilliantly detailed. Absolutely pleasant to see everything just perfect. Nothing disturbs the eye and yet catches your attention. No object competes with another. All lie in peace. The signage is extremely customised and adds to the objects by raising, tilting or shifting their centers of gravity. Thus one also learns about the structure of any sculptural remain on display, completing an imaginary part picture into the whole.

The building merges with its surroundings on one edge through its sunken sculpture gardens. One of these holds Richard Serra's iron slabs. Something that i think will look better when it snows. Right now it is mundane.

The construction of the ceiling structure is not as simple as it looks. The triangular mesh is actually tetrahedral. This means that all beams are angled to form tetrahedral cauffers allowing services to pass through empty spaces that get created on the reverse. Also one of the three axis in which the beams are laid is thicker than the other two. Thus there is a careful hierarchy of beam sizes. On an otherwise superficial look, the structure appears only a simple intersection of vertical beams in 3 axis. One of the books on LIK that I am reading right now at the centre says that LIk may have retained such construction for its sculptural appeal, but when he found a way of hiding the services behind this mesh, he could defend the structure more validly.

The space has a decent collection. Something that I really enjoyed was the South African masks and artefacts. Each piece of it was beautifully crafted and amazingly abstract. This is probably the first time I got to see African folk art so closely and I am completely impressed by it - although I always believed that African art would be much richer. As compared to Asian art, I found African art to be more imaginative, abstract and 'crazy'! It was lovely to see how masks were made using visual imaginations of shapes that appear out of everyday life - cut tree branches, hay, cloth, horns, etc.

I must visit this space again. It has lot of stories to tell. And I am captivated by the crisp display design of this place. Something that I will try to document for my future study.

The Yale Art Center has been designed by Louis I Kahn. The building opposite, ie, the British Art Center too is designed by him. 

My Study of the ceiling

An Alternative Landscape

I wanted to finish this post before I left India. However, here it is now. It's not even funny, but now, every time I address India, I will be talking in third person. and it will be 'US' (pun intended) and 'them'. It will be there and here...and things like that.

This othering is perhaps what I am here for. Most of us back in India constantly feel irritated with the creation of this 'other'. However, there is no other way in which you can bring out the difference in a cultural perspective.

So,

Landscape as a discipline has mostly been about domesticating the existing environment. Other than its functional uses, the aesthetic of landscape doesnot build itself up from the natural outgrowths that we see across small corners around our cities. These 'outgrowths' not only occupy the otherwise undetailed and ugly edges of the built environment of the city, but in turn smoothen them and give a unique aesthetic. Further, they silently talk of a culture.

To take an example, the cross over bridges over the railway tracks in Mumbai do not really have a ethical city-cleaning mechanism. Non-ethical because dust collected by the sweeper on the edges of each step is never thrown in a dust-bin. Even if it is, some portion of it is always left at the sides. Small heaps of such dust accumulate and become little breeding spaces for a lot of insects. These insects bring in warmth and nutrients to the pile by organic and metabolic activities. They churn, defecate in and thus nurture this dust. Crows and other scavengers shit and make nests in these burrows.

Eventually, the heap becomes charged with nutrients, warmth and humidity. With a little rain or water (piss, or any kind of dampness - discarded liquid), we see the springing of ferns, and shrubs through the hardened heaps of dust. Thus, without pots or people for maintenance, these turn into green edges along the walk over bridge. These are strange ways in which landscape realises itself in the city. The heaps continue to take in spit, betel spits, red refuses, all of that - and turn it into something lovely. They try to camouflage the dirt and give a fresh face to the place.

Such shrubs grow almost at any place where dust gets collected. India being a tropical country where dust flows benevolently, these beautiful patterns of landscapes that grow on their own, thus tell a cultural story - of how things work. They remain parasites, yet help in lifting the image of any place. Such shrubs grow on walls, between paver blocks, within crevices of concrete - making beautiful patterns of green. Can such cultural  reading be harnessed to create landscapes around the city? Further, can cultures, instead of landscapes be strategised to achieve newer aesthetics?

Readings of environmental conditions in cultural ways may thus manifest landscapes (and landscape designs) that are compliant with city conditions. They do not become burden on cities (by ways of management plans for landscapes / investment in infrastructure for landscape, etc), but become soft interfaces for human interventions that otherwise leave the city rough edged.

First Day in the US of A

I am finally in US and the reason I am able to write this post is because I am jet lagged. It's 4 am in the morning here and I am awake - and although I tried to sleep back again, my head started buzzing with so many things I need to record!

To begin from the beginning - my flight which was supposed to be a direct one, was first made into a single stop over at Delhi, and later a two-stop flight via Delhi and Paris. This made the journey about 4 hours longer. I took all this time to calm down my mind with thousands of questions, opinions, suggestions, ideas, etc that people back there gave me regarding check ups, security, what to take care and blah and blah. I guess I just chose to forget all things - because I just wanted to experience all of it first hand. I don't remember of making any mistake in this entire process - it has been super smooth (touch wood!).

And at the airport, my parents called, and made me meet another 23-year-old boy who was travelling to New York for his studies. Initially I though it would be nice to connect, but i was taken aback too soon by his 23-year-oldness. You could make out his immense apprehension - as he kept taking out and putting back his pass port from his little wallet that hung around his neck for every check that we encountered. I tried to stick around with him till Delhi and then I said - it was enough of him. I kept getting last in every queue due to him! But the age of 23 is like that. You know that you know, but you know that you need to know more, so you are not sure of any action that you do. I was like that too. So I kept assisting this boy for some time - and like all Indian parents, and like me too, he was over-parented. Well anyway. Let's move ahead.

The flight was boring - the food Air India served seemed to be as old as ancient times and nothing tasted good. I cursed AI from the bottom of my heart. I was hoping to get a glimpse of the Eiffel Tower at Paris, but I didnt even find the Hoffman's avenues! Seems I will make a trip to find out soon. 

Taking off from Paris, we were over the sea for a very long time. There was nothing except blueness and thick layers of clouds. And I waited till I saw the coast of US. When it finally arrived - I only saw huge parking lots. I landed NY in time and it took a long time for the immigration queue till I went to one of the counters - when I was asked by the young volunteer about my status. He informed me that I was in the wrong queue. I  simply asked him if I must get into the long queue all over again and he said he would just put me into the right counter as my turn came.

Paris

Paris

Paris

Paris

The shore of USA

I could already spot my baggage from the immigration area and was already relieved - we were worried of all the fuss that AI created. I took out a trolley and promptly picked up my baggage anticipating further checks. But, there was nothing of all that. I plainly came out of the airport and spotted Neelima who was waiting to receive me out of the airport. 

At the airport, there were cab drivers, exactly like that in Mumbai - asking you for hiring them. I wondered if I had crossed continents. Neelima helped me take a bus ticket quickly and we were on a shuttle. We spoke and updated each other over our journey. As I looked outside, I felt as if I was in a video game. Buildings passing by at a speed same as those in games and shapes and sizes that I once experienced while playing bike games on the computer. This time, all was real. Grand Central arrived soon - Rohit (Manudhane), who has only been a pen friend (knowing me only by my blog) came there to receive me. It was extremely pleasant. Both, Neelima and Rohit cut short their job hours to coordinate my arrival. We got into the Grand Central station terminal and saw a bunch of tourists led by a guide - explaining the heritage of the place. It was so Mumbai-like. People were busy, running, buying, talking, waiting, etc. I could not believe I was in New York!

We had to take tickets to New Haven and I figured out queues, which I though would be ones I would need to get into. However, Rohit led me to the ticket kiosks from where I took ticket to New Haven and got some change - dollars - one of which I got converted into quarters from the store opposite. People have been so helpful by far (touch wood again!). Our train was in an hour and so we though of spending some time at the station. We soon went to a restaurant and kept our luggage. I told both - Neelima and Rohit that I wasn't feeling I was in NY finally!! Felt like dumping my bag and just exploring the tallness of the buildings. 

However, we spoke, joked, had a photo session and also skipped a train since we wanted to spend more time with each other already! NY was fine with it!

I finally boarded the train - secured my luggage on a seat and bid good bye to Neelima and Rohit. The train soon departed and we cut across a landscape I would have encountered from CST to the north via the Harbour line. This was the first instance of being surrounded by ONLY Americans and still, it didnt feel different. It only reminded me of the Mumbai local trains. The conductor was jovial and happy - and he did look down upon me with my extra baggage on the seat. He went ahead to say - "That's a complete no no - while people are standing in the gang way". I asked him if I could keep the bag on the aisle, and he sweetly said, "Not in the aisle, probably there...", pointing at another place, which was occupied. I smiled away with guilt. 

The train was phenomenally quiet. It felt as if we were flying! We reached New Haven in exactly 1 hour 45 minutes - as specified. This was the first time I had to handle two of my huge bags all by myself . It wasnt so difficult. As I waited back for the crowd to clear for me to take my time with the staircase, a lady hinted me to use the elevator. I was so glad - I just walked up to the elevator where I already saw a few people with their bags. Fellow passengers helped me secure my bags inside and held the lift doors open for me. It seemed as if it was their duty to do so! I was impressed. It just made my life easier. I called up my land lady from the station and she said she'd be there in 9 minutes! And she was!

She drove me to her house explaining me little things and I finally reached my home. Carolina (the land lady) seems to be an extrovert and we spoke a lot. She is in the process of furbishing her house and thus I was already able to give her a lot of suggestions :P

She seemed in oblivion of all options available to her.

I haven't seen any of New Haven yet and I feel exactly like I felt in Chandigarh some 8 years ago. Being in the house, I can hear silence, and a car or two passing by once in a while. It's extremely quiet and I am relaxed. This space already seems productive to me. I have written almost about 1400 words!!

Check this space for more of US!

Farewells

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I feel like writing an individual note to all those whom I shall be leaving behind. So many people, so many incidents, so many stories, things unsaid...although I do not have the time to write them all, I keep constructing letters in my head and dissolving them thinking what the person will think on receiving those letters. Letters are interesting devices, constantly making you imagine a person in a certain way and thus helping you construct a response. I have so many imaginations of every person that I would end up writing so many letters.

Most of the times, I end up not writing anything imagining unexpected reactions of people on reading them. But there are thousand things to tell - to parents, to friends, to students – all of them. But how valuable it would be for any of them? Who would want to receive them? After all it’s a letter, not an artwork. And neither are people like me who preserve letters from 20 years of history.

I think of whether the letter would assume more value if written by hand, personally, or does the content remain of more importance. This dilemma is as old as the debate between craft and the machine. Our aim with using the hand or the machine is also to do with neatness. We like our letters to be legible, clean and clear, which in some ways also conveys the clarity of content. Does it always mean so? Such letters are notes that talk about the high points of relationships and events between individuals. Parting notes, as most people like to maintain, must be amicable.

I have to write a lot and if I begin writing, I will end up writing a book! But I am waiting for my writing to be fresh now – to go into a new world and think back in a fresh perspective. Although, I have in store a lot of unposted stuff. Let me see how I can get it across.

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On the other hand, it is so encouraging to see people appreciating my written work. Most of them have expressed this by gifting me diaries, notepads, sketch books - all where I can draw, sketch and write. I wonder if I will be able to carry all of it with me. I wish I could. I would have filled up all of it to have an absolutely new archive for a new phase of my life!

I too had gifted myself diaries - ones which I make myself, simple, clean, and plain - purely functional, which I can't romanticize about. I like them cheap - newsprint paper spiral bound between two thick filecards. I like it that way. So whenever someone gifts me a diary, I preserve it, since it is far too precious than  my humble notepads. I find my notepads have their own character, which I do not hesitate to spoil. They allow me to be myself, without being conscious about maintaining them fresh. I had written about the idea of 'preserving newness' some time ago on my blog. And it's a strong dilemma I have to get over all the time. 

By now, I have about 15 notepads / diaries / books which I have never used. I always had a secret desire to fill up my entire cupboard by my own writings, notes, sketches, drawings. I do not really have any thing fancy  (expensive books, etc.) in my cupboard. All I have is collections from events, of places and of things - from there and there, that constantly remind me of what I have done and have been doing. They remind me of what shall be the logical next step for this journey...

Sometimes, I find it too hard to leave all this behind me. Of this little cupboard I have, I love every object stored in it - they have come into it with a lot of toil. I hope to keep building it up :)

Let's see how it develops from now...

Learning from Architecture school

Whenever you give your best shot for something, and it it doesnot succeed, remember that your final product wont be bad.
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Think about the logical way in which things would fall int place in your design.
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Everything is okay in the end, if it is not okay, it's not the end.
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Start with whatever you have. Material resources may be minimal, but results may be good.
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Get important work done quickly and well.

Things I am doing right now

What more can an architectural professional do?

In the professional world, awards become a means to validate practices. Awards give you something to flaunt about yourself. Awards are purchased and sold. Most of these awards are organized by cement or steel companies that want professionals to use their products. On the other hand, awards are given to establish linkages and networks. Very few of these awards are academic (given for buildings that address academic issues).

In the midst of all this, if architectural professionals stepped back and thought about larger agendas with their practices, we would have a much responsible built environment.

I was thinking what Responsibilities of architecture professionals could be:

1. To take some time and teach skills to upcoming students.
2. Engage in more intellectual works by reading and writing.
3. Be open to criticism and open for dialogue with students.
4. Inspire people by taking up challenging projects.
5. Contribute to public works in the city by means of critique and suggestions
6. Keep a check on the capitalistic notions in market and maintain integrity of the profession.
7. Supporting students by means other than financial - adopt good students and sponsor basic work infrastructure.
8. Publish and reflect more upon cultural and everyday activities around them.

Reading Landscapes

Wall Building

Image city