Journey of Achyut Kanvinde- Report

The journey of ACHYUT KANVINDE

1

HISTORY 2

Kanvinde was born in Achara,

in the Konkan region of

Maharashtra, in 1916 in a large

family. His mother died when he was

two and his father was an arts

teacher in Bombay. He was raised

by his large extended family in the

seclusion of the village, his father

being away in Bombay where he

was an art teacher in schools.

EARLY LIFE

Kanvinde had the calling of a painter and did enrol in

an art school but the family decided that architecture

would be a better profession for him, a living could be

earned more easily. so entered the Architecture

Department at Sir J.J. School of Art in 1935, the first of

the three existing architecture programs in the country

then. It was then headed by Claude Batley, who was also

the premier architect of the country.

Kanvinde graduated with distinction in 1941, but with

the tumults of the World War and the rapidly spreading

national struggle for independence, didn’t get a steady job

till 1943 when he joined the newly formed CSIR as an

architect. Achyut Kanvinde attended Harvard Graduate

school of Design in 1945 becoming the first Indian

architect to have studied in America.

EDUCATION Kanvinde

3

EXPERIENCE UNDER CLAUDE BATLEY -TRADITIONAL INDIAN ARCHITECTURE

Claude Batley introduced Kanvinde to the world of

architecture. This was the period when Kanvinde learned to

appreciate the values of Indian architecture. He was familiarized

with •its origins •Architecture based on the exigencies of local climate, building materials and social conditions •literate fusion of Western classical order with Indian building traditions •climatological principles

Batley in his teaching and his active practice maintained

this new ideal of Architecture: it was a universal craft tailored

rationally to regional parameters. In 1934, he published a

volume of measured drawings of traditional ‘Indian’ building

and in his lectures he tried for an informed appreciation of the

similarities and differences of Indian and European classical

buildings. In his practice he avoided the loud, revolutionary

eclat of the machine-age imagery popular in the west in

favour of an archeologically literate fusion of Western

classical order with Indian building traditions and coupled with

sound climatological principles. His works and his thinking

were obvious models for his students

BATLEY’S TEACHINGS

IIM Ahemdabad

4

Batley on Indian architecture,"…its origins,

developments and decadence had followed the perfectly

normal course of all the other world architectures and

was inevitably based on the exigencies of local climate,

building materials and social conditions".

Kanvinde remembers him as "a very important

man in shaping the outlook of many architects of my

generation, also of the earlier generation"

Starting from 1930s Indian pioneers anticipating the

inevitable independent Indian Republic, were planning an

ambitious series of Scientific and Technical institutions.

This culminated in CSIR being formed in 1942. Plans were

made to have the trained persons to translate these

dreams to reality; technical education having been kept

under much control in the colonial state in contrast with

scientific or humanistic education, there were no Indian

architects and engineers qualified to take these roles.

Hence from CSIR, Kanvinde was chosen to do studies in

planning and design of laboratory buildings as the first

group of people under the Government of India fellowship.

Kanvinde joined Harvard Master’s programme of

Architecture program in 1945 which was then being much

acclaimed for its new fountainhead of functional and social

promise of Modern Architecture under its émigré director

Walter Gropius

A TURNING POINT IN KANVINDE’ S LIFE-

5

Experience under WALTER GROPIUS – THE BAUHAUS STYLE

Studying under walter gropius, kanvind developed a

whole new outlook towards architecture. He was greatly

influenced by the Bauhaus style, which later on was

adopted in his various buildings.

Kanvinde was initially

unprepared for the space

concepts taught in Gropius’s

school. Having studied under

Batley, he was not conversant

with the progressive imagery

and techniques of the

International style. But

progressively what he was

much affected by was the social

order and the optimism implied

by the Modernist paradigm.

Gropius’s insistence for using

space as a tool for expressing

universal human values was

what left most lasting influence

on his mind.

Thus, Kanvinde adopted the progressive imagery and techniques of the International style

6

He graduated with a thesis on science laboratories, on

which he had worked for most of his two years of study

and as planned, returned to India in 1947 and was

appointed as the Chief Architect of CSIR.

Chief Architect of CSIR, 1947 Council of Scientific and Industrial Research

During this period as the chief

architect of CSIR, Kanvinde was

influenced by many famous

personalities including Vikram

Sarabhai. He had a wide multi-

disciplinary vision, with his wife

Mrinalini, a renowned exponent of

classical dances he had even started

Darpana, an institution of the

performing arts.

During the construction of PRL,

he met Kanvinde and became a

close friend. He had helped found the

ATIRA to do applied research of

direct interest to industry and was its

director. Kanvinde, naturally was the

person chosen to build this institute

which made him come in contact with

the Ahmedabad textile- industrial

society

Vikram Sarabhai

VERGHESE KURIEN 7

The first buildings to come up as the chief architect were

• ATIRA at Ahmedabad, completed in 1952

• CSIR Headquarters at New Delhi, completed in 1953

•PRL at Ahmedabad, completed in 1953

•CEERI at Pilani, completed in 1955

ATIRA

CSIR

PRL

CEERI

8

The new potential of pursuing his own architectural

vision made Kanvinde resign from his job in 1955 to found

his practice with Rai. Sarabhai and others ensured a

steady flow of works. The first buildings from this

association were

Private practice with architect Shaukat Rai

Kanvinde and Rai, 1955

•Darpana Dance School, at Ahmedabad, completed in 1962

•Hariballabhdas House, at Ahmedabad, completed in 1968

With Mallika and Dr. Sarabhai, Kanvinde

gradually developed a common vision of

architectural profession in the young nation

tied with the other arts and humanities

University of Agricultural

Sciences, Bangalore

National science

centre, New Delhi

9

The relation with Sarabhai having so deepened;

Kanvinde was now being consulted on various matters.

Dr.Sarabhai had helped to found the IIM in Ahmedabad in

1962, and worked as its honorary director. In this

ideologically charged context, Kanvinde had an important

role in Louis Kahn’s selection as the architect.

Dr. Sarabhai died in 1971 and a quarter of a century of

a memorable association came to an end. . Between 1947

to 1971, Dr. Sarabhai was responsible for creating more

than 25 institutions in various fields of science,

management, education, research and performing arts and

Kanvinde was intimately involved with shaping most of

those. Dr. Sarabhai was largely responsible in making

Indian Space program as strong as it is today . The fact that

Kanvinde earned the confidence and respect of such men

reveals as much about the architect as about the patrons.

KANVINDE’S WORKS WITH DR. SARABHAI

IIM in Ahmedabad

10

Verghese Kurien, another of the ‘nation builders’,

began working with the farmers in 1949, after

returning to India from Michigan State University, He

organised a cooperative organization to help market

milk directly to the consumers. After years of

struggle, the cooperative began to produce dramatic

results. In 1965 the NDDB was created replicate the

program on a nationwide basis

KANVINDE WORKS with VERGHESE

KURIEN

For his institution's

headquarters in Anand, Kurien

turned to Kanvinde who started

this major complex in 1967. In

1974, a major production

facility at Mehsana was

constructed In both the places,

with an efficient functional

organisation, a major concern

was to respond to the socio-

cultural matrix of the users of

the cooperative complex, who

were poor farmers in a

predominantly agrarian

economy. VERGHESE KURIEN

11

In addition to leading NDDB in its quest to

improve world nutrition, Dr. Kurien played a key role

in many other organizations. He is the chairman of

the IRMA, which Kanvinde constructed from 1978.

Currently a new phase in NDDB is being designed.

With Kurien’s patronage, Kanvinde had a lifetime

involvement with this industry demonstrating how

architects of vision need visionary clients to realise

their ideas.

Milk processing plant, Mehsana

12

THE0RY & PHILOSOPHY 13

The ARCHITECTURAL INTERPRETER

India attained independence on

August15, 1947 with the new

Prime Minister thundering from the

constituent assembly session the

new national agenda "to create a

new nation…unfettered by the

traditions of the past…"Though

with the absolutist promise of

Nehru’s rapid industrialisation,

mechanisation, and growth of the

new country, the modernist

vocabulary was often

synonymous, it had to contend

with Gandhi’s idealist vision of

reliance on traditional technology,

rural economy, frugality and

moderation. Thus Kanvinde

strategy became a

CSIR became the important vehicle for realising the Prime

Minister’s vision of a new India where science and technology

played a central role. Kanvinde, in turn, became the architectural

interpreter of the vision. The building programme was ambitious;

targets were even set for turnovers of industries to be set up

based on research carried out in the laboratories.

Strict modernist vocabulary

while preserving and reinterpreting Indian tradition

Mahatma Gandhi

Jawaharlal Nehru

14

the Bauhaus-international modern style

800px-BauhausType

The aim of the Bauhaus was a

"unity of art and technology" to give

artistic direction to industry, which was

as lacking in 1919 as in the mid-19th

century, when the Arts and Crafts

movement began. Kanvinde was

introduced to Bauhaus by non other

than Walter Gropius.

Among his most important

ideas was his belief that all

design — whether of a chair, a

building, or a city — should be

approached in essentially the

same way: through a

systematic study of the

particular needs and problems

involved, taking into account

modern construction materials

and techniques without

reference to previous forms or

styles

Functionalists believed that

•the shape and form of a building should emerge out of the

logical arrangement of spaces inside and not from any

predetermined idea like symmetry.

•a building should only have features that were functionally

necessary, and no non-functional decoration.

•Use of the latest technologies and industrial products in

construction such as RCC and industrial doors and windows. 15

• asymmetry • severe • blocky

• cubic shapes • smooth, flat plain, undecorated

surfaces •complete elimination of all mouldings

and ornament • ‘flat’ roofs

• very free planning • adoption of steel-framed or

reinforced-concrete post-and-slab

The various Bauhaus characteristics

visible in Kanvinde's works would be

16

GANDHI KRISHI VIGYAN KENDRA,1913

latest technologies products in construction

such as RCC

NATIONAL SCIENCE CENTRE, DELHI

asymmetrical, cuboid forms

ATIRA at Ahmedabad, 1952

repetitive

arrangements of

windows

17

IIT KANPUR

The

lightness

of logic

Rationalist that he was, Kanvinde liked to reveal the

internal functions in a building (for example, office block,

walkway, auditorium) as separate masses. These were

then arranged in ways that were functional from inside

and elegant from outside.

This analytical approach is evident in the buildings

at IIT Kanpur that he designed in the 1950s.

• Here he clearly separates parts of buildings according

to their material, and also achieves a delicacy of effect.

The library, for instance, is a Reinforced Cement

Concrete (RCC) frame with infill walls in exposed brick.

•By inserting gaps and shadows between the concrete

and brick components, Kanvinde was able to make rough

and heavy materials look light.

18

The

lightness

of logic

National Insurance Academy, pune

That lightness spoke of the primacy of ideas over

matter, of logic over contingency. It was a theme that

never really left his architecture.

•It appears at the National Insurance Academy at Pune

late in his career. On the one hand, the elevated

walkways speak of a desire to float above the irregularity

of the ground condition. On the other, they speak of

efficient movement almost like on a conveyor belt.

• Either way, it is possible to

detect a persistent reluctance

to embrace a site or a context

wholeheartedly in much of

Kanvinde’s work.

•Yet, his work is often

responsive to subtle needs of

dwellers even if within the

terms of a given problem.

19

Milk processing plant, Mehsana

Function with

feeling-

Rational yet

humane

He was a self-effacing person, but his work helped

shape some of the things we automatically expect in

buildings today —

Kanvinde himself achieved this by seeking

sculptural ideas in the functional needs of a building. For

instance, Mehsana near Ahmedabad, he arranged

ventilation shafts into an elegant arrangement of towers

that make this industrial facility look elegant.

•spaces were ‘humane’ •you felt welcome and comfortable. •efficient function ,no wastage of space, elegant

20

IIT KANPUR

b-iit-kanpur, httpwww.admissiondiary.com

Rational yet

humane

size and scale

At one level, the humaneness is about size and

scale. Even in more technologically-oriented projects,

Kanvinde always tried to bring buildings down to a

human scale.

•At IIT Kanpur, it was the slenderness of concrete

members and the lightness of brick forms that helped

• The comfort of the

people in the working

environment was of

utmost importance to

Kanvinde. The building

block was broken down

into small office spaces

opening into private

terraces which acted as

relaxation spaces.

21

Sense of place-

connection to the

built heritage in a

locality

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BANK MANAGEMENT

(NIBM) Pune, 1985.

At another level, humaneness can be about a

sense of place, and a connection to the built heritage in

a locality. Both emerge together at NIBM, perhaps

uniquely in Kanvinde’s body of work.

•There, Kanvinde chose to build in the local basalt

stone (Deccan trap), common in older architecture in

Maharashtra.

•He also spread the low rhythmic buildings across a

well landscaped site in such a way that walking from

one set of spaces to another involves passing by (or

through) gardens. From inside and out, the campus

offers a series of comforting continuities across

domains that are usually separated in urban life. The

building thus redeems some of the promise of early

modernism that had fired the young Kanvinde.

22

IIT KANPUR 23

Places of Interaction

THE ACADEMIC BLOCK

Kanvinde believed in

healthy interaction between

the students and the

teachers and within

students. He provided

various courtyards and

informal spaces which

encouraged interaction.

The Indian Institute

of Technology was set up

in industrial city of Kanpur

in 1959. IIT Kanpur has a

sprawling campus spread

over an area of approx. 4.3

square km, just north-west

of the city. Among all IITs,

IIT Kanpur has the second

largest campus (1,055

acres).

The campus is a self-

contained community, with

residences for students,

faculty, and regular staff.

24

IIT KANPUR- SITE PLAN

•ACADEMIC BLOCK WAS centrally located by Kanvinde

•He provided Segregated Pedestrian and Vehicular traffic. The yellow marked pathways depict the vehicular traffic whereas the blue marked pathways are pedestrian. •The pedestrian pathways form a network through the entire academic complex •The vehicular traffic is segregated from the academic block to avoid noise.

•Single entity- elevated pedestrian walkway

25

Elevated pedestrian walkway •Sheltered and yet openness

•Protection from hot sun yet allowing breezes

Pedestrian movement system

ELEVATED PATHWAYS are the typical features

provided in the campus of IIT Kanpur. They connect various

building blocks in the campus. They emerge and end in the

building itself. The pathways have been designed keeping in

mind the hot climate of kanpur so as to provide shelter and

protection

26

FACULTY BUILDING

LIBRARY

LECTURE HALL COMPLEX

The common characteristics in the buildings for example- •Exposed red and brick curtain walls

•Exposed concrete frames

provide uniformity to the buildings

The Bauhaus

influence in Kanvinde’s

style is clearly visible in

the buildings of IIT

Kanpur.

•cubic shapes • smooth, flat plain,

undecorated surfaces •complete elimination of all mouldings and ornament

• ‘flat’ roofs

27

BUILDING

STRUCTURES-

sheltered spaces

Kanvinde always respected the local climate of

the site in consideration. He created various sheltered

spaces around and within the buildings to provide

shade against the harsh summer sun

Respecting the climatological

conditions

A view of the library

in IIT Kanpur showing

the sheltered pathways

and the spaces which

could also be used as

interaction spaces

28

Comput

er

Key

punch

Conf

erenc

e

Research

Researc

h

terrace

Compute

r

Computer

Research

resear

ch terrace

•revealed the internal functions in a building as

separate masses.

•arranged in ways that were functional from inside

and elegant from outside.

Computer centre, IIT Kanpur

First floor PLAN Ground floor PLAN

Elevation Kanvinde strongly

believed that the

elevation of a structure

should be defined by the

functions inside.

Unnecessary

ornamentation were

avoided.

29

Environment Science dept of IIT Kanpur- Five star rated building by GRIHA

Sustainability-Local

Climate

The Environment Science dept of IIT Kanpur, a five star rated building is the crown of Kanvinde's works in the field of sustainability.

•Sun path analysis •Appropriate design of external shades •Efficient glazing •81 % area is daylight

The various

building blocks are

arranged in a zigzag

pattern keeping in

mind the position of

the sun during

different times in a day

so that every block

receives maximum

sunlight

30

ACHYUT KANVINDE-

The Architect

31

when we approach the prevalent

interpretations and descriptions of Kanvinde’s works,

a sense of marvel can’t be avoided at the complex

associations and narratives behind their simplistic

definitions. Kanvinde has been often referred as a

"modern Indian" architect.

KANVINDE- THE “MODERN INDIAN" ARCHITECT.

In their book written to

"attempt an impartial appraisal

extending to the historical

context from which, the

architectural expression of

India is evolving", Bhatt and

Scriver assert that

"(his) early buildings were competent

straightforward renditions of the Bauhaus aesthetic by a

young convert to Gropius’s notions of architectural space

defined by function",

Meanwhile introducing one of Kanvinde’s works in an Indian

journal, Kalamdani claims that

"(he) is one of the few architects who has

consciously attempted an application of the values of

early modernism…Remaining relatively unperturbed by

passing fancies, swings of the pendulum, or the so-called

vagaries of time".

32

By the end of 1960s Kanvinde’s expressive

architectural palate of spatial and structural system as

observed in his IIT, Kanpur and later in NDDB, Anand

commissions were variously interpreted as

"an architectural expression that reflected the

culture and aspirations"

"clearly reflected the rise of the Brutalist

polemic of architecture".

Expressed Concrete structure in combination with

brick became the dynamic determinant of form and order.

Here the paradox is that what (Brutalism) in the West was

popular for the dynamism and the aesthetic of vigour, in

neo-Gandhian India of 1970s is regarded a realistic and

expressive product of India. In retrospect, that style shows

a remarkable similarity with the brute morphology of

vernacular architecture of various parts of India.

IIT Kanpur

Kanvinde – neo Gandhian Brutalism

33

KANVINDE VIEWS HIS OWN WORK AS A CHANGING

PROCESS

"The crux of the matter is that we observe and

assimilate and in the process discover ourselves. What

we try to achieve or pursue in terms of aesthetics is a

changing process. The aesthetics is essentially a conduct;

aesthetics and ethics are the products of the same thing“

In this process there are two aspects of his formative

years that are manifested in his work

• On the one hand, he was raised in a rural environment

where the tradition and moral conduct was nurtured.

• He was catapulted into the world of technology, avant-

gardism at Harvard. In rural India, the personal and the

concrete were highly valued; (Fig.22) while in Gropius’s

school the collective and the abstract were emphasised

The interactions of

these two aspects of

his experience and

training constitute the

essence of his

evolution.

34

Speaking at the first

Architect Achyut Kanvinde

Memorial Lecture, Balkrishna

Doshi hailed him as the

pioneer of modern

architecture in India

BALKRISHNA DOSHI ON KANVINDE

“Although he came from an art deco architecture

background, there was an aspiration in him, an aspiration to

do something different in a country where things were

changing at a fast pace, everyday,”

“I believe as an architect, you cannot create what

you are not, and going by this diktat, Kanvinde came across

as a humane, sensitive individual. His buildings spoke

volumes about his humanity and also indicated that he was

searching for his own self, through his works,”

“It was a time when everyday something new was

being created and India was just coming to terms with its

newly-acquired independent status. Kanvinde gave full rein

to his innate creativity in such a charged environment,”

35

“In each of his buildings, whether residential,

commercial or government complexes, one can see an attempt to

break away from traditional architectural design and yet,

design them keeping in mind all the aspects conducive to a

great building (such as climate, use of space, orientation and

aesthetics),”

“His ultimate concern was for his profession and for

society and that came through quite effortlessly in all his

works. Kanvinde traveled extensively across the country and

always made it a point to carry books and magazines along.

He used to say the long travels gave him time to read, reflect

and introspect. Kanvinde’s stellar contribution can be summed

up succinctly as that depicting plasticity, humility and

humanity,”

36

There are infinite number of concerns,

influences and traditions that have shaped Kanvinde’s

works and his assimilation and self-discovery is

drawing him closer to his self, an elusive ‘identity’

hidden and revealed by the palimpsest of human

existence. A much deep-probing understanding of his

life and his work responsive to his larger interests and

concerns seems important to clarify the important

phase of the political and social process in the creation

in the new country which he shaped and guided.

Humility and reticence

are acclaimed hallmarks of his

persona, which is one of the

reasons his works have not been

as widely known as they could be.

Early this year, addressing the

Indian architectural educators, he

suggested, " The role which the

schools have to play is to expose

students to various situations and

train them to cultivate and

appreciate values so that they can

experience and sharpen their

senses through observation and

practice". In the autumn of his

distinguished life, his humanity

and concerns need to be better

understood.

KANVINDE- THE HUMANITARIAN

37

It was Kanvinde and not as

is widely believed Le Corbusier in

his work in Chandigarh, who first

introduced Modernism and the

aesthetics of Function into the

dormant Indian Architectural

scene. What Kanvinde introduced

was the Modern legacy of rational

and ‘pure’ structure.

The state sponsored

vision of ‘New India’, as

Kanvinde had himself

translated into architecture

failed to offer this ‘identity’. Le

Corbusier’s Chandigarh had by

this time been completed and

these persons were sceptic of

its wide-ranging acclaim and its

relevance..

These concerns made Kanvinde organise the

Lalit Kala Academy seminar in 1959 where Nehru

himself addressed and responded to the

professionals’ debate

Kanvinde- An architect

less acclaimed for

38

Opening the discussion, Kanvinde observed that

"Our architectural expression is in a most

confused state as there is neither clear thinking nor

definite ideology…the architects who are confronted with

problems peculiar to modern functional design have to, at

the same time, create an architectural expression that

would reflect the present-day culture of India"

Nehru retorted with "…you may agree or

disagree with what has been attempted at

Chandigarh…but it has changed your lives"

39

Kanvinde and Rai,

was one of the most

influential and productive

architectural practices of

India. His works have been

much discussed in India and

often emulated and he has

himself received much

personal recognition and

professional accolade.

However neither in the international architectural

discourse nor in the standard 20th century architectural

historiographic literature have they been even

mentioned. It is even more intriguing to find that they

have rarely been discussed in the publications of last

few decades when there was a spurt in the interest in

non-Western, regional architecture and built work from

the Indian subcontinent were noticed for the first time

outside India. Moreover in the actual cases that they

were discussed they have been interpreted as per the

predilection(s) of the author(s) and categorised to

conform to one or the other of the prevalent architectural

movements. They have not received the critical attention

that they deserve.

Kanvinde- critical acclaims

The forgotten architect

40

•President of the Indian Institute of Architects (1974-6). •Chairman of the Scientific and Finance Section of the Central Building Research Institute, Roorkee, (1970-75). • served on juries for national and international competitions and projects •lectured at the schools of architecture in New Delhi, Ahmadabad and Bombay.

PORTFOLIOES

•1975 received the Padma Shree, a national award for excellence •1985 the Gold Medal of the Indian Institute of Architects.

AWARDS

41

F:\A.P Kanvinde\IMAGES\webmap,

httpwww.iitk.ac.in.gif

Wikipedia

F:\A.P Kanvinde\Achyut_Kanvinde.htm

F:\A.P Kanvinde\alofsin.html

F:\A.P

Kanvinde\article_sick_buildg_syndrome.html

F:\A.P Kanvinde\gkvk information.html

F:\A.P Kanvinde\New CSE Building,

F:\theory of design\indian-institute-of-

technology-kanpur_files\a.htm

BIBLIOGRAPHY

BOOK REFERENCE

Campus design in India Kanvinde

and Miller

Submitted by-

Meme chauhan

Anindita banik

Puja roy

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