My interest lies primarily in doing what I do, with care. As an architect, the way you imagine opening a door, developing a chair, designing the texture of a wall or a floor, is very important. It’s about quality, about the consideration you apply to the making of something. And it’s about being attentive to the environment, the materials, and the inhabitants. It has to be inclusive.
Bijoy Jain

Images of Kapadia House sourced from Airbnb and Pinterest.

As one steps into Bijoy Jain’s Kapadia House in Alibaug, one is instantly witness to poetry through space. Centred around a rustic courtyard grove, the expansive indoor-outdoor spaces of the bungalow flow generously from one to another. The house intimately explores a connection with its trees creating experiences from bark to foliage, as different levels offer varied degrees of interaction with the verdure. With that comes a serendipitous romance with light and shadow, as rays filter through the canopy to make beautiful shifting patterns throughout the day. The house makes liberal use of natural material ranging from rough cut stone to wood, which effortlessly blend into the surrounding landscape while also creating a rustic complement to the otherwise white palette. The careful interplay between texture, form, proportion and light instantly elevate the design from functional to sculptural.

Kapadia House is listed on Airbnb, and is a must visit for any design lover.

Photograph of Nivim, by Bharath Ramamrutham

The opportunity to build on a contoured site can be both a challenge and a blessing. Even as it requires unique structural solutions, a contoured plot of land offers great design advantages. The sloping site automatically facilitates unobstructed views. It allows the building envelope to feel like a private sanctuary because there is no close visual connection with other neighbouring buildings beneath or above. The rolling site terrain also allows the architecture to cascade, creating multiple distinct ways of experiencing the space and its surroundings. For our houses in Goa, we use the following principles to build on terraced sites sensitively and sustainably.

• When we build on a contoured site, we refrain from cutting or filling excessively. As a principle, the land topography is retained as much as possible.

• Every contoured site speaks a unique story. The soil, water and vegetation indicate how the site fits into the regional topography. The natural paths created indicate how water flows through the site from higher to lower contours. While designing, we like to take a site positive approach and make minimum alterations to these existing natural systems. This ensures that we are not tampering with the natural water flows within the site, hence avoiding any unexpected flooding during the abundant monsoon in Goa.⠀

• We also like to keep the site land around these water channels permeable without any cement cover. The natural paving ensures that there is a simple but high functioning rain water harvesting system where water is allowed to percolate into the ground and does not flow down and away from the site, preventing any water deficits in the future.

• One of our first steps on any site is to understand everything there is to know about the greenery. The kind of vegetation usually indicates where the water collects on site and shows the different kinds of life forms within the site. It helps in developing a cohesive ecological response strategy while designing.

• Understanding the vegetation also helps us design and build with nature. Unlike flat sites, where one would typically only see the base or trunk of a tree from ground level, a contoured site allows one to interact with the dense foliage of a tree on a higher level and the woody bark of another tree on a lower level simultaneously. We try to find these vistas to celebrate and curate through architecture.

• We look for terrain and topo sheets to place the site inside its regional context. Most of these sheets are easy to access, available online, and are often on university websites. Once we have an initial understanding of the levels, we model the site in 3D using software such as Google Earth, SketchUp, and Rhino. Most of these software also allow us to geo-locate our contoured plot to check for accuracy.

• While proposing a design, we usually look at a maximum of a 1m level difference from one space to another. This is done to avoid cutting and filling as much as possible and to move with the land terrain.⠀

• We love to use a material palette that is either sourced locally or naturally and build using local construction techniques. We take cues from the surrounding sites and buildings around us to identify the most effective and least intrusive construction methods for every piece of land we build on.

Practicing these simple steps helps us to build sustainably and design houses that are gentle on the land they stand on. To know more about the methods, tips, tricks and processes we follow while designing, visit our blog series, Designing A House In Goa.

In this IG Live session, we speak to Monish Siripurapu, Founder of Ant Studio in Delhi, India. Studio Ant works at the intersection of art, nature, and technology. Through their research and development wing Coolant they have made strides in building sustainable innovations through their all natural air cooling products. In this conversation, we discuss the science and method behind building this cooling system. We understand the system of Evaporative Cooling and the opportunities it presents in different contexts. We also speak about the process of research behind building this product and explore the nuances of parametric design. Tune in to watch our entire conversation.

Geoffrey Bawa is an unforgettable and continuous inspiration to most architects. There is an intangible relationship with nature that is so beautifully established. To see our inspiration translate into our work - in design, in spatial character, in connection and reverence towards nature - finding new meaning in every site we build on, feels wonderful and magical.

As we look back on our projects, it feels great to see many of our spaces carrying the sensibilities and sensitivites that Bawa inspired throughout his practice. The following set of images puts our project photos alongside some expertly crafted spaces byt the tropical wizard. It is our ode to the master architect, a reflection of the small but diverse ways in which he has touched our design thinking and building values.

The Balcao Connection

The interesting architectural connection between Goa and Sri Lanka is visibly articulated in elements such as inbuilt seats. The first picture is a site picture of a porch at our project, The House With Three Pavilions. The Goan Balcaos face each other, framing the entrance to the home pavilion. The second photograph is from Bawa's Lunuganga garden, with the in built seats looking out into the surrounding greenscape.

Windows for trees.

There is always time to frame a view. Vistas of green, however small bring a sense of freshness and colour into any space. The first picture is from our project Navovado, as the building volume is punctuated by foliage and fenestration. The second photograph is from Bawa's Garden, the bark of a tree framed through the small verandah window.

Seats built in to live with nature⠀

The first picture is of an insitu seat built next to the champa tree, watching the coconut plantations beyond on site at The House With Three Pavilions. The second photograph is from Bawa's estate, with an in built seat, finished with a wooden railing back, set in the enclosed gazebo to immerse oneself into the sights and sounds of nature around.⠀

A Hidden Pool⠀

The first picture is of a terrace pool overlooking the trees and the hills at our project Nivim. The second photograph is from Geoffrey Bawa's House for Dr Bartholomeusz, with the pool quietly tucked into the indoor-outdoor courtyard.

Finding Bawa ~ The Stairway Composition⠀
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The first two pictures are from our project Navovado, looking at the stairway as it adds sculptural value and the play of different levels to one end of the living room. The second photograph is from Bawa's Bentota house, looking at his minimal, yet artistic stairway composition.⠀

Read Part I of Finding Bawa here.

Geoffrey Bawa is an unforgettable and continuous inspiration to most architects. There is an intangible relationship with nature that is so beautifully established. To see our inspiration translate into our work - in design, in spatial character, in connection and reverence towards nature - finding new meaning in every site we build on, feels wonderful and magical.

As we look back on our projects, it feels great to see many of our spaces carrying the sensibilities and sensitivites that Bawa inspired throughout his practice. The following set of images puts our project photos alongside some expertly crafted spaces by the tropical wizard. It is our ode to the master architect, a reflection of the small but diverse ways in which he has touched our design thinking and building values.

Building with nature

Watching these two pictures side by side leaves us with a sense of achievement and happiness. The first picture is from our project, The House with Three Pavilions in Goa. The second picture is from Ena De Silva's house, built by the master Geoffrey Bawa.

Verandahs celebrating the trees of the land
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The first picture is from our project Navovado, looking at the old mango tree preserved during construction on site for this vacation house in Goa. The second photograph is from Bawa's Lunuganga estate, framing the magnificent tree by the lake.⠀⠀

Making greenery part of the building elevation
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The first picture is from our project Navovado, as boundaries are blurred between the house and its landscape. The second photograph is from Bawa's Lunuganga country estate, picturing the house among the greenery perceived from the lawn.

A Place in The Shade⠀
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The first picture is from our project The House With Three Pavilions, as the semi open corridor faces the internal courtyard on one side, touching it with an in situ seat and transitioning into different rooms on the other sides, each celebrating different views. The second photograph is from Bawa's estate, as the corridor behaves like a verandah even as it connects the indoor spaces from side to side. ⠀

A Welcoming Wilderness⠀
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The first picture frames the entrance to a pavilion at The House With Three Pavilions, brought alive with the growth of native plant species. The second photograph is from Bawa's Lunuganga garden, with the entrance pathway bordered by the lush wildscape on one side. ⠀

Read Part II of Finding Bawa here.

Geoffrey Bawa is an unforgettable and continuous inspiration. With every project we embark on, we see our inspiration translate into our work - in design, in spatial character, in connection and reverence towards nature - finding new meaning in every site we build on. Finding Bawa is a gallery we have compiled as an ode to the master architect. As we reflect on our projects, it feels great to see many of our spaces carrying the sensibilities and sensitivites that Bawa inspired throughout his practice.

Geoffrey Bawa was one of the original proponents of Tropical Modernism, a design movement in which sensitivity for local context combines with the form-making principles of modernism. His architecture led to the formation of a new architectural identity and aesthetic, redefining what it meant to be modern, celebrating a close connection with one’s built and natural environments.

In 1960, Bawa was commissioned to design the house for artist Ena De Silva. Set in Colombo, the plot was very much enmeshed in the busy urban fabric with the activity and movement of any capital city.

Bawa’s first response was to turn the house in on itself and resurrect the courtyard. The house was conceived as a series of pavilions and verandas contained within a high surrounding boundary wall. A major central courtyard led forward to five smaller satellite courtyards. Light and air poured into every room, with notions of inside and outside blurred nearly beyond distinction.

Its spatial qualities were enhanced by the choice of materials: walls of plastered brick, roofs of half-round Portuguese tiles, columns of satin wood, windows of timber lattice, floors of rough granite- materials that were used in ancient Sri Lankan mansions, but brought together in the contemporary open plan format, assembled in an entirely different manner.

After nearly 40 years of living here, Ena was finally forced to sell the house owing to health concerns and mounting bills. Her land in central Colombo was immensely valuable and was quickly snapped up by an adjoining hospital. But the idea of demolition was met by public outcry that made Urban Development Authority insist that the house must be preserved in its entirety.

This is when the Bawa Trust proposed an unusual solution - to move the house in order to reconstruct it. A team of architects, archaeologists and development contractors came together, led by conservation specialist Nilan Cooray. Everything that could be salvaged from Ena de Silva’s home, including the doors and windows, was carefully collected, stored, and moved.

Unlike examples from Japan and Norway, where timber structures had been relocated successfully, Cooray had to work with masonry, some of which was falling apart. The house was stripped down to its bones - every pebble in the courtyard was numbered, every shape was traced, before he was done. They paid particular attention to replicating the structure’s orientation to the Sun, because that was essential to Bawa’s original palette of light and shadow. Working from the roof down, they dismantled the house, which was boxed up and loaded on to lorries to be carted off to a plot next door to Lunuganga, Bawa’s beautiful garden home.

The process took six years from start to finish, and the Ena De Silva house was finally assembled to completion in its new home in 2016.

Relying on black and white photos and surviving furniture, the Bawa Trust intends to return Ena’s house to a spitting image of how she had kept it, even replanting the garden with her choice of plants. It takes the spirit and act of conservation to uncharted territory, preserving Bawa’s legacy for generations to come.

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Unlike the other colonial powers in India, the Portuguese managed to leave a much more visible mark on the residential architecture of the area they ruled. The British and the French left their mark on the architecture of huge buildings such as assemblies and railway stations which have since become landmarks of the period.

The Portuguese in Goa built residential houses reflecting a style which is hardly found elsewhere on the Indian subcontinent. These magnificent palatial houses inspired by European architectural style are still found in Goa today, although they are confined to the rural areas such as Chandrapura, Chandor and Loutolim. These mansions were built in an era when the Portuguese had handsome profits from their trading colonies in Africa and South America.

This blogpost looks at some of the old heritage houses of South Goa which were inspired by European architectural styles and stand tall even today.

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Braganza House

The Braganza House is 350 years old and occupies one entire side of the village square in Chandor. This elaborate mansion is spread over 10,000 sqm and is divided into two wings that are occupied by the Braganza family. The palatial house has a stunning ballroom, massive Belgian crystal chandeliers, exquisite antiques collected over centuries and the oldest private library in Goa with over 5000 books.

Palacio do Deao

Palacio do Deao, a 213 years old mansion, was built by a Portuguese noble man, who was the Dean of the Church, and founder of Quepem town. The house faces the Church he built and is on the banks of the wildly beautiful Kushavati River. Here’s a video about the lovely house.

Figueirido House

The magnificent Figueirido House in Loutolim took shape as early as 1590, at a time when the Taj Mahal was yet to be conceived. The Figueiredo family had a prominent presence in Goa as lawyers, diplomats and ambassadors. Today, the family has converted part of this palatial home into a historic museum with yet another section opened out as a breathtaking heritage homestay for visitors. Take a virtual tour through this palatial estate here.

Casa Araujo Alvares

This 250-year-old mansion belongs to the Alvares family and forms part of the Ancestral Goa tourist complex, set up to recreate Goan village life under Portuguese rule. The house has a spacious courtyard, a quaint chapel at its centre, old European furniture like most of its contemporaries and eclectic seashell windows that bring the beach inside.

To know more about the hidden gems of South Goa, read The Charms of South Goa - Part I

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As our company policy, we certify all our development projects with green certification from the Indian Green Building Council.

Green Certification often gets a bad reputation as it is a standardized platform of measuring sustainability across various cultures and geographies. We follow the system as we find it to be a good way to keep ourselves accountable to the various aspects of sustainability from the very start of the design process. Certification forces us to keep detailed accounts, and make accurate calculations such that our sustainable efforts are not only in name but are real with measurable impact.

That said, certification is usually the starting point for us in our journey into sustainability. I firmly believe that ‘sustainability is common sense’. In architecture, it involves following sound design principles, respecting the land while planning new buildings and responding to the local climate and conditions.

To pursue sustainability,

• we must try to conserve the natural resources within our own site (through rain water harvesting, renewable energy use and grey water recycling),

• use materials and employ design ideas that keep the building interiors cool or warm (and reduce the use of air-conditioning and heating),

• allow for ample daylight (to reduce the energy use for lighting during the day),

• use half flushes in bathrooms along with aerators to reduce the water flow in bath and kitchen fittings (to reduce water-use),

• maximize the use of materials that are produced locally, and

• use materials with a high recycled content.

These strategies for me are the low-hanging fruit that are easy to achieve with minimal cost escalation in the process. It’s also key to understand the lifespan of materials (regardless of their green features). If they have to be replaced in a short period of time, then they fail the test of sustainability. Finally, to achieve actual impact, we have to think about sustainability at every stage and factor it in every decision during the design and construction process.

LINKS TO PREVIOUS BLOG POSTS:

WHY BUILD GREEN

GREAT ONLINE RESOURCE FOR GREEN BUILDINGS IN INDIA

GREEN FEATURES AT NIVIM

CREEPY CRAWLIES!!! 
Try as you might, you can’t keep these beauties out of your lives and homes in Goa! The idea is to co-exist with them. Simple mosquito screens in doors and windows go a long way in keeping them out of your immediate space. Our efforts of sustainability in our architecture and construction is an effort to preserve the beautiful biodiversity flourishing on the sites we built on while we can live in harmony with them. 

Living in Goa is all about looking closely and admiring the lovely colors and patterns that only nature can create. 

Read On

The earth in Goa is a distinct red color due to a higher iron content hence the laterite stone which is local to Goa has the same red hue and a beautiful porous texture. We tend to feature exposed laterite stone walls often in our buildings and landscaping. We also use red terracotta roof tiles on our building roofs. We find that this allows our buildings to merge into the landscape.

RED TERRACOTTA ROOF TILES

In our building interiors, as a thumb-rule we tend to use a single floor finish throughout the house. Our preference has been in the use of natural stone and we tend to use locally available stones such as Kudupah, Kota, Tandoor and Jaisalmer. We often use the same stone in the interior and exterior of the rooms, sometimes varying the texture and finish of the indoor and outdoor stone for a subtle difference that can mostly only be felt under one’s bare feet.

In the building interiors, we also have a great preference for the use of cement finish or IPS. For us, this finish works very well with our desire for an earthy look and feel. An IPS finish feels smooth and cool to one’s touch and its natural weathering, slight patchiness and cracks mimics the imperfections found in nature.

(ABOVE) INDOOR-OUTDOOR FLOORING AT NAVOVADO

We used mirror polished Kota stone in the interior and the verandah in the central courtyard at Navovado. I really like the way the same flooring flows in and out. This accentuates the connection of the indoor-outdoor. I also feel that the faded green color of Kota stone works very well with the green landscape outside. The flow if very pleasing to the eye and not jarring with unnecessary boundaries. We took the Kota in a rough texture on top of the swimming pool edge to once again tie all the elements together into one unified composition. This goes back to our design philosophy, where we feel that the central focus in our houses in Goa must be on the connection with the landscape.

(LEFT) IPS FINISH IN PROGRESS AT THE HOUSE WITH THREE PAVILIONS

EXPOSED LATERITE WALLS

INDOOR-OUTDOOR FLOORING AT NIVIM

We used mirror polished Kudupah in the interiors and a rough Kudupah in the verandahs.

INDOOR-OUTDOOR FLOORING AT NAVOVADO

We used mirror-polished Jaisalmer stone and a similar color vitrified tile on the terrace. The connection was further highlighted by using Jaisalmer again in the exterior skirting.

Read On