Ganga Maki Textile Studio, Village Punniwala, Dehradun
Architect: Studio Mumbai Architects
Citation Note:
The Ganga Maki Textile Studio is built on the slopes of the foothills of the Himalayas in Uttarakhand. Designed on a fragile terrain, the studio and its ancillary structures are sited naturally and effortlessly on the lay of the land. Built with the assistance of the resident community, the beautifully crafted architecture does not overpower the landscape and yet, stands expressively distinct in the context. Built with immediately available materials, workmanship and resources, the buildings provide a dignity of a workspace.
The site plan – a clear and assertive drawing guides the organisation of the structures along the contours. Yet, the architecture refrains from making a statement by an approach that complements the site rather than contrasting it. The presence of skilled human hand is evident in the materials, finishes and structural articulation of the buildings with a strong affinity towards a sensorial experience.
The structures themselves are minimal but not in a cold, impersonal way. Rather, by stripping down the buildings to the most essential, the architects are able to draw attention to detail – a haptic architecture that has allegiance to the experience of the place. The structures follow a natural way of building with no resistance or visual judgement.
The building is designed to emerge from the site and its context. The loose arrangement of the plan with a clear logic generates a calm spatial experience. The aesthetic quality of the architecture is rendered by a dignified workmanship, which offers integrity to the place. While working in rural and peri-urban landscapes, it is important for architecture to neither overpower, nor be overpowered by the place. The Ganga Maki Textile Studio by Studio Mumbai Architects is therefore is a citation project in The Merit List.
Photographs by E Kitada:
Photographs by Iwan Baan:
Photographs by Giovanni Hanninen:
Photographs by Studio Mumbai Architects (Mitul Desai, Srijaya Anumolu):
Drawings & Models:
