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TheVernacularArchitectureOfRajasthan
BothinIndiaandabroad,severalconceptsdealingwitharchitecturalspaceshavetheirrootsinsomeabstractnotions.
Spacesoscillatebetween'nothingness'andsomethinguniversal.Itisalsoobservedthatmythicalandmythologicalbeliefs
haveashareininfluencingsuchthinking.

Thisstudydoesnotexplorethosenotionsorquestionsuchperceptions.Itspurposeistoexaminemanifestarchitectural

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spacesthathaveastrongunderlyingbasewithawidespatialandtemporalspread.

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Thiscanbeseeninthereplicationoftheessentialformsinvariouspartsofthecountryaswellasthethematic
continuitygeneratedbysimilarityofskillsandcommonalityofbeliefs.Someofthesespatialconfigurationsandtheir

Randomimage

formalexpressionshavecrystallisedintowidelyacceptedarchitecturalspaces.

INTRODUCTION:
InIndianarchitecturetherearefeatureslikepavilions,courtyards,terraces,aswellasthresholdandrealm

NEWFORUMTOPICS
thesispresentationand
drawingsrequired?
NeedGuidance:Inthe
processofsearchingfora
thesistopic

accentuatingtransition.Allthesecometogethertoarticulatethespace.Tothesenewroomarealsoadded.These
structurecanalsobeapartoftemple,palaces,ghatandinstitutionalbuildings.Thesefeaturesshowthesimultaneous
existenceversatilityandanonymity.Inessence,themeaningemergesfromthecontextandthemannerofits
application.
Indianarchitecture,generallyspeaking,conjuresupimagesofhugetemplespiresandgateways,largefortifiedpalace

Thesis:Theredevelopmentof
aMarket!

complexes,mosquesandtombs.Ontheotherhand,thereisthemundanedomesticarchitecturewithitsoccasionalflair

HospitalCaseStudies

ofIndianarchitecture.AnefforttounderstandspaceinIndianarchitecturecandrawonthesimpleanddirectphysical

ThesisJuvenile
RehabilitationCentrecase
study?

forrefinement.Yettherearefeaturesthatretaincontinuityandscale,playinganinstrumentalroleinthecharacterization
conditionsoftheenvironmentprevailingatanyplace,thusgivingmeaningtothecreationofspaceswithinspecific
physicalparameters.Amongsttheseparameters,climatehasaverydeterministicroleinshapingactivityareasby

B.Arch

creatingindoor,outdoorandinbetweenspaces.Consequently,forIndiancommunities,'outdooractivity'spacesacquire

HowtoprepareforB.Arch
AIEEE/JEEEmainpaper2

specialsignificance.

Thesis:DesignForaSite
BetweenaBusStandand
Market

Thesis:NeedaHighRise
HousingCaseStudy
Thesis:Revitalizationofa
SmallTownViaArchitecture
more

PAVILIONS:
Theycameintobeingbymultiplyingverysimplespatialunitsinmodules.Consistingoffourcolumnsandaroof.
Irrespectiveofthestyleandconstructionmethod,theiressenceisthesame.Mandapasandbaradarisaresome
outstandingexamplesofspacescreatedtoprovidewellarticulatedsheltersforgatheringsorforpleasure.Pleasure
pavilionsknownasbaradarishaveanextremelysophisticatedforminRajputandMughalcomplexes.Themostimportant
aspectofthiskindofspaceisthatitoffersasimultaneousexperienceoftheinsideandtheoutside.

Poll
Doesanarchitectlose
credibilityifhecantsketch?:

Theessenceofthisspatialunitliesinitsmodularcharacterandthereforeinitspotentialfor

Onewhocan'tdrawsketches
isn'tgoodenoughtobean
architect.

space,yetopen.Itdefinesandyetextendsboundariesandcanexistbyitselforbepartofa

Sketchingisjustaskill,what's
importantisthe"concept".
Ithinkifonecanthinkofgood
concepts,thenhecandrawtoo..
Thisquestionisabsurd.
Vote

multiplicationincontiguityorasindependentunitsorganizedinacertainproximity.Itisabuilt
group.Despiteregionalandtemporalvariations,thepowerofitsmanifestationhasremained
unaffected.Itconveystheideaofshelter,butdoesnotencloseitisbuiltandhasapresence,yet
itistransparentandethereal.
ClimaticResponse:Itisclearthatsuchopensheltersservedbestduringsummereveningsinarid
regions,oreveninthewarmhumidregions,allowingafreeflowoffreshair.

BARADARISANDCHATTRIS:
TAGS
goldengatebridgefacts

FairlycommoninnorthwesternpartsofIndia.Itisabeautifulexampleofhowthebasicformhasrespondedto
thevariousconstructionmethodsandstylesofbuilding.Everyroyalcomplexhastohaveabaradarisoftenmorethan

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jagamohanjahangirimahal
jawaharkalakendrajawahar
kalakendrainteriorjawaharkala
kendraplanjianwaisohokhalifa
towerkhasmahalking
pandukabhayakonarksun
templekonarktemplekonark
templehistorymacchibhawan
manikarnikaghatmayadevi
mandir
moretags

TheVernacularArchitectureOfRajasthan|Archinomy
one.Theuseofthebaradarisaspleasurepavilionsisclearlyunderstandablesincetheyareinvariablylocatedingardens,
oronhighpointsoralongwatertanksandlakes.Thesestructuresaresoarticulatedwiththelandscapeandthespatial
orderofabuildingcomplexastoprovidethemoststrategiclocationforagoodview,freshairandgeneralcomfort.

Anotherversionofpavilionisthe
largecupolalikestructurecalleda
chattriinthenorthwesternpartsof
India.Thestructureispolygonalor
circularinplanandhasadomical
roof.Thisextremelyadaptable
elementisspace,butequallyitisa
completeform.Chattrisareoften
groupedinclusters.However,since
theyareacompleteformby
themselves,unliketheotherpavilionforms,theytomakelargerspaces.Also,chattrisgenerallyhaveonlyperipheral
supportsallowingacolumnlessspace.Thisnaturallybringsaboutdimensionallimitations.

COURTYARDS:
Internalopenspaces,becomeanotherthematicelementinallscalesofdomesticarchitecture.Fromsmallurbanhouses
tolargemansionsandpalaces,courtyardsbecamethekeyorganisationalelementsrespondingtoclimaticconditionsas
wellastheculturalneedsofcommunities.Thisprivateinternalopenspacealsoacquiredspecialsignificancewhileserving
variouslevelsofprivacy.Awiderangeofhouseholdactivitiescouldextendintocourtyards.Thesespacesbecamethe
livingareasofalldomesticarchitecture.
Courtyardspaces,drawingpeopleoutintotheopen,werefurthersupportedbyterracesservingsimilarfunctionaland
climaticneeds.Inthewarmerandmoreandzones,onecanseetheextraeffortmadetobuildterraces,asifonewas
gildingacourtyardatahigherlevel.Itwouldnotonlybearticulatedinitsconstructionsystem,butalsogetconnectedto
thespacesatthatlevel.Courtyardcontributestoitsspatialqualitybeautifullybybringinginasubduedlight,creatinga
peacefulenvironment.
Thisroomwithoutaroofisoftenboundedbyverandahsalongitsperiphery.Otherroomsopenintotheseverandahs
creatingaspatialorganisationbasedonahierarchicalsequenceofspacesrangingfromopentoenclosed.Theroomsget
theirlightandventilationfromthiscourtyardandhaveveryfewopeningsontotheexterior.Thisspatialsequence
encouragestheintermittentflowofactivitiesrespondingtovariousprivateneeds.Also,thetropicalclimateofIndia
demandsairmovementaswellasshadedspacesforcomfort.Theopen,yetprotectedspaces,becometheheartof
Indianliving.
Variationsinthegenericformofthecourtyardcomefromchangesinmaterials,articulationoftheenclosingelements,
scale,proportionandcomplexityofplan.Thearticulationofthesidesofacourtyardisdependentonthekindofbuilding
andtheusers.Byandlargetheyreceiveatreatmentsimilartotheexternalfacadetheyareinfactfacadesinsidethe
house.Inlargehouses,havelis,palacesorpublicbuildings,thenatureofthearchitectureisformal.Hence,allsidestend
tobeofsymmetrical,orthogonalandordered.Invernacularconditionswherethehousesaresmaller,itisquitedifferent.
Inmostcasescourtyardisscaledtohumanproportionmakingitcomfortablespacetouse.Athousesitbecomeslarger,
itisthenumberofcourtyardsandterracesthatmultiply,notthesize.Asequenceofcourtsisgeneratedbasedona
hierarchyrangingfrompublictoprivate.
Itisthecourtyardthatgivesporositytoanotherwiseextremelydensefabricofthecity.Itisthebreathingspacethe
lungsofanIndiancity.

ENTRANCES:
Themostimportanttransitionalrelationshipbetweentwodistinctrealmsisexpressedthroughentrances.Whetheritis
theentrancetoacitythroughafortwallwithdefenseasthemajorconsideration,orahierarchicalsequenceofspatial
layerswithaseriesofinbetweenrealms,incorporatingsymbolicaswellasfunctionalvalues,transitionremainsthemost
significantaspect.Thecomplexityoftransitionasanarchitecturalelementvariesfromcommunitytocommunity.

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Inmanycultures,entrancesareintentionallyindirectinordertoachievegreaterprivacy.Ontheotherhand,thereare
numerousexamplesallovertheworld,whereasingledoorcanbethetotalandonlylinkbetweentheinsideandthe
outside.Inyetanotherform,anentrancemaybethepreludethroughwhichoneisintroducedtotheinteriorrightfrom
thefirststep.vetisnotshowntheinsidecompletely.

PLANNINGISSUEANDCLIMATE:
AtypicaltownofRajasthanpresentsaverycompactpictureofhousesandotherbuildingshuddledtogethersothatthey
notonlyshadeeachotherbutalsoconsiderablyreducetheexposedopenspacesaroundthem.

Theheightofthebuildingcomparedtothewidthofthestreetsislargetocreateshadedcoolenvironmentforthe
pedestriansandothersocialactivitiesonthestreets
Incaseswherenormallowleveldustswirlswithinthesettlementtheinteriorsofbuildingsareprotectedbyalmostblank
wallswithverysmallopenings.
AllmajorstreetsareorientedalmostintheEastWestdirectionatrightanglestothedirectionofduststorms.
Thefamoushave,lieswithjharokhasanddecorativefacadesarelocatedonthesestreets.Thestreetsarerelatively
narrowandwinding.

CONTROLOFHEATINGBYTEXTUREOFSURFACES:
TheheatinsideofthebuildingiscontrolledbytheuseoftexturesinJaisalmer.Thisisorganizedatthreelevels.
Atthetownscalethebuildingsareofunequalheightwithparapetsandhighwalls,creatingunevenskylinesanddesired
shadingofeachother.
Secondly,thebuildingfacadeshavelargenumberofprojectionslikejharokhasandchajjaswhichprovideshadetothe
facades.
Thirdly,thefrontpartofthefacadewhichremainsexposedarecontrolledbycreatingdeeplycarvedpatterns.Useof
suchdevicesminimizestheheatgainbyprovidingshadingduetotexture.Suchdevicesalsoresultinincreased
convectivetransferofheatbecauseofincreasedsurfacearea.InsummerindaytimewhenthemajorheatsourceisSun
theexposedtexturedsurfaceswillbecoolerthanplainsurfaces.
Ineveningwhenambientconditionsarecooltheincreasesurfaceareahelpsincoolingitfaster.However,anextended
surfacewillwarmupfasterthanaplainsurfaceunderwinterconditionsduetolowsolaraltitude,thereforethelocationin
contextofthesesurfacesisveryimportant.

ORIENTATION:
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TheVernacularArchitectureOfRajasthan|Archinomy

ORIENTATION:
Thebuildingisalwaysorientedbythecardinaldirections:North,South,East,West,
Northeast,Northwest,Southeastandouthwest.Eachofthesedirectionsisconsidered
asenergybyitself.Hencethespacesindifferentorientationareconsidereddifferently
fordesignpurposeswhichisaveryclimatesensitiveapproach.ForexampletheEastor
theNorthwallsaremademoreopentolightandairastheWestistheheatgaining
sideinthewarmhumidclimatesofIndia
Theplacementofthebuildingwithinthesiteisthefirststeptowardformingthegridforinternalplanning.Thecentreof
theplotisgenerallynotwherethecentreofthebuildingisplaced,onlyexceptionbeingtemples.Theclimaticlogicbehind
thisisthatinthehousetheoutdoorandindoorisdesignedasone.

THEGRIDANDTHECOURTYARD:
Thegridsystemofplanningwasalwaysfollowedregardlessofthesiteorbuildingtype.Thegridwasmadeflexible
enoughtoaccommodateanysiteconditionandtopography.Gridsystemismoresustainableintermsofeconomyand
speedofconstruction.Itisalsoeasiertorecyclematerialsifitwasbuiltonagrid.Prefabricationalsofavorsthegrid.The
gridwasnotalwayssymmetricorsimple.Complexgeometryandcurvilineargridswerealsoadopted.Thecentral
courtyardisthelungspace'ofeitherthehouseorthehousingblock.Justtoensurethereisacourtyardinevery
house,thecentreofthehouseisneverbuiltupandiscalledtheBrahmastana,thegeniuslociofthehouse

THEFOURGOLDENPRINCIPLES:
ThefourgoldenrulesinarchitecturewhichwereoutlinedinthegreatepicRamayana,thestoryofLordRama,
summariseIndianarchitectureasawhole.Theyarefunctionorbhogadayam,aestheticsorsukhadarsham,harmonyand
poornam.Theperfectexamplewhichexplainsallthefourprinciplesisatemplestructurewhichisdesignedandbuiltby
themostskilledarchitects.
Functionorbhogadamwhichwasgiventhefirstprioritykeepsclimateamongthefirstconsiderationsinarchitectural
design.Bioclimaticapproachestonewformsandmaterialswereexplored.Thearchitectsneverconsideredclimateasa
forcetofightorwinbuttoenhanceandenjoy.Evenextremitiesinclimatewerehandledwithmasterskillandremarkable
comfortlevelswereachieved.Therewasnoquestionofthinkingaboutclimateinthelaststageofdesignandtryingto
comeupwithquickfixsolutions.Mostoftheformswereaimedatlongtermbenefitandwellthoughtaboutbeforethe
designedbuildingisbuilt.
Theaestheticsorsukhadarshamwerenotaddedontothebuildingbutwereanintegralpartofit.Itissometimes
difficulttotellapartwherethefunctionalaspectstopsandtheaestheticonestarts.
Harmonyorramyamwasachievedbygeometryandplayofshapes,Solidsandvoids.Thearchitecturallanguagewasof
simplespaceswithcomplexornamentation,whichinmostcaseshadausealongwithitsaestheticappeal.Forexamplea
rainwatergutterwassowellsculptedinthetemplesthatonejustthinksitisforthedelightoftheeye.
Lastly,theallencompassingfactororpoornamofIndianArchitecturewasaresultoftheperfectblendoftheabove
mentionedthreefactorswhichmakesitfeeleternal.
Thereismoretothespatialorderthatrunsrightacross
thisenormousrangeofbuildingtypesinIndian
architecture.Alargepartofthisorderemanatesfromits
ownmeaningasbuiltspaceratherthanfromthespecific
functionitcatersto.Thereisarangeofspaces,
irrespectiveofthematerialandtheconstruction
methods,thatarebuilt,asiffortheirownsake.Thisis
essentiallytocreatea'spatialopportunity'forthingsto
happenandtheydo.Themeaningisinthespaceitself
andtherangeofactivitiesitcanaccommodateandnot
inthespecificityofafunction.Onecanseemeaninginitsambiguityandyetveryessentialnature.Itisimportantthat
thestyleandmannerofcreatingaspaceareseenindependentlyoffactorsthatgeneratethem.
SpaceinIndianarchitecturecandrawonthesimpleanddirectphysicalconditionsoftheenvironmentprevailingatthe
place,thusgivingmeaningtothecreationofspacewithinspecificphysicalparameters.Architecturalexpressionsinpost
IndependenceIndiahaveoscillatedbetweenEuropeanmodernismandarchaicIndianism.Attimessomecombinationsof

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TheVernacularArchitectureOfRajasthan|Archinomy
thetwohavealsobeenobserved.Thereareexampleswheresomeeffortshavealsobeenmadetorelatethespatial
organisationandformalstructureofsomehistoricbuildingsandcomplexeswithmodernbuildings.Inanycasethebasic
formsandprinciplesseemtohavemeantverylittle.Itisthevisualimageryandstylisticexpressionsthatseemtohave
beenthemostinfluential.Indianarchitecturalspaceinthemannerinwhichitisenclosedisvetdifferentformthe
Westernnotionofspace.Thedefinitionofboundariesareoftenchangingwithphysicalorothercontextualchanges.Quite
oftenonedoesnotknowwhenoneisinsideandwhenoutside.

Thispresentationwascreatedby:Anonymous
Tags: VernacularArchitecture

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