LOUIS I.

KAHN
1901-BORN 20 FEBRUARY IN
SAAREMAA,ESTONIA.
1905-HIS FAMILY MOVES TO
PHILADELPHIA,USA.
1920-24-STUDIES ARCHITECTURE AT THE
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA,USA.
1951-53-YALE UNIVERSITY ART
GALLERY,USA.
1962-75-IIM ,AHMEDABAD,INDIA.
1959-1965-SALK INSTITUTE,LA
JOLLA,CALIFORNIA,USA
1962-83-BANGLADESH PARLIAMENT
BUILDING,DHAKA,BANGLADESH.
1966-72-KIMBELL ART MUSEUM,FORT
WORTH,TEXAS,USA.
1974-DIES 17 MARCH,IN NEW YORK,USA.


BIOGRAPHY: FAMOUS QUOTES :
Architecture is the reaching out for the truth.
Design is not making beauty, beauty
emerges
from selection, affinities, integration,
love.
Architecture is the thoughtful making
of space.
1.1 BORN 1901, PHILADELPHIA
1.2 DIED ON SEPTEMBER 17,1974, BY HEART ATTACK
1.3 FAMILY:FATHER WAS RUSSIAN JEWISH REFUGEE.

1.4 PROFESSION: ARCHITECT
1.5 TRAINED IN HIS HOME TOWN,PHILADELPHIA ,UNDER PAUL
PHILIPP CRET.

2.HE STARTED HIS OWN PRACTICE STARTED IN 1948.

1.6 INFLUENCES

1. HE WAS INSPIRED BY GREEK,ROMAN AND MUGHAL
ARCHITECTURE. HE FOUND DIFFERENT
GEOMETRICAL SHAPE FROM GREEK , ROMAN AND
CREATED SERIES OF COURTYARD LIKE IN MUGHAL
ARCHITECTURE.

2. KAHN INCORPORATED SOME OF THE TECHNIQUES OF
OTHER ARCHITECTS AND STYLES, AND WITH THEM
CREATED HIS OWN STYLE. HIS SENSE OF ORDER CAME
FROM THE BEAUX-ARTS AND THE IDEA OF SPARSELY
DECORATED ARCHITECTURE FROM MIES AND LE
CORBUSIER. FROM SULLIVAN AND WRIGHT, HE ADOPTED
ORGANIC ARCHITECTURE, SHOWING THE INNER
ESSENCE OF THE STRUCTURE.

HE THOUGHT ABOUT ARCHITECTURE RATHER
THAN PATTERNS.

ACCORDING TO HIM GEOMETRICAL SHAPES
GIVE FORM TO THE BUILDING AND A
COURTYARD MAKES IT HOLLOW.

THEY CONSIST OF DIFFERENT SHAPES LIKE
TRIANGLE,CIRCULAR,RECTANGULAR .PLANS
WERE GENERALLY BASED ON AXIS.

HIS WORK DEPICTS A SENSE OF PLACE AND
BELONGING IN THE LANDSCAPE.

HIS WORKS HAVE INTEGRITY BETWEEN
PURPOSE AND EXPRESSION
BUILDING AND LANDSCAPE
PART AND WHOLE

SALK INSTITUTE FOR
BIOLOGICAL STUDIES
LA JOLLA,CALIFORNIA
1959-65
SHER-E-BANGLA NAGAR
DHAKA,BANGLADESH
1962-83
KIMBELL ART MUSEUM
FORTWORTH,TEXAS,US
A
1966-72
THE PROJECTS :
SALK INSTITUTE FOR
BILOGICAL STUDIES

THE CLIENT DR.SALK(INVENTOR
OF THE POLIO VACCINE) WANTED
THE INSTITUTE TO BE A PLACE
WHERE THE MODERN RIFT
BETWEEN THE ARTS AND THE
SCIENCES HAD TO BE BRIDGED.

THUS FROM THE VERY
BEGINNING ,KAHNS DESIGNS FOR
THE SALK INSTITUTE FOCUSSED
BOTH ON THE PLACES OF WORK-
THE BIOLOGICAL LABORATORIES
AND THE EQUALLY IMPORTANT
PLACES OF MEETING,DISCUSSION
AND CONTEMPLATION.

THE CONCEPT
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PLANNING
KAHN ORGANIZED THE INSTITUTE
INTO THREE DISTINCT CLUSTERS
OF BUILDINGS.
THE PLACE OF WORK,THE
LABORATORIES,HE PLACED NEAR
THE MAIN ROAD TO THE EAST.
THE PLACE OF REPOSE , THE
RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS HE
POSITIONED ALONG THE EDGES
OF THE CANYON,WHICH OPENED
THROUGH THE CENTRE OF THE
SITE.
THE PLACE OF MEETING,KAHN
SITUATED ON THE BLUFF CLOSET
TO THE OCEAN TO THE WEST.
THE THREE BUILDING CLUSTERS
WERE POSITIONED SO AS TO
SHARE THE VIEW OF THE
OCEAN,AND TO RING THE
CANYON AT THE CENTRE OF THE
SITE.
WEST ELEVATION
SOUTH ELEVATION
INSPIRATIONS:

KAHNS SALK INSTITUTE BEARS AN UNCANNY RESEMBLANCE
TO THE PLINTH OF THE ACROPOLIS IN ATHENS.

HE ALSO EXPLORED THE PLANS OF WRIGHTS UNITY TEMPLE ,
ROMAN EMPEROR DIOCLETIANS PALACE AT SPLIT , CAMPUS
MARTIUS AND BOTH THE RURAL AND URBAN ROMAN VILLA FOR
THE MEETING HOUSE.

KAHNS MODELS AND SKETCHES :
MATERIALS USED
The materials used included
wood, concrete, marble, water,
and glass, and they all
contributed to the Brutalist
notions and simplistic plan.


He believed that concrete was
the stone of modern man, and
therefore it was to be left with
exposed joints and formwork
markings .

Teak and glass infill in the
office and common room walls.

KIMBEL ART
MUSEUM
INTRODUCTION
The Kimbell Art Museum in Fort
Worth, Texas, hosts a small but
excellent art collection as well as
traveling art exhibitions,
educational programs and an
extensive research library.
The building was designed by
renowned architect Louis I.
Kahn and is widely recognized as
one of the most significant works of
architecture of recent times.
It is especially noted for the wash
of silvery natural light across its
vaulted gallery ceilings.
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KIMBELL ART
MUSEUM
A1 A2
A3
ENTRANC
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A1 A2 A3 ARE THE THREE
WINGS
SITE DESCRIPTION
The landscaping has been
described as
Kahn's most elegant built
example of
landscape planning.
The main entrance is approcahed
by a lawn
edged by pools with running
water.
The sound of footsteps echoes
from the walls
on either side of the courtyard
under the curved ceiling of the
entry porch.
Harriet Pattison played the lead
role in the landscape design and
suggested that open porches
flanking the entrance would create
a good transition from the lawn
and courtyard to the galleries
inside.
The museum is composed of 16 parallel vaults that are each
100 feet (30.5 m) long, 20 feet (6 m) high and 23 feet (7 m)
wide (internal measurements).

The vaults are grouped into three wings.
The north and south wings each have six vaults.



The western one open as a portico.




The central space has four vaults, with the western one open
as an entry porch facing a courtyard partially enclosed by the
two outside wings.

NORTH
ELEVATION
WESTERN
ELEVATION
EASTERN
ELEVATION
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Service and curatorial spaces as well as
an additional gallery occupy the ground
floor.
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Most of the art galleries are located on the
upper floor of the museum to allow access
to natural light.
IMPORTANT FEATURES
Vaults
The relatively
flat cycloid curve were used to
make vaults.
Height of the museum is 6 m(20
feet).
Vaults are actually shells, that
are used as the post-tensioned
beams, spanning 30.5 m
To prevent the vaults from
collapsing, concrete struts
were inserted at 10-foot (3
m) intervals.
A relatively thick concrete
arch was added to each end
of the shells to stiffen them
further.
INTERIORS
The goal was to illuminate the galleries with indirect natural
light while excluding all direct sunlight, which would damage
the artwork
A reflecting screen made of perforated anodized
aluminum with a specific curve could be used to distribute
natural light evenly across the cycloid curve of the ceiling.







In areas without art, such as the entry hall, cafeteria and
library, the entire reflector is perforated, making it possible for
people standing beneath to glimpse passing clouds.

In the gallery spaces, the central
part of the reflector, which is
directly beneath the sun, is solid,
while the remainder is
perforated.

The concrete surfaces of the
ceiling were given a high finish to
further assist the reflection of the
light.

Sun enters a narrow slot at the
top of each vault and is evenly
reflected from a curved screen
across the entire arc of the
polished concrete ceiling.
MATERIALS USED
The principal
materials are
concrete, travertine,
and white oak.



materials used in the
interiors are aluminum
louvers, photovoltaic
cells, wood beams,
and stretched fabric
scrims

Though thoroughly modern in its lack of
ornament or revivalist
detail, the building suggests the grand arches
and vaults of
Roman architecture, a source of inspiration that
Kahn himself
acknowledged.












The Kimbell Art Foundation was established in 1936.

The museum building opened in October 1972. The work of architect Louis
Kahn, the 11,000 m building consists of a series of parallel, cycloidal
concrete shells in the form of barrel vaults with a counterpoint of three
interior courts.

The building is a perferct example of shaping space through unification of
light and structure.

It is a simple composition of
parallel concrete vaults.

It has porticoes which seem to be in
continuation with the buildings
vaulting.

The gallery spaces are not confined
by individual vaults but flow from
one vault to another.
There are three levels in the buliding:

The upper level houses gallery space, and auditorium, library, book
store, refreshment area and three courts.

The lower level contains offices, laboratories, shops, shipping and
receiving.

A full basement houses the mechanical and electrical distribution
systems. The sloping site allows public access on the west at the
upper level, primarily a pedestrian entrance, and also access on the
east side at the lower level from the parking lots. On the west side
the middle elements are pushed back to allow and entry court.
The museum consists of sixteen narrow rectangular vaulted elements laid out in
three sections, with six vaults side to side on both ends and four in the middle.

Six foot wide flat-roofed channels separate each vault, and at the two places where
the three sections meet are mirrored glass slits.

Each vault is roofed by 23 x 100 foot clear span cycloid shells of post-tensioned,
poured in place, reinforced concrete with an as-cast surface. The vaults are each
supported on four 2 x 2 foot corner columns.

Calcium lead sheets cover the shells.

On the exterior Kahn used
diamond-sawn, travertine
infill walls with a reinforced
concrete core between the
columns
The creation of space on the interior through light, though, is achieved through a
freeing of roof space, not wall space.

In what has become Kahn's most popular element, light diffusers spread natural
light from a narrow slot to the sky along the undersides of the concrete vault.
Casting an even glow throughout the museum.The diffusers shield the Kimbell's
work from the strong Texas sunlight.


There are three
courtyards created by
slicing the vaults.
These courtyards bring
a piece of the outside
world to the inner most
portion of the galleries.
On the interior travertine is again used for infill walls, stairs, balustrades and
portions of the floor. The remaining gallery flooring, the cabinet work and
interior doors and frames are of quarter sawn white oak. Mill finished stainless
steel is also used for the elevators, kitchen and handrails.

SHER-E-BANGLA
NAGAR
INTRODUCTION
Sher-e-Bangla Nagar is one of
the thanas of Dhakas city, the
capital of Bangladesh. It is
located near Agargaon and it is
home to the National
Parliament.
Louis Kahn designed the entire
Jatiyo Sangsad complex, which
includes lawns, lake and
residences for the Members of
the Parliament (MPs).
Total area: 200 acres (800,000
m)

The enclave, situated in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, is bounded by four
major streets:
Lake Road to the North
Rokeya Sarani to the East;
Manik Mia Avenue to the South; and
Mirpur Road to the West.

The main building (the Bhaban) is divided into three parts:
The Main Plaza: 823,000 square feet (76,000 m)
South Plaza: 223,000 square feet (21,000 m)
Presidential Plaza: 65,000 square feet (6,000 m)

The main building is at the center of the complex. The outer
parts of the complex include the MP hostel. An intricately
designed lake surrounds the main building.

LOCATION AND
BASIC LAYOUT

The Bhaban (Main Building) design

The Bhaban consists of nine individual blocks:
the eight peripheral blocks rise to a height of 110' while
the central octagonal block rises to a height of 155'.








All nine blocks include different groups of functional spaces and have
different levels, inter-linked horizontally and vertically by corridors, lifts,
stairs, light courts, and circular areas.

The entire structure is designed to blend into one single, non-
differentiable unit, that appears from the exterior to be a single story.


THE MAIN PLAZA
The most important part of the Main Plaza is the Parliament Chamber, which
can house up to 354 members during sessions.
The Chamber has a maximum height of 117' with a parabolic shell roof.
The roof was designed with a clearance of a single story to let in daylight.








THE SOUTH PLAZA
The South Plaza faces the Manik Mia Avenue.
It gradually rises to a 20' height and serves as a beautiful main entrance to
the Parliament Building.

PRESIDENTIAL PLAZA
The Presidential Plaza lies to the North and faces the Lake Road.
It functions as an intimate plaza for the MPs and other dignitaries.
It contains marble steps, a gallery and an open pavement.
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GEOMETRY
The building is composed of squares and circles.



ZONING









DESIGN THEORY BY KAHN
CIRCULATION
SPACES
USE OF IN BETWEEN SPACES
:
EXTERIOR VIEWS
STRUCTURE
Absence of columns inside d the
building.
Appearance of a sculptured mass.
OPENINGS
Geometrical.
Provide protection from sun and
rain.
And provision of free circulation
of air.
INTERIOR VIEWS
DETAIL OF THE ROOF
RED BRICK
STRUCTURE




GEOMETRIC
AL OPENINGS
PLACE : DACCA (BANGLADESH)
BUILDING TYPE : GOVT.CENTRE
TIME : 1966-83
MATERIALS : CONCRETE AND MARBLE.
AREA : 200 ACRES
STYLE : MORDEN

DACCA PROJECTS HEAVILY ON
LOCAL BUILDING MATERIAL (BRICK,CONCRETE)
RATHER THAN MORE SOPSTICATED TECHNIQUE.




Kahn was asked to design the building in 1962 by the Pakistan
government and the original brief called for a national assembly
building as well as three hostels to house the ministers,
delegates and other officials coming from West Pakistan.

Khan demanded a minimum of 1000 acres of land for such a
monumental project of which 840 acres is allotted. 600 acres is
govt. And 340 is privately owned.

The work began in 1966 but stopped due to the civil war in 1971
when only three quarters of work was completed.

After the formation of republic of Bangladesh, the new
government expanded the plans.
The assembly was expanded to seat 250 300 members, five
hundred visitors and 100 press corporate, a prayer hall, post
office commercial bank, library, restaurant, longue facilities, a
reception hall, and office for the president minister and other
personnel were also added to the complex.
Out of these khan designed 5 major components which were
designed by Kahn are:
The assembly block, the centre piece of the entire project
contained nine blocks
The south block or main plaza.
The presidential square
The east hostel
The west residential block.

A monumental building for the assembly has smaller buildings
around it on east west axis. They are separated by the
secretariat by a manmade lake.
The assembly is in form of a cylinder, in effect, a hollow concrete
column with perforated walls.
The column is octagonal in shape and there are eight sectors on
eight sides of the octagon against eight sectors there are eight
outer blocks. So total of nine blocks including the central
assembly block.
To the south the prayer hall marks the entrance to the assembly
building, this link is mainly the realization that the assembly
attains a spiritual dimension.
From the north the complex is approached thru the park.


The design process was influenced by local architectural styles
and specially by Islamic pre-mughal and mughal architecture.
Specially the mausoleum of humayun in Delhi and red fort at
agar and the lal bagh fort at baharpur.
The floors are finished with terrazzo tiles with marble dividers
and borders and bases.
All the hostel buildings, the houses and the outpatient
departments are made of reinforced brick masonry bearing wall
construction.
Khan wanted the exposed brick work to be the only decoration
and so he meticulously designed simple walls, joints, arches,
and stairs which were to act as the model for the complex.
Khan successfully used water in his landscaping design for the
assembly grounds.

Lighting in the assembly chamber was designed to be effected
by combination of diffused natural and artificial light, but to create
a balance between natural and artificial light has proven to be a
problem
Acoustics have also proven to be problem as there have been
many complaints of echoes and reverberations especially in the
assembly chamber.
Louis khans grand and powerful concept for the national
assembly in Dhaka dominates its setting like a fortified citadel.
The two basic materials concrete and brick, that were used in
construction of the assembly were shown at their best. Although
the concrete was too expensive as a material for majority, the
use of brick flourished.


PLACE : PHILIPPINES
BUILDING TYPE : SCHOOL LIBRARY
TIME : 1965-72
MATERIALS : BRICKS
STYLE : MORDEN






WORKS
INDIAN INSTITUTEOF MANAGEMENT

Place : AHEMDABAD
Time : 1962-74
SITE AREA :27 HECTARE
STYLE : MORDEN

IT IS POPULAR THREE ARCHITECTURE PATTERN
1. EXPOSED BRICK WORK
2. USE OF ARCH AND OPENING
3. SERIES OF COURTYARD

PLAN CONSIST- INSTITUTIONAL COMPLEX
HOUSING SECTOR






SITE PLAN
CLASSROOM BLDG. PLAN
SECTION
MAIN ENTERANCE
FACADES
THE ROOF STRUCTURE HAS A LARGE OPENING
WHICH BRING NATURAL LIGHT IN COMPLEX.
WINDOWS WERE IN DIFFERENT SHAPE.
BUILDING PROPOTIONATE TO HUMAN SCALE.



MATERIAL
HE USED LOCAL MATERIAL LIKE
BRICK,STONE,RCC,STAINLESS STEEL.
BRICK TO MAKE WALL.
USE RCC LINTELS AND ARCHES.
LIBRARY IS THE MOST IMPORTANT FEATURE OF THE
BUILDING.
IT BECOME THE CENTRE OF FACULTY AND STUDENT
INTERACTION.
SERIES OF COURTYARD GIVE FREE ACCESS TO THE
NEEDED BRIDGE.

THE INTERIOR WERE PROTECTED BY DEEP PORCHES AND
CONNECTED BY COVERED WALKWAYS.

HE MADE THE INTERIOR OF THE BUILDING WITH THE
PROPORTION OF THE WINDOW THAT GIVES NATURAL
LIGHT, SIMPLICITY AND GRACE.

NATIONAL ASSEMBELY
PLACE : DACCA(BANGLADESH)
BUILDING TYPE : GOVT.CENTRE
TIME : 1966-83
MATERIALS : CONCRETE AND MARBLE.
AREA : 200 ACRES
STYLE : MORDEN

IIM AND DACCA PROJECTS HEAVILY ON
LOCALBUILDINGMATERIAL(BRICK,CONCRETE)
RATH-ER THAN MORE SOPSTICATED TECHNIQUE.



MASTER PLAN

PLAN



















THE INTERIOR ASSEMBELY DIVIDED IN THREE
ZONES.

- CENTRAL ZONE: AREA OF ASSEMBELY

- MIDDLE ZONE : PROVIDED INNER
. CIR CULATION

- OUTER ZONE : IT CONSIST ARE OF
OFFICE,PARTY ROOM,LOUNGE AND THE
GARDEN ENTRANCE.

IT CONSIST DIFFERENT GEOMETRICAL
SHAPES.

THESE SHAPES HOLD A STRONG
ESSENTIAL FORM TO GIVE
PARTICULAR SHAPE OF VARYIN
INTERIOR NEED.

THERE IS A COLOUMN IN A PLAN
WHICH ARE HOLLOW AND MUCH
BIGGER.

THE HYPERBOLIC ROOF MEETS THE
WALL TO CREATE THE
RECESS,WHICH ALLOW FOR
INDIRECT NATURAL LIGHT.
FACADE
USED BRICK TO MAKE WALL
PRECAST LITLE IS USED TO SUPPORT
THE WALL.
BUTTRESS IS USE TO SUPPORT THE
WALL.
DESIGN ELEMENT LIKE THE DEEP
RECESS WINDOW AND SEGMENTAL
FLAT ARCH ACCENTUATE THEIR
FORMS AND HELP IN MAINTING VISUAL
UNIFORMITY.
VIEW FROM THE S-E SIDE
VIEW FROM THE EAST HOSTEL
YALE CENTER OF BRITISH ART

PLACE : WASHINGTON D.C.
TIME : 1956-1962
MATERIALS : SMOOTH CONCRETE
. AND STAINLESS STEEL.
BUILDING TYPE : ART GALLERY
STYLE : MORDEN
SKETCH OF SITE PLAN
SECTION AND WEST ELEVATION
YALE CENTER OF BRITISH ART

PLACE : WASHINGTON D.C.
TIME : 1956-1962
MATERIALS : SMOOTH CONCRETE
. AND STAINLESS STEEL.
BUILDING TYPE : ART GALLERY
STYLE : MORDEN
SKETCH OF SITE PLAN
SECTION AND WEST ELEVATION
YALE ART GALLERY STAIRWAY IS INCLOSED IN A
SMOOTH CONCRETE CYLINDER.
CENTER OF BRITISH ART-STAIRWAY SQUARE IN PLAN.
THE EXTERIOR OF BUILDING HAVE SMOOTH CONCRETE
STRUCTURE.
INFILL WALL FACED IN MATTE STAINLESS STEEL
MOST OF THE LIGHT IN BUILDING IS FILLTERED
THROUGH DEEP SKYLIGHT INTO THE COURT.
SO THE STREET WINDOW COULD BE RELATIVELY
SMALL SO THAT NO DIRECT SUN LIGHT FALL ON THE
PAINTING.
VIEW OF ENTRANCE COURT
VIEW OF LIBRARY COURT
STAIRS CYLINDER IN THE LIBRARY
STAIR LANDING
THOUGHTS OF B.V.DOSHI ABOUT KAHN:
Louis Kahn -clear in thoughts
full use of his capacities-very
humble,which makes his work
unpretentious and powerful.
Kahn was always striving
towards simplification ,trying to
get into an order that was very
clear, very consistent ,very
precise ,very austere.
I often say that Louis was trying
to build silence totally integral
,without ripples of any kind.
Kahn can be compared to
Mughal architecture like that
of a Mosque which is very
simple, clear and pure and the
geometry is very explicit.