Residence 1065, Chandigarh, by Charged Voids

Located in the Corbusian city of Chandigarh, Residence 1065 by Charged Voids is an embodiment of the Congrès Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne, or the CIAM’s principles of modern architecture. Using an open plan and facades that appear to float, the home is designed for a multi-generational family and attempts to fuse traditional spatial planning with modern aesthetics.

Residence 1065 reinterprets India’s traditional ways of living while paying homage to Chandigarh’s modernist heritage.

Residence 1065, Chandigarh, by Charged Voids 1

Located on a sprawling corner plot in Sector-27 of the Corbusian city of Chandigarh, Residence 1065 is an embodiment of the Congrès Internationaux d’Architecture Moderne, or the CIAM’s principles of modern architecture. Using an open plan and facades that appear to float, the home is designed for a multi-generational family of six and attempts to fuse traditional spatial planning with modern aesthetics, while maintaining an optimum amount of daylight ingress.

The house greets visitors with its sweeping, curved concrete roof—a reinterpretation of Le Corbusier’s Palace of Assembly located nearby. At a more eye-friendly elevation, a glass-encased, open ground-floor plan comes into view. This open plan creates an overlap between several interconnected volumes and outdoor spaces that allow for easy interaction between separate floors, complying with the highly cohesive lifestyles prevalent in multi-generational Indian families.

Residence 1065, Chandigarh, by Charged Voids 3

The design for the home is driven by intersecting axes; the major axis is planned as an anchor for the central circulation while the minor axis connects the landscaped courtyards. The overlapping volumes facilitate the residents’ movement along these two axes in a way that the spaces unfold in layers as one progresses from the public to the private areas. The common areas are enclosed in expansive glazing, in direct dialogue with the open spaces around them. The kitchen occupies the centre of the floor plan, with a collapsible partition delineating it from a courtyard. A separate spice kitchen, the formal living and dining areas, the family lounge, and a small office along with the master bedroom are configured around this space. The prayer room is contained in a white, double-height turret that lets in natural light through sharp slits in its curved walls.

Nature becomes a part of the interior spaces through multiple courtyards and terrace gardens—interpreting traditional transitional spaces like verandahs into a modern context as a byproduct of the design process. As opposed to the common areas, the private rooms in the home are treated to interact differently with the outdoors. They open onto courtyards and deep verandahs with tall sun breakers that form the front facade, granting access to the outdoors while preserving privacy. Three other bedrooms—two for the children and one for guests—are situated on the upper floor.

Locally sourced brick and Corbusier’s signature cast-in-situ concrete have been used to build Residence 1065, drawing inspiration from contextually prevalent construction practices as well as the modernist vocabulary revolutionised by Le Corbusier. Through this project, Charged Voids imbibes techniques that are historically important to the city of Chandigarh but are being replaced by run-of-the-mill plastered and stone-cladded buildings—and aspires to start a dialogue on the degrading urban infrastructure and expressions of modernist architecture standing today. Corbusier’s philosophies are not just interpreted in the symbolism of modernism, but also in the architectural expression driving the larger design intent.

Images

Drawings

Typology: Residential
Completion: 2019
Photographer: Javier Callejas Sevilla

Consultants

Structural: Er. Pankaj Chopra
Civil: Nayyar builders
HVAC: Mitsubishi

Share your comments

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Recent

The 100, Calicut, by Nestcraft Architecture

In this rural escape, The 100, Calicut, by Nestccraft Architecture, ensures a firm marriage between functionality and aesthetics and the planning suggests four bedrooms with attached toilets in a plinth area of 21OO square feet. The home and wabi-sabi landscape within this boundary facilitate meaningful life to 1OO souls.

Read More »
Pune

Pune – An Ever-Evolving Jewel

The essay traces the transformation of Pune from a quaint town to the vibrant city it is today. Mostly it is about the city’s aspects, which make it different and unique. The narrative reminisces about the city’s cultural richness and festive glory. It also points out a bit about the challenges posed by urbanization. But despite everything, Pune successfully retains its cultural essence, making it a city that preserves its glorious heritage while transforming.
This essay by Arpita Khamitkar is amongst the shortlisted essays.

Read More »

Reflection of Urban Inclusivity And Reality

The essay reflects on the author’s childhood memories centred around the Kohinoor Textile Mill. The mill, part of Mumbai’s Girangaon, played a significant role in the city’s industrial growth until the early 1980s. The essay fondly recalls the mill’s impact on the community, its cultural richness, and personal experiences. The author expresses concern about the loss of community identity and the impact of privatization, highlighting the need for sustainable urban development that preserves the city’s history. This essay by Pornima Buddhivant is amongst the shortlisted essays.

Read More »
The case of Phalke Smarak - Nashik

The case of Phalke Smarak

The essay titled, ‘The case of Phalke Smarak : Nashik’s untapped potential with existing urban public space’ – discusses how a promising urban scale public space project for Nashik city in the late 90s has slowly turned desolate, despite all the possibilities and potential the architectural design, site and overall context offers. It further tries to highlight the gap between the public and failed public spaces based on this case, and points towards public engagement for successful urban design, renewal and development. This essay by Asmita Raghuvanshy is amongst the shortlisted essays.

Read More »
The Good, the Bad and the Aesthetic - Bhopal

The Good, the Bad and the Aesthetic

This essay delves into how municipal corporations envision creating Western cities (instead of responding to the Indian context) and end up creating cities that only appear to work, instead of actually being more socially inclusive, dynamic and publicly active. The Smart Cities Mission then caters only to the rich and this becomes evident in not just the visuals they use, but also the manner in which they describe their vision of a World Class Infrastructure. This essay by Avani Mittal is amongst the shortlisted essays.

Read More »

WE ARE HIRING /

ArchitectureLive! is hiring for various roles, starting from senior editors, content writers, research associates, graphic designer and more..

 

PARTICIPATE /