Mobilizing new fundraising ideas – Tahir Noronha, Charles Correa Foundation

Tahir Noronha

Goa based Architect Tahir Noronha, the current convenor at Charles Correa Fondation (CCF), shares his experience as the studio lead in facing the challenges of fundrasing during the pandemic. A virtual Z-Axis conference, a newsletter, a design competition and new fundraising initiatives are some highlights of CCF’s efforts during the pandemic. Efforts to sustain the fundraising lockdowns helped Tahir and his team of CCF fellows to keep up the urban engagement with the city of Panjim in Goa. Tahir also speaks of how he faced a new tray of responsibilites apart from the original mandate as the pnademic tranformed everyone’s work routines.

Pedagogical exploration in architecture to increase quality of practice – Shantanu Poredi, Manisha Agarwal, Mobile Offices

Mobile Offices

Architects Shantanu Poredi and Manisha Agarwal higlighted how the pandemic has reflected their team’s sustained spirits by taking up new areas of work within architecture, while mainstream practice came to an unforeseen hiatus. The lockdown was also an opportunity for the architects to thrive on their potential with pedagogical exploartion, thanks to the growing number of remote teaching methods. The architects further emphasised that the team hung in together by focussing on the studio’s research in the state of Architectural Competitions around the world. Meanwhile, the lockdown was also a phase for emerging architects and graduates to equip new skills which would have otherwise appeared impossible.

Keeping up the momentum past the pandemic – Abin Chaudhuri, Abin Design Studio

Abin Chaudhuri

Architect Abin Chaudhuri shares how his studio resumed soon after the severe lockdowns with the same vibrancy before the pandemic struck. Besides elaborating on his work processes, Abin asserts how work-from-home is never a good option in our industry. Furthermore, Abin shares some insightful learnings about work and life experienced by the team at Abin Design Studio, during the pandemic.

Morale boosters and changing work trends – Rahul Gore, Sonal Sancheti, Opolis

_opolis

Principal architects Rahul Gore and Sonal Sancheti from Opolis discuss the ideas which kept their team’s morale up during the lockdown, besides their learnings and experiences about the pandemic phase in 2020. They also share how the kind of project inquiries they recieved underwent changes in trends during the lockdown. With highlights such as occupation with studio research, retention of the core team, returning project inquiries and a relatively stable financial position, Opolis re-emerges out of the lockdown with their regular momentum.

Re-emergence of Architectural Practice in India from the Pandemic 2020

Varun Kumar

Using written and spoken discourse, ArchitectureLive! gathers illuminating thoughts on the status and conditions of architecture practice during the COVID-19 lulls. We witness how studios emerge from this unforeseen hiatus with refreshed processes.

I understand this virus as a Gandhian-Virus and that’s a crazy thing. – Madhav Raman, Anagram Architects

Madhav Raman

Madhav Raman, principal architect at Anagram Architects, holds the experience during the pandemic that the Corona Virus changed people’s belief systems. As he termed it a Gandhian Virus, it places people in a situation where they’re forced to think about other’s safety, for their own too. Madhav also highlights how the wealthy sections of our population, small in size, have opted to bag peri-urban farm lands as their new investment zones for personal built property, and how they sprouted many farmhouse projects in the Delhi market. This was accmpanied by a rethinking of home living ideas, as a result of the pandemic. Anagram Architects have experienced significant influences to their vibrant and physically active studio environment, as bio-safety measures forced remote and slower modes of architecture practice.

Initiatives for migrant workers hindered – Hatch Workshop

Hatch Workshop

Hatch Workshop is a team led by New Zealanders who emerged as designers of housing for migrant labourers in Ahmedabad. The duo of principal architects Hannah Broatch and Mason Rattray couldn’t use opportunities in India to execute new housing for the vulnerable, owing to the travel restrictions during COVID-19. Hatch Workshop’s current focus is on projects in their hometown of Aotearoa and Auckland, hoping to resume soon in India.

A checkpoint towards a more comprehensive growth – A Design Co. (ADC)

A DESIGN CO

A Design Co. is an architecture and interior design practice, focussing on the principle of being a work-in-progress in terms of their studio’s collective growth. The team has handled the tray of challenges from the Pandemic, importantly hindered coordination and adapting to effective remote work methods. This shift in has embedded fresher technological and collaborative work processes in their practice.

The unsuitability of remote working for architecture practice – Neeta Shubhrajit Das Associates

Neeta Shubhrajit Das Associates

Founded in 1987 and led by architects Neeta Das and Shubhrajit Das, the studio is involved in urban conservation and housing, in addition to home design. The studio experienced as challenges the unsuitability of virtual work methods, besides halted projects and monetary disruptions. – Neeta Shubhrajit Das Associates

Our pursuit as a variated and connected team – Triple O Studio

TRIPLE O STUDIO

A team composed of multifaceted creative individuals witnessed an opportunity to rethink their existing process of operating with a variety of work bubbles within a single studio. The team also experienced good sustenance with their different channels of work, their off-studio initiatives, alongside their strong connectivity within the studio team.

Team spirit and resilient work processes are a necessity – Funktion Design

Funktion Design

The team at Funktion Design experienced the challenges of keeping up the morale of their personnel during fears of the pandemic. The studio had identified ways of enlivening their workspace to maintain the team’s vibrancy and increased the spirit between members. The studio’s relatively fresh experience with cloud working systems has helped them realize the importance of resilient in-studio work processes to pre-empt any future challenges like this pandemic.

Additional fundraising challenges and refreshed social goals – Nivasa NGO

NIvasa NGO

Nivasa NGO, possessing a network of advisors, fellow NGOs and funders, collectively witnessed additional strain on their monetary channels to aid their initiatives. The lockdowns, however, helped principal architect Akhila Ramesh to reinvent her journey with the Nivasa NGO team. With a rejuvenated studio structure and efforts to implement dignified living for the urban and rural poor, the team hopes to expand their friend network and funding avenues to aid their cause.

Sustaining with core research and social opportunities – Ketham’s Atelier

Ketham’s Atelier

Ketham’s Atelier has been focussed on researching the core concepts of architectural design and becoming well versed with the associated skill sets. Additionally, the studio also has been running an NGO practice to impart the learnings through teaching methods. Together, the studio witnessed the importance of their research in helping them sustain through a time like the pandemic.

Agility at practice and responsiveness toward our environment – Morphemy Architects

Morphemy

The team at Morphemy architects experienced a complete halt of projects and monetary flow. The team, however, learnt that maintaining agility at work through challenging times is crucial. Additionally, the team was oriented toward responding to the environment’s processes through their design, during the pandemic.

Equipping a virtual workflow and a new magazine – Compartment S4

Compartment S4

As a young and large bunch of designers, Compartment S4 experienced a distancing of the studio members alongside the halting of projects and monetary flow. The team, however, found the hiatus as an opportunity to equip virtual methods of collaboration with their work, such as co-drawing digitally. Compartment S4 also came up with their exciting new initiative in the form of a Magazine, that is in cohesion with their talk series called “Friday Night Conversations”.

Practice Strategy

A series of discussions by architects from India’s major metros, on how the practice is re-emerging from the 2020 Pandemic recess.
Curated by Varun Kumar