Vedasri Siddamsetty

Colombo is the capital city of Sri Lanka and the city where Bawa practised architecture. His house, office and the paradise cafe are must visit places for the Bawa-fans, those who do the Bawa trail like a pilgrimage.

Residence no 11 on the 33rd lane was Bawa’s residence and office at one point of time, today it serves as a museum and boutique address of guest residence. When we visited his house, Jhonty Rhodes, the cricketer and his wife were guests.

Though small in comparison to all the luxury hotel properties Bawa built, his house located in a posh locality is a combination of three houses that Bawa bought over the years and he reworked the spaces every time. Sealed in white the interior spaces are punctuated by smaller pocket-sized courtyards and skylights to let in light into the framed spaces of the house.

The house is home to many pieces of art work and books that make up the architect’s cultural collection. Some are done by friends, some by his colleagues, some by local artisans and others bought over his frequent travels. Another hobby of Bawa apart from landscaping was that, travel and over years of travel his collection of books and art is laudable.

Completed in a neat facade, his house carries his trademark style throughout. His love for cars is also quite well-known, even today his Rolls Royce is parked in the garage a haunting memory of the architect who built for the classes, with the spirit of the masses.

Apart from Bawa’s home and office, Colombo as a city is the capital for 20 million people. A colonial past, a cricketing legacy, cleanliness, infrastructure in terms of buildings and roads, by the Chinese (!), great textile industry, barefoot – the store, odel, a promising skyline are a few striking things about Colombo! One of my fellow traveller noticed the large number of ‘broom-shops’ all over the place! Cleanliness is a top priority, and it shows. Colombo though, is indeed a microcosm of the nation.

 

The estate at Lunuganaga remained Bawa’s muse for all his life soon after he bought it. Awe-struck and in love with the Italian gardens on his travels to Europe he decided to build his own Italian garden when he returned after years of study to be a barrister. He bought a cinnamon and rubber plantation and began transforming it into his dream Italian garden estate. Thus explaining the David in the landscape!

His foray into the field of architecture too began with the Lunuganaga estate. As he began working on transforming the estate, his interest in architecture was piqued and Bawa began his years at the Architectural Association in London once he made up his mind on the field.

The backwaters of the Bentota River make their way to Bawa’s estate and provide a serene active water-front providing much needed creative inspiration in sync with the natural surrounds. The built masses are spread over the estate where Bawa spent his weekends mulling over a design challenge or building prototypes of railings or facades. Each room is equipped with a bell producing a unique sound that could alert Bawa’s helpers of their required assistance and for them to know where exactly Bawa needed them!

In addition art-works dot the estate, Bawa patronized his many artist friends and art forms a central focus in almost all of Bawa’s spaces. The furniture at the estate is again kept to Bawa’s style, solid teak and minimalistic. Chequered black and white flooring, ochre on focus walls, white plastered brick and pitched roofs framed in black are what compile the Lunuganga estate.

All the landscape on the estate are experimental in their specie kind or even the way they are allowed to grow. Bawa would clearly deliberate and manipulate his favorite kind, the frangi-pani into growing as he wanted them to grow, to create his intended effect at large.

The effect of rolling hills is another intention that is expressed in the landscape design.

Bawa’s weekend home served him as a creative playground wherein he polished his ideas to later imbibe into his many projects across the island.

The Bentota Beach hotel along the sea in Bentota was one of Bawa’s earliest projects commissioned by the Sri Lankan government. The young architect then took inspiration from traditional Sri Lankan architecture with the pitched roofs, a central courtyard, the frangi-pani tree, stepped in facade volumes and tropical verandahs. Facing the western coastline of Sri Lanka, the Bentota beach hotel is set on the terrain bordered by a railway line and the beach. Swimming pools here again are set on the rocky terrain.

 

The setting sun beams its rays on the lightly set hotel building lighting up the facade in a golden gleam.

 

The hotel is a part of a larger urban development plan of the region, designed as a leisure spot for tourism.

The courtyard on the upper level, are fraught with beautiful Frangi-panis composed in a pool of placid waters. On a particularly overcast morning, tones of grey frame the aesthetically inclined plants. In the rooms, Bawa has articulated the facade to incorporate varied windows. The hotel was first intended to not be air-conditioned and thus louvers are used extensively to serve as second tiered screening systems, cutting out the sun whilst drawing in the breezes. A much-wanted functional aspect in tropical design.
 
Fabrics and burmese teak form the bulk of the interiors in addition to brightly used color in the interiors. The reception area is canvas to beautifully done Batik fabric work on the ceiling. The rooms though in spatial planning seem very cramped and crowded in their design, something that could only be attributed to a lack to finesse yet in the young architect. Or witness to the fact that it was only practise that honed Bawa’s skills to make him an exceptional architect, his better works came after all the experimentation and follies. Creativity is thus a proponent of freedom to make mistakes. Rome was after all, not built in a day!

The beach, with the golden sun, is the best part if the Bentota Beach Hotel.

Kandy is essentially a hill-station brightly centered in Sri Lanka with its main attraction being the tooth relic temple that is one of the major Buddhist centres in the world. Everyday thousands of beautifully bloomed lotus flowers are offered to the Buddhist Lord while the tooth relic is exhibited only when grievous natural disasters occur. Like the last time the tooth relic was displayed was during the tsunami, lest it loses its power.

At the tooth-relic temple one cant help but ponder over symbolism in Buddhism. From lighting of lamps, to offering lotuses the religion is steeped in symbolism. Like a lotus we must strive to grow beautifully rising untouched and unaffected by the muddy waters of life. Being honest, true and good in spite of a less than ideal surround. While the lighting of the lamp signifies banishing the darkness and welcoming the good, enlightenment into our lives.

The temple in Kandy sees several visitors who come to pray for good health, happiness, money or other things one would want in life! The temple architecture in itself is rather assembled with a stupa, the pitched roof, a flat slab all merged into one. But the temple takes immense pride in its intricate detailing. The flooring finishes for example flow beautifully like carpets out of the stairways upto the temple. The main entrance is canvas to excellent Sri Lankan art on its roof. The shocking myriad of colors are placed with mighty aplomb across the ceiling.

While musicians flock the main griha of the temple and sound the drums all thought is focused onto the Buddha or rather the very present moment. Like all temples this one too reverberates with positive ions and has a rather grand experiential quality.

On a morning walk across the lake in Kandy I was welcomed by friendly walkers and citizens of this spiritually steeped city.

King Kasyapa built his capital in central Sri Lanka on the rock of Sigriya. In a rare case of urban planning he used the Sigriya or Lion Rock, measuring a massive 200 metre in height, on top on which he built his palace. The Unesco World Heritage Site is filled with colorful frescos and paintings from the 400 CE. The palace was later used as a Buddhist monastery till the 14th century.

The lions paw is mighty impressive, and the climb leads up to panoramic views of the River, through boulder gardens and a vast landscape. The mirror wall is so highly polished so that the King could see himself as he walked along it. Like most national monuments the wall today boasts of undying love with names gaining immortality!

On a bright sunny day we climbed up to the top with other tourists, guides and several local Sinhalese for company. The attached museum to the site provides useful information of the life and the times of the people in the palace and kingdom at large. In a rare case of nature and architecture the rocks are retained mostly, though flattened at the top to house the king’s palatial quarters.

The ancient urban planning faces west-wards with axial lines drawn clearly across the site. Though severely hot and humid at the height of 660 ft with no other structure in sight, clear winds are drawn atop the structure that make the ascent and the summit very comfortable.

Holding on to dear life while making descent it is only very clear why Sigriya is sometimes called the eighth wonder of the world. Like most monuments, it definitely required much innovation and intelligence to construct and live in thereafter. The advantage over a prospective enemy though is very keenly observed. Like usual, bricks are used extensively for the structure.

The Heritance Kandalama at Dambulla is a luxury 5-star property managed by the Atkins Spence group a microcosm of its surrounds and a hotel that offers noticeably the best of Sri Lanka. Overlooking the Kandalama lake, the hotel was designed by Geoffrey Bawa in the early 1990s, as a landmark project built in spite of political instability and the threat of a civil war in the region. The project was brave for its time, path-breaking in terms of innovation, spectacular in its concept and well thought of in its use. Today while serving its function brilliantly, serving up world-class hospitality, it merges seamlessly into its surrounds, fashioned by a leafy elevation that camouflages the building completely.

The hotel does not show itself up right until the very last moment when one pulls up closer into the lobby. The narrow reception facing the lobby is a linchpin that connects 2 parts of the 1 km long Heritance Kandalama hotel. All the rooms look out into the lake or the vast lush greens of the sloped terrain. A singly loaded corridor also means that a guest is in for a natural treat stepping out and taking the long winding walk to the other areas of the hotel. Swimming pools set on natural rock formations are positioned across the various levels of the hotel including one infinity pool. 

Completely set apart from the traditional style of Sri Lankan architecture, or even his own style, Bawa reinvents by incorporating a flat slab, a green roof and leafy external facade offset from the building fascia. Leafy creepers are then allowed to grow down shading the extensive verandahs and balconies across the hotel. Bawa’s minimalism and his approach to fuss free architecture is further extended into furniture that follow neat lines and solid texture. Burma teak, Bawa’s favorite wood kind finds its use liberally along with painted MS furniture, the proportions of which are again lofty and generous.

Studying the benches in the country’s railway stations Bawa came up with specific chairs that are set in the black expanse of the Kandalama floor.

Paying attention to the architectural tenets of light and shadow, orientation, color and texture, Bawa creates a delightful hotel, a retreat into nature naturally welcoming friendly fauna into the estate. Orchestrating wood and metal, the fineness of metal is inescapable. Whether as a railing or as staircase supports the metal railing is kept under a centimeter in dimension and creates a playful rhythm in the elevation. The visual finesse of metal and the bulk of wood are inversely related to their structural strength.

Peeking onto the volumes of space created are quirky touches to the scale, manifesting themselves as erratic balconies or naturally growing vines with a mind of their own. Stepping out of tune, these architectural elements add interest and create spaces to frame and appreciate the beautiful landscape that the hotel is embedded in.

 

 

As the landscape takes over the architecture, spaces are transformed into a green haven. Here below is a green roof that takes over just as the green walls finish.

The 1 km long hotel has a spa tucked into its one end, the visual treat that the corridors provide are all a part of the spatial experience intended by the architect.

In Bawa’s imitable style is the lighting design in line with his signature style is simple, effective and stark.

Apart from offering delights that are architectural, the Heritance Kandalama whips up rather delightful offerings to the guests. Note the Sri Lankan art that Bawa uses to dress up the interiors. Most of Bawa’s work house work of eminent artists, with their works adding scale to the architecture that acts as a befitting background.

Swathed in black the restaurant interiors were first conceived by Bawa and later renovated on by Bawa’s aid Channa Daswathe.

Surrounded by rich scenic beauty, Bawa’s Kandalama is a great place to reflect upon in Dambulla, the heart of the island, with pretty lotuses and much avocados for company!

An ideal day of respite at the Kandalama, lake, lotus, breeze and an avocado shake.

Geoffrey Bawa cuts a pretty picture, as do his buildings. Steeped in architectural merit his works are often lauded as the epitome of Tropical architecture. Using nature to stir up a shenanigan he builds in tune with landscape, that probably is the most important element in his architecture and in effect his architectural practice. Its not surprising then that Bawa’s interest in the field of architecture was piqued by a chanced encounter while building his private garden.

Returning as a barrister from London Bawa sought to transform his Rubber and Cinnamon plantation into a fully revamped Italian garden, that he much loved during his travels abroad. With a copy of Michelangelo’s David and the famed Italian balustrades in place, overlooking the backwaters, the estate is resplendent with  Frangi Panis. A tree that utterly delighted Bawa. He even deliberated on the tree coaxing it into growing his way. The frangi-pani branches sometimes are made to come down low to the ground, hanging weights if necessary, before continuing ascent and rising aesthetically. The Lunuganga estate remained his muse throughout his life, where he tested his architectural ideas before injecting them into any of his projects. Literally born with the proverbial silver spoon Bawa began his architectural career at the age of 39 after additional educational years at the Architectural Association school in London. Like all great architects, the school was hardly agreeable to him nor him to the school!

On a six day journey through the island country so charming we went hopping from one Bawa building to another. Stopping by to take in the beauty of proportion and pausing to imbibe the excellent locales. Architecture sometimes is just a frame of nature, while sometimes its just a sail that captures its context, modifies it and presents it largely more glorified or attuned. Shelter that is beautiful and serves its agenda of drawing in breezes, providing comfort is architecture. Bawa in his roughly 6-decade career stint built some extremely innovative and awe-inspiring structures all bound by the common thread of nature. I wouldn’t entirely be wrong in saying that nature and not architecture was Bawa’s muse. An assistant remembers Bawa in his 80s revisiting one of his projects keenly interested in and inspecting how the trees on the property were doing!

A rough idea of our hopping chart before delving further into our conquests over the next couple of posts! Landing in Colombo we first went to the Heritance Kandaalama, a great place to start a Bawa Trail before heading to Sigriya, Kandy, Galle, Bentota, Lunuganga and then finally lapping up Bawa’s private residence, office in the capital city of Colombo.

The size of the island country hardly does any justice to the scale of diversity that it does provide! So much that after 6 days of a Bawaesque retreat when my roomie picked up an average book covering ‘things to see in Lanka’ she was puzzled, and rightly so, to not find Bawa’s legendary structures in there! But then we deduced that we had just probed into the tip of an ice-berg called Sri Lanka. For nature lovers whose souls are embalmed by tropical weather, with its cleanliness and pristine surrounds, the island is definitely a paradise.

On that note, as a whole Sri Lanka is quite delightful, with a comfortable population, contended people, lush greenery, rolling plantations, rustic buses, balmy beaches perky autos, more importantly, clean air, avocados and king coconut! Avocado aficionados will seriously vouch for the delicious creamy treat but the king coconut is likely to charm everyone. Sri Lankan art is widely visible all across the island with colorful nay saying masks peeking out at every bend. Whether its the beach one digs, or the hills or simply the rainforest Sri Lanka has a commendable diversity and natural terrain for a country of its size. Appams, string hoppers and red rice form the bulk of their traditional cuisine, apart from the bountiful sea-food. But honestly, their food is not for the faint heart-ed. I would recommend applying caution. So calm and so serene, the country seems to be seriously blessed whether in resources or in the attitude of its people that its hard for an average Hindu, though well-versed with the Ramayana, to perceive it simply and only as Raavana’s Lanka!

It is after all where pretty lotuses bloom.

 

Looking down over a foot

is the Bruder with a look

Marking clearing the nice

from all the wary disguise

Smart and highly evolved

he makes an easy crowd

Intelligence made to order

and passion by the larder

Of thought that comes

far vision is what it becomes

Binding the all by a spell

weakest link in the well

Checking in knotty keels

and at times locking heels

Mr Dependable they said

and that’s how he read

Every i dotted Every t crossed

never a dull moment trespassed

There never is a surprise

each time paying a full price

What he does he does well

often than not ringing the bell

Of pride and joy that spans

years of double dozen times

With words beyond measure

and jibes I still treasure

He is the brother so fine

that makes life sublime

Literally evaporating

all the gnawing rating

For all there is one

a sibling like none

From growing up fighting

to all the fiery sparking

Before long transforming

in to a teary enlightening

Then doing minus whining

all the fire-fighting

There is always a multitude

of truckloads of gratitude

For a frere so kind

one that wouldnt mind

Sometimes no reason

and other times a rhyme!

Perched on the rugged Bavarian Hills in picturesque Southern Germany the Neuschwanstein Castle, a 19th century Romanesque Revival Palace plays ode to Wagner and his marvelous compositions. The castle was commissioned of Ludwig II of Bavaria and built largely out of a personal fund. Built on a steep hill and surrounded by other castles in the arena the Neuschwanstein castle looks down into the charming village of Hohenschwangau that is a long train journey out of Munich and is very proverbially, frozen music.

 

Built in the the architectural style of castle Romanticism the palace takes enthusiastic ques from the operas of Richard Wagner, precisely the operas Tannhäuser and Lohengrin that had made a lasting impression on the mighty prince. The palace today strikes a might impression on the average tourists and the architecturally inclined alike. Photographed in different light the palace makes a pretty picture every time! Rain, show or shine. Like most great architecture the palace is not completely finished and is testimony to even grander plans.

Marking a highly stylistic effect, the Neuschwanstein castle was largely a labor of love, with deep and stubborn inputs by the king. Ludwig was extremely clear in his objectives having inscribed his words of wanting and having a medieval castle deeply encrypted on the palace walls. He was so charmed by Wagner’s compositions and had every room in the palace follow a Wagner theme. The art work, the composition, the litany, the punctuation, the injunctions, the spaces, the drama created in the palace are largely an ode to the musician. The palace is literally a Wagner recital structured and fashioned in red bricks and yellow limestone.

When Goethe said, ‘Music is liquid architecture and Architecture is frozen music’  he might as well have meant half a dozen architectural monuments across the world but most likely he meant this very one!

Like a Wagner recital, the palace is best enjoyed with a nip in the air.

 

 

Books, much like people can influence life by cajoling one into thinking, by offering a perspective, by simply entertaining or even at times offering for a change, much needed advice. In over a gazillion titles there are a whole wide range of books to delve into. From humor, to information, from recipes to hard-facts, from entertaining stories to heart-wrenching reality, books can transport one almost instantly. Like they say all you need in life is love, or a good book!

Nominated to share the 10 books that changed my life, here is my list in a chronological order of my reading. They may not be the best pieces of fiction I have read but they have offered me a perspective  thereby fostering change.

1. Beauty and the Beast – by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve

Possibly my favorite fairy-tale forever. Happy endings, exemplary courage, vivid imagination, chivalry and a charming Prince, absolutely lovely.

2. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer – by Mark Twain

The book assumes the power of imagination and of beating the odds through delightful characters in Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer. Every time I read it, I begin to cherish the smaller treasures of life. Of looking for and finding adventure and the joy of being curious. The sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is tremendous too.

3. Little Women

The courage of the March family, the wit and simplicity of values, Jo March and her resolve totally inspires. The novel follows the young women as they grow up and face life, each armed with a skill that takes them afar.

4. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

By far my favorite book, my go-to book that never fails to charm. Apart from the well defined characters, intriguing dialogues is conversation marked by wit and intelligence that makes the story come alive. More importantly how Elizabeth and Darcy overcome all obstacles, including personal failings to find romantic happiness.

5. The stories of Anton Chekhov – especially ‘The Bet’

The trumping of knowledge and the power of reading is wonderfully illustrated by Chekhov in his story, the Bet. With patience, perseverance and knowledge the story elucidates that there is no solitude in life with the presence of books.

6. The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand

The power of original thought and why man must think for himself. Howard Roark in his steely ways and stubborn demeanor further is an extrapolation of personal integrity. Not giving in to peer pressure, having a genuine line of thought and most importantly celebrating the individual make Ayn Rand’s book extremely provoking.

7. Love Story by Eric Segal

The Romeo and Juliet reminiscent, heart-touching love story of two completely different people who are surmounted by conditions beyond their control. The Harvard boy and the Radcliffe girl, from two different worlds who fall in love and how. With tears streaming down my face I still remember wishing away the ending!

8. Gone with the wind by Margaret Mitchell

Scarlett O’hara and Rhett Butler, what a combination. Yes, tomorrow is another day. The complexity of the characters, the spirited protagonist and the bane of ruffled feathers sparked by temper. In spite of all the loss, completely exasperating the reader she says, tomorrow is another day.

9. The Great Gatsby by Scott Fitzgerald

The absolutely unparalleled love and devotion of Jay Gatsby told in Fitzgerald’s master-piece. Who wouldn’t want to be Daisy! Very charming and yet very tragic, the life of Gatsby is enriched by the love he displays. Modern fiction that enthrals!

10. The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

Donna Tartt is my favorite modern day writer. And her master-piece, the Goldfinch is stunning. More so because of the ending again. There’s art, there’s literature and then there’s New York as the setting. Added to that is the refreshing ideology Tartt presents.

and my favorite literary character of all time? Elizabeth Bennet. Her wit, lively and playful manner is simply so endearing. Besides rash decisions and a sharp tongue make her very real too.