Vedasri Siddamsetty

Under dim lights

of hazy sights

hands entwined

two souls lined

 

Rain pelts forth

it does not stop

hollow wind gnaws

an bites with might

 

Its cold and bitter

under misty nights

but under it all

is a charming knight

 

Speaking of cheer

and banishing fear

bringing joy sublime

with rickety rhyme

 

Singing aloud

and springing shine

hopping around

spreading dime

 

Wondrous lines

an endless night

starry signs

its december time!

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A letterhead, Monogram and visiting card for the organization ‘Archxplore’

With over 80% of the Asian Elephant population diminished, its time to take to the Elephant cause; mostly because this mighty intelligent and adorable animal needs some support!

The Elephant Parade is an initiative by several countries that include The Netherlands, Italy, Great Britain and Singapore. In a bid to put the Asian elephant into the limelight artists from all over the world have vividly conceived intepretations of the very subtle grey animal. Once painted these art pieces are to be auctioned by Sothebys while several smaller replicas that are each handpainted get to be purchased. Visiting the Elephant Parade in Singapore I’ve chosen my favorites! Now, say how about you?!

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P.s. Do write in to me if you want the postcards, to make your own elephant parade art! It’s on the house =)

Also for more info check out –  http://elephantparade.com/

 

 Poetry by Tomas Transtromer

Under Pressure

The blue sky’s engine-drone is deafening.
We’re living here on a shuddering work-site
where the ocean depths can suddenly open up –
shells and telephones hiss.

You can see beauty only from the side, hastily,
The dense grain on the field, many colours in a yellow stream.
The restless shadows in my head are drawn there.
They want to creep into the grain and turn to gold.

Darkness falls. At midnight I go to bed.
The smaller boat puts out from the larger boat.
You are alone on the water.
Societty’s dark hull drifts further and further away.

By

The reason for my long gone absence – My Studio Project!

 

A brilliant and innovative architect.

To hear him speak.

How much does your building weigh Mr Foster?

 

And my favorite of his work:

Shelter and not development is a necessity.

Architecture is but shelter, in its truest sense of the word. And building with thought is architecture.

Why not then a ministry that modulates architecture?

From public housing, to materials of construction, to the dimensions of spaces, to the quality and aesthetics of these spaces.

Apparently am not the first in line to think such. The young Republic of Belarus has already an up and running Ministry. The result? A largely impeccable urban fabric and a joyous Belarusian tribe. Austria follows suit I am told.

Just picture this, housing, offices, malls, carparks, everything that we spend our life in could make our lives better if designed well. From anthropometrics to environments its a whole cycle of benefits. Furthermore an ecotect, surrounding can actually make use of all the time one has and modulate all the things that one does. “‘We shape our buildings, and thereafter they shape us”, said Winston Churchill. Much pride at his thought. It was never truer. Its not just architects who hold a passion for the buildings they build I have seen. Ever imagined why some people perform better, why some shopping malls do better business, why some places of worship compell you to pray, why some countries just max out on tourism, why some F1 races are way better than the other, why some parks provide so much solitude?

Even a McDonalds in a pathetic mall, doesnt sell.

Moreover architecture is anything but cheap. Either way, quantitatively or qualitatively. This extravagant industry with almost a 40% footprint on planet earth does need a dime of thought.

So then again why not a Ministry of Architecture?

Are you listening, Parliament??

And finally, what tears your heart apart in Cambodia, the poverty. I wouldnt be giving out a decent account of Cambodia if I miss the most apparent of them all.

The fact was not more evident than while visiting the floating village on the Great Lake in Cambodia. With the recent striking of floods in Thailand, it wasnt a pretty sight in Cambodia. Huts are built about 4 metres above the water level in lieu of the river flooding and the chances of water level rise. But then the water level rose to about 9 m above the baseline. And what does it mean? Literally it means that the huts stand sunk in water. Oh My! The people seemed non-chalant about the fact. For them it was a good thing, as fishing had gotten a tad easier! The fish they ran after, came to their door-step and at times into their doorstep too. The only problem was using their home which is clearly water-logged.

Again, an idea that tides them through. Using bamboo they build a mezzanine to their homes, and live upon the created plane for the months of flooding and till the water recedes and gives them back their home! The height from the plane to thatched roof is about 0.75 metres. Hardly comfortable, they use the place to just about sit, sleep. And when the need to go out comes, they simply dive into the water and get on the boat. When S means survival, theirs no time to worry about wet clothes, washed make-up, undone hairdos. The sun dries them up as they begin rowing the dinghy and row out to the mainland. Our local accompaint who drove us in his tuk-tuk, said he lived in this village 3 yrs ago. During that time he and his father would farm for half the year and fish for the other half. Then they would row the produce/catch and sell them off at the Vietnam Border. A hard life he said, and then he chose to hit the city like 80% of the world’s population, and become a tuk-tuk driver.

At a hospitable place in the village, we dared to have lunch. I was so grossed out when a lady sat a couple of yards away from me as I waited for food, picking out lice from her daughters hair. Children seemed to pop out of nowhere in that house. Looking down under the ribbed floor schools of fish were swimming about. I knew what I would get had I ordered fish, but as a vegetarian I was skeptical. When the noodle came I was so worried, taking God’s name I took a bite. It was decent, the veggies were crunchy, tasted fresh and werent so bad. Just then a couple of women rowing teh dinghys came up with stuff, it looked like a mobile supermarket. They had veggies, groceries, like everything that one would need to be. Seeing the state of the rowed in veggies, I felt a little braver to eat my food. Our host paid up the woman in dollars. Since riele is not extensively used, their barter syatem has more to do with dollars.

From the sights and the feeling generated I could eat no more. Quickly had swags of coke, which I believe would kill all germs in my tummy, I watched S eat, and then we prepared to leave. The bill consisted of a note-book with numbers. That was the bill, the account book and all. Not exorbitant we paid hurriedly and got on our boat.

The kid who was the helper on the dinghy, sat in front of me for the 2 hour ride. He learnt English in school and practised it with me. He looked very interested to talk. Kept throwing questions at me. When asked he said, that now he helps his father with fishing and farming, like everyone does, but he aspires to go to the city and do business or drive a tuk-tuk. Our tuk-tuk driver was certainly the inspiration for the kids there. Five sisters he said he had, I asked what do they do? Well he halted, one goes to school with him and the others have husband he said. His brother-in-laws also work on fields, the same like everyone, but they all dream of getting away, to the city. To be rich man, he said, was his dream, business would be the means. He looked like he knew what he wanted. To be out of the shackles of poverty.

The rest of our journey was quiet.

Now to the mind over the matter, presenting to you, the greatest Vishnu Temple of all time, the Angkor Wat!

Really I wonder if it should be called a temple or a city, because a temple is definitely an understatement.  Spread over an area of 400 sq km it is indeed vast. We began with the morning sun-rise at the Phnom Bak Kheng. Phnomh meaning a hill, so this was a temple on the hill. After about 30 min of hiking up the hill the temple and all other structures below looked quite nice. It reminded me of Hampi, India except for the fact that it was Hampi extrapolated a several hundred times. And instead of the pretty pink boulders of Hampi, it was dense tropical green forests of Cambodia. The setting is indeed beautiful. As we waited for the sunrise, we sighted the hot air balloon rise up. Three other couples sat around as we ate from our breakfast boxes, courtesy the hotel!

Once down, we went on to see Angkor Wat first and then the Angkor Thom.

The Angkor Wat main temple is very interesting. Encircled by a very wide moat the temple was first built for the Hindu deities and then later enshrined Lord Buddha for the last several decades. Since they look very Indian I was intrigued to find out their beginnings. As Indian traders came around to Siam Reap, then supposedly the cultural centre of South East Asia they carried with them tales and umpteen beliefs from their land. While trade flourished so did the culture, from the Golden age of India. Camarrs were the artisan tribe from India, who historians believed were brought to Cambodia. These people built the wondrous temples and apparently dissapeared, or as H says, returned to their homeland.

The Angkow Wat has a 1000 odd apsaras who are now being conserved by the Germany Apsara Conservation Committee. The work is on. But its heart wrenching to see, heads cut off deities and still reverred to just the same. The french in their bid to do good, ended up fixing heads of deities haphazardly such that the face and the bodies of deities completely off. The Angkor Wat has seen acid attacks, bullet-wounds, unstoppable rains, and damage to the sculptures by artisans who try to sell heads of deities. It is tragic and tragedy extols the beauty by several folds.

My favorite of the temples were Angkor Wat, the Bayon temple and the Ta Prohm.

The Bayon temple is like a huge jigaw puzzle that houses the face of Lord Buddha, its not put-together all correctly but I loved the art work of the Buddha on the four sides of the garba-griha. The plan is what I thought was fishy!! There were errors am sure.

The most beautiful temple of the Angkor Wat complex and the most well conserved is the temple of Ta Prohm. I take so much pride in saying that its the only temple conserved by the Archeological Society of India and that they did a marvellous job at it. The skeptics may call it the root strangled temple, while the gamers will relate to it from the game of Tomb Raider, as the movie-buffs will be reminded of Angie and her efforts! Whoever it is am sure will fall in love with this particular temple.

Its an absolute treat to watch the ANgkor Wat in the afternoon, the pink stone turns yellow in the sunlight and resembles gold. This is perhaps the startling factor about these temples.

Scores of tourists, tuk-tuks, hawkers, children playing around, photographers et al make the environs so vivid and buzzing. On a Monday off-peak time the temples were swamped! It is usual, I overhead.

A day at the ANgkor Wat may well, deflate you, if the harsh sun is anything to blame and yes, provide you with bowls of humility!