{"id":10180,"date":"2021-03-23T12:52:00","date_gmt":"2021-03-23T07:22:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/media.biltrax.com\/?p=10180"},"modified":"2022-02-28T08:29:32","modified_gmt":"2022-02-28T02:59:32","slug":"gurjit-singh-matharoo-crossing-boundaries-breaking-conventions-and-touching-hearts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/sh040.global.temp.domains\/~vitamind\/biltrax.mediacontent\/gurjit-singh-matharoo-crossing-boundaries-breaking-conventions-and-touching-hearts\/","title":{"rendered":"Gurjit Singh Matharoo: Crossing boundaries, breaking conventions and touching hearts"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A Punjabi, born in the deserts of Rajasthan, (un)settled in the Mecca of Architecture – Ahmedabad, Gurjit Singh Matharoo is the founder of Matharoo Associates, a path-breaking architectural firm dealing with scales of projects ranging from 100 sqft to 50 lakh sq ft. Breaking boundaries and norms, Gurjit\u2019s work relies on tenets of natural light and ventilation, enhanced connection to nature, and the creation of a healthy and humane environment. <\/strong><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

He is the third Indian architect after Pritzker Awardee Balkrishna Doshi and RIBA Gold Medallist Charles Correa to be inducted into the Premier International Fellowship of Royal Institute of British Architects (F\u2019RIBA). Having won numerous national and international awards, Gurjit and his team focus on creating spaces for human betterment and engage themselves in the development of spatial design and extreme engineering.<\/strong><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

With family in Rajasthan and training in Bhutan and Switzerland, what made you move and settle in Ahmedabad?<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes! From the hills and the mountains to flat dry land! People are sometimes spoiled by choice and at times they choose to get spoilt. My schooling was in Ajmer and since Ahmedabad was close, I enrolled at CEPT to obtain my bachelor’s degree in architecture in 1989. Immediately after graduation, I had a brief stint in Switzerland under the aegis of mentor Luigi Snozzi. I came back to Ahmedabad following an offer from our beloved Dean Kurula Varkey, to teach at my alma mater, which made me stay here and establish my own firm \u2018Matharoo Associates\u2019. We began with a cycle, two drawing boards and a 9\u2019 x 9\u2019 cubicle overlooking the river Sabarmati. Looking back, it hasn\u2019t turned out too bad for us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the Biennale project you focused on the structure as a main component such that a    smaller space is perceived bigger. Can you elaborate on the project? What are your thoughts on the role and importance of structure in a building?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were invited to the 2018 Venice Biennale themed \u2018Freespace\u2019 by Curators and Pritzker Winners Grafton Architects<\/a>. Our installation was derived from a residence in India designed on a tight plot within a dense urban setting, making it imperative to use internal courtyards and techniques that would make spaces appear much larger and playful, than their mere functional footprint would allow. The structural members are employed beyond staid load-bearing members, and they cut, fold and bend into abstract planes to dissolve thresholds, connect inside-outside into one and create delight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In all our projects the structural members are integrated with the architectural design to avoid unsightly beams and other elements that require concealment later using claddings, false-ceilings or other fa\u00e7ade finishes. We design such that the structure itself becomes the building envelope, and is optimized to its maximum capacity. As a bonus, it reduces the cost of the building considerably.<\/p>\n\n\n\n