“As we live and as
we are, Simplicity - with a capital "S" - is difficult to comprehend
nowadays. We are no longer truly simple. We no longer live in simple terms or
places. Life is a more complex struggle now. It is now valiant to be simple: a
courageous thing to even want to be simple. It is a spiritual thing to
comprehend what simplicity means.”… Frank Lloyd
Wright.
I have been always fascinated by architecture as the word is
other name of creativity yet in the world of FSI, Viability the creation part
has taken back seat is a fact! Yet in a way it has added challenges in
creativity is what I feel & in such time when your niece becomes an
architect that too with second rank in her college, I felt like sharing my love
for architecture with her & here is outcome…
18 6 18
“A professional is
one who does his best work when he feels the least like working.” … Frank Lloyd Wright.
Dear Baboo & now Architect Ms Shruti Mahajan,
It feels amazing to write to the moody, temperamental, small
girl not only has become a full-fledged architect but with flying colors &
first of all congrats to you, as getting second rank in hundreds of girls, that
too in a professional course like architecture is not small feet to achieve!
And whose words other than one of the all time greats in architecture I could
have used to share my feelings with you when now the basic education is over
& your real journey in the field of architecture which is other name of
creativity, starts which strangely is called professional world. Baboo I always
wonder, when compared to other professions like CA, Advocate (you have one very
much in your home), Doctor are few well known, and how architecture can be
linked with it as a profession! Because professional is attitude towards the
job at hand & even Frank Lloyd says in his quote when you least feel
working yet you deliver its best; this I can understand being an engineer
myself which also is a branch of consultancy as professional because not
necessary that in all rest of the above mentioned professions you must like the
job! May it be a legal case or medical
emergency or filing returns & saving tax, these all are the jobs where
emotions gets ruled by the hard facts of the life but architecture is
different, its blend of creativity versus delivering the results to your
client i.e. profession! And that’s why this is most wonderful & challenging
profession as you have to give justice to your clients needs (read demands)
& at the same time you can’t allow the creative you within get killed while
you fulfill needs of your client!
Baboo, long back during your admission days when I started
interaction with your teachers, I asked your Princi one question, how come
every successful architect is a philosopher as the way I used to read quotes by
the names like Charles Korea, B V Doshi, Frank Lloyd, Frank Gehry & many
more; one thing I realized these guys speaks about life more & not about
bricks- mortar & plans, which actually is there life as a professional! Your Princi smiled (in his special way) & said it’s
actually reverse, they all are philosopher first that’s why they become
successful architects! Well my respect for the Princi did grew a lot that day as
it’s like you keep on banging a door to somebody open it from inside & then
a person passing by makes you realize its actually closed from outside only
& you only can open it in a moment! It was just like that for me about
architecture by the way let me share with you, I too wanted to become an
architect (no I am not even a bit of philosopher by myself) but any building or
say project or structure is creation of an architect first is what I believed. And
thanks for that belief to Ian Rand’s “Fountain Head’ & the iconic architect’s
character in it, yes Harvard Roark, & I was not the only one who wanted to
be Roark! Though there will be always a debate that it’s an engineer who makes
that creation possible in reality but by me you can’t build something which
hasn’t thought of in first place! There
is a famous story in Panchatantra where three young men travelling together find
ashes which actually are remnant of a girl’s burnt body. Each of those men has
one super power, i.e. the first man can recreate the subject from the ashes, so
he tries his power & the ash took form of a girl. The second man can
decorate or say make clothes out of anything, so he make that body clad in
finest of jewelry as well clothes, transforming the mere body in a beautiful
lady. The third man has power to bring back the dead & give them life, so
he uses his power & make the girl alive! Now when the girl is alive,
looking at the beauty they all think of marrying her & the debate starts
between them, that who has got right on her? As they can’t conclude whose power
is more effective to have his claim on the girl whom they have rejuvenated
together! So they took solace to a wise man & after sharing the story of
the girl asks him which of them can marry the girl? The wise man after
listening the story tells to the first man, you have given her form which she
belonged to as well the second man indeed has given her clothes & jewelry
to make her look beautiful but it’s the third man who gave her life as that’s
what most important aspect of any living person, so he is the one who should
marry her! (Pardon for the girl as nobody asked her choice but it’s a story
after all). Role of the architect in making any project is like the last
man i.e. it’s the architect who give life to any structure by his/her touch
& that’s why for any project architect is true owner of the same!
Coming back to the philosophy aspect which I don’t know whether
was part of your syllabus or not, yet mind one thing unless you understand
life you won’t be able to bring the same in your designs. And here is where
great architects differ from normal architect (with due respect nothing wrong
being normal) what I meant is this is why some buildings or say structures
stand out from others as one look at them & you can feel the life in those
structures, may it be as mechanical structure as even a bridge! Baboo every
structure has a soul just the way living objects has got & it’s the people
using the structure who makes it livelier as why we design any structure in
first place but for the people to use it, so it’s the people about whom we
should think of before designing any structure! As there are two
aspects of creativity, one is which you design for your own-self but not
necessary it will ever come to existence as you need to have a taker for the
same (read client) & another is how you use this creative self as per the
needs of your client. I will call this second aspect as creative professionalism
& I think this is what Frank Lloyd was referring to, as there will be times
when you won’t like the needs (read demands) of your client in very first place
yet you have to give your best creative mind! And in such case to create something
on those lines is the most difficult job as how can you create something which
you don’t like? Well, that’s life of an architect is what you have to learn
now; though this doesn’t mean all the time you have to do against your likings
but first you have to create a position for yourself in the profession where
let people (read clients) understand your creativity, make them respect it by
creating the structure beyond their needs i.e. giving more than their imagination
& then you will reach to a position where whatever you create will be
considered as your clients need! I think then that doesn’t remain just a
professional success but it will be success of Architect Shruti!
One more thing, once you accept the tag of creator then do mind
it comes along great responsibility & in present times the biggest
responsibility is towards nature! As under the name of development, growth, modernism
we are perfectly destroying nature in all forms, may it be green cover or
thousands of species which are endangered now courtesy we the creator. Because
if we are carrying the glamour of being a creator of any structure then we only
should carry the guilt of displacing nature for our creation & to
understand this you should spend time with nature as do you know who is your
biggest or most valuable client, well its nature! And it may not pay you in
Rupees or Dollars but it will pay you in a currency which will last ever &
that is inner peace! Of-late if you have studied works of any so called philosopher
architect (I deliberately didn’t said successful architect) then you will
realize he or she has inspired by nature in their work & they generous
enough in giving due credit to the nature for their inspiration! And then only those
structures have been survived on the scale of time which has not just
accommodated but become part of the nature!
Lastly how you consider yourself a successful architect is the
question I will want you to ask yourself! As unless you have clarity about the
answer of this question, you won’t reach to your destination in this
profession. As these are times
where success of your work is counted on money you make, whatever profession
you may be in! I am not against making money but the time you realize money is
not everything, you have lost something’s which that money can’t ever buy &
I don’t want you to make that loss in the balance sheet of your life! And one more thing
whenever you will be visiting your crated structures as a user you should be
happy & at peace while doing that as that only will make the architect in
you proud!
Yes one last thing, I know the hard work you have put in while
you achieved this degree but never forget when you were awake whole night to
complete your drawing sheets, it’s not just your two but six eyes in total were
wake with you & the other four eyes were of your parents, so when you draw
any line on the paper just remember those four eyes will be always looking at
you, make them proud as you will be always Arch
Shruti Nitin-Punam Mahajan, though the middle name will be always silent!
All the best & looking ahead for visiting your project site soon…
Sanjay Kaka
--
Sanjay Deshpande
Sanjeevani Dev.
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