project # 6

TITLE: GANDHI LABOUR INSTITUTE
ARCHITECT: B V DOSHI
LOCATION: AHMEDABAD

Gandhi Labour Institute was established by Gujarat Government in 1984 to provide for education, training, study and research in labour and related subjects. The institution has been designed by architect B V Doshi and it reuses many elements from Sangath, his office. The concrete vaults covered in white china mosaic, the faceted terraces, earth mounds, greet plaster on external walls and an amphitheatre; all these elements form a language which was also explored in Sangath. The institution houses a library, an exhibition space, an auditorium, teaching areas, offices and a dormitory block.

approach
internal court
transversal vault


The building is approached at the first floor with a forecourt and wide steps flanked by a pool. One enters under a transversal vault which then feeds laterally into the various departments as well as the hostel block. This transversal vault, to me, is the most powerful space in the entire institution and gives this place, a unique identity. The transversal vault and space underneath have an archaic quality of Buddhist caves. This theme of the cave-like spaces, a sense of space that has been carved out, keeps constantly occurring in Prof. Doshi’s works. The material palette of this institution comprises of greet plaster as external finish, exposed concrete, polished Kota stone for flooring and wood for doors-windows. The terraces and vaults on the top are finished with white china mosaic.

project # 5

TITLE: GALA BUSINESS CENTRE-1
ARCHITECT: APURVA AMIN
LOCATION: AHMEDABAD

Gala Business Centre is a commercial complex designed by architect Apurva Amin. Apurva Amin is a young architect from Ahmedabad and has designed some quality architectural works for the commercial sector in the city. This particular building is the first in the series of Gala Business Centers and it occupies a corner plot with roads on two sides; north and west. It occupies showrooms on the ground floor and offices on the rest of the three floors.

north-west view

alluminum louvers
entrance porch

The building has been approached with a great craftsmanship. Glass facades on both sides are protected with the help of screens which also give this building its unique identity. Although articulation on the north side could have been different from the western side as it never gets direct sun. These screens are primarily made of aluminum louvers and steel sections as structural members. The material palette comprises of exposed concrete, steel, aluminum, and kotah stone for the floor.

project # 4

TITLE: Ahmedabad Management Association
Location: Ahmedabad
Architect: Bimal Patel (HCPDPM)

The Ahmedabad Management Association (AMA) is a non-profit organization of over 400 industries in the city. It provides management training as well as space for scientific and industrial research. The building portrayed here houses various activities of this institution and it is designed by architect Bimal Patel (HCPDPM). This building has become a landmark of the city in a very short span


entrance porch

ramp

The building has a long bar-like plan with a corridor in the centre. This corridor serves various functions on both the floors and it gets lit with verandahs and courts at intervals. On the ground floor building comprises of classrooms, a bookshop and offices; whereas on the first floor it houses an auditorium, a library and an exhibition space. The most dramatic of all spaces is its entrance porch that cuts the linearity of the plan and creates another axis. The ramp on the other side accentuates this axis. The building’s material palette comprises of exposed reinforced concrete, mild steel for fenestration and kotah stone for floor. The AMA building won the World Architecture Award in 2001 and an ar+d High Commendation the same year.

project # 3b

TITLE: L. D. INSTITUTE OF INDOLOGY(part-2)
LOCATION: AHMEDABAD
ARCHITECT: B. V. DOSHI

This week’s intention is to focus on some of the interior spaces of this building. The ground floor comprises mainly of administrative facilities like offices and reception areas. The arrival space or the reception area becomes the anchor point, from where one can get into various directions; one can take the stairs and either go to the library in the basement, go to the offices or further ahead go to the L D Indology museum which occupies the southern edge of the entire complex. The reception space has been treated almost like a pavilion in landscape that opens on north and south directions.
reception & waiting
stairs leading to library


library

The library has been sunk below ground level and it is made accessible directly from the reception area with the help of a very sculptural staircase. Library gets its light and cross-ventilation from ventilators placed along the northern and southern edge of the building. The spaces below these ventilators get flooded with natural light and they are intended as reading spaces within library. Originally when the pool is filled with water one can see its reflection on these inclined ceilings and also provides cool air in the basement.
balcony at first floor

The material palette of this entire complex comprises of exposed concrete, mosaic tiles for floor and wood for doors-windows. Apart from these materials white terrazzo has been used creatively at places like built-in seats, parapets and as bands within flooring. An inherent simplicity and boldness prevails in the approach towards materials and architectural elements. On the whole this building is a masterpiece from the oeuvre of Balkrishna Doshi.