LOCATION: TRIVANDRUM
ARCHITECT: LAURIE BAKER
There are a few reasons for which I consider myself very lucky, and one amongst them is my brief encounters with ‘Daddy’ (Laurie Baker). Initially it was thanks to my five months of office training at COSTFORD, Trivandrum, in the year 1998; and later in 2001 for the purpose of my dissertation. These photographs of ‘the hamlet’, Baker’s own house, were taken on a sunny afternoon in year 2001, along with an interview with. I will try my best to share the memories that I have of this house.
upper-level entrance
mural at the entrance
private terrace
top-most levelThe house sits on the slope of a rocky hill with a total level difference of almost 15 meters between extreme points. Things have been added, modified, contours have been established, and thus entire house has grown over a period of time since Bakers occupied this land in 1970. The entire house now comprises of five levels and can be accessed from two levels. The lowermost level can be accessed directly from the Nalanchira road; while the topmost level, where all the main functions of the house are located, has its own vehicular access. The house occupies the ground without making any noise, with the help of semi-enclosed spaces, living areas that open onto terraces, water body and dense vegetation. Almost all the wood used for this house is recycled wood and the house is built with the trademark Baker technology. 9” thick exposed brick walls with rat-trap bond, filler slab with mangalore tiles as filler material and red-oxide flooring are the few dominating materials. The hamlet is an ideal example of what Baker had described as ‘a low-energy house’.
RELATED LINKS:
http://architecture-practice.blogspot.com/2008/05/project-2.html
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