Tag: chandigarh | ArchDaily

Brasília and Chandigarh: Two Modernist Utopias Separated by an Ocean

Camilla Ghisleni — Fri, 05 Jun 2026 07:30:00 +0000

Between the 1950s and 1960s, two cities were built that would leave a lasting mark on the history of architecture and urbanism. Born of the same concept, yet separated by more than 14,000 kilometers, Brasília, in Brazil, and Chandigarh, in India—both steeped in modernist principles—were planned and built from scratch.

Climate, Culture, and Modernism: The Postcolonial Campus as Architectural Laboratory

Ananya Nayak — Mon, 25 May 2026 07:30:00 +0000

In the decades following independence, some of the most ambitious architectural experiments in the world did not emerge through museums, monuments, or government palaces. They emerged through universities. Across South Asia and Africa, newly formed nations turned campuses into testing grounds for entirely new ways of imagining collective life. These campuses functioned as more than educational institutions. They became territories where states tested how modernity might be organized, for citizens to gather, institutions to function, climate to shape architecture, and imported ideas to transform local realities.

Furniture as Architecture: Micro-Modernisms Inside the Home

Ananya Nayak — Sat, 16 May 2026 07:30:00 +0000

Modernism is often encountered through built form, photographed facades, canonical plans, concrete manifestos. For most people, its first encounter was far more immediate. It was a chair in an office, a shelf in a living room, a compact unit that reorganized how one sat, stored, or slept. Long before modern architecture could be widely commissioned, it was furniture that entered everyday space, carrying with it a new logic of living. Modernism's promise of transforming life was often delivered through these smaller, repeatable objects.

Extending Roofs from Brazil to India: Parallel Residential Design Elements as Seen in 10 Projects

Susanna Moreira — Sat, 05 Apr 2025 07:30:00 +0000

It shouldn't be too surprising that architectural concepts were traveling around the globe long before the online spread of information. While many regions share certain historical events and hence references (such as colonization and the mid-20th-century independence movement/ turn of political systems), others might have simply developed parallel solutions to similar climates and material availability. Additionally, it was only natural that with the dissemination of a more uniform architectural pedagogy acquired while studying abroad, followed by the internet boom, we would find almost twin projects from every corner of the world. While these might look nearly identical from some angles, they might bear different layers and stories. Then again, they might also display the same reasoning and prompts shared by counterparts from across the seas.

La Grande Motte: A City of Modern Pyramids in the South of France

Paul Yakubu — Wed, 30 Oct 2024 05:00:00 +0000

In the south of France, a 40-minute drive east of Montpellier, lies the otherworldly resort town of La Grande Motte. Named after a nearby sand dune, the city is characterized by futuristic, pyramid-shaped apartment blocks in various relief forms, adorned with diverse vegetation including pines, planes, olives, poplars, and cypresses. Artists Charly Broyez and Laurent Kronental describe this unique character as "a fairy-tale vision of a land emerging from the uncharted territories of our psyche, loaded with memories, images, sounds, colors, history." Through their meticulous images, they reveal the city's distinctive architecture.

House of Mango Shadows / Design i.O

Pilar Caballero — Tue, 30 Apr 2024 16:00:00 +0000

Reimagining Residing with Nature at this Holiday Home in Chandigarh. On a quest for a compact spot among the mango, chikoo, and guava trees, there is an amorphous one to be found right where it is surrounded by fruit trees everywhere. Finding one of these is challenging in an area close to the city boundaries.

Victoria and Albert Museum Investigates Tropical Modernism Movements in West Africa, Modern India, and Ghana

Nour Fakharany — Tue, 02 Apr 2024 05:30:00 +0000

The Victoria & Albert Museum is set to present an expansive exhibition focused on Tropical Modernism, an architectural movement that emerged in the late 1940s. British architects Jane Drew and Maxwell Fry were instrumental in developing this approach, combining modernism’s functional goals with local climate adaptations in warm and humid weather. This movement, which embodies Britain's unique contribution to international modernism, evolved against a backdrop of anti-colonial resistance, blending colonial architectural principles with local needs.

Vegan Metrix Restaurant / RENESA Architecture Design Interiors Studio

Hana Abdel — Mon, 29 Jan 2024 01:00:00 +0000

Staying true to the studio’s penchant for a design that is expressive, bold, and well-rounded in its identity, V-Spot Café carves a rightful niche for itself, celebrating the almost theatrical DNA of the venue!

The Modernist Laboratory of the Future: Exploring Le Corbusier and Louis Kahn’s Architecture in India

Maria-Cristina Florian — Thu, 01 Jun 2023 07:30:00 +0000

At the beginning of 2022, curator Lesley Lokko announced the title of the 18th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia: “The Laboratory of the Future.” The theme’s intention is to highlight the African continent as the protagonist of the future, a place “where all these questions of equity, race, hope, and fear converge and coalesce,” in the words of the curator. As the fastest urbanizing continent, Africa is viewed as a land of potential, but also of challenges, where matters of racial equity and climate justice are played out with a significant impact on the world at large.

BEIGE Café & Bakery / Arch.Lab

Pilar Caballero — Thu, 20 Apr 2023 01:00:00 +0000

Beige, the name, had a lot of layers to unfold in its meaning, and the design interpretation comes from the basic neutral palette that is subtle, minimalist, and humble. The cafe is located along the rear access in the commercial belt of Chandigarh's Madhya Marg. Each bay has two zones: an open-to-sky and a structural slab.

The Legacy of Jane Drew: A Trailblazer for Women in Architecture

Kaley Overstreet — Tue, 14 Mar 2023 05:00:00 +0000

In 1950, the famous Le Corbusier was asked to design the new state capital of Chandigarh for Punjab following its separation and recent independence. The opportunity to create a new utopia was unparalleled- and is now seen as one of the greatest urban experiments in the history of planning and architecture. The city employed grid street patterns, European-style thoroughfares, and raw concrete buildings- the zenith of Corbusier’s ideals throughout his career. But what is lesser known about the ideation and realization of Chandigarh, was the woman who brought her experience of designing social housing across Africa to the project. For three years, working alongside Corbusier, and helping him design some of the best-known buildings in Chandigarh, was Jane Drew.

Prairie House / Arch.Lab

Bianca Valentina Roșescu — Wed, 13 Apr 2022 18:00:00 +0000

The house is largely a depiction of a fusion of the client’s lifestyle requirements shaped through the design ideology. The clients were a family consisting of three generations (a couple, their parents, and two children) with a simple brief of wanting to be on the same level so that they would be around the young kids and have spaces to entertain their guests additionally. This meant to have distinct spaces for each generation and yet, integrate them on the same level inside, as well as with the outdoor spaces. Here, we re-interpret the perception of courtyards, basements, and shelters. The idea of shelter has been translated as a large overhang, trying to complement and extend the shelter of the existing trees on site.

Tin Tin Restaurant / RENESA Architecture Design Interiors Studio

Hana Abdel — Wed, 16 Feb 2022 18:00:00 +0000

An undisputed cauldron of minimalism and indigenous materiality brews the design identity at Tin Tin, a Pan-Asian dining venue in the heart of effervescent Chandigarh, Punjab – India. The space unapologetically dives head-first into the realm of sheer experimental design, an impetus that comes through with cohesion in the venue’s gastronomical offerings as well.

Baba’s Restaurant / Loop Design Studio

Valeria Silva — Sun, 26 Dec 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Baba's restaurant draws its inspiration from the architecture styles of rural havelis and houses of Punjab. The idea is to create an upcycled space with a traditional material pallette from around the context. The entrance alley is a longitudinal monolithic axis created using mud plaster/phuska and depicts the bazaar streetscape using different volumes, elements and layers. Masons and artisans were brought in from the neighbouring villages to create the phuska mixture and apply it on the walls/surfaces.

Urban Visions: How India is Shaping the Future of Housing

Eric Baldwin — Thu, 27 May 2021 07:30:00 +0000

India is rethinking the future of housing through new typologies. Defined by historical and cultural influences, the country's contemporary architecture centers on discussions of how best to modernize. Built over millennia, India's housing projects are made to address diverse scales, programs and functions. Exploring a revitalized urban landscape, these modern housing projects have begun to set a new tone for the future.

CGC Student Hostel Landran / Charged Voids

Hana Abdel — Tue, 13 Apr 2021 06:00:00 +0000

The project is located in Landran, a peri urban area in the vicinity of Mohali (Punjab) a satellite town of Chandigarh. Chandigarh is a city designed by le Corbusier located 250km from New Delhi and is a symbol of modernism in India. The site is located within the campus of “Chandigarh Group of Colleges”. It is a campus of almost 25 acres. The site selected by the client within the campus, was an existing green area where he had proposed to do a linear block. We instead chose an existing bus yard that was originally assumed to be unfit for building.

Architectural Photographer Edmund Sumner Takes Part in the Artist Support Pledge Initiative with Chandigarh Images

Christele Harrouk — Thu, 23 Jul 2020 06:30:00 +0000

During the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the lack of exhibitions and commissions, artists around the world started to struggle. The Artist Support Pledge, an initiative born in March of 2020 in response to this global crisis, seeks to support creative individuals, including architectural photographers. Founded by artist Matthew Burrows, the global movement connects communities in order to ensure “an equitable and sustainable economy for artists and makers of all countries, media, and ethnicities”.

Residence 1065 / Charged Voids

Hana Abdel — Mon, 15 Jun 2020 01:00:00 +0000

The project is located in Chandigarh. Chandigarh is a city designed by le Corbusier located 250km North of Delhi. The city was the first major master planning endeavor in independent India and is a symbol of modernism for the country. The site is located in sector 27, which is a part of the first phase of the city. This part of the city often referred to as Corbusian Chandigarh embodies the principles of CIAM of living, working, care of body & spirit and circulation. The site is a corner plot located on the internal sector road (V4 & V5). The site had zoning regulations with a setback on all 4 sides.