Le Corbusier: The gift Ahmedabad got & cherished

The most internationally acclaimed modernist architect, 'Charles Eduard Jeanerette' was born in Choux de Fonds, a small Swiss village, in a watch-maker's family, in 1887 AD. He adopted the pseudonym 'Le Corbusier', meaning 'The Crow'. The greatness of his works is reflected in the rare honour given to him on the ten franc currency note of Switzerland. He eventually made France his home.

Ahmedabad can boast of four creations of this modern master, representing two architectural prototypes —the residence and public institutions. One of the residences belonged to Manoramaben Sarabhai — a widow then, and was designed as a ground-hugging quiet recluse amid natural tree grove. In contrast, the other one was originally designed for a flamboyant bachelor, Hathisingh, on the fantasies of Arabian Nights. Later, the design was bought over and occupied by Shyamubhai Shodhan. Public structures included Sanskar Kendra and Ahmedabad Textile Mill’s Association (ATMA) building.

 Although built around the same time, in the same city and the same climate zone, these structures show remarkable diversity and contrast, thanks to faith and freedom of the patron and creative genius of the creator.

For example, Sanskar Kendra’s architectural syntax relies on climate mitigation on its introverted courtyard like square doughnut configuration along with the service floor and cavity walls for external insulation. On the other hand, ATMA is largely an extroverted platform, using the parasol and the Brise Soleil, a roof that would let the light in yet provide shade against the sun.

One aspect, unique to Corbusier’s architecture and one that commonly manifests in all his projects in Ahmedabad, has been the resource value ascribed to the roofs. Corbusier assigned additional value to the roofs of buildings in Ahmedabad; not treating them as leftover surfaces.

The garden over the living unit and vegetable farming over the kitchen unit of Sarabhai house is probably the most apt example. Corbusier had also proposed and provided for the hydroponic cultivation through water-filled troughs on Sanskar Kendra roof as an effort to explore roofs as a productive resource while providing insulation within.

Spatial contiguity, easy accessibility and surface rendering of roof terraces with built-in seating or planting elements make roofs of Shodhan house and ATMA as outdoor resources which are most pleasant in the late summer evenings more relevant since Ahmedabad has had a tradition of actively using roof terraces.

At spatial core the commonality is through its experiential richness. As in ‘pols’ of Ahmedabad or step-wells or the temple complexes these constructs rely on the ‘kinaesthetic’ – a visual perception largely during movement as the basis of organising spaces especially the movement structure and its sequence of spaces. Changing perception through variations of visual alignment in vertical or horizontal plane, shifting movement axis and introduction of pause points at every change of such alignment become the nuances of such architecture of gradually unfold the spaces to the visitor. The relative assembly of spatial elements become clues in themselves to encode and decode messages. These frames constantly change to bring in a different sense of scale and proportion to the same static plan layout.

Ahmedabad provided a free ground for Corbusier to realize to the fullest potential many of his architectural theories in real buildings. For example, a precursor to the museum in Chandigarh or the later one in Tokyo, Sanskar Kendra at Ahmedabad is an actualisation of the spiralling, ever growing linear movement exhibition space idea conceived in 1929 at Geneva exhibition pavilion. Shodhan house was the most elaborate demonstration of working with a cube, a thought process that began as early as 1922 with Espirit-nouveau pavilion. ATMA building turned out to be the precursor to carpenter centre in Boston with ramp entry bisecting the building.

Ahmedabad has also been a source of inspiration for Corbusier. The form, the light and air through the cooling towers of the thermal power station on the banks of Sabarmati captured his imagination and he translated this industrial element into the most dignified roof of the Assembly building at Chandigarh.

While Corbusier may have been the world’s gift to India, India too has reciprocated to the world by providing Corbusier a freeboard to sound all his theories and explore them in his creations.