Our restoration will replicate the turn of the first century Arab mosques, which will be more consistent with the times Cherman was built in.”, In the two decades that Benny has worked in conservation architecture, the sphere has mushroomed in India from nonexistent to flourishing, thanks to greater awareness of heritage preservation. Explore Benny Kuriakose's works, such as in Dakshinachitra and Muziris Heritage Project. I met the legendary architect Laurie Baker accidentally at one of his sites and there it started. Conservation of historic buildings are being done as part of this project. View the profiles of people named Bonny Kuriakose. “I begin each new house on a blank slate. In the tsunami reconstruction project I did in Tamil Nadu, we tried to take care of the livelihood requirements of the community, reducing the vulnerability against future tsunamis and recurring cyclones. Wetlands, an Ally in Combating Climate Change, I Almost Got Fired for Choosing React in Our Enterprise App, 3 Toxic Relationship Habits People Think Are Acceptable, We’re About to Experience the Fakest Economic Boom In History, The Most Frustrating Gym Mistake I See as a Personal Trainer. An interview of Benny Kuriakose in the Grin News on his design philosophy, his career, his projects etc.How Benny Kuriakose, heir to the legendary Indian architect Laurie Baker, keeps it real. Scholars and planners have often explained this phenomenon in terms of affordability of the poor. “It’s taken me all these years to realise just how important it is to theorise in academic terms, what I’ve learnt from over two decades of practical experience,” says Benny. In practice, it took spacious lands and a considerable budget for these artisan homes, a luxury often affordable only to the elite. Lot of recycled timber was used in the construction of this house. The first phase of the Muziris Heritage Project is finally set to be inaugurated by the President of India next month. Join Facebook to connect with Bonny Kuriakose and others you may know. It involved extensive community participation in all stages of the construction, location of their house, to the planning, design, implementation and monitoring the construction process. Centre for Muziris Studies. I try to explore an architecture that is appropriate to the environment, cost effective, sustainable and at the same incorporating the principles of vernacular architecture in the modern context. Benny Kuriakose. 'Conservation and Architectural Design Consultancy Firm. “In the 50s and 60s, we made mistakes imitating the Western concrete and glass trends that were never meant for our needs.” Says Benny, “We mustn’t make the same mistakes with alternative alternate and green architecture either.”, And that explains Benny’s decision to enter the apartment market with his new vision for the vast possibilities of green building. 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We are sharing the Facebook live hosted by Al Salama Group of Institutions . Archaeological excavations are being carried out in Pattanam and Kottappuram fort as part of the project. Benny Kuriakose. ‘I do not have any formal degree in architecture. He is known for designing structures which are built from natural materials such as timber, stone and brick. Each client is different, their family sizes are different, their financial status is different and they will definitely add to the design inputs. He is also a staunch proponent of equitable design and including all stakeholders in the design and execution of the building process. Nevertheless, we should try to minimise the use of energy-intensive building materials, such as cement. Situated just outside the modern city of Kochi, this ancient port city was lost in antiquity due to a major flood that happened way back in 1340 AD. Enjoy reading as many articles as you wish without any limitations. However, we have a request for those who can afford to subscribe: please do. “If there’s one critique I may make of Laurie Baker, it is that while he pointed out the pitfalls of mainstream architecture, his own remained niche. With over 1 million home professionals on Houzz, you’ll easily find … “The older generations simply mimicked stereotypical Persian architecture when they re-did it. I do not want to impose my ideas on to my buildings which I design, I design each building according to each one’s needs and that is why my buildings are different. The place is very special since this is the place where the Jews, Arabs, Greeks, Portuguese, Dutch and the British etc. The Hindu Explains | How effective are the two COVID-19 vaccines rolled out in India, and are there concerns about safety. I did not have any style and I think my success had been that I designed for the people. Benny Kuriakose, the architect who carried out the work later, recalls in one of his articles that Baker said; “the idea is … To balance the tilt of this see-saw, in some sense, Benny spent three years of his life, from 2005, in Tharangambadi and Chinnangudi villages in Nagapattinam, designing almost 1,500 individualised homes for fisher folk under the Tsunami Rehabilitation Project. “Chennai gave me creative rebirth.” It also gave wings to his first love, conservation architecture, the subject of his masters in University of York, England. It’s not even scratching the surface.” Under the leadership of the then Kerala finance minister Thomas Isaac, Benny and his team drew up the project’s master plan, immediate among which were the successful restoration of the 1615 Paravoor synagogue, with even a replica of the original ark of the testament made, and the renewal of the Dutch 1663 Paliam Palace. 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