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Delhi, Landscape c.1965-72
MOHAMMAD
SHAHEER Photo credit:Aurelien Albert
M
ohammad Shaheer is one of the most eminent and respected landscape architects and academicians
in the country today. He has been associated with the Department of Landscape Architecture, School
of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi for more than thirty years, formerly as faculty member and later as Head of Department, from where he has guided and taught an entire generation of landscape architects. He is also a member of Delhi Urban Art Commission. An ardent thinker and philosopher, his professional practice includes many prestigious projects of varied scales and nature including Vir Bhumi, New Delhi, Memorial to Rajiv Gandhi at Sriperumbudur, Sanskriti Kala Kendra, New Delhi, and, Revitalization of the Gardens of Humayun’s Tomb, New Delhi and Rehabilitation of Bagh-e-Babur, Kabul – both for the Aga Khan Trust for Culture. Here, M. Shaheer Shaheer reflects on the landscapes, mentors, mentors, and academic environs that influenced his thinking in the early years.
In Delhi even as long ago as he 60’s, and earlier as well, landscape wasn’ quie unknown. New Delhi could be recognised as a baroque landscape paern ransormed ino a ciy plan, is Cenral Visa a neoclassical composiion in he ‘Grand Manner’ – recalling Versailles,, and also more urban boul Versailles evards – bu i was seen as an archiecural concepion, which indeed i was, he idea o landscape a ha ime being consrained largely wihin horiculural limis. Or again he design o he Lady Willingdon Park (Lodhi Gardens), now known worldwide couresy ime magazine. 1 Here was a landscape surprisingly close o is English original, complee wih a breadh o genly conoured lawns, clumps, groves and woods, and mos riumphanly, picuresquely siuaed archaeological monumens – he genuine aricle, raher han he someimes ridiculous ollies and ake emples emples o is provenance. And in a las fine concurrence, he widening o a sorm waer channel o creae a more subsanial lake (perhaps suggesive o Capabiliy Brown’s work a Blenheim?), only in his case he bridge is no Palladian, bu Delhi Sulanae. So here was his landscape, a landscape o landscapes, so o speak, and nex door, in he shape o he Delhi Gol Club, he expansive grounds o an English counry manor in Surrey (or Sussex?) ranspored o he hea and dus o he Norh-Indian plains. Tese examples were fine adapaions o landscape ideas whose aesheic basis could be raced no jus o 18h cenury English landscapes, bu even urher, perhaps anoher wo housand
years or more, o European aniquiy – alien impors wihou local preceden, bu enicingly prety neverheless, and inviing, indeed encouraging imiaion by heir decepively simple, soohing spaial arrangemens. Te earlies local effors owards his new kind o park – Buddha Jayani Gardens on he Ridge and he park (now Sama Shal) sreching easwards rom Delhi Gae o a large area around Raj Gha, o name a couple rom he 50’s and early 60’s – represen wha, or heir archiecs mus a ha ime have been a venure virually ino he unknown. Consequenly he resuls were insubsanive and skechy a bes. In landscape design i is very easy o misake he convenions o archiecural rendering – employed only as a graphic echnique o make a sie plan drawing appear legible and also atracive – as capable o being ransormed ino a landscape in hree dimension; closer sudy may reveal he presence o his error in hese early orays ino h e Delhi anglais. version o he jardin anglais. Bu Shani Van, Jawaharlal Nehru’s samadhi (Mansinh M Rana’s design), a bi laer around his ime is an elegan expression in he same idiom o genle undulaions and shady ores like groves (o Kusum, Schleichera species). Nearby, bu in a compleely differen mode, is Habib Rehman’s maserul exercise in urban landscape – or ha is wha bes describes his composiion – o he graceully proporioned g leaming whie arches o he Maulana Azad Memorial, perecly se off in discreely conemporary counerpoin agains he monumenal red sandsone mass o he Jama Masjid and he Red For. From he ime I saw i firs, his sruck me as fine way o successully insering
a modern archiecural sensibiliy ino a hisorical environmen o immense srengh – wihou deracing rom i or in any way disurbing i – in ac achieving quie he opposie. I don’ hink i is areched o see i in he same ligh as he laer, more recen and o course more amous glass pyramid a he Lou vre. A he ime he lae respeced Pawan Singh’s proessional journal Design was he pioneering and only indigenous window o archiecure and design and remained so or many years. Ta was where he resh work o a new generaion o archiecs was firs noiced, and where landscape as a subjec o design firs received atenion – in Delhi, a leas – in he documenaion o Joseph Sein’s work, or insance. I can sill recall he clariy o he skeches accompanying an aricle on Ram Sharma’s design or Nehru Park, especially he subley o he boundary deail, and he simpliciy and logic o he signage. Ta i all go a bi mangled laer on, somehing no enirely unknown in municipal enerprises o his kind, is anoher sory.
The School of Planning and Architecture Back in hose days i was he Deparmen (he Deparmen o Archiecure), or someimes he School, hardly ever ‘SPA’, as i is so well known now. In 1965, he building was brand new, reshly finished – and his may come as a bi o a surprise – a he ime perceived as a quie radical and modern work o archiecure, hough definiely no as well-conceived and ariculaed as he building down he road occupied by Planning deparmens.2
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one learnt to respect the minutiae, even th e arcana of how building details are put together... No many archiecs o ha generaion would disagree ha here was more o he School han classrooms and learning abou Archiecure. I was he period when he firs pos-independence generaion o archiecs was beginning o find is sride. Proessor . J. Manickam who had ounded he School, was Direcor and Proessor C. S. H. Jhabvala was looking afer he Deparmen o Archiecure. Beween hem, probably by orce o characer and repuaion, hey were able o manage wha mos eaching esablishmens srive or bu hardly ever achieve: o ideniy, and hen persuade he brighes young proessionals o spend a considerable amoun o ime eaching a he School. Te proessional credibiliy enjoyed by is aculy amongs sudens gave he School is unique personaliy; a he ime we ook i or graned, we imagined mos schools were like ha – bu in hindsigh i was a rare and precious hing. Arrayed or our benefi were young archiecs who even hen a his early sage enjoyed a repuaion; people like Raj Rewal, who wih Kuldip Singh had jus won he R.K. Puram Disric Cenre compeiion (Bhikaji Cama Place, o be buil 20 years laer in a severely curailed orma, is concep probably oudaed by hen), also presen were all o he Design Group (Ranji Sabikhi, Morad Chowdhury, Ajoy Chowdhury) whose neo-brualis work on he YMCA residenial complex (vaguely reminiscen o Sirling
and Gowan’s Ham Common 3 projec) was somehing o a reerence; examples o is working drawings were admired and served as benchmarks or our own effors. Proessor Jhabvala augh Building Consrucion in he paricularly eecive way ha no one who has been lucky enough o experience can ever orge. One learn o respec he minuiae, even he arcana o how building deails are pu ogeher – jus or example, he paricular secres o balance and counerbalance involved in sone chhajjas o hisorical Mughal and Ra jpu buildings. And here was Krishen Khanna , already eminen, visiing aculy in he Ar sudio on one o he rare occasions when he deigned o demonsrae an expressionisic skech o a chair rom lie on some orunae girl’s drawing board: “I’m an aris, no a carpener...” , which as an insigh has remained wih me since hen: ha you inerpre he world according o your paricular perspecive or ineres.
“do you want to go abroad? to study?... you’ll have to study landscape!... and you’ll have to come back and teach here!”
while working and preending o sudy Urban Design a he same ime. Now ha was quie a confidence-boosing proessional success! One day in early 1972 Pro Jhabvala called me o his room, and in an inerrogaive one: “Do you wan o go abroad? o sudy?”, as i his was some disaseul ask and he would be amazed i anyone acually was willing o do i, bu ha’s he way he spoke hen, and was loved or i. Te beginning o he 70’s was no a very good period in general. Since 1962 ill hen i had been jus one war afer anoher (China-1962, Pakisan-1965, Pakisan-1971), here was hardly any developmen, and hings looked quie slow and bleak. Naurally: “Yes, sir”. Ten: “Bu you’ll have o sudy landscape!”. Why no, I hough, unable or a bi o really believe my grea good orune. “Yes, yes, sir”.
Professor Jhabvala I was Augus 1970, and or us callow graduaes, he main even o he ime was he archiecural compeiion or he 1000 acre Jawaharlal Nehru Uni versiy campus, wih which almos everyone seemed o be involved. Wha I remember are he hree very large ink perspecives which I drew or C. P. Kukreja’s firs prize winning scheme,
Finally, as a kind o climax : “And you’ll have o come back and each here!”, as i ha was he wors hing ha could ever happen, which is no wha he really mean, obviously. I was more or less setled afer ha; all his led o a Ford Foundaion ellowship, and I was glad ha uncerainy had depared rom my lie, or he nex
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ABOVE | Aastha Kunj,New Delhi Credit:Perspective rendering by Shree Naik The project won the rst prize in an open competition sponsored by the Delhi Development Authority in 2002. It extends over 200 acres in the heart of the city of Delhi. The design was a demonstration of landscape urbanism and centred around water conservation and responded to various urban requirements imposed by the surroundings,especially the use of the open space as a connector.The winning scheme was not implemented and the DDA has been doing the work departmentally for the last seven years. RIGHT | HCL,Noida Corporate landscape for one of India’s premier computer and software companies at its new centre at Noida (completed 2008).
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...as my friend the celebrated energy architect Dr Vinod Gupta says, he teaches to learn, if the class also gains someth ing, all the better
wo years a leas (ha was he lengh o he Maser’s course a Sheffield). Four years laer, I was happy and excied o be back, afer wo exra years spen working as a landscape archiec wih he Deparmen o Environmen in he lushly verdan counryside o Norhern Ireland where hey were kind enough o rus me wih he design o a 200 acre park in he new own o Craigavon, and having also received in he process Associae mem bership o he Insiue o Landscape Archiecs (as i was known hen).
Learning Someone said ha he wasn’ quie sure i archiecure could be augh, bu ha
i could definiely be learn, implying ha as wih many oher skills and crafs, moivaion and observaion are undamenal. For insance, he idea o learning design skills presupposes a curiosiy and ineres abou how objecs are made, wha i akes o pu hem ogeher and how o recognise he process as a sequence o decisions and no usually as an insananeous ac o creaive inspiraion. In he same way, ineres and curiosiy abou wha you are supposed o each is imporan; as my riend he celebraed energy archiec Dr Vinod Gupa says, he eaches o learn, i he class also gains somehing, all he beter. Because
alking abou hings, jus like wriing abou hem, is a way o undersanding hem. Te challenge o doing his again and again wihou succumbing o he boredom-inducing rap o verbaim repeiion is he classic challenge or any eacher, and has o be me by finding ways o explaining he same hing wih variaions and in a d ifferen, even beter way every ime. Ta’s jus o keep your ineres alive; because i you are bored, here’s no way your liseners are no going o all asleep. And as ime passes your grasp increases in refinemen, and afer many years he whole process o alking and explaining comes wih such ease ha one does i wih enhusiasm and pleasure.
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teaching presupposes that knowledge or skills are being communicated verbally, through language
I’s sel-eviden: eaching presupposes ha knowledge or skills are being communicaed verbally, hrough language. Success can only come rom srengh in all hree areas: wihou knowledge here is nohing, and i you are eaching design, hen you’ve go o have hose skills – here mus be somehing o give; and you have o know somehing o he echniques o communicaion and holding people’s atenion in a classroom siuaion; you have o have a liking, even a love or explaining hings – firs o yoursel, hen o your audience. Lasly, command over language, sufficien o overcome and reciy weaknesses and gaps ofen ound even in graduae sudens. Ta is quie a dauning lis o requiremens.
Can we learn somehing rom an analogy beween classroom and heare? Tis definiely – o hink o eaching as a perormance is o immediaely conjure up an audience o specaors (no paricipans) looking or diversion and enerainmen, which is exacly wha you don’ wan. On he oher hand, i you consider he demanding, bu also arisically compelling hearical echnique o improvisaion (when acors creae a sory by unrehearsed imprompu responses o each oher in a live siuaion), hen he comparison is quie ap. I encourages paricipaion and sponaneiy – ‘one o he mos imporan o he rules ha make improv[isaion] possible… is he idea o agreemen, he noion ha’ 4 a narraive can be aken
FACING & THIS PAGE [3 Images] Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Memorial Park,Lucknow Memorial Park to Dr Ram Manohar Lohia – an Indian freedom ghter and a socialist political leader,the project was completed between 2004 and 2006.This is a major new park in Lucknow, comprising the statue ( by sculptor Shri Ram Sutar) and Memorial,a pedestrian promenade, lakes and special gardens.The Memorial,a com position of four triangular prisms symbolizing Dr Lohia’s four pillars of democracy (M. Shaheer, Architect).Access to thepark is through four separategate complexes(M.Shaheer,Architect). Associate Landscape Architect:Sachin Jain THIS PAGE | BELOW RIGHT Coronation Park,Delhi Shaheer Associates are consultants to INTACH who have been appointed for the design of this park to be developed by the DDA around the Coronation Memorial,which is also the site of the Delhi Durbar of 1911.This view shows the pro posed IndependencePlaza with theCoronation Pillar in the foreground.
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can we learn something from an analogy between classroom and theatre?
orward by accepance, by saying ‘yes’ o whaever happens. In a classroom siuaion, ‘yes’ opens a door o he n ex consrucive quesion, ‘no’ closes he discussion. Or, in he words o George Gershwin, “Lie is a lo like jazz. I is bes when you improvise”. Tere is always somehing o be learn rom observing expers a work – wheher is an aris laying pain on canvas wih a palete knie or a bricklayer spreading morar wih a pracised insinc abou consisency and hickness, here is a quiely mediaive qualiy abou how an adep goes abou his craf. I is a lesson in isel o observe he maser carpener seting ou his ools a he sar o he working day, sharpening each individual ooh o he saw wih a file, adjusing he blade o he plane, and so on, and hen he confiden srengh in he carrying ou
o he acual work – he def consrucion and fiting o joins, he perec angle o he mire ec., or he earnes concenraion o he sone crafsman as he genly aps sone slabs o snug fiting ‘hairline joins’; o observe all his is o learn o he crafsman’s pride and o pu ino properly respecul perspecive he proessional coninuum o skills and process which resul in a finished building or landscape.
Working Sanskrii Kendra, a en acre developmen on he Delhi side o he Delhi – Gurgaon border has been well known or quie a while as an acive culural cenre wih hree museums, exhibiion spaces, an open air-heare, ariss’ sudios se wihin a conemplaive oresgarden like environmen, conceived and nurured virually in is enirey by
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engaging with creative opportunities wherever they arise irrespective of material result is not usually a losing proposition, indeed it can be the key to professional success
TOP | Soka Bodhi Garden,outskirts of Delhi These gardens are designed for a part of the campus of the Indian branch of the Japanese cul tural organization Soka Gakkai.This landscape explores the themes of meditation and aesthetic experience whilst walking. ABOVE | Stone Lotus Sculptural garden feature – a symbolic marble lotus on a carved granite base (symbolizing wa ter),as an accent to a small courtyard.Shaheer Associates takes particular interest in developing this kind of small feature in designed landscapes, to showcase specialized skills of stone craftsmen of the region,and also to impart a distinct iden tity to each project.
Mr O. P. Jain, well-known paron o he ars and eminen Delhi ciizen. In 1984 I had been around proessionally or eigh years or so, wih no oo much o show or i, so he really did do me a grea avour when, afer seeing anoher ‘arm-house landscape’ I was designing in he viciniy he involved me in helping him creae he landscape o his beauiul place. I evolved over more han a decade, in close coordinaion wih he archiec Upal Ghosh. W ha was uniquely graiying was he gradual emergence - in he process o is execuion - o wha could be inerpreed as a conemporary, disincly Indian way o designing landscape.5 And doing his work reinorced my belie – which, o be hones, had is origins in necessiy raher han idealism – ha engaging wih creaive opporuniies wherever hey arise irrespecive
o maerial resul is no usually a losing proposiion, indeed i can be he key o proessional success. I allows reedom o experimen, esablishes credibiliy, inroduces you o oher like-minded people wihou obligaion, and usually over a period o ime, and wih paience, resuls in arisic as well as maerial saisacion. Bu o course, i is also unproessional o work or ree.
References 1.Anthony Spaeth,Best Urban Oasis:Lodi Garden;Time Asia.November 15,2004 2.Both buildings were designed by Professor T.J. Manickam.The foundation stoneof the Planning building was laid in 1958,while the Architecture building was completed in 1965.
3.The residential complex of HamCommon was completed in 1958 by James Stirling and Richard Gowan.
4. Malcolm Gladwell,Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking;Back bay Books, New York 2005 5.Priyaleen Singh,Culture,Tradition and Contemporary Indian Landscape Design: Mohammad Shaheer at Sanskriti Kendra; Contemporary Garden Aesthetics,Creations and Interpretations,ed.Michel Conan;Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, Washington D.C.2007.
