PROFESSIONAL PROFILE
RAJREWAL (contemporary architect) •
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Raj Rewal Born in 1934 in Hoshiarpur, Punjab, India.. He lived in Delhi and Shimla in 19391951.
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He attended Harcourt butler higher secondary school.In 1951-1954, he attended Delhi school of architecture‟ New Delhi. His imaginative leaps are based on his foundational knowledge and experienceIn 1955-1961 he moved to London and attended the architectural association school of architecture for one year. He Completed his formal professional training at the Brixton school of building, London. Raj Rewal worked as an assistant stage manager in London . He became an associate of the royal institute of British architects, London. He was working in the offices of Miche Ecohard, in Paris ,in 19611962. In 1962 he married with Helene. He returned to new Delhi in 1962 to set up his own architectural practice.
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1963-72 taught at the Delhi school of architecture. He opened a second office in Tehran, Iran, in 1974 . •
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In 1986 curator of the exhibition “Traditional Architecture in India” for the festival of India in Paris.
He completed his professional education in Europe. First he relates to his interest in structures,which structures,which was cultivated by his English education, craft tradition, during the review of his diploma projects. Second he worked as an assistant stage manager for several avante grade theatre productions in London .As a set designer he learnt that each dramatic work had it particular character which he intrepts as the rasa of the building. Third he was working in the offices of Michel Eco hard, in Paris. In office he absorbed the principles of urban design and planning . He also had an opportunity to work on the design of a space frame structure for a Museum in Kuwait. Then he take the lead of structure system for the exhibition pavilions at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi. He convinced his European structural consultants to develop the unusual structural system for the Ismaili centre and the central public works dept. to undertake the constructionof stone columns and ferro cement domes for the Parliament Library. The only 2 other influences that he admits were important to his development as an architect were on his return to India. On seeing the works of Le Corbusier. Teaching history at the School of planning and Architecture ,New Delhi. Corbusiers works convinced him that it was possible to be
rational and employ modern means to build in India. Teaching history exposed him to the classical and vernacular traditions of bldg in India.
FEATUERS OF HIS DESIGN
STREETS
URBAN FABRIC
GATEWAYS
CLUSTERS
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Rewal house, New Delhi
HOUSING
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French Embassy Staff Quarters, New Delhi Sheikh Sarai Housing Complex, New Delhi Zakir Hussain Co-operative Housing, New Delhi Asian Games Village, New Delhi
EXHIBITION AND LARGE SPAN •
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INNER COURTYARDS •
Nehru Memorial Pavilion, New Delhi Hall Of Nations and Hall Of Industries, New Delhi Karnataka Pavilion, New Delhi
OFFICES •
Bhikhaji Cama Bazaar, New Delhi
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Engineers India House, New Delhi
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State Trading Corporation, New Delhi
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SCOPE Office Complex, New Delhi
RESEARCH &EDUCATION •
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National Institute Of Public Finances and Policy, New Delhi. National Institute Of Immunology, New Delhi French School and Cultural Centre, New Delhi
ROOFING •
RAJ REWAL’S WORKS
Raj Rewal’s works can be divided in the following parts: RESIDENCES •
Satish Gujral house, New Delhi
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Sham Lal house, New Delhi
Central Institute Of Educational Technology, New Delhi SATISH GUJRAL HOUSE, NEW DELHI, 1970
provided across an extremely narrow frontage of only 5 meters for each. •
Living, dining, kitchen and study areas are on the ground floor, yet the introduction of a small cellar under the dining room offered the
possibility of a split-level and hence greater richness.
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Designed for an artist, the Gujral house provided approximately 800sqm of living space also intended for the display of paintings and works of art. A central staircase connects various levels of the dwelling which have the difference in height of one and a half meters. Certain interior spaces have direct access to outdoor gardens at differing levels; the basement, for example, is one and a half meters for ground level and contains a workshop for ceramic joined to sunken open court. REWAL HOUSE ,NEW DELHI
In 1973, He designed 2 independent house units, one for the architect and his family, the other for his parents. He were designed in such a manner as to give both privacy and interrelatedness to each other. Communication between the two houses is through the kitchen yard, at the back. While separate entrances and front gardens are
Part of the living room is of double height, and is overlooked by mezzanine. •
A small interior courtyard within the two units brings indirect light and good cross ventilation to these spaces. Large pivoting glass doors provide continuity between the living room and the garden outside. The use of material is restricted to exposed brick externally and internally (painted white outside). The ceilings and cantilevered stairs are of exposed concrete, softened by the texture left by wooden form work. The flooring of kotah stone in brown and bronze achieves a certain continuity, carried through in the teak-framed doors and windows. NEHRU MEMORIAL •
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PAVILION,NEW DELHI 1971
The Parliament library designed by Raj Rewal is a new addition to the majestic complex of imperial buildings in the former capita of british India. representing the democratic aspiration of an independent India. The building represents a wonderful interplay of open and enclosed space. delightful the dense space of the adjoining Parliament house. The composition of library complex is based on squaring of triangles,a move set to balance the circular composition of the parliament building. Light is the defining theme of this building, symbolically representing the spirit of wisdom, enlightment & democracy. A large part of the structure of library is made of columns. The site and the building is Located on a 10acre (4-hectare) site, the library is nearly 590,000 square feet (55,000 square meters) in area. The plan of the building is inspired by precolonial Indian architecture such as the magnese of taj mahal. AWARDS Gold Medal 1989 by the Indian Institute of Architects. •
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The pavilion is designed to house exhibits on the life and times of former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, portions of which were assembled by the celebrated American designer Charles Fames. The building is embedded in a grassy mound of earth. The basic idea of the design comes from the earliest Buddhist stupas in Nepal which are earth mound containing relics of Buddha. The upper level for example is for circulation and based on the traditional parkarma, or circumblation around a central shrine, often a circler or an octagon which evokes a particular mood. Concrete used for the structure has been left exposed both inside or outside , where the patterns from the wood shuttering remain evident and contribute a note of simplicity. However kota stone for the flooring and teak for the doors and windows add a sense of elegance . Parliament Library, New Delhi •
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Mexican Association of Architects award in 1993 for regional values. Lifetime achievement award 2001 by the Institution of Engineers (India). Golden Architect Award 2003 by A+D and Spectrum Foundation. REFERENCES www.wikipedia.com, RAJ REWAL book.
