Indian Architect & Builder Magazine - February 2014

In this issue

Architecture is a multifarious process. There are scales to be negotiated, materials to be explored and places to be true to. And in the context of our sub-continent, this also means there are informal sectors, a completely diverse constructional dialect and red tape to manoeuvre around. Through all of this, there are firms both young and old, yet not so well-known that diligently persevere against these odds to build relevant spaces, in a dialogue that resonates beyond the constraints of the brief. These are the practices that need to be given their due, ones that tread the fine line between the contemporary and the meaningful every day and do it earnestly, ones that eventually become practices of consequence.
In its 15th edition this year, IA&B’s Young Designers competition has constantly striven to showcase the importance of conscious design, in a time where the smallest act of building has global implications. The practices this year demonstrate a purposeful drive to propel architecture beyond the dark corner of unresponsive necessity that it has been relegated to. Moved by a creative resilience that accommodates and includes, buoyed on by a spirit to improve and express, in an attempt to reconnect with a seemingly indifferent society, they put architecture back on the map in a meaningful way that deserves to be celebrated.
The initiative has once again witnessed a barrage of exceptional design entries, to which a single issue would scarcely do justice. Owing to this overwhelming response from young and inspired designers, the CITATIONS featured this month will be followed by the SPECIAL MENTIONS in subsequent issues as an extension of ‘Young Designers 2014’.