Re: [Assam] FAIA, Editor-in-chief - Architectural Wonders of India

[Chan Mahanta]

Title: Re: [Assam] FAIA, Editor-in-chief - Architectural Wonders

O'Deka:

>The FAIA Editor-in-chief is no ordinary tourist. So his words are important.

Yes, yes. Indeed.

Robert Ivy is the editor of Architectural Record, a commercial magazine that caters to American architecture, and is the sole surviving effort in the field. There are other magazines, but they are struggling. FAIA stands for Fellow of the American Institute of Architects. Such fellowships are awarded to :

        Architects who have made major contributions to the field.

        Those who have provided valuable service to the profession.

        Those in allied fields who advanced the cause of architecture

         in America.

        Those who have shined or contributed significantly towards the

         advancement of architecture elsewhere in the world,

        ---etc. etc.

Robert Ivy would fall into the second category above. He is not a practising architect to my knowledge. Nice guy. He was a judge a couple of years back for our National Architectural Photo Contest that the American Inst. Of Architect's St. Louis Chapter has been holding for the last 20 years plus , and a co-founder of which is yours truly. Architectural Record has been a generous supporter of the effort by providing publicity for the event and printing entry forms free of charge for most of the life of the contest. Robert Ivy has been one of the more supportive of Architectural Record Editors in our modest effort.

With that intro, allow me to try and help with your queries:

        * Mughal architecture is the only truly significant architectural

        form of Indian history. There are other examples, but of a far less

        grand scale. The magnificent and awe inspiring  temples of the

        Central and South India cannot be considered true architecture in the

        sense that they are sculptures with little usable space and with

        few considerations for human usage.

        * No doubt that some of the forts and mausoleums are magnificent. But

        so are other structures. One of the finest is the abandoned imperial

        city of Fatehpur Sikri. Do visit it if you get a chance.

        * Mughal architecture does indeed have its roots outside the bounds

        of the Indian sub-continent. They are deeply rooted in the traditions of

        Islamic architecture, fabulous examples of which abound in the entire

        Islamic world, past and present. Rajib's reference is on the mark.

        Some of the cousins of Mughla architecture of India that are in Iran,

        and Central Asia are even more grand and are in far better repair

        than most of the Indian examples.

        The ASI does try, but its successes in preserving these priceless

        pieces of India architectural history  are only spotty at best.

        Akbar's tomb is a far superior an example of Mughal architecture

        than even the Taj.

        But it is in poor repair, as are many others like that. About five

        years back, when I was there,taking pictures, a piece of repair work

        done by ASI, came crashing down feet away from where I was standing.

        The repair workmanship generally is pretty poor. I wondered why it

        is so. Is it because India craftsmen lost their skills, or is it

        that those who lead the efforts are not educated enough on what

        to expect, and thus settle for far less than what they should, or

        have Indians lost the pursuit of excellence long ago? One excuse

        I won't buy is that it is poor.

        * First time I saw the Taj was as a second year student of architecture

        on a moonlit wintry night, slightly fog shrouded. It was an experience

        of a lifetime, awe inspiring beyond words. The translucence, the scale,

        the details, the craftsmanship, the engineering --- just awesome. I

        can only imagine how much better it was, before its jewels inlaid

        in the walls were stolen by the British, or its marble stained by

        air pollution and human grime, when the reflecting ponds were

        filled with well tended lilies and the rows of cedars were healthy,

        not sickly looking and some half dead.

        The second time was not nearly as impressive. There were more people,

        the maintenance of the structure and the grounds would get a B at best.

       

        I would love to go there again, but only if I get a helicopter lift to

        the compound. I have absolutely no desire to drive thru the city

        of Agra ever again. It is a city in deep,deep distress. Life of the

        many who live on the edge is beyond what one could comprehend.

Wrote up a lot. It was a touchy subject as you can imagine. I have strong feelings about many of the issues involved.

An aside: The grand gate to the city of Fatehpur Sikri, is a magnificent piece.

Can't remember too well--maybe it is called the Alai Darwaza. I used the form as an ethnic symbol for my first design of the Mahatma Gandhi Center at St. Louis -- as the entry portal. Far too often, ethnics end up using 'taco-bell' type of  decorations in these facilities demeaning their rich heritage. I was determined not to do that. I designed a very American structure that would not be out of place in the environment, but with that single portal design borrowed from Fatehpur Sikri as an ethnic reminder.

Guess what? The attendants in the big meeting ( mostly well-to-do doctors) in which I presented my effort--it was pro-bono ( I participated only after enormous pressure from people I care about), who were abuzz with expectations, fell eerily silent. They were at a complete loss for words, until N---i Da finally spoke: "But it looks Mughal Chandan".

I knew exactly what the problem with the 'Hindu' crowd was :-).

I redesigned it with the portal from the Stupa at Sanchi. It was a good alternative. I was happy with it. The crowd loved that.

But I am sure you understand why cited the anecdote?

For the curious, my design was not built. Not that I was hurt, it was a long shot to begin with. But they built a concrete-block box in the fine traditions of the north/west_Indian style of the late-tacky period that would be an insult to any ethnic group which is so proud of its own achievements in these shores . But that must be an oxymoron to our desi crowd who remain mired in their Hindu-Muslim conflicts.

O'm

( but without shanti)

 

At 7:25 AM -0800 1/24/05, Dilip/Dil Deka wrote:

The FAIA Editor-in-chief is no ordinary tourist. So his words are important.

His tour of Indian architecture consisted of Mughal architecture - as described by him. The organizers of the architects' meet in India must have picked these as the best examples of Indian architecture.

 

From a layman's point of view, with no formal course in architecture, I have always felt that the forts and mausoleums built by the Mughals are world class. The question from me to those with knowledge in architectural history is - where did the inspiration for these designs come from? The places where the Mughals immigrated from do not have much evidence of such grand architecture. Iran has some, but not to this scale. I'd welcome even a reference to a website that will educate me.

Dilip

================================================================

Architectural Wonders of India

December 30, 2004

Notes from Robert Ivy, FAIA, Editor-in-chief

 

My first sight of the Taj Mahal hit with superhuman force, unburdening me of a lifetime's pent-up emotions and expectations. Up until the moment when we turned and caught a glimpse of it looming inevitably, its outline traced against the mercurial evening sky, a black cutout form poised against the magenta night, or the blue sky offered up a domed flyspeck, off across Agra. Jostling for space in my mental landscape were the primary hues of postcards or pages from the World Book, and the monochromatic scenes from Richard Halliburton's pulp-wonderful Book of Marvels, in which he sneaked a moonlit reverie behind the locked garden walls: Childhood still lurked just below the surface of this adult.

Then, there it was, a glistening sugarloaf of a building, combining the presence of all colors, both reflective and absorbing its own light---the embodiment of white, white, white. So large it dwarfed the arching portal leading to the gardens far ahead; so large that human form merely peppered its base.

From where I stood, it leaped and danced, from its settled podium up to the solid mass of its body, where arched niches carved shadowed recesses and repeated its harmonies, then around in a domed sweep to its tip. Anchored by four spires, one at each corner, for muezzins who would never come, punctuated by rooftop pavilions and smaller spires, this mausoleum sang a cosmic song, suggesting order, amplitude within bounds, and direction. It humbled me, as great art can, with the realization that geometry points toward truths that we have ignored, and that beauty is a real and potent force, even in this debased and imperfect world. It took my breath away.

My trip to the Taj occurred on the final day of a five-day whirlwind trip to the subcontinent, where we had been guests of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture, a triennial event. As with other such gatherings to celebrate architecture in or for the Islamic world, held in various sites worldwide, our host had prepared visits to noteworthy architectural monuments, including the Taj. In our case, the awards proved to be a Mughal feast.

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The awards ceremony itself took place in Delhi at another mausoleum (think how funerary structures dominated early civilizations). Humayun's Tomb (1569), erected by the ruler's widow Hamida Banu Begam, predates Shah Jehan's memorial to his wife Mumtaz Mahal by almost a century (1631-1648). For the contemporary occasion, which included not only the Aga Khan himself and his invitees, but the Prime Minister of India, the domed, polychrome structure had been illuminated for a private son et lumiËre. The assemblage consisted of an international coterie in full native finery, from saris woven with cloth of gold to an African chief in robe and cap. Counterpoised against this magnificent 16th century backdrop, the moon rose full, while the Silk Road ensemble coaxed their plaintive instruments. Not even an emperor could match the rose-petal strewn drama.

Subsequent travels included a ceremony at the massive Mughal fortifications in Agra, whose Red Fort (built by Akbar in 1565, added to by Shah Jehan in 1630-55) gave new insight into the word, "heft." There the red sandstone walls, many feet thick, rose with hieratic emphasis, once cradling the treasury of an empire-Shah Jehan's wives, and the Peacock throne, his seat of justice. As if to underscore the otherworldliness of this lost hegemony, green parrots swept through the air calling at sunset, seeking their roost, while a tribe of monkeys paraded around the walls, peering down at our sober gathering. Where had the empire fled to?

Our final destination was a deserted city on a hill. Close your eyes from the heights at Fatehpur Sikri, a town constructed in the 1570s to become the Mughal capital from 1571-1584, and you could be at VÈzÈlay, in France, were it not for the calls from the mosque. Following the emperor Akbar's lead, the court removed to this aerie spot to honor a holy Sikh who had predicted Akbar's first male son and heir. When he left, the red sandstone buildings remained. Restored, solitary, and urbane, this ghost town encapsulates history and almost speaks.

Touring this rich array of cities, fortifications, and funerary monuments only skims a fraction of India's architectural wealth; however, the analogies with other historical monuments is striking. The Red Fort, which surveys the Yumana River, bears close resemblance to China's Great Wall, or to the Alhambra, all of which came from a period of expansion and conquest. However, they also contain typological similarities with European fortifications from the same period (think of the Loire valley, with its turreted chateaux, or of 16th century England).

Towers, like those at the tombs, or the mosques, crop up in Italy (at Torcello, outside Venice, or San Gimigiano for example), at religious structures and fortifications. Simplistic as such a question may sound, what worldwide developments elicit similar building forms? Do the answers lie in the evolution of technology, or of building systems, or in philosophy? Visiting actual architecture consistently stimulates us to ponder and to wonder, confounding our expectations, both feeding us and leading us to hunger for more.

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