Design Brief | The Drawing Board 2023

Summary

The eighth edition of the Drawing Board Competition, hosted by Mindspace Architects, focuses on designing an archaeological museum at a historically rich site in Badami. The site features stunning Rock Cut caves, temples, and a large lake, creating a unique architectural opportunity. Participants are challenged to integrate their designs with the natural and historical elements, considering factors like materiality, the environment, and the site's visual and experiential impact. The goal is to create a structure that either stands out or blends seamlessly into the landscape, enhancing the site's beauty and historical significance.

Takeaways

• 📍 The event is the eighth edition of the Drawing Board Competition, organized by Mindspace Architects.
• 🏞️ The competition site is in Badami, known for its ancient Rock Cut caves and temples dating back to the 5th to 7th century.
• 🌊 The site is located near the Agastya Lake, with the caves on one side and the Bhoothnath Temple on the other.
• 🔨 Participants are tasked with designing an archaeological museum on the site, replacing an existing low-key structure.
• 🌳 The site features a cliff with cascading terraces down to the water, offering a unique architectural challenge.
• 🚶 The approach to the site includes a pedestrian-dominant road with low-scale houses, leading to a dramatic reveal of the lake and temple.
• 🛤️ There are multiple gateways and a pathway through rock formations that provide a magical, canyon-like experience.
• 🪨 The site's materiality is significant, with the use of a beautiful yellowish-brown rock that has aged gracefully over centuries.
• 🌅 Designers are encouraged to consider changes in eye level and how it affects the perception of the site, especially in relation to the sunrise and sunset.
• 🛠️ The challenge is to create a structure that either makes a bold statement or seamlessly integrates into the environment, respecting the site's historical and natural context.

Q & A

What is the Drawing Board competition?

The Drawing Board competition is an architectural design challenge that has been held for eight editions, attracting increasing participation each year.

What is the significance of Badami as a site for the competition?

Badami is known for its historical Rock Cut caves dating back to the 5th to 7th Century, along with temples and a significant lake called Agasthya Lake, making it a unique and inspiring location for architectural design.

What are the main features of the site in Badami?

The site features the Rock Cut caves, a series of temples, the Agasthya Lake, a cliff overlooking the water, and a large ghat (series of steps) on the western side.

How is the approach to the site described in the script?

The approach to the site is through low-scale houses with winding roads, and upon reaching the site, one experiences a dramatic reveal of the lake and the temple beyond a large cantilevering rock with a tree behind it.

What is the task for participants in the competition?

Participants are tasked with designing an archaeological museum on the site, replacing an existing low-key structure with the potential for a more impactful design.

What is the current size of the existing archaeological museum?

The existing archaeological museum is approximately 6,000 square feet.

What is the proposed design approach for the new museum?

The design approach should consider the site's unique features, including the cliff, the cascading terraces, the water edge, and the surrounding temples, aiming to create an experiential and harmonious structure.

What are the site's physical boundaries?

The physical boundaries of the site include the cliff, the edge of the water, and a small shrine, with the road being pedestrian dominant and having minimal traffic.

How does the script emphasize the importance of the site's visual and physical experience?

The script highlights the importance of the site's visual and physical experience by describing the magical and unforgettable experience of walking through the rocks, the changing eye levels, and the influence of light and the surrounding environment.

What is the significance of the materiality in the design of the new museum?

The materiality is significant as it should respond to the local context, using the yellowish-brown rock found in the area, which has aged gracefully and is used in the construction of the historical temples.

What decision do participants need to make regarding the architectural statement of the new museum?

Participants need to decide whether the new museum should make a bold architectural statement or dissolve into the background, becoming part of the overall environment and scenario.

Outlines

00:00

🏰 Introduction to the Drawing Board Competition and Badami Site

The script introduces the eighth edition of the Drawing Board competition, hosted by mindspace, an architectural firm. The competition has seen increasing participation over the years. This year, the chosen site is in Badami, famous for its 5th to 7th Century Rock Cut caves. The site also features temples and a large lake called the Gutsal Lake. The site is situated near these caves, which are on a cliff overlooking the water, and is accessible through a series of low-scale houses and winding roads. The competition's task is to design an archaeological museum on a site that currently houses a low-key structure of about 6,000 square feet. The speaker encourages participants to envision the site without the existing structure and to consider the potential of the location, which is described as a dream site for architects.

05:02

🌄 Designing the Museum: Context, Materiality, and Experience

The second paragraph delves into the design challenge of creating an archaeological museum that is sensitive to its historical and natural context. The speaker emphasizes the importance of experiencing the site firsthand, as it offers a multifaceted problem that includes the site's physical attributes, its relation to water and distant temples, and the use of local materials such as the yellowish-brown rock found in the area's temples. The speaker suggests that the new structure should either make a bold statement or blend into the background, becoming part of the environment. The paragraph also highlights the significance of changing eye levels in experiencing the site, urging designers to consider the site's contours, trees, rocks, and the way light changes throughout the day. The speaker concludes by encouraging participants to respond to these elements and create a wonderful design.

Keywords

💡Drawing Board Competition

The 'Drawing Board Competition' is an architectural contest mentioned in the script, which has seen increasing participation over the years. It is a platform for architects to showcase their design skills and creativity, with the theme of the competition focusing on designing an archaeological museum in the context of the Badami site. The competition is a key element in the video's narrative as it sets the stage for the architectural challenge discussed.

💡Badami

Badami is a historical site in India known for its rock-cut caves dating back to the 5th to 7th centuries. It is the location for the architectural competition described in the script. The caves, temples, and the nearby lake called Agasthya Lake are integral to the site's cultural and historical significance, which is central to the design challenge presented to the architects.

💡Rock-Cut Caves

The 'Rock-Cut Caves' of Badami are ancient structures carved directly into the rock formations. They are a significant part of the site's historical and architectural heritage. In the script, these caves are described as overlooking the water and being part of the cliff, which adds to the unique context that architects must consider in their designs.

💡Architectural Museum

The 'Architectural Museum' is the proposed building type that participants of the competition are tasked to design. It is intended to be a structure that respects and complements the existing historical site. The museum's design is expected to be sensitive to the site's cultural and environmental context, as illustrated by the existing low-key structure that the participants are asked to reimagine.

💡Site Context

The 'Site Context' refers to the physical and cultural environment surrounding the proposed museum's location. The script describes the site's proximity to the lake, the rock-cut caves, and the Bhoothnath Temple, emphasizing the importance of considering these elements in the design. The context is crucial for creating a harmonious and responsive architectural solution.

💡Ghat

A 'Ghat' is a series of steps leading to a body of water, typically found in India. In the script, the ghat is mentioned as a significant feature to the west of the site, adding to the complexity and character of the landscape that architects must incorporate into their designs.

💡Bhoothnath Temple

The 'Bhoothnath Temple' is a religious structure located on the eastern side of the site. It is one of the visual and cultural landmarks that architects are encouraged to relate to in their designs, as part of the site's broader historical and religious context.

💡Embarkment

The 'Embankment' of the lake is mentioned in the script as a feature that initially hides the lake from view, creating a sense of discovery when the site is first approached. This element contributes to the experiential aspect of the site, which architects are expected to consider in their design process.

💡Cascading Terraces

The concept of 'Cascading Terraces' refers to a design feature where levels or platforms descend in steps, often used to follow the natural contours of the land. In the script, this idea is suggested as a potential design element for the museum, allowing it to blend with the cliff and the landscape.

💡Materiality

Materiality in architecture refers to the physical aspects of building materials and their expressive qualities. The script highlights the importance of using local, yellowish-brown rock in the design of the museum to create a sense of place and timelessness, resonating with the ancient temples' material that has aged gracefully.

💡Experiential Design

The term 'Experiential Design' refers to creating spaces that evoke emotions and engage the senses, providing a memorable experience. The script emphasizes the importance of designing the museum to be an experiential space that captures the magic of the site, such as the changing light and views from different eye levels.

Highlights

Introduction to the 8th edition of the Drawing Board competition by San Diego from Mindspace Architects.

Increasing participation in the competition over the years.

The competition site is in Badami, known for its 5th to 7th Century Rock Cut caves.

Badami features temples and a lake called Gutsal Lake.

The site is in proximity to the lake and the Rock Cut caves.

Description of the site's cliff with a series of caves overlooking the water and the temple.

The approach to the site includes low-scale houses and winding roads.

Surprise element of the site with a huge rock and a big tree upon entering the gateway.

The site's visual impact with the lake and the temple at the end.

Task for participants: Design an archaeological museum on the site.

Existing low-key structure on the site covering 6,000 square feet.

Potential for a dream site for architects to create a unique structure.

Instructions to imagine the site without the existing structure for a fresh design approach.

Details of the site's physical boundary and the requirement to consider the entire site up to the edge of the lake.

Emphasis on the experiential aspect of the site and its pedestrian-dominated road.

Challenge to relate the built environment to the unforgettable experience of walking through the rocks.

Importance of the pathway leading to the rocks and the series of gateways creating a canyon-like structure.

The magical experience of discovering spaces while climbing through the rocks.

Influence of personal experiences and memories on the design process.

The multi-faceted problem involving site, context, water edge, and temples.

Materiality considerations with the use of the local yellowish-brown rock for construction.

The challenge of making the structure either make a statement or dissolve into the background.

The importance of experiencing the site's change in eye level for a different perspective.

Encouragement to respond to site conditions, contours, trees, rocks, and light changes in the design.

Transcripts

[Music]

I'm San Diego hey from mindspace

Architects this is a eighth edition of

the drawing board competition there has

been wonderful response all these years

and more and more participation

happening every year this year we have a

wonderful site for you this is in badami

and uh badami is known for its Rock Cut

caves dating back to about 5th to 7th

Century so it's not only the Rock Cut

caves but there are temples around and

there is a huge lake called a gutsal

lake so our site is in a proximity to

that so if I show you the site that's

the lake we have this Rock Cut caves

it's a kind of a cliff so on this Cliff

you have this series of caves

overlooking into the water and the

temple our site is on the other side

towards the northern side towards the

west of the site is a huge ghat a series

of steps what you see towards the

Eastern side is Bhoothnath Temple now

the approach to the site is something

interesting you sort of come through

this series of houses low scale houses

with winding roads and when you come up

here because of the embankment of the

lake with the houses a skirting that

embankment you are not even aware of it

so you drive through this smaller lens

and come through one Gateway and there

is one huge Rock which cantilevers out

with a big tree behind and you just turn

around and this entire Lake opens up

with the temple sitting at the end

almost like a jewel there what we want

you to do is

to design archaeological Museum there is

this archaeological Museum which is

existing on the site which is about 6

000 square feet of very very low key

structure but looking at the potential

of that site we thought that you can do

something wonderful there because uh

it's a dream site for any architect to

work on so imagine that that structure

doesn't exist there so you come through

this Gateway there is this big tree and

a lake here this guard culminates into

this small Shrine imagine this structure

not to be deaf whether this Cliff as a

background cascading Terraces coming

down you have the cliff on the back that

is the existing structure which you're

supposed to demolish then there are

these levels which Cascade ground down

right up to the water this is a physical

boundary of the site which sort of

encompasses all this area so just to

give you idea this would be the extent

of the site including the small Shine

the edge of the water the road going

through the road has absolutely minimal

traffic so it is pedestrian dominant

road so we want you to consider the

extent of the site right up to the edge

of the gut so it's more of a

experiential or kind of a site though

you are built our Zone would get

restricted more towards the upper right

you can create an intervention right up

to the water

now there is a physical extent of the

site but if you see the visual extent of

the site it goes all the way up to the

Bhoothnath Temple towards one end with

the water in front you have caves on the

other side and the third

very very important aspect is this

pathway which leads up to the Rocks now

there is another Gateway in fact there

are series of gateways and you

experience this almost like a canyon

kind of a structure so you walk through

this clips of rocks and the way they

turn the way the light comes in and

where you climb through and discover

those spaces it's absolutely magical

experience and I had been there during

just after my college disc and I have

such wonderful memories of that space

and which keep reoccurring you know you

keep remembering those those spaces

while designing and consciously or

subconsciously you it has influence on

your work and as a student when you look

at this whole site and look at

especially that experience of walking

through those rocks that's something

which is an unforgettable experience and

I think all of you should really sort of

experience that and how do you sort of

relate that experience into this built

environment and that's a challenge so

it's some multi-faceted problem it's not

only about the site it's about the con

context it's about relating it to the

water edge relating to the temples which

are far off far and there's there's

something about materiality there you

have this beautiful yellowish Brown Rock

which is available so all the temples

whatever construction what you see there

is is all about using that that material

Stone which is just so well because you

see these temples of 5th Century and 6th

century and they still look so fresh

that material has aged so gracefully

over the years so we would like to like

you to respond to all those elements how

do you use it how you how you become

sensitive to it so the structure that

you do belongs to that place you know it

becomes

part of the environment it's not

something so so that's the decision

which is uh which all of you will have

to debate about uh whether whether the

structure which the intervention that

you are going to do there does it have

to

really make a statement or should it

dissolve into the background and become

part of part of the entire

um you know scenario one more important

aspect about

experiencing this site is about a change

of eye level if you if you start seeing

your eye level changing use really

experience this entire

um entire Bowl I would talk about in a

very very different way when you are in

these caves and looking down into the

water the whole thing looks totally

different when you are at the eye level

at the site the entire bowel looks

totally different look at the eye level

look at the site conditions look at the

Contours of the site

the trees there the Rocks there the the

so many references that you have and in

all these magical States uh you know you

see the sunrise and sunset and the way

the light changes so respond to all that

and create something wonderful all the

best

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