‘Architectures for a Better World’ addresses societal issues integral to the built environment!

 Info and Images: Courtesy InCITE

   

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‘Think Global, Build Social! Architectures for a Better World’ is a Goethe-Institut touring exhibition showcasing 15 current examples of an alternative approach to architecture; currently showing at the InCITE gallery in Bengaluru...

  

In a day and age, where progress is measured by ostentatious exteriors, with little or no regard for a look beneath the surface, the Goethe-Institut joins hands with InCITE gallery and the likes of committed and conscientious architects like Chitra Vishwanath and Neelam Manjunath to showcase the Indian leg of the travelling exhibition that focuses on the merits of socially responsible architecture for the lesser privileged sections of our society; before travelling to Hanoi, Vietnam.

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One cannot overemphasize the curatorial statement that rightly states “Architecture is currently in a state of crisis: on the one hand there is what is known as "starchitecture" - prestigious projects by acclaimed architects that serve to enhance the image of a few wealthy and politically influential clients - while on the other, there has been a massive rise in the number of building projects carried out in rapidly expanding megacities across Asia, Latin America and Africa with no architectural supervision whatsoever; besides the increasing number of people all over the world, who are living in slum conditions.”

 

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‘Think Global, Build Social…’ therefore strives to raise the crucial question - what solutions can architecture offer to those segments of the global population that currently has no access to a well-designed environment?

 

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Attempting to show by example, curator Andres Lepik shows scale models of schools, public spaces and residential buildings that have been developed through close collaboration with the future users and also incorporate local building traditions and techniques, where a number of common features can be seen in the various projects and approaches, establishing that  a very different kind of movement has been emerging within contemporary architecture for quite some time - one that aims to tackle social issues within a global society.

 

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Large-format photographs rather than abstract, two-dimensional construction drawings or floor plans, set out to make the design projects accessible to non-specialist audiences. This visual emphasis is reinforced by the inclusion of selected short films.

 

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The exhibition design centres on the use of wooden pallets. The pallets perform a variety of functions – they can be stacked horizontally to provide display tables, placed upright as movable partition walls, and can even be used to create seating opportunities for viewers. The use of standardized pallets also underlines the ecological and economic aspects of reusability and sustainability.

Venue: InCITE Gallery

No. 422, 1st Floor

9th Main, Banashankari II Stage

Bengaluru 70 

Dates: 02 October - 17 October 2015 

Timings: 10 am – 7 pm on all days - open to all