Maya Somaiya Library

MayaSomaiyaLibrary 1 Maya Somaiya Library

Maya Somaiya Library The site chosen for this small addition of a children’s library within a school in rural Maharashtra, was a sliver between existing buildings and the school boundary, a site that almost implied a linear building footprint to adjust the program for the chosen site. Alluding to the impetus that children have towards […]

Hampi Art Labs

HampiArtLabs 1 scaled Hampi Art Labs

Hampi Art Labs The Hampi Art Lab hopes to foster creative thinking, by creating a space where collaboration and experimentation is possible. Located on a 5 acre site in Karnataka’s city of Vijayanagar, Hampi Art Lab is inspired by the riverine and her gentle sculpting of the surrounding hills, the project is rooted by a […]

Maharashtra Nature Park

maharashtra nature park 06 Maharashtra Nature Park

Mumbai, the financial capital of India, is often deemed as the city of dreams, hopes, and aspirations. It may be all that and more, but there is one thing that the city is always in dire need of – open spaces. With the imagery of a concrete jungle at large, the city lacks green spaces. Some amount of relief is provided by the green pockets in the form of Sanjay Gandhi National Park at Borivali and Maharashtra Nature Park in Sion. The latter, although lesser known, is an important ecosystem, built on a land that was once a dumping ground. It is unfortunate, that in a city that craves green space, there thrives a 37 acres’ park in the heart of the city, yet unused to its full potential. In the hope of tapping into that potential, and enticing more visitors, Mumbai’s MMRDA and Observer Research Foundation (ORF) organized an international design competition to execute the facelift.

Sameep Padora and Associates (sP+a) in association with Design Cell & Ratan J. Batliboi Consultants with Schlaich Bergman & Partner, and Ladybird Environment Consulting were elected as winners from a total of 30 reputed teams from around the globe.

Temple of Steps

Temple of steps 1 Temple of Steps

The brief was to design a temple for the residents of villages around Nandyal. In the dry terrain of Nandyal, the main concern was to provide a space which would marry the socio-cultural expectations of a temple with the ecological framework and dynamics of and around the site.