Reinventing new meanings in a historic context, design and craft centre at golcha garden, Jaipur

Abstract

The making or remaking of structures cannot be done in void. They always need to respond to some context. Thus it is necessary to know how the response will take place if one has an existing strong context. Our objectives as architects is to respectfully reconcile what the building or architecture was and what will it become? Nowadays, we come across buildings which need new meanings that might be in terms of new spaces or to establish a connection between a group of buildings or redesigning an element. The challenge is to understand how to respond within such limitations. Design cannot happen in isolation; it’s not a product. Responding to the context is necessary and the intervention should integrate the spirit of the place. The thesis is an attempt to design one such built form in a historic context and making decisions as to how should it respond. The context involved is the city of Jaipur. This royal town of Jaipur has magnificent architecture and is the first planned city of India. Jaipur's rich cultural heritage is displayed in the traditions, customs, lifestyle, art and architecture of this place. The city is so rich in its culture and crafts and needs a common platform to showcase it. The proposed program is a Design and Craft Centre where one can experience and learn about the various crafts under one roof. The centre is located on one of the properties in Ghat ki Guni. The historic complex of Ghat ki Guni or Purana Ghat is located at a distance of 3 km from Jaipur on the Agra Road. It has an impressive conglomeration of 52 unique properties of great architectural and historic significance within a scenic narrow valley surrounded by sprawling hills through which serpentine road to Agra passes. The concerned site is the Golcha garden site which has the existing Golcha Garden with a palace and a 20th century hat factory which needs to be reused. The centre designed on the site is one of the possible responses one can make in the given context.