What first caught my attention & straightaway my
admiration was the beautiful indirect entrance to the building the five
storeyed glass facade looks imposing from the front but the building reveals
itself when one approaches the entrance which is neatly tucked away on the
northern side.
Huge slabs of natural rough granite form the treads of the
wide stairs. You have to climb up along the side of the building, then turn 90
degrees to enter virtually into the heart of the structure through a thick
clump of foliage on either side. There is a huge King’s Palm literally inside
the building, which helps in reducing the scale of the massive 4 storeyed high
entrance void. Smaller palms and other plants create a thick green plumage
which literally brushes you as one passes through the interesting stairs laid
through the middle. The transition is highly effective, as one enters from the
outside world to an entirely different one on the inside.
There is a small sun drenched alcove which serves as the
meeting area. Old wooden chairs and a divan along with a beautiful old door
shutter which serves as a center table give character to the space. There is an
ornamental gable, which was part of some old temple, hanging from an exposed
laterite wall on the side.
Past the intimate reception, the major feature is the free
standing metal stair with its thick wooden treads. The wood is not polished or
treated but left to age gracefully, which bestows an old world charm to the
exterior staircase. This, combined with the inclined black metal balustrades,
creates a feeling of balanced tension.
On the two floors above, there are two rectangular blocks
connected in the centre by an open room, which serves as a discussion space. On
the 2nd floor there is a studio on one side whicle on the other is
the library and one of the main activity hubs in the office – the pantry cum
dining space with its large airy seating opening out onto the wooded hillock on
the east with the Canoly canal in the foreground. This is the space where the
entire office gathers together for ‘chai’ in the morning and the afternoon and
witnesses interesting discussions on everything under the sun, right from
architecture to politics to current affairs and even the latest film releases.
On the floor above also, the spaces follow the same order.
There is a studio on one side,a central discussion room and on the other side
is a large cabin where Ar.Tony sits. A metal sculpture by noted sculptor Mr.K.S.Radhakrishnan
welcomes one as one enters the cabin. The large undivided space holds his
worktable, a comfortable informal discussion space & a large conference
table with a large flat screen for projection & video displays. The entire
east facade is a glass wall letting in plenty of natural light all through the
day and opening ups views to the wooded hillock beyond. One very interesting
feature inside are the tables – Ar.Tony’s tables as well as the large
conference table. Both are elegant, minimalistically done – a large glass panel
resting on top of a thin rectangular slab of natural granite, with hints of
stainless steel as leg supports. This contrast of the smooth & sleek of the
glass and the chrome with the rough granite gives a unique character to the
space, a combination of the traditional and the modern that is characteristic
of Stapati’s architectural vocabulary.
The studio spaces are similarly restrained in their treatment.
Large open, airy, well lit spaces, framing views of the nearby lake and that of the
lush greenery all around. The layouts are those of open workstations with a few
discussion tables. The colour palette of the white walls, the green kota
flooring and the dull wooden coloured MDF tabletops lends the space a subdued
cool ambience.
The most notable feel of the entire building is the openness.
The large central open volume sets the tone with the huge King palm constantly
creating a rustling in the wind and throwing interesting shadow patterns on the
exposed laterite walls. The large openable glass facade on the eastern and
southern sides creates an open feeling, letting in plenty of natural light
& ventilation. The southern side also has lots of coconut trees along the
building edge, whose tops reach upto the level of the spaces on the second and
third floor. thus when one looks out, it is the shaded dense foliage of the
coconuts that are visually very soothing and forms a direct ever present
connect with nature.
Works of art are littered all around the office, in the form
of paintings, ink renderings, sketches, sculptures, salvaged antiques etc,
thereby setting a creative background setting. One is surrounded by beauty, always
inspiring and one imbibes that beauty subconsciously.
On the ground, there is a badminton court, which forms the
nerve centre of activities in the evenings with everyone, right from Ar.Tony to
the administrative staff indulging in a game. The court is surrounded by trees
on all sides. There is even a fairly sized vegetable garden with a small
waterbody on one side. The omnipresent theme in this office is nature, in her
various forms & colours, creating a very comfortable ambience to work in
and grow.
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