Architectural Model Making
Geoffrey Bawa – Valentine Gunasekera Exhibition [2017]
Geoffrey Bawa – Valentine Gunasekera Exhibition [2017]
This series of scaled models were completed for the Geoffrey Bawa – Valentine Gunasekera Exhibition on Architectural Modernism which was held at the Asia Culture Center in Gwangju, Republic of Korea, from 31st Aug to 29th Oct, 2017. Under the guidance of Architect Dr. Nishan Rasanga Wijetunga, I was part of a team of 4 students to undertake the task of completing the following models.
Work of Architect Valentine Gunesekera
TANGALLE BAY HOTEL | 1962-79
Tangalle, Sri Lanka
The site was located on the southeastern coast of the island, and the curved building hugs the cliff face, making the strong horizontal line of the ocean clearly visible from its various levels. The design incorporated a strong circulation spine with linear sleeping wings plugged in. This was deemed as a flexible design, which allowed future expansions. According to Gunesekera, this project was an effort to capture the softness and tranquility of the Sri Lankan landscape, while exploring the plasticity of concrete as a material.
THE JESUIT CHAPEL | 1960
Bambalapitiya, Colombo 04, Sri Lanka
“How do you capture spirituality?” This was the question which Gunesekera had explored in all of his religious buildings and expressive and value laden architecture came to be most visible in his earliest and most urban of chapel buildings.
WEERAMUNI HOUSE | 1972
Rajagiriya, Sri Lanka
According to the Architect, the house was designed to represent an “extension of (the clients’) acting personalities, a space that was fluid within its container”.
UPALI DE SILVA HOUSE | 1987
Mount Lavinia, Sri Lanka
This design was considered to be too revolutionary for its time, and it is considered to be Gunesekera’s ultimate attempt at deconstructing the box. From the plan form, it was seemingly a simple grid of circular columns, entirely free of walls. However, the architect had twisted that simple grid to create a series of linked spaces.
Work of Architect Geoffrey Bawa
SEEMA MALAKA | 1976-78
Colombo, Sri Lanka
The simplicity of Seema Malaka has enabled it to absorb extraneous elements, yet it remains a place of astonishing peace and harmony. The design is quite revolutionary but it recognizes a number of precedents and reveals the depth of Bawa’s interest in classical Sinhalese architecture. This is a good example of the way in which Bawa would take an idea and develop it over time in a number of apparently different situations.
ENA DE SILVA HOUSE | 1960-62
Colombo, Sri Lanka
The design was inspired by a variety of sources, such as Kandyan Courtyard Houses, Medieval Manor Houses, Dutch Town Houses and Roman Atrium Houses, many of which Bawa drew from what he noted during his travels. The introspective plan, with a pattern of linked pavilions and courtyards disposed around a large central courtyard or 'meda-midula', helped to arrange the spatial progression in such a way that increases privacy as it progress away from the street.
