A dialogue with Ar.Elias Koshy, External Thesis Panel Member

1.What do you think is more important in an undergraduate thesis project? a.The process or the product….Comment If the goal is clear, and the process is smooth, with hard work, the product will naturally be good.b.Form or Function…..CommentForm and function are inseparable components of any design, be it a piece of Art or a Machine; not just in Architecture. They should go hand in hand, and should complement each other. 2.As a Panel Member, from your past experiences what tips would you suggest to the students to perform better during thesis reviewsChoose topics that you are passionate about; something with a certain emotional connect that will help sustain your inspiration till the end. Prepare a synopsis - be brief, crisp and clear. Even if you have strong views, be patient to listen carefully, absorb and note down the suggestions given to you by the approval panel and reviewers.Do extensive studies of your site, present your work well and make a good impression on your reviews, especially the first. Meet your guides and internal panel as many times as possible and identify all gaps in detailing. Rehearse the presentation every time before a review. Follow all your institution guidelines. Doing these would help External Reviews to focus on the larger picture of the thesis and help you strengthen it for the final jury.3.In the field of architecture, who inspires you…?My clients, craftsmen and skilled workers are my sources for inspiration, and if any of my work is noteworthy, it means that I have had a good working relationship with these people.I like the working philosophy of Laurie Baker, often referred to as the ’Common Man’s Architect’. I had the opportunity to work as the Resident Architect on one of his noted projects in Chennai during the early part of my career, and I cherished the experience. His philosophy reaffirmed to me that source of good design, architecture and planning is ‘common sense’. 4.The concept behind THE CONCEPTOnce you understand the needs and limitations of your user and the site thoroughly, your ‘common sense’ should take over and prevail till you complete and hand over the project to your client. 5.Any fun or interesting incident from your college years that you would like to share with us….My thesis topic was ‘Rehabilitation of the River Cooum and it’s environs, following it’s retrieval’. Once, I walked down very close to the water edge of the river in all enthusiasm focusing on the lens of my camera, and I took one step backward and my leg went knee deep down into something like quick sand. But I realized with disgust that it was accumulated cow dung!!! I lost one of my rubber slippers in the dung, and I limped a few paces and and begged for water in a tinkering shop to clean my leg. They offered me half a bucket, and I managed to wash away the dung, but not the smell. My return trip had many curious onlookers. I decided to throw away the other slipper, but couldn’t do so with my pant, and cycled back home bare footed. Nineteen years later, I wonder how I had the enthusiasm and courage to do all this. 6.Any suggestions for our Architectural students, in general?What you learn within the four walls of the Architecture School is only a fraction of many, many more things that you will see, learn and acquire when you start practicing your profession. Keep your eyes and ears wide open to everything around you, to gain wisdom, knowledge and experience in your profession.

MEASI Academy of Architecture december 2016 edition

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STUDIO PROJECTS

CULTURAL ACTIVITIES

WORKSHOP

UPCOMING EVENTSCOMPETITIONS

SITE VISIT

URBAN DESIGN STUDIO

BASIC DESIGN

The final year students embarked on an interesting journey this year for a study focused on the impact of Metro Rail on Chennai’s urban fabric. A detailed study of three focus areas namely, Saidapet, Guindy and Vadapalani adjacent to the main spine Anna Salai was done through physical mapping, visual and end user surveys. Analysis led to the identification of critical urban issues in each of the study areas. The students used this input as the starting point for their proposals and vision for Chennai.

MEASI Academy of architecture in collaboration with INTACH Chennai chapter conducted Heritage forum on 05th Aug 2016, An Interactive forum for colleges on heritage based sustainable development. Speakers included Mrs. Shivaa Rawat from INTACH New Delhi, Mrs. Kavitha from HR&CE, Mr. AGK Menon Urban Planner, Conservation consultant and Architect, Mr. Arul from INTACH Pondicherry, Ar. Durganand Balsaver and Ar.Sriram Ganapathy.

1..eVolo - 2017 Skyscraper CompetitionDead line: 24th JAN 20172. Design Workshop ‘Exploring Generative Geometries’ 4th to 12th Jan 2017 @ VIT University.

The end of a hectic semester was celebrated with a get together lunch on 31st Oct’16. A fun afternoon followed by a game of Anthakhshari between the ladies and the gents faculty.

Understanding spaces through documentation - This excercise demands the students to document an existing space and make a cut-out model out of a thick paper without the use of glue or tapes.

“This newsletter is an initiative to bring to light and acknowledge the larger spectrum of activities and initiatives happening within our campus” - Shilesh Hariharan (Editor)

MEASI Newsletter will be published in the following months of every year MARCH / JUNE / SEPTEMBER / DECEMBER.

archEASI newsletter0711 INTERVIEW

FUN CORNER

(01) The 2nd yr M.Arch students were taken on a site visit to Pulicat Lake, Ennore Creek and Neelankarai - Uthandi stretch on 3rd & 10th Aug 2016 as part of studio exercise for the course Emerging Practices in Housing

(02) 3rd year students of A&D batch were taken to Yelagiri to study about topography, contours and grading as part of Site Analysis and Planning course on 17th Aug 2016

(03) 3rd year students went on a Heritage walk inside the Chennai High court Complex organised by INTACH on 14th Aug 2016.

(04) 3rd Year ‘C’ batch students were taken to (a)Narayana Arihant Ocean Towers, a 17 Storey apartment building to expose students to various electrical systems in a high rise building and elevator installation (b)Philips LightNEXT to expose them to various Lighting fixtures and their effects on interiors.

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MEASI ACTIVITIES

AWARDS

EVENTS & LECTURES

3. The much anticipated Thesis Project Proposal Reviews have got off to a great start with intense discussion and participation from external and internal panel members. We are thankful to the practicing architects, Ar.Sujatha Shankar, Ar.Ravi Nair, Ar.Elias Koshy, Ar.Madhu Shakthivel, Ar.C.S.Raghuram, Ar.Kalpana Balaji & Ar.V.S.Vigneshwar who were part of the 10 day process.

2. We congratulate Ar.B.Suhasini, Ar.Radhikha Senthil, Ar.Sara Mathan, Ar.Anuradha Menon on their promotion as Associate Professor.

1.We welcome our new faculty members Ar.Devanand, Ar.Sangeetha Priya, Ar.ArjunSatheesh, Mr. Balaji P

4. A visit to 3 villages Manamadurai , Sundaranaduppu and Aranthangi was undertaken to study the significance of pottery in terms of its cultural context and record the process of pottery making. (Ar.Anjali Sadanand and Ar.V.S.Ramanan)

5. MEASI Academy Of Architecture has been re-certified by Bureau Veritas for ISO 9001:2008 standards valid till 2018.

1. Two Student teams from 3rd Yr B.Arch participated in the Dr.Abdul Kalam Young Achievers Award . One team won the award and another won a special mention

2. Our student teams actively participated in the Urban Lake Restoration Competition conducted by Goethe Institute. The shortlisted team consisting of Final year students Madhumitha, Sabarna & Sreemayi were invited to present their work at the Chennai Water Forum held on 6th, 7th and 8th October 2016 at Kalakshetra, Chennai.

1.We were honoured to have Prof Sengupta on 18 Oct‘16 who gave an inspiring lecture on “Nature and Design”. He interacted with the 5th year students and gave a lot of insight on Metro rail projects.

2.As part of Vigilance Week HUDCO organised a quiz and poster design competition for the first year B.Arch students on 2nd NOV’16.

3.The second year M.Arch students had a lecture by Mr.Kandasamy, District Revenue Officer, TN State Disaster Management Agency at Ezhilagam on 3rd August’16 as part of Studio Exercise in Emerging Practices in Housing.

4. Prof. Priya Sasidharan was invited to make a presentation on “Decoding Architecture – The Language of Symbolism”, on 4th Oct‘16, at Madras University. This was part of a Refresher Course on Semantics conducted by Human Resource Development Centre and the Literature Department, Madras University.

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STUDIO PROJECTS

MEASI ACTIVITIES

COMPETITIONS

INTERVIEW

WORKSHOP

CULTURAL ACTIVITIES

SITE VISITS

EVENTS&LECTURES

AWARDS

UPCOMING COMPETITIONS

FUN CORNER

EDITORIAL BOARD

Mentor

Prof.V.Balaji

Editor

Ar.Shilesh

Hariharan

Content Writers

Ar.B.Subhasree

Ar.Anuradha

Menon

Ar.Radhikha

Senthil

Ar.Abiraami K

Ar.Devanand

Layout Designer

Ar.Divyalakshmi“I Prefer drawing to talking. Drawing is faster and leaves less room for lies” - Le Corbusier

06COMPETITIONS

MEASI Academy of Architecture congratulates Ar Muzakkir GM Bijli M.Arch., for getting the “YOUNG TEACHER AWARD” from IIA, Tamilnadu Chapter on 19th November 2016.

Congratulations to our B.Arch students, Sneha.V, Shveta.M, Sobhana.S, Madhumita.A, Kavin.S led by Prof.S.Kesavalu, HOD for being Joint Winner of Quintin Hogg Prize for Most Entrancing Pavilion and Festival Prize for Pavilion by popular choice at FabFest 2016 Westminster University, London July 2016.

THE MIRACLE LEAF: Opp. to Chennai High School,Nungambakkam, Chennai

SLATS - Elliots beach, Chennai

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Our Dear Director Prof.N.Altaf Ahmed, has been conferred with “MADHAV ACHWAL GOLD MEDAL” for his life time contribution in teaching by IIA on 1st December at NATCON 2016.

(05) 3rd year students visited KSM Architects office at Guindy as part of “Energy Efficiency in Architecture” course. This building designed to function through natural ventilation without any airconditioning, is a good example of a building integrating passive cooling techniques.

3.Westminster-UOW Design competition 2016-17: This is an International competition, where the challenge is to transform a disused public space in your neighborhood or city to an informative, recreational and easy to maintain urban space. Two of our entries were shortlisted for final stage of the competition.