Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad, India
Above is my sketch of the Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad, India by Louis Kahn. I am working on my water coloring techniques… sometimes they are good, and other times… well they need work. Below is the sketch after coloring it.
Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad, India
I visited IIM several times while in India. My friend worked there and she would give my buddy John and I tours of the Institute. We even had thali in the student dining area. The project is large with deeply recessed windows in buildings to avoid the hot Ahmedabad sun. This casts the most dramatic of shadows on the facade, making these pure forms striking. Lush green gardens populate throughout aiding in cooling. Thick walls, ample shade, and gardens… smart techniques for such an unforgiving climate. The quality and choreography of the external and interstitial spaces are noticeable and will stand the test of time.
There is a new addition that was done to IIM by HCP Design. I must congratulate them for a job well done. They transposed the same concept, design elements, techniques, and married old and new materials just beautifully! This to me, is a very successful project. Exhibiting a similar character trait to the original buildings, the new campus is true to what the architect Bimal Patel calls ‘die-hard modernism’ being ‘rigorous in plan and construction’, with exposed in-situ concrete used to shape the geometrically strong forms. As a contrast, brick infill panels distinguish domestic rooms from academic spaces – a very familiar nod to Kahn that is seen throughout Ahmedabad – and elegant, perforated metal screens designed by renown screen printer Walter D’Souza, bringing just enough ornamentation to the otherwise relentless pale smooth surfaces.
Abstract Architecture of the day:
3.5″ x 5″ Strathmore Sketchbook, ink pens and Sharpies
This work byVernelle Noel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
The Thinking Insomniac 
