palanpur, gujarat; 2013
As part of our practice, we study the buildings we design after they have been occupied. This allows us to learn what works as we expect, what doesn't, and how people have transformed and adapted aspects of our designs as their needs change over time. The tulsi villa twin bungalow project gave us the oppportunity to study not just one scenario, but sixty, and to look at trends and variations among the responses to the architecture.
This first study has been carried out three years after the completion of construction. Certain changes, like the removal of a skylight, shift to outdoor staircase, or the ninety degree rotation of a once south facing entrance, were given as design alternatives during construction, to satisfy the requirements of families who had purchased houses in advance. Others, like the insertion of a steel beam to remove verandah columns, or the expansion of the first floor, were residents' self-designed innovations, implemented after the completion of the project.
