A refuge for the soul
View(s):IIt is not often that the public gets the chance to look into an expert’s mind. Architect Anura Ratnavibhushana is one of those rare people who enjoys sharing knowledge and the wisdom gained and finely honed through years of experience in the field. His new book offers an expansive look at some of his finest work and the thoughts that preceded them.
Patterns of sunlight and shadows: A reflecting pool at the architect’s sister’s home in Dehiwela
‘Timeless Houses- Architecture for Living in Sri Lanka’ is a weighty volume, as befits the author’s stature in the architectural community. In this book, Ratnavibhushana, one of the country’s senior architects, most recently honoured with a Presidential award by the Sri Lanka Institute of Architects presents 11 of his favourite creations dating from his early efforts including his celebrated Lagoon House to the more recent, allowing the reader to explore and understand his very individual style.
The Lagoon House, readers may recall, made it to the ‘Phaidon Atlas of 20th Century World Architecture’ celebrating the best of architecture from around the world in the last century ( 1900-2000)- a singular achievement for a local practitioner. It was also previously featured in such prestigious publications as ‘Mimar’ (Singapore), ‘Casa Vogue’ (Italy), ‘The Tropical Asian House’ and ‘Beyond Bawa’. The house itself, originally built for his young family on the banks of the Moratuwa lagoon with distant views of the ocean, had a sharp almost cubist exterior but exuded a mellow serenity within. He recalls how being blinded by the primeval character of the land, he promptly bought it, despite the approach being through a row of shanty houses. The house was later sold but remains fresh in his mind’s eye with its design elements- the focal reflecting pool with its rough granite border, the pergola with its play of light on the water, all features he would return to in later creations. Incidentally Geoffrey Bawa and Ulrik Plesner celebrated his achievement on their first visit to the house with a bottle of champagne.
reflections from an inner courtyard at the Wijemanne house
Ratnavibhushana stresses that the houses he has featured in the book represent a harmonious collaboration between the architect and his client – many were created for limited budgets, yet embodied daring concepts. “I look back and think how courageous they were to entrust me with their restricted budgets to create tranquil and unique surroundings for simple lifestyles,” he writes.
Simple lifestyles resonate with him. His design shaped by his early training in Denmark and his close association with the likes of Bawa and Plesner, veers sharply towards the minimalistic, yet embraces the bountiful natural setting that nature affords us living in a tropical environment. So even toilets, for instance, often open onto sunlit courtyards, of course, enclosed for privacy. In the Wijemanne urban house, one of his favourites, built for a young surgeon and his family, the design revolved around a central courtyard pool, the living and dining spaces open to the outdoors like verandahs. “The pool surface is the same level as the living and dining. The artifice creates a seamless visual space extending the interiors to the exterior” he explains in his design notes.
Reading through the book, one detects Ratnavibhushana’s signature elements. Most of the work featured are houses – built for himself, family members and clients, also a circuit bungalow for the CEB with sweeping mountain views where cosy interiors complement the brilliance of the landscape outside and the Jetwing Ayurveda Pavilions where he chose traditional materials to bring out the concept.
The three houses he built at various points in his life for his own family were also experiments in the use of materials and he is candid about certain missteps as when he veered towards glass and steel only to discover their shortcomings in a crowded urban setting with heat and the lack of privacy some of the factors he hadn’t bargained for.
Fellow practitioners will no doubt find the book enjoyable and enlightening. For the layman, it provides a fascinating inside look at the nuts and bolts of design, how a skilled architect can, even with minimal resources create timeless style. In his case, style is not his only preoccupation; he talks of adaptability, potential for expansion, robust and durable materials, the use of light, the effects of the passage of time, all factors to be considered.
The book, an expensive limited edition hard cover volume, is printed with the latest digital technology. Given the architect’s practical streak, he has chosen paper (fsc- Forest Stewardship Council) that is moisture and dirt resistant and matt laminated to withstand spills and stains and the ravages of time. Design-wise, a collaborative effort with Nirosha Ambagahawatte the text is amply illustrated with photographs and detailed architectural drawings, the pictures though of variable quality, perhaps due to the time-span covered.
Quite clearly, this is not one of those coffee table books which is a collection of pretty showpiece houses. The architect’s firm belief is that a house while providing shelter is a refuge for the soul, a place where the inhabitants can find peace and happiness. The reader may decide if Anura Ratnavibhushana’s creations meet his aspirations.
The book is self-published and a limited number of copies are available at leading bookshops.
| Book facts
Timeless Houses: Architecture for Living in Sri Lanka, by Anura Ratnavibhushana. Reviewed by Renuka Sadanandan |