Architecture mired in astrology
Astrology, unfortunately, has been mixed up with architecture causing much confusion among people.
“We are not against astrology but architecture is a different science and an art altogether that we have studied for seven years,” said the President of the Sri Lanka Institute of Architects (SLIA) D.H Wijewardene at a media conferance held at the Galadari Hotel in Colombo last week.
“Vasthu Sastara was different to Vastu Science altogether. We want to expose and explain to people what architecture is all about and to have a dialogue with the people.”
Referring to iconic ancient temples and historic places such as Sigiriya built during the reign of kings, he said such places have been built by experts flawlessly. “We cannot find any faults in them. But how many iconic buildings have we built during the last few decades except the parliament and the Kandalama hotel?” he queried.
He said there is enough talent in the country as far as Sri Lankan architects were concerned. The international airport at Muscat Oman was built by a Sri Lankan architect and Sri Lankan architects have won prestigious awards in India.
Meanwhile the Sri Lanka Institute of Architects will hold its popular trade exhibition for the 36th consecutive year at the BMICH on February 22-25 (ending today) with more than 290 trade stalls and 126 display including digital panels displaying architects work.
The theme of this year’s national conference was “Architecture to Represent People and Places.” The SLIA had invited architect Professor Li Xiaodong from China as a keynote speaker. The other speakers were architect Serina Hijjas from Malaysia and architect Jin Koyama from Singapore who shared their expert knowledge and their experiences in the practice of architecture along with locally renowned architects like Channa Daswatte and Phillip Weeraratne.