Abstract (300 words maximum)
Sometimes, the most powerful architecture is not built to impress, but to uplift. This research compares two architects Francis Kere of Burkina Faso and Balkrishna Vithaldas Doshi of India, who both address how design can serve the underserved communities through educational architecture. They come from different backgrounds and countries, however, both demonstrate that architecture can be an instrument of empowerment rather than privilege. This paper engages in Architecture research by understanding how community participation and cultural longevity become a method of social transformation. Using research methods such as comparative material analysis, case studies, and geometric methodology to dissect both architects' material choice and process of design in their perspective ways of shaping a community.Through this analysis, I found that Kéré’s Gando Primary School is a demonstration of local participation ,redefining power and ownership and environment. adaptation. This paper also demonstrates that . Doshi’s Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, shows us how vernacular methods can be embedded into modern geometry to design a spatial order and balance. These results showcase how both architects created works that resonate with the culture and can be grounded contextually.Collectively, these two architects are demonstrating to us ways to build for the poor. Concluding that building for the poor doesn’t work through limitations but through liberation. They defined a community's way to evolve doesn't just depend on wealth, but how design can connect with the environment and culture of its people.
Use of AI Disclaimer
no
Academic department under which the project should be listed
CACM – Architecture
Primary Investigator (PI) Name
Ehsan Sheikholharam Mashhadi
Two Modalities of Building for the Poor: Empowering Architecture of Kere and Vernacular Modernity of B. K. Dushi
Sometimes, the most powerful architecture is not built to impress, but to uplift. This research compares two architects Francis Kere of Burkina Faso and Balkrishna Vithaldas Doshi of India, who both address how design can serve the underserved communities through educational architecture. They come from different backgrounds and countries, however, both demonstrate that architecture can be an instrument of empowerment rather than privilege. This paper engages in Architecture research by understanding how community participation and cultural longevity become a method of social transformation. Using research methods such as comparative material analysis, case studies, and geometric methodology to dissect both architects' material choice and process of design in their perspective ways of shaping a community.Through this analysis, I found that Kéré’s Gando Primary School is a demonstration of local participation ,redefining power and ownership and environment. adaptation. This paper also demonstrates that . Doshi’s Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, shows us how vernacular methods can be embedded into modern geometry to design a spatial order and balance. These results showcase how both architects created works that resonate with the culture and can be grounded contextually.Collectively, these two architects are demonstrating to us ways to build for the poor. Concluding that building for the poor doesn’t work through limitations but through liberation. They defined a community's way to evolve doesn't just depend on wealth, but how design can connect with the environment and culture of its people.