Art, Architecture and Design Professionals On TFOD

‘Tallest, fastest, strongest’ says the large plaque placed on the premises of The Statue of Unity – the 182 m tall and presently the world’s tallest statue of India’s first home minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel located on the banks of the Narmada at Kevadiya in Gujarat. This one is the last in a series of hundreds of boards, dotting like milestones the newly refurbished smooth road of nearly 100 km from the nearest airport at Vadodara to Kevadiya, proclaiming the virtues of this monumental accomplishment. This statue of the ‘Iron Man of India’ honours Sardar Patel’s strong will and his contribution to the sovereignty of India by bringing together the then separated princely states and regions under the union of nationhood, thus prompting its naming as ‘The Statue of Unity’. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who initiated this project in 2013, as Chief Minister of Gujarat state then, proudly inaugurated the completed statue on 31^st October 2018 and opened it to public view, presented to the country as a validation of his government’s world-class competence and his own supreme capacity to lead.

Notwithstanding the controversies surrounding the statue – of the futile and wasteful allocation of funds much needed for development to an exercise in showmanship, of the wisdom of its location vis-à-vis its impact on surroundings, of whether ‘height’ should even be considered a significant parameter for competition between monuments in today’s context – it’s a done thing. ‘The Statue of Unity’ stands tall (literally) and completed at record speed in a total of 56 months including the planning, construction and handing over, already thronged by visitors to many times the full capacity during the holiday season. The Future of Design pays a visit to dwell on the design of the country’s newest tourist destination.

Any conversation these days is incomplete without a discussion on the latest technology to enter the market and the aspect of our lives it’s likely to impact. Indeed, tech is so pervasive that no teeny bit of human life misses being impacted by it, and its advancements are so fast and numerous that it’s almost impossible to keep up. So, we talk tech today around the design of an exterior feature/ facility that, once considered a luxury, is fast becoming a regular amenity – the swimming pool. The problems around maintenance of swimming pools have given rise to the solution of covering them when not in use, and the market sees a varied supply of these covers and ways to operate them. Here’s looking at pool covers – the ‘whys’ and ‘hows’- and some magically concealed pools as well!

The ‘Japanese fountain’ that is currently going viral and trending on most social networking sites – is indeed, a fine piece of art. The only thing is, it is neither a fountain, nor is it art in a physical form! This is 3D-artist Chad Knight flirting with the wonderful world of digital art. The works, which he puts up with amazing regularity on his Instagram Profile, have made him an internet sensation – and the photorealistic nature of a few of his best-known works actually sees people googling to check if that can be their next holiday destination!!

A city usually pictured as crammed with people, numbed by concrete and jammed with traffic, choking with pollution and gasping for breath, yet forever on the move with no time to stand and stare, is still looking out for fresh air to breathe and open space that supplies it. The oft repeated clamour for public open spaces in the city mercifully finds some form of response in the creation of a Dilli Haat style rural theme park created at a 13.8 acres site off the JVLR which opened to the public this month. The Matoshree Meenatai Thackeray Shilpgram inaugurated on 14^th October 2018 in Mumbai is designed to showcase the rural life of Maharashtra along with its traditional trades and handicrafts in a lush park where families can find entertainment.

Once more, we go exploring the abundant TFOD galleries for treasurable design inspirations... and come loaded with ideas. This time around, we have dug into the corners of every type of space to examine what mantra the design gurus offer to use, liven up and invigorate the nooks and crannies into charming magnets that attract the eye and the soul. Left unimaginatively treated, corners have the power to undo the effects of an otherwise well-designed space. So, we’d best take some lessons from the experiences of professionals on how not to ‘cut corners’ and spoil our perfect décor.