KARIGAR CENTRE FOR TITAN INDUSTRIES
Hosur, Tamil Nadu
Area: 40,000 sft
Year: 2013
See the Story Board :
Apart from manufacturing jewelry at its factory in Hosur, Titan Jewelry sources many items from traditional craftsmen all over India. Most of these craftsmen work in very poor conditions. Titan Jewelry felt that as part of its social responsibility initiative, it should provide the facilities these craftsmen needed and help in conserving a dying art form.
We were asked to translate this abstract idea into built form. We went through an intense ideation process before devising a concept that met with the client’s approval. We superimposed the idea of how something raw is transformed into something very refined (as in the process of making gold jewelry), on the idea of how these Karigar centres will transform the lives of craftsmen working there. This idea was taken onto the building by transitioning from a rough and earthy material like laterite to a highly polished granite on the facade. This immediately brought interest to what would otherwise have been a plain, windowless box.
Within the compact area, we also had to provide a hostel for the craftsmen, which was at the rear of the site. To offset the closed spaces that we had to mandatorily provide within the factory, we kept the hostel spaces as airy and light-filled as possible, with a central court and open verandahs. Since these were behind the factories, they were also shielded from the road and had ample privacy.
Hosur, Tamil Nadu
Area: 40,000 sft
Year: 2013
See the Story Board :
Apart from manufacturing jewelry at its factory in Hosur, Titan Jewelry sources many items from traditional craftsmen all over India. Most of these craftsmen work in very poor conditions. Titan Jewelry felt that as part of its social responsibility initiative, it should provide the facilities these craftsmen needed and help in conserving a dying art form.
We were asked to translate this abstract idea into built form. We went through an intense ideation process before devising a concept that met with the client’s approval. We superimposed the idea of how something raw is transformed into something very refined (as in the process of making gold jewelry), on the idea of how these Karigar centres will transform the lives of craftsmen working there. This idea was taken onto the building by transitioning from a rough and earthy material like laterite to a highly polished granite on the facade. This immediately brought interest to what would otherwise have been a plain, windowless box.
Within the compact area, we also had to provide a hostel for the craftsmen, which was at the rear of the site. To offset the closed spaces that we had to mandatorily provide within the factory, we kept the hostel spaces as airy and light-filled as possible, with a central court and open verandahs. Since these were behind the factories, they were also shielded from the road and had ample privacy.
