'Celebrating the Capitol', a new exhibition of photographic work by Noor Dasmesh Singh, is about to open in Chandigarh – the architect, urbanist and Wallpaper* contributor’s home town. Organised in time for the famous 20th-century city's anniversary (it was founded on 7 October 1953), the event, planned alongside a panel discussion on the making of Chandigarh, aims at honouring the legacy of modernist architecture, Le Corbusier and his team in the country, and beyond.
Exploring Chandigarh and ‘Celebrating the Capitol’
While the exhibition opens on Monday 7 October, the panel event kicks off the celebration in style on Saturday 5th, leading smoothly onto the art show's inauguration. The exhibition is set in the Capitol itself – at the brutalist Tower of Shadow – a 'dream venue', according to Singh.
A feted architectural pilgrimage destination for experts and enthusiasts the world around, Chandigarh's Capitol complex was designed by Le Corbusier and his team in the mid-20th century. It is now a Unesco World Heritage monument.
Its three main buildings – the Palace of Assembly, the Secretariat Building and the High Court – are monumental and sculptural. Meanwhile, the complex also comprises four distinct standalone monuments, the Geometric Hill, the Tower of Shadows, the Martyrs Monument, and the Open Hand Monument, which has since come to symbolise the city.
Le Corbusier also famously designed, apart from the buildings, the complex's furniture, fittings and artworks, making this a truly holistic opus spanning scales and disciplines.
Many of the furniture pieces were gradually lost or damaged. British-Indian collector Rajan Bijlani has long been tracking down and restoring pieces of unseen Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret Chandigarh furniture, making up a valuable collection and celebrating its legacy.
-
Fluid workspaces: is the era of prescriptive office design over?We discuss evolving workspaces and track the shape-shifting interiors of the 21st century. If options are what we’re after in office design, it looks like we’ve got them
-
This collection of slow furniture is a powerful ode to timeA serene exhibition of David Dolcini's 'Time-made' collection has fast-tracked its place into our hearts and homes
-
Is the Pragma P1 the most sustainable watch yet?Geneva-based brand Pragma combines industrial design with real sustainable credentials
-
At the Institute of Indology, a humble new addition makes all the differenceContinuing the late Balkrishna V Doshi’s legacy, Sangath studio design a new take on the toilet in Gujarat
-
How Le Corbusier defined modernismLe Corbusier was not only one of 20th-century architecture's leading figures but also a defining father of modernism, as well as a polarising figure; here, we explore the life and work of an architect who was influential far beyond his field and time
-
Pretty in pink: Mumbai's new residential tower shakes up the cityscape'Satguru’s Rendezvous' in Mumbai houses luxury apartments behind its elegant fluted concrete skin. We take a tour.
-
How to protect our modernist legacyWe explore the legacy of modernism as a series of midcentury gems thrive, keeping the vision alive and adapting to the future
-
A 1960s North London townhouse deftly makes the transition to the 21st CenturyThanks to a sensitive redesign by Studio Hagen Hall, this midcentury gem in Hampstead is now a sustainable powerhouse.
-
The new MASP expansion in São Paulo goes tallMuseu de Arte de São Paulo Assis Chateaubriand (MASP) expands with a project named after Pietro Maria Bardi (the institution's first director), designed by Metro Architects
-
Join our world tour of contemporary homes across five continentsWe take a world tour of contemporary homes, exploring case studies of how we live; we make five stops across five continents
-
Marta Pan and André Wogenscky's legacy is alive through their modernist home in France
Fondation Marta Pan – André Wogenscky: how a creative couple’s sculptural masterpiece in France keeps its authors’ legacy alive
