A renaissance of vernacular eco-architecture: self-built housing in Bir, India

Gandhi, Ankita Jayesh

Savannah, Georgia: Savannah College of Art and Design

2019-08

Thesis (M.Arch.) -- Architecture

Savannah College of Art and Design -- Department of Architecture

Bibliography: pages 144-145

"The time that I spent at the Dharmalaya Institute helped me be a part of a routine where people lived a self-sustaining lifestyle. This included growing their own food and building their own homes with everything that was available on site. The time spent there was extremely rewarding and made me want to take the path to introducing this form of a lifestyle into my life. That being said, apart from a small group of people that still follow this in the region, the others have unfortunately chosen a path that was not as sustainable. With the advent of industrialization and the villagers being more exposed to the western world, the vernacular methodology of construction and lifestyle has been lost. Concrete, glass and other non-indegenous materials have been on a steady increase, hampering the land, culture and the lives of the people. The vernacular housing of this area is now being looked at as an inferior form of dwelling. Himachal Pradesh being an extremely earth quake prone zone, does not support the non-indegenous forms of materiality and construction and one might see a lot of damaged structures over a period of time. The vernacular techniques on the other hand, have aseismic properties and can withstand earthquakes with minor damages. This thesis is about an extensive research and the re-introduction of the vernacular methods of construction and materiality to help the people of Bir build their own homes that can coexist in today’s world. This proposal will allow the villagers to build their own homes with materials that are found on site, making it economically viable and aesthetically pleasing."

*Keywords: vernacular architecture, sustainable design, natural resources, local resources, indigenous materials, local craftsmanship, sustainable lifestyle, animal husbandry, natural building

CHAIR: Varland, Julie Rogers

Madson, Ryan

Jackson, Scott

English

Architecture

Text

PDF : 145 pages, illustrations (some color), maps, plans

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